2006 Toyota Highlander

Problems, recalls and owner-reported issues

Service brakes is the leading concern among 277 owner complaints filed for this model year. This is the 7th highest complaint count among 25 Highlander model years with reports.

Complaints by model year
  1. 277

Of the 2006 reports, 29 involved a crash and 4 involved a fire. 30 people were injured and 1 person died.

Primary concernService brakes101 reports · 36% of complaints
Owner complaints277Filed with NHTSA
Recall relationship7 safety recallsNHTSA campaign records

What owners report most often

  1. Service brakes101
  2. Vehicle speed control43
  3. Electrical system26
  4. Hydraulic23
  5. Power train22
  6. Engine and engine cooling21
  7. Engine19
  8. Steering16

Recalls and investigations

  1. Seats, front assembly, seat heater/coolerJun 2, 2016

    Southeast Toyota Distributors, LLC (SET) is recalling certain 2005-2011 4Runner, Highlander, Sequoia, and Sienna, 2005-2010 Avalon and Tundra, 2006-2008 Camry Solara, 2006-2010 Highlander hybrid, 2006-2011 Rav4 and Tacoma, 2007-2010 FJ Cruiser, 2007-2011 Camry hybrid, 2009-2010 Venza, 2010-2012 Prius, 1988-1990 and 2005-2010 Camry, and 1989 and 2009-2010 Corolla vehicles equipped with aftermarket accessory seat heaters with a copper strand heating element. The electrical wiring in the seat heaters may be damaged when the seat cushion is compressed.

    If damaged, the copper strand heating element may short circuit, increasing the risk of a fire.

    SET will notify owners, and dealers will disconnect the seat heaters, free of charge, and refund the purchase price of the seat heater accessory. The recall began on July 14, 2016. Owners may contact SET customer service at 1-866-405-4226. SET number for this recall is SET16B.

    Campaign 16V396000 on NHTSA.gov

  2. Seats, front assembly, seat heater/coolerNov 19, 2014

    Southeast Toyota Distributors, LLC (SET) is recalling certain model year 2010-2011 Prius and Corolla, 2009-2011 Venza, 2006-2010 Avalon, 2007-2010 FJ Cruiser, 2005-2011 Sienna and Sequoia, 2006-2011 Tacoma 4x2 and 4x4, Camry, Highlander, Tundra 4x2 and 4x4, and 2007-2011 Rav4 and 4Runner. The affected vehicles may experience compression of the seat cushion which may damage the seat heater wiring.

    Damage to the seat heater wiring could cause the wires to short, increasing the risk of the seat burning and causing personal injury to the occupant.

    SET will notify owners, and dealers will disconnect the heaters with copper strand heating elements and refund the purchase price of the seat heater accessory, free of charge. The recall is expected to began in January 2015. Owners may contact SET customer service at 1-866-405-4226.

    Campaign 14V743000 on NHTSA.gov

  3. Vehicle speed control, accelerator pedalFeb 24, 2011

    TOYOTA IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2004-2006 HIGHLANDER, HIGHLANDER HYBRID, AND MODEL YEAR 2004-2007 LEXUS RX330, RX350, AND RX400H VEHICLES. IF THE FORWARD RETENTION CLIP USED TO SECURE THE FLOOR CARPET COVER, WHICH IS LOCATED IN FRONT OF THE CENTER CONSOLE, IS NOT INSTALLED PROPERLY THE COVER MAY LEAN TOWARD THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL AND INTERFERE WITH THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL ARM.

    IF THIS OCCURS, THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL MAY TEMPORARILY BECOME STUCK IN A PARTIALLY DEPRESSED POSITION RATHER THAN RETURN TO THE IDLE POSITION. A STUCK ACCELERATOR PEDAL MAY RESULT IN UNINTENDED AND SUSTAINED VEHICLE SPEEDS AND MAKE IT DIFFICULT TO STOP, INCREASING THE RISK OF A VEHICLE CRASH.

    DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE FLOOR CARPET COVER WITH A NEWLY DESIGNED ONE FREE OR CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL IS EXPECTED TO BEGIN DURING MARCH 2011. OWNERS MAY CONTACT TOYOTA AT 1-800-331-4331.

    Campaign 11V112000 on NHTSA.gov

  4. Service brakes, hydraulic, foundation components, master cylinderOct 21, 2010

    TOYOTA IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2005-2006 AVALON, MODEL YEAR 2004-2006 HIGHLANDER, MODEL YEAR 2004-2006 LEXUS RX, AND MODEL YEAR 2006 LEXUS GS AND IS VEHICLES. BRAKE FLUID CONTAINING POLYMERS IS USED THAT ACTS AS LUBRICANTS FOR CERTAIN BRAKE SYSTEM COMPONENTS. IF REPLACEMENT BRAKE FLUID IS USED THAT DOES NOT CONTAIN SUCH POLYMERS, OR THAT CONTAINS ONLY SMALL AMOUNTS, A PART OF THE RUBBER SEAL LOCATED AT THE REAR OF THE BRAKE MASTER CYLINDER MAY BECOME DRY, AND THE SEAL MAY CURL DURING MOVEMENT OF THE PISTON. IF THIS OCCURS, A SMALL AMOUNT OF BRAKE FLUID COULD SLOWLY LEAK FROM THE SEAL INTO THE BRAKE BOOSTER.

    A LEAK OF BRAKE FLUID COULD LEAD TO A CHANGE IN BRAKE PEDAL FEEL AND OVERTIME A DEGRADATION IN BRAKING PERFORMANCE INCREASING THE RISK OF A CRASH.

    DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE SEAL WITH A NEWLY DESIGNED ONE. THIS SERVICE WILL BE PERFORMED FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON NOVEMBER 15, 2010. OWNERS MAY CONTACT TOYOTA AT 1-800-331-4331 AND LEXUS AT 1-800-255-3987.

    Campaign 10V499000 on NHTSA.gov

  5. Equipment, other, labelsFeb 3, 2010

    SOUTHEAST TOYOTA IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2005-2011 PASSENGER VEHICLES FOR FAILING TO COMPLY WITH THE REQUIREMENTS OF FEDERAL MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY STANDARD NO. 110, "TIRE SELECTION AND RIMS." THESE VEHICLES WERE SOLD WITHOUT THE REQUISITE LOAD CARRYING CAPACITY MODIFICATION LABELS.

    A DRIVER MAY OVERLOAD A VEHICLE WHICH MAY INCREASE THE RISK OF A CRASH.

    DEALERS WILL MAIL TO CONSUMERS THE CORRECTED LABEL OR THE CUSTOMER WILL HAVE THE OPTION FOR DEALERS TO INSTALL THE LABEL FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON MAY 27, 2010. OWNERS MAY CONTACT SOUTHEAST TOYOTA AT 1-800-301-6859.

    Campaign 10V036000 on NHTSA.gov

  6. Equipment, other, labelsFeb 3, 2010

    GULF STATES TOYOTA IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2005-2010 VEHICLES FOR FAILING TO COMPLY WITH THE REQUIREMENTS OF FEDERAL MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY STANDARD NO. 110, "TIRE SELECTION AND RIMS." THESE VEHICLES WERE SOLD BETWEEN SEPTEMBER 1, 2005 AND JUNE 2, 2008 WITHOUT THE REQUISITE LOAD CARRYING CAPACITY MODIFICATION LABELS.

    THIS DOES NOT MEET THE STANDARD REQUIREMENTS.

    DEALERS WILL MAIL TO CONSUMERS THE CORRECTED LABEL OR THE CUSTOMER WILL HAVE THE OPTION FOR DEALERS TO INSTALL THE LABEL FREE OF CHARGE. DEALERS WILL ALSO CORRECT THE OWNER'S MANUAL. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON MAY 27, 2010. OWNERS MAY CONTACT GULF STATES TOYOTA AT 713-580-3300.

    Campaign 10V035000 on NHTSA.gov

  7. Equipment, other, labelsJun 15, 2009

    TOYOTA IS RECALLING 27,080 MODEL YEAR 2005 THROUGH 2010 PASSENGER CARS BUILT FROM SEPTEMBER 1, 2005 TO MAY 4, 2009. THESE VEHICLES WERE NOT EQUIPPED WITH LOAD CARRYING CAPACITY MODIFICATION LABELS WHICH FAILS TO CONFORM WITH THE REQUIREMENTS OF FEDERAL MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY STANDARD NO. 110, "TIRE SELECTION AND RIMS."

    INCORRECT LOAD CARRYING CAPACITY MODIFICATION LABELS COULD RESULT IN THE VEHICLE BEING OVERLOADED, INCREASING THE RISK OF A CRASH.

    TOYOTA WILL NOTIFY OWNERS AND PROVIDE THEM WITH A NEW, ACCURATE LABEL TO BE INSTALLED OVER THE INACCURATE LABEL FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON AUGUST 18, 2009. OWNERS MAY CONTACT TOYOTA AT 1-888-270-9371.

    Campaign 09V223000 on NHTSA.gov

Representative owner complaints: service brakes

101 reports, newest first. Show all

  1. Service brakes, Sep 12, 2026

    The Antilock Braking Actuator has failed. This seems to be a known issue and was already recalled on the Toyota Camry. Toyota sells the part for $1500 locally and labor will be added to that as well - which will put the cost of replacing this critical part almost above the current value of the vehicle. This is a safety issue if I lose braking capability. It has not yet catastrophically failed, but is making a buzzing sound which is the indication of this unit losing brake fluid pressure and trying to keep the brake booster pump running to restore the pressure. The booster pump will burn out, possibly catch fire and/or blow the fuse and then the braking will loose power assist, and with unit in place....that makes braking almost impossible as it is NOT a typical brake system, all fluid goes through this failed module and without the electronic boost assist, one can not press the pedal hard enough to engage the brakes.

  2. Service brakes, Sep 1, 2026

    The ABS/Brake Actuator is going out. There is a stuttering as I'm coming to a stop, but when I brake from normal speeds to slow down, there is no stutter/vibration. Only when I'm going very slow and about to stop the car is when I feel a vibration/stutter in the vehicle. When pressing the brakes all the way down, there is a weird chirping/clicking noise that comes from under the hood towards the passenger side of the car. I do not have and did not get any warning lights about this, even still I don't have any. I have taken it to 2 mechanic shops now and they both have diagnosed the brake/ABS actuator failing.

  3. Service brakes, Aug 5, 2026

    ABS actuator/accumulator issue on 2006 Toyota Highlander hybrid limited. Internal component failure there are recalls on others but not this particular year. Was driving along hit the brakes and got hard pedal. Yes there were other indicator lights on including the VSC system and traction control I came to an intersection and I couldn't stop I couldn't even kind of stop it was all hard pedal were before it was normal as if there wasn't an issue. I've done a lot of research and I've seen a lot of forums and people are complaining that Toyota isn't backing this problem my 2006 Toyota is in perfect condition not a single problem except for this break issue and if you take it to Toyota the park cost $2,200 in about roughly over $5,000 to fix it well who wants to put that kind of money into a car of that year the problem is it's just a shame and a safety deal that it put my family's life at risk we could have crashed it if I wasn't an actual driver by trade I wouldn't have known how to react in other families could be harmed in this. It's worth looking into I did not need to make her police report because I veered off into a field that saved my family's life. As of now I'm hoping to open a recall campaign and just have that part replaced I could have a car that could drive another 100,000 miles and give and keepToyota good name

  4. Service brakes, Hydraulic, Jul 1, 2026

    The contact owns a 2006 Toyota Highlander. The contact stated that while driving approximately 60 MPH, the vehicle failed to decelerate while the brake pedal was depressed. The contact stated that excessive pressure was needed on the brake pedal to stop the vehicle. The ABS and ESC warning lights were illuminated. In addition, there was an abnormal sound coming from underneath the vehicle. The vehicle was towed to a local independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed and determined that the ABS unit needed to be replaced. The vehicle was towed to another independent mechanic for a second opinion, and it was confirmed that the ABS unit needed to be replaced. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer, where it was diagnosed and determined that the brake actuator needed to be upgraded. The vehicle was diagnosed, and parts were ordered for the repair. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 195,000.

  5. Service brakes, Jan 12, 2026

    My 2006 Toyota Highlander Hybrid Limited has an ABS fault that has caused my vehicle to undergo several maintenance issues and poses a serious safety hazard. My vehicle has less than 150,000, and over the course of the last year, my ABS light, my emergency brake light, my TSC light, and my tire pressure sensor light have all come on and refuse to go away. Additionally, the maintenance light, along with a "CHECK VSC SYSTEM" message has been on my dash for months and will not reset. My ABS has been making an intermittent buzzing sound that cycles every ten seconds when my car is on. That has been going one since shortly before the lights. When the lights came on, I noticed a serious change in my braking. The pedal would become spongy one moment and rock solid the next, or my car would brake intensely with the lightest pressure or require my foot basically to the floor to stop it. This has caused a serious issue for the safety of myself and my family. After using and OBDII scanner with ABS capabilities, the codes I received point to the ABS assembly failing to retain pressure, hence the persistent cycling to compensate for it loosing pressure. This was confirmed after the battery voltage/connection, relays, fuses, and speed sensors had all been tested. After doing further research, several other owners of similar configurations to mine share the same issue. My dashboard even makes an incredibly distracting ringing noise that can only be stopped by removing all the fuses and relays to the ABS entirely. This has not been caused as a lack of proper maintenance as this vehicle has only been in my possession for the past 3 years, of which before it came from the Toyota dealership. The dealership wants over $3,000 to fix the issue, and the part alone is $1,850 since the part has been discontinued. This fix costs more than the car is worth given its age and mileage. During any inclement weather, or in traffic, the car is unpredictable in how hard it might brake.

  6. Service brakes, Dec 26, 2025

    Toyota’s part number 44050-48190 brake actuator assembly failed, as it has in other models and is very commonly doing in the Highlander model. It is triggering other warning lights issues in the vehicle. Vehicle safety is at risk. Many others have reported the same issue.

  7. Service brakes, Engine, Aug 13, 2025

    I was on the interstate driving about 72 mph when the car just shut off all the dash lights came on and the dash it said check hybrid system I had no brakes or steering I got it off the road turned it off and back on again it started up and I drove it home but the dash still displayed check hybrid system , a week later I get in it to go to work and there’s an alarm that won’t cut off and the abs , traction control and brake light and warning light and tire pressure light are all on and the brakes are hard and there’s a weird noise coming from somewhere when u push on the brake and it says check VSC system on the dash now

  8. Service brakes, May 23, 2025

    The vehicle suffers from an ABS module failure. I've been researching that this is common problem with the Toyota Highlander Hybrid and presents a danger of failing brakes while driving. My brakes partially failed with my [XXX] son in the car. When attempting to stop, I had no hydraulic pressure and luckily was able to get the vehicle stopped after the car had regained some pressure. The vehicle had been running for several minutes, so it wasn't related to a fresh start and the system not having time to pressurize, if that's a thing. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

  9. Service brakes, Mar 16, 2025

    The brakes on my 06 Highlander hybrid AWD have been finicky at best since I’ve owned the vehicle. The car lunges forward when braking, all the way until a complete stop. While driving at around 55 MPH a medium sized dog ran out into the road. I braked hard but the brakes just lunging and trying to stop. At one point feels like it’s not braking anymore and just hope to veer out of the way. This can be fatal not only to the driver but to others driving as well. The fact that people are still having this issue, and Toyota hasn’t come up with a proper long term solution speaks to how much Toyota cares about its customer bases’ safety. It is honestly disgusting that people have had accidents and may have fatal and Toyota continues to not care. Please urge Toyota to look into this further and attempt to fix this permanently!

  10. Service brakes, Dec 21, 2024

    Car is lunging forward while braking.I just had to put a new abs module and pump on the vehicle which was very expensive.Since I know there was a recall but I was not notified.Is there a way to get toyota to pay for the new pump and module ?

  11. Power train, Other or unspecified, Service brakes, Jul 12, 2024

    Two problems being reported are severe safety issues, and could result in injury, death, and/or property damage. Problem 1: While driving, the brake pedal suddenly went all the way to the floor, and the car would not stop. To avoid hitting the car in front at a stop sign, I had to turn the wheel, resulting in running through the stop sign and onto the grass and shoulder before the car finally stopped. Multiple dashboard warning lights appeared. After stopping, the brakes momentarily returned but failed again within 2-3 minutes. A loud, high-pitched, piercing whistle sound began, indicating a complete loss of brakes. The car had to be towed 200 miles back home. It is not safe to drive the car without functioning brakes. The OBD scan codes are: C1256 (accumulator low pressure), C1391 (abnormal leak of accumulator pressure), and C1256 (accumulator low pressure). Problem 2: When starting the car, the brakes are applied first, and then the car is placed in gear. The car involuntarily and immediately jumps forward or backward and continues to move, even though the brakes are being applied. Having the foot on the brakes has NO EFFECT on the car moving! The car should not move at all when the brakes are being applied. To stop the movement, I must quickly pump the brakes repeatedly. This occurs every time the car is placed into gear after starting the engine, causing it to jump forward or backward and continue moving despite brake application. Both problems are severe safety issues, and could result in injury, death, or property damage.

  12. Service brakes, Feb 17, 2024

    The ABS Module on the vehicle continually go bad. A newly never used one was purchased 2yrs 4 months ago. A genuine Toyota part ($1300) and it has already gone bad. This is causing safety issues as the brakes make a loud thumping sound when pressed. The car also starts rolling in reverse when turned on if the engine hasn’t started as yet.

  13. Service brakes, Oct 19, 2023

    Over 2 year ago our 2006 Highlander Hybrid began making a series of noises when depressing the brake pedal when in park and in motion. Dashboard screen are showing Check ABS, Check VSC System, Check Brake System and Brake Malfunction, and Errors. The noise would get louder and last longer and took longer distance to slow or stop. The shop asked for over $3000 that I don't have to fix so I drive it less and less. Please help if possible.

  14. Service brakes, May 11, 2023

    The past couple months the Brakes have been acting up. Changed brakes and rotors to only find out that my brake pump or actuator are faulty and a known issue for highlanders yet my vehicle had no recalls

  15. Service brakes, May 9, 2023

    The Brake Actuator on many Toyota Hybdrid and Lexus Hybrid models fails prematurely leading to a unsafe situation with virtually no braking. Toyota extedend the warranty on the item however there are many cars which didn't qualify for the repalcement and are still failing. This should have been a recall rather a warranty extension. This Brake Actuator fails because of a design flaw, it has been since redesigned. The part istself is priced by Toyota at about $2000 in addition to installation labor that can run in thouands depending on the Toyota model.

  16. Service brakes, Apr 3, 2023

    When braking, apparently when the vehicle transitions from regenerative braking to hydraulic braking, there is a brief total loss of braking force and a noticeable sense of acceleration before the hydraulic brakes begin to grab and slow the vehicle resulting in an unanticipated increase in stopping distance and causing a near collision as my vehicle went several feet past the stop line into an active intersection due to this defect.

  17. Power train, Service brakes, Oct 5, 2022

    Power brakes stopped working while driving due to bad brake actuator. Vehicle shut down while driving due to power train system.

  18. Service brakes, May 22, 2022

    My electric brake computer thu a code C1256 & C1391, ABS Brake Actuator Failure. Not regular maintenance item. No code ever thrown til this time. Major people killer when it fails. My experience was during a rain storm, lost all brakes for maybe 1-2 seconds. Felt like you were on ice. No control, No ABS. Then code and lights on dash lit up. I limped home worried I had no brakes or some brakes. Scared me and my family completely. Now car sits in driveway afraid to drive. I went to dealer, they read the codes and found 2 codes present. C1256 and C1391, ABS Brake Actuator FAILURE, needs to be replaced for SAFE Operation of car. Why isn’t this Brake Actuator under warranty? Excessive mileage? How would you know it was bad if you NEVER got the “CODE” as per Toyota Corporation.

  19. Service brakes, Jan 7, 2022

    Brake Actuator Assembly is a known issue with several Toyota models including my Hylander Hybrid. Toyota tried to address these actuator issues by extending the warranty coverage for the Brake Actuator Assembly on a limited basis, however; there is not an actual recall for this when there obviously should be. Thousands of customers are left with unknowingly driving vehicles that are not safe and for those that have had their brakes fail (and survive) are left with $3,000-$4,500 in repair bills to resolve these issues. In April 2021, I noticed odd purging-like sounds while stopped at stop signs or red lights when the brakes were engaged. This concerned me so, I had our local Toyota dealership check out our highlander but they said there was nothing wrong with the vehicle and we assumed they knew what they were talking about so we went about our business. Unfortunately, some months later while driving hundreds of miles from our home, the Check VSC light, ABS, Brake, and one other dash warning lights came on and the purging sound became much louder. Lucky for us, the brakes still worked enough to stop the vehicle. An official recall would have facilitated our local Toyota Dealer Service Dept in alerting us about these issues before we were put in a dangerous situation. Our Hylander is currently being worked on at our local Toyota Dealership. A guy in the service department is how we found out about the Toyota Customer Support Program that outlines the brake actuator shortcomings/failures. The service dept. manager's exact words were "it's like a recall but it's not an official recall". Here is a video I found on the Toyota Nation website where this gentleman's wife had her brakes fail and hit a car in a parking lot. Thank god she was not injured! https://youtu.be/mn_xs6k8_H4 Ultimately, all Toyota models with these faulty brake components should be recalled!!

  20. Service brakes, Nov 4, 2021, crash

    I was driving the car then as I hit the brakes it felt like they were not engaging until I applied more pressure. Then as I was almost home the abs and traction control lights came on. Took it to a specialist and they said that the abs module would have to be replaced. There are tons of people apparently with my same year and model with the same concern

  21. Service brakes, Sep 23, 2021

    ABS Control Module. Yes could be made available for review. A few years ago, a diagnostic showed the ABS Control Module as bad (it started buzzing is what made us get it checked). Toyota replaced it, but there was still buzzing after the service, from a NEW part!? I strongly expressed this to Toyota since it still seemed like an issue to me, but they told me nothing could be done unless the computer said it was bad or if there was a recall. The buzzing continued to get worse and does it almost all the time now, and finally the ABS light came on, sometimes it will make an alert noise, and the vehicle will not brake properly (with the brake pedal feeling very firm), so apparently now that the ABS light is on, a diagnostic showed it bad again. I have researched to find many other people experiencing this same issue with this part going bad AND continuing to quickly go bad even after replacing, and I have been advised the danger of this, for if it goes out while driving, you cannot brake like normal and cause an accident. If a brand new part was making the same buzzing noise when the previous part did not used to make that noise, then something seems very wrong! And this is very much a safety issue if your brakes suddenly stop working like they are supposed to! Please help! I appreciate your time. Thank you!

  22. Steering, Service brakes, Aug 24, 2021

    In the last 4 weeks my 06 Highlander Hybrid has had malfunctions in the brakes and in the power steering. Both issues rendering the car inoperable. The first issue that was to arise was the brake actuator pump. I noticed it was failing when i got in the vehicle to move it out of the driveway and noticed after i put the car in gear that their was no power brake assist. When the car was shifted into drive the car began rolling even while i was pushing hard on the brakes. Luckily the brake assist resumed and i did not run into anything but the car unintentionally moved about 5 feet. I mentioned this to my wife, and she said while driving home one day the car made a high pitched buzz. She was close to home, so she made it home and parked the car and forgot about the noise. After the car was turned back on again no noise was made and no CEL or warnings were displayed. The actuator was replaced, and the car operated fine for about one week and probably 40 miles of driving. I want to mention I had noted a odd feeling in the brakes for years leading up the the failure. The brake pedal would continue to the floor while trying to maintain constant pressure on the brakes. I believe this is due to the actuator losing pressure, but it would cause an uneasy sensation of failing brakes, but no CEL's were ever triggered. The new actuator fixed this. After fixing the car we drove it on a few trips. Yesterday 8/24/21 my wife went to drive the car, and it wouldn't start. She tried about 10 times and it wouldn't turn on. I put a battery charger on the car and the battery looked okay. I tried to start it a few time probably 5 and finally got the READY light, so the car was ready to go, but all of a sudden the car would shut off and the READY light would go out and the P/S light would come on. This light is triggered when something is wrong with the power steering system, and the computer will disable the vehicle. The car immobile now. These are worth recalling.

  23. Service brakes, Jul 3, 2021, crash

    3 accidents all rear end due to brakes ( brake pump/brake actuator failure) not safe.

  24. Electrical system, Service brakes, Forward collision avoidance, Jul 1, 2021

    The dashboard on my Highlander Hybrid 2006 (AWD) had all its check lights on suddenly. I was not driving then. The car was in my parking lot for a few hours before which it had no signs on. The warning message said: Vehicle Stability Control (VSC). I took it to my nearest Toyota service center for diagnosing the issue. They reported that the ABS systems have started to fail. Specifically, the ABS actuator is losing pressure and should be replaced. They quoted a price of $2700 approx. which includes about $2000 for parts. Turns out that this same part had been replaced in 2016 during a recall - but they cannot attend to this again without charging the customer. What I was never told about was that a whirring sound - which has always been an issue with this car - was always from the ABS actuator. The same service center has checked and diagnosed this car multiple times - so I am surprised that they did not find the ABS actuator noise a problem on earlier occasions. I have been reading about this on this forum and Toyotanation and this seems to be a consistent issue with the older Toyota hybrid highlanders and other hybrids as well - with the same diagnosis and approximately the same price quoted by the service centers. I have not currently fixed this issue since I cannot afford this price. It also seems that I will be paying for manufacturer's or service center's negligence since this actuator seemed to be faulty all along and I was not warned about this.

  25. Service brakes, Hydraulic, Jul 1, 2021

    The contact owns a 2006 Toyota Highlander. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the brake pedal had to be pumped several times to stop the vehicle. The contact stated that the ABS warning light and several other unknown warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The manufacturer was informed of the failure but offered no assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 175,000.