2018 Toyota Highlander
Problems, recalls and owner-reported issues
Power train is the leading concern among 266 owner complaints filed for this model year. This is the 10th highest complaint count among 25 Highlander model years with reports.
Of the 2018 reports, 23 involved a crash and 1 involved a fire. 25 people were injured.
What owners report most often
Recalls and investigations
Fuel system, gasoline, delivery, fuel pumpNov 4, 2020
Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2018-2019 4Runner, 2019-2020 Avalon, 2019 Corolla Hatchback, 2017-2019 Highlander, 2018-2020 Camry, 2020 Corolla, 2018-2019 Land Cruiser, 2017-2020 Tacoma, 2019-2020 RAV4, 2019-2020 Sequoia, 2017-2020 Sienna, 2019-2020 Tundra, 2018-2020 Lexus ES350, 2017 Lexus GS200t, 2017-2019 Lexus GS350, 2019 Lexus GS300, 2018-2020 Lexus LC500h, 2019-2020 Lexus LS500, 2018-2019 Lexus GX460, 2017 Lexus IS200t, 2019 Lexus IS300, 2019 Lexus IS350, 2018-2020 Lexus LC500, 2018 Lexus LS500, 2019 Lexus LS500h, 2018-2019 Lexus LX570, 2017 Lexus RC200t, 2019 Lexus RC300, RC350, 2017 and 2019-2020 Lexus RX350, 2018-2020 RX350L, 2019 Lexus UX200, 2018-2019 Lexus NX300 vehicles. The low-pressure fuel pump inside the fuel tank may fail.
If the fuel pump fails, the engine can stall while driving, increasing the risk of a crash.
Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will replace the fuel pump assembly with an improved one, free of charge. Owners of specific models were notified that remedy parts were available starting January 21, 2021. Owners of other models will be notified as remedy parts become available. Remedy parts should be available for all affected vehicles by late March 2021. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-888-270-9371 or Lexus customer service at 1-800-255-3987. Note: This recall is an expansion of recall 20V-012. Toyota's number for this recall is 20TA02. Lexus' number for this recall is 20LA01.
Campaign 20V682000 on NHTSA.gov
Fuel system, gasoline, delivery, fuel pumpJan 13, 2020
Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) recalled certain 2018-2019 4Runner, Highlander, Camry, Land Cruiser, Sequoia, Sienna, Tacoma and Tundra, and Lexus RC 300, RC 350, GS 350, GX 460, IS 300, LC 500, LS 500, LX 570, RX 350L, and 2019 Toyota Avalon and Corolla, and certain Lexus NX 300, and ES 350 vehicles on January 13, 2020. On March 4, 2020, Toyota expanded the recall to include certain 2014-2015 Toyota 4Runner and Land Cruiser, 2018 Avalon, Corolla, 2014 FJ Cruiser, 2017 Sienna and Lexus 2018 ES 350, 2018-2019 GS 300, 2013-2014 GS350, 2014-2015 GX 460, IS 350 and LX 570, 2014 IS F, 2018-2019 IS 350, LC 500H and LS 500H, 2013-2015 LS 460, 2015 NX 200T and RC350, 2017 RC 200T and RX 350. Toyota also removed the 2018-2019 Toyota 4Runner and Land Cruiser and 2018-2019 Lexus GX 460 and LX 570 and 2019 NX300 from inclusion in this recall. On March 19, 2020, Toyota expanded the recall to include 2015 Lexus GS350 vehicles. The low-pressure fuel pump inside the fuel tank may fail.
If the fuel pump fails, the engine can stall while driving, increasing the risk of a crash.
Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will replace the fuel pump, free of charge. The recall began May 4, 2020. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-888-270-9371 or Lexus customer service at 1-800-255-3987. Toyota's numbers for this recall are 20TB02 and 20TA02 for Toyota vehicles and 20LB01 and 20LA01 for Lexus vehicles.
Campaign 20V012000 on NHTSA.gov
Electrical systemNov 27, 2018
Fujian Wanda Automobile Glass Industry (Wanda) is recalling certain aftermarket Replacement Windshields sold for use in 2014-2018 Toyota Highlander vehicles. The windshields have an attached wire harness that water may leak into, possibly causing damage to the vehicle's Engine Control Module (ECM).
The ECM damage may result in the engine stalling, increasing the risk of a crash.
Wanda will notify owners, and service centers will replace the windshields, and inspect the ECM for damage, having it replaced, as necessary, free of charge. The recall began January 29, 2019. Owners may contact Wanda customer service at 1-864-281-2760.
Campaign 18E107000 on NHTSA.gov
Service brakes, hydraulic, power assist, vacuumApr 3, 2018
Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2018 Toyota Camry and Highlander vehicles, 2017 Toyota Sienna and Tacoma vehicles and 2017 Lexus RX350 vehicles. During the manufacturing process, the oil galley in the rotor for the brake booster vacuum pump assembly may have been improperly machined possibly resulting in a sudden loss of brake assist.
A sudden loss of braking assist can increase the risk of a crash.
Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will replace the brake booster vacuum pump, free of charge. The recall began on May 9, 2018. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-888-270-9371, or Lexus customer service at 1-800-255-3987. Toyota's numbers for this recall are J0K/JLD.
Campaign 18V211000 on NHTSA.gov
Equipment, other, labelsDec 20, 2017
Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2017-2018 Toyota 4Runner and Tundra, 2018 Toyota Highlander, RAV4 and Lexus GX460 and 2017 Toyota Sienna and Tacoma vehicles. These vehicles may have incorrect load carrying capacity modification labels. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 110, "Tire Selection and Rims."
An incorrect load information label can result in the operator overloading the vehicle and increasing the risk of a crash.
Toyota will notify owners and provide them with corrected labels, free of charge. The recall began on January 23, 2018. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-800-331-4331. Toyota's numbers for this recall are H0Z for Toyota vehicles, and HLF for Lexus vehicles.
Campaign 17V831000 on NHTSA.gov
Representative owner complaints: air bags
19 reports, newest first. Show all
Air bags, Apr 14, 2026, crash
The contact owned a 2018 Toyota Highlander. The contact stated that while driving at 35 MPH, occupied with her children in the rear passenger seats, the contact was attempting to merge onto the intersection, and a state trooper failed to yield at 55-60 MPH vehicle crashed into the front driver's side of the vehicle, causing the whole front end of the vehicle to detach from the vehicle. The contact stated that no air bags were deployed in her vehicle. The contact stated that she and her children sustained injuries, however under direct legal advice, she cannot disclose this information. Medical attention was required. The contact stated that a police report was filed. The contact mentioned the vehicle was towed to a collision center where it was declared destroyed. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 140,000.
Air bags, Jan 24, 2024, crash
My son and his friends were involved in a collision and the air bags did not deploy
Air bags, Structure, Service brakes, Dec 29, 2023, crash
10/10 Tapped pedal into Drive: Toyota Highlander 2018 Car sped off at 50mph with my foot on brake for 3 minutes Holding brake down and down-shifting did nothing Vehicle stopped when it hit a pole destroying passenger-side fender and bumper Airbag did not deploy Unintended acceleration/sticky pedal as reported early this century when Toyota recalled 80,000 vehicles. On 11/17/2023 an ER or Black Box four hour test/investigation was performed and I was told I would have results 12/28. Zero! When I telephone to report I was supposed to have EDR test results in 30 days, the operator (not the unreachable quality control personnel) tells me, "Well review of your crash results could take longer than 30 days." need to have a safe car to drive to work but this one has a potentially deadly defect. I have completed the inspection of your vehicle. Inspection report from Bosch to Toyota below: Please find three files attached to this email: 1) EDR FAQ_2.0.PDF "Frequently Asked Questions" related to the information in the Event Data Recorder (the Air Bag Control unit's digital memory). 2) [XXX]_ACM.PDF The Event Data from your vehicle in PDF form, this file will open on your computer. 3) [XXX]_ACM.CDRx This file contains the same information as Item #2, but it is a special format that will not display on your computer. It is sent to you so you will have the raw data for the #2 file above. I am not trained to interpret this data for you. The engineers will interpret this data and respond to you with their findings within 30 business days. 3 Attachments • Scanned by Gmail INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Air bags, Vehicle speed control, Service brakes, Nov 24, 2023, crash
My relatives remembered the 2002-2011 recall of 80,000 Toyotas, 90 deaths due to unintended acceleration and said that seems exactly what happened to me last month. NEAR FATAL COLLISION DUE TO STICKY PEDAL 2018 Toyota Highlander 10/10 Slowly backed out of parking space in large, empty commercial lot: sunny day, 3pm Tapped pedal into Drive Car sped off at 50+mph with my foot off pedal Sped around lot for approximately 3minutes Holding brake down and down-shifting did nothing except cause sheer terror with my uncontrollable vehicle Hit pole and vehicle came to a stop after near-complete destruction of passenger-side bumper No injury except sheer mental terror No witnesses DO NOT Blame the victim. Dealer says all-weather floormat could never have been or be involved.
Air bags, Aug 14, 2023, crash
Was hit in the side in passenger door, which pushed my car off the road and hit a tree head on going approximately 40 mph. NO Airbags deployed anywhere in the car. I took pictures of entire interior and also a video showing no airbag deployment. Police, fire and first responders and completely shocked that no airbags deployed. Injuries occurred, thank fully no life threatening. However had the airbags deployed as they should have, and why we chose to buy this vehicle in the first place, those injuries could have been minimalized. If you need any additional info, please let me know. Toyota needs to be made aware of this.
Electrical system, Air bags, Aug 10, 2023
S.R.S malfunction error message due to open circuit in the left front door harness. Active DTC (S) B1697 code which is related to lost communication with side airbag sensor LH is present in the vehicle. Toyota is refusing to address the issue because it is not part of a covered warranty and there are no open recall on this issue. This is a safety issue in that in the event of an accident, the airbag will not deploy which could be catastrophic.
Air bags, Seat belts, Jun 11, 2023, crash
I was involved In a rear collision that then pushed me into a front end collision. The airbags and seat belts did not deploy or lock.
Air bags, Oct 19, 2022
UNKNOWN We have had the vehicle for just over 2 years and out of the blue we get a SRS airbag warning indicator that says visit the dealership. The dealership says that it is $2300 to repair a wiring harness that they Are unsure of the location though. The vehicle has 86,000 miles on it which is 26,000 miles over coverage for that part. In my opinion this is the part that should not fill this early and should still be covered. Much less the SRS components should never fail. We are forced to drive with a warning indicator that comes on every five seconds and blocks all the other information.
Air bags, Sep 27, 2022, crash
I was traveling down the road, when a car hit my car in the back passenger door. My car was pushed onto the curb and it hit a tree. My car was totaled and it was a hit and run. The air bags didn't go off and my dad and I were hurt. I reported it to Toyota and the car was put on hold be the insurance company. There were no warning lights and the emergency stop didn't work. the car had 15000 on it and it was inspected in Jan. 2022.
Air bags, Forward collision avoidance, Sep 27, 2022, crash
A car hit me on the back passenger door. My car was pushed to the curb where I hit a tree and the air bags didn't go off. My dad was injured bad.
Air bags, Mar 2, 2021, crash
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2018 TOYOTA HIGHLANDER. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE AT A STANDSTILL, ANOTHER VEHICLE DRIVING AT 50 MPH CRASHED INTO THE FRONT DRIVER SIDE OF VEHICLE. THERE WERE NO WARNING LIGHTS ILLUMINATED AND THE AIR BAGS FAILED TO DEPLOY. THERE WERE 5 INJURED REPORTED AND 3 NEEDED MEDICAL TREATMENT. A POLICE REPORT WAS FILED THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO POLICE LOT. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT INFORMED OF FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 33,000.
Air bags, Aug 30, 2020, crash
SUV WAS IN A CRASH AND HIT A TREE MID FRONT BUMPER WITH SIGNIFICANT DAMAGE TO THE FRONT OF SUV. DAMAGE APPEARS TO BE FROM THE FRONT PASSENGER COMPARTMENT FORWARD. DRIVER WAS WEARING SEATBELT AND NO AIRBAG DEPLOYED OF ANY KIND IN ANY AREA OF THE SUV. DRIVER HIT THE STEERING WHEEL AND WAS INJURED. VEHICLE WAS IN FORWARD MOTION AT AN UNKNOWN RATE OF SPEED . WAITING TO SEE IF SUV WILL BE A TOTAL LOSS VIA INSURANCE COMPANY. COMPONENT SYSTEM THAT APPEARS TO BE S CAUSE OF THIS SAFETY ISSUE IS THE AIR BAG SYSTEM.
Air bags, Service brakes, Feb 28, 2020, crash
SLAMMED ON THE BREAKS AND THE CAR KEPT GOING AND CRASHED INTO ANOTHER CAR INFRONT OF ME. THERE WAS AT LEAST 300 FEET DISTANCE FROM THE TIME I SLAMMED ON THE BREAKS TILL THE CRASH. I WAS GOING ON HIGHWAY ABOUT 50 MPH.
Air bags, Feb 5, 2020, crash
WE WERE INVOLVED IN A MOTOR VEHICLE ACCIDENT ON 01/25/2020 WHERE WE EXPERIENCED A FRONT IMPACT COLLISION, AND THE AIRBAGS DID NOT DEPLOY. WE WERE IN MOTION IN THE LEFT TURNING LANE OF A TWO LANE ROAD, THE ADVERSE VEHICLE PULLED OUT FROM A PARKING LOT ON THE RIGHT, CROSSED TWO LANES OF TRAFFIC RIGHT INTO THE FRONT OF OUR VEHICLE CAUSING US TO COLLIDE. THE FORCE OF THE COLLISION WAS SO HARD THAT THE ENGINE MOUNT ON THE TOP SIDE HAS BROKEN AWAY FROM THE ENGINE, I PROJECTED FORWARD AND MY GLASSES FLEW FROM MY FACE. MY WIFE AND I HAVE BUMPS AND BRUISES, ISSUES WITH OUR BACKS, SHOULDER AND WRIST PAIN. DURING THE IMPPACT THE AIRBAGS FAILED TO DEPLOY. THE INSURANCE ADJUSTER HAS DECLARED THE VEHICLE A TOTAL LOSS. WHEN WE SPOKE WITH THE BODY SHOP THEY STATED THAT THEY COULD NOT BELIEVE THAT THE AIRBAGS DID NOT GO OFF WITH THIS TYPE OF IMPACT.
Air bags, Structure, Jan 29, 2020, crash
I WAS INVOLVED IN A MOTOR VEHICLE ACCIDENT ON 1/28/20 WHERE I SUSTAINED A DIRECT, FRONT IMPACT COLLISION, AND THE AIRBAGS FAILED TO DEPLOY. I WAS IN MOTION ON A CITY STREET, ACCELERATING FORWARD THROUGH A GREEN-LIT INTERSECTION WHEN A LARGE DODGE RAM TRUCK TURNED IN FRONT OF ME CAUSING OUR VEHICLES TO COLLIDE. THE IMPACT WAS SO HEAVY THAT IT CAUSED MY BODY TO PROJECT FORWARD AND UPWARDS. MY SON'S GLASSES FLEW OFF HIS FACE AND ALL CUPS IN CUP HOLDERS FLEW ACROSS THE CAR. MY SON COMPLAINED OF THE SEATBELT HURTING HIS SHOULDER, AND I SUSTAINED BRUISES ON MY LEGS AND ARMS. UPON THIS IMPACT, NO AIRBAGS WERE DEPLOYED. THIS CAR WAS DETERMINED BY THE ADJUSTER TO BE A TOTAL LOSS. THE INSURANCE INVESTIGATOR STATED HE WAS 'SHOCKED' THE AIRBAGS DID NOT DEPLOY ON SUCH A 'GNARLY' COLLISION. THE INSURANCE ADJUSTER REPORTED THAT HE WAS 'FLABBERGASTED' THE AIRBAGS DID NOT DEPLOY DUE TO THE SEVERITY OF THE IMPACT.
Air bags, May 21, 2019
AND LIGHT STAY BLINKING
Air bags, Electronic stability control (ESC), Service brakes, Jul 9, 2018, crash
RECENTLY INVOLVED IN AN ACCIDENT WHEN GOING IN REVERSE. THE SRS ALARM MALFUNCTIONED AND THE AIRBAGS DID NOT DEPLOY. THE REVERSE BRAKING SYSTEM DID NOT INDICATED THAT I WAS CLOSE TO THE OBJECT.
Air bags, Other or unspecified, Service brakes, Jul 2, 2018, crash
I WAS RECENTLY IN A VEHICLE ACCIDENT IN MY 2018 TOYOTA HIGHLANDER WITH THE PRE-COLLISION SYSTEM. THE PRE-COLLISION SYSTEM WAS WORKING WELL THROUGH OUT OUR TRIP BUT UNFORTUNATELY DID NOT WORK WHEN IT WAS MOST NEEDED. WE WERE INVOLVED IN A PILE UP ON INTERSTATE I-5 GOING AT LEAST 45MPH AND NOTICED THAT THE PRE-COLLISION SYSTEM THAT IS SO MUCH BEING ADVERTISED DID NOT WORK AT ALL. THERE WAS NO WARNING WHAT SO EVER AND DEFINITELY DID NOT BREAK ON IT'S OWN AS ADVERTISED. AT THE TIME OF THE HIT THE AIRBAGS DEPLOYED A LITTLE TO LATE AT LEAST THE PASSENGER ONE WHERE I WAS SITTING. I AM AWARE THAT WE SHOULD NOT RELY ON THOSE ITEMS BUT I SURE WISH IT WOULD HAVE WORKED THE WAY IT WAS INTENDED TO DO SO.
Air bags, Electronic stability control (ESC), Fuel/propulsion system, Jun 25, 2018
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