Complaint volume
256 consumer-submitted complaints are matched to this model year. Treat the count as a research signal, then read the actual summaries for repeated symptoms.
Complaint records
2018 Toyota Highlander Complaints
256 consumer-submitted complaints on record for the 2018 Toyota Highlander, grouped by component category.
256 Total complaints
21 Crash reports
1 Fire reports
14 Injury reports
Complaint data reflects consumer-submitted reports. A complaint is not proof
of a defect, recall, or manufacturer fault. Enriched severity fields come
from official bulk records when the complaint can be matched by ODI number.
Buyer interpretation
How to use these complaints before buying
Complaint records are most useful when they turn into inspection points, seller questions, and comparison checks against nearby model years.
Pattern to inspect
The most common categories are power train, service brakes, unknown or other. Use those categories as a test-drive checklist instead of judging the vehicle from the total count alone.
Severity flags
Enriched records include 21 crash reports, 1 fire report, 14 injury reports, and 0 fatality reports. These fields come from complaint records and should be read in context.
Mileage clue
Mileage is available on 110 complaints, with an average reported failure mileage of 34,631 miles. Compare that with the mileage on the listing.
Questions to ask the seller
- Have you had any problems related to power train, service brakes, unknown or other?
- Can I see recent maintenance and repair records?
- Has the vehicle ever been towed, involved in a crash, or repaired for the same issue twice?
- Can we also check the recall record for this 2018 Toyota Highlander?
Used-car checklist
Use these complaints before the test drive.
Build a buyer checklist to turn these issues into questions and inspection points.
2018 Toyota Highlander
Build buyer checklist Compare with other years Sends year, make, and model to pre-fill your checklist.
How severe are the 2018 Toyota Highlander complaints?
21 Crash
1 Fire
14 Injury
0 Fatality
20 Towed
10 Medical attention
What are the most common 2018 Toyota Highlander complaint categories?
POWER TRAIN 49
SERVICE BRAKES 33
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 23
ENGINE 13
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 13
FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE 11
AIR BAGS 9
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 9
STRUCTURE 6
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC 5
256 total complaints on record
Latest complaints
| Date | Component | Summary | Severity | Mileage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 2023 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | I have noticed that the car makes a knocking sound when stopped at signals or in heavy traffic. I have taken my 2018 Highlander LTD many times to the dealer and they cannot hear it nor find anything under the car. This has been going on since I took delivery. The service manager said it might be a bearing going out or a loose bracket (I do not know which bracket he was referring to one as he wasn't sure which bearing). He said just to wait and see if anything else more serious develops...this sounds potentially dangerous to me. The knocking noise still persists to this day. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2023 | SERVICE BRAKES | While traveling down the Rocky Mountains, we experienced a gradual loss of braking. It took extreme pressure on the brake pedal to slow the vehicle. At this point there were no warning lights. Later down the road, the same thing occured again and a BRAKE warning light illuminated. Traffic was light and the incline was slight which prevented an almost certain accident. We limped the vehicle to the dealer. The diagnosis was a Brake Booster failure. This is a 5 year old vehicle with only 57,000 miles! I have never had a booster failure on any vehicle in my life. This booster should be designed to last the life of the vehicle since it is part of such a critical safety system on this vehicle. The failed component was kept by the dealer. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2023 | SERVICE BRAKES | 2018 Toyota Highlander braking power low warning light came on twice. Mechanic determined it is the brake vacuum booster pump which can cause the brakes to fail to stop the vehicle. This was a recall on some of the 2018 manufactured Highlanders but not all. Many are now failing like mine. I have had it replaced luckily before a major accident and serious injury. Toyota knows of issues but will not recall without NJTSA direction EVEN THOUGH CRASHES MAY HAPPEN. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jun 2023 | AIR BAGS,SEAT BELTS | 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. | Crash: Yes Fire: No Injuries: 1 Towed | Unknown |
| May 2023 | SERVICE BRAKES | I was driving about to merge onto the highway and a warning low brake power light started beeping and appeared on the dashboard. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| May 2023 | POWER TRAIN | Hard downshift striking fear! | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| May 2023 | SUSPENSION | UNKNOWN, squeaking in rear when going over bumps and uneven roads | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| May 2023 | SERVICE BRAKES | Braking to stop at a traffic light then all of the sudden the car stalls with Braking Power Low message. The car won't even start for me to pull aside to a safe place. This is the second time this happened within 2 years so I decided to put a complaint in. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Mar 2023 | POWER TRAIN | The transmission had a growling noise at low speeds. The dealer said that a new transmission is needed. Online complaints show that a badly designed transmission is failing very early in this vehicle and a class action lawsuit was filed because of this transmission. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Oct 2022 | AIR BAGS | 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. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Oct 2022 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | The windshield in our 2018 Highlander suffered three cracks before we finally had the windshield replaced. According to the company that performed the repair, we are one of many Highlander customers that have had these issues. We know that rocks were the cause, but the number of incidents appear to be higher than normal. To avoid having another problem, we added a protective coating to our windshield at an additional cost of $600. We assume this to be one of many incidents, and want it to be known that this appears to be a defect in glass specification and/or manufacturing. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Oct 2022 | ENGINE,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM | Engine light came on, took to auto parts store and they checked for the code. Was told it was an issue with the fuel pump/ vacuum. Reset engine light, stopped to fill up with gas and car would not restart. The steering wheel locked and car would not crank. Was jumped off by a bystander, still would not turn over. After sitting for approx 15 minutes, I tried to restart vehicle again and it cranked. One week later, on vacation, car would not start after getting gas. Once again, took it to auto part store and same code and check engine light was on. Reset engine light, drove fine. Once check engine light is on, I am unable to use cruise control, this was very inconvenient since we were traveling! I have had this same issue happen about 5 times now! Making appointment with dealership to see if this weill be covered by my warranty and hopefully it is a simple fix. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Oct 2022 | SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | About6 months ago I started getting the messege "Breaking power low" when i try to start my vehicle. So I took it to Star Toyota Service paid $175 to diagnose the problem. The found DTC 1241 and told me to change the qhole skid control unit. Eventhough on the paper it said skid control ecu battery. So I took it to another dealer named Penn Toyota and they found the same code but they said the voltage is coming low because I may leave my ignition on before I start my vehicle. That sounds funny because I do not do this and on top if i do this my battery would be dead. As of right now I spoke with toyota and since my extended warrenty has finished so they offered my 25% coupon if i fixe the problem. Now I do not know what is the problem and which dealer to trust. The reason I am reporting to "nhtsa" is because if I die because of this problem with my car which is still undiagnosed so at least they can find out the same reason so there will be no more death after me. Again the messege comes on the crean is " Breaking power low. Stop in a safe place " | Crash: No Fire: No | 76,000 |
| Sep 2022 | AIR BAGS,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | 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. | Crash: Yes Fire: No Injuries: 2 Towed Medical attention | Unknown |
| Sep 2022 | AIR BAGS | 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. | Crash: Yes Fire: No Injuries: 2 Towed Medical attention | Unknown |
| Sep 2022 | SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC | The contact owns a 2018 Toyota Highlander. The contact stated that while his wife was driving at an undisclosed speed, the brake pedal was depressed and she experienced a spongy brake pedal. The brake warning light was illuminated and the Power Failure to Brake System message was displayed. Additionally, the vehicle made an abnormal sound while the brake pedal was depressed. The brakes failed to stop the vehicle immediately which nearly caused a collision. The vehicle was towed to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the brake master cylinder needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 18V211000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic) however, the VIN was not included in the recall. The failure mileage was approximately 27,000. | Crash: No Fire: No Towed | 27,000 |
| Aug 2022 | POWER TRAIN,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,UNKNOWN OR OTHER | I have a power steering warning light. Steering is harder than normal. I believe this vehicle is having the same power steering problem that Toyota Tundra and sequoias are having. I want it to be recalled and paid for by the manafacturer. This is ridiculous a well maintained vehicle. | Crash: No Fire: No | 440,000 |
| Aug 2022 | SERVICE BRAKES | Vehicle will not start. "brake pressure low" message appears on instrument panel. The truck will be sent to the dealer. Brakes worked fine previously and brake fluid is at maximum level. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Aug 2022 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE | The contact owns a 2018 Toyota Highlander. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle lost motive power after coming to a full stop at a traffic light. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic and the dealer; however, the mechanic and the dealer were unable to duplicate the failure. The contact related the failure to a faulty Auto Start/Stop feature. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 50,000. | Crash: No Fire: No | 50,000 |
| Jul 2022 | SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | I am having an issue with my brake assist in my 2018 Toyota Highlander. This car was purchased new and has had regular service/ maintenance with the dealership since purchased. 1st incident was minor in nature. My brake was gently applied and the ABS feature turned on and brake system engaged without any need. 2nd incident brake was applied and at the halfway point the brake stopped working. It felt like it locked. I could not stop my car as I was approaching another car. Car stopped at the last possible moment before impact. The situation was extremely dangerous for myself, my kids and the other driver. Later on during my drive I gently applied my brake and the brake would not release to it original position until a few seconds later. This time the brake light came on. Once the car came to a stop, I shifted my gear to park and the brake light disappeared. The car was then sent to a service station for analysis. Service Station advised that there was a hissing sound coming from the front of my engine when the brake was applied. They recommended that I send vehicle back to dealership as they concluded that the car has a brake assist issue. The car was towed to the Toyota dealership where they mentioned that there was a recall for this exact issue however, my specific VIN is not included. I travel everyday with my kids and this is a real safety issue that needs to be addressed. No car should be on the road with faulty breaking systems. This can cause unnecessary loss of life. These vehicles should be included in this recall, especially mine. I filed a case with Toyota and am waiting to hear back from them. Please help make the roadways safe. Consumer stated diagnosis was completed and relayed that there was a brake booster failure. The brake master cylinder and brake booster system will need to be replaced. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jun 2022 | SERVICE BRAKES,ENGINE | Low brake fluid pull over immediately warning ?,vehicle engine shut off would not restart was on highway going 55 mph .Had to get vehicle towed . There was a recall on brake booster but my Vin was not included same model year 2018 | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jun 2022 | SERVICE BRAKES | The car Low Pressure Break pop up and lock the break because of "Low Pressure Vacuum pump" unable to Break crashing into the curve when back up. after stop the car the car wouldn't start up again. | Crash: Yes Fire: No Towed | Unknown |
| May 2022 | POWER TRAIN | Transmission case is porous. Toyota calls transmission oil moving through housing, weeping, not leaking and is not a warranty. Toyota dealers hide the porous condition with a coating. Regular underbody car wash removes the coating. Catastrophic failure possible. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| May 2022 | SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | Approaching a stop light brakes didn’t work. The automatic system activated and the car stopped right before I rear-ended the car in front of me. I took it to a Toyota dealership and they diagnosed a faulty brake booster pump with a price of $2500 to replace. I see this isn’t a unique problem for the 2018 Highlander but after talking with Toyota they denied any coverage since my vehicle has 48,000 miles and is out of warranty. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Apr 2022 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SERVICE BRAKES | Car wouldnt start in garage, it shows error in the dash "Braking Power Low, STOP in a safe place". It looks like several people are having same issue around same time outside of warranty, and on cars not in the original recall. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |