2018 TOYOTA HIGHLANDER — Owner-Reported Problems

NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation Snapshot 2026-08-22 264 complaints · 5 recalls
Most-reported system: POWER TRAIN (54 complaints · 20.5%)
Safety signals:
  • Crashes 23
  • Fires 2
  • Injuries 25
  • Deaths 0
Compare with 2017 →
NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Component Problem Distribution

Share of owner complaints filed for each vehicle system (unaffected by sales volume)

Component Problem Distribution POWER TRAIN appears in 54 of 264 owner complaints (20.5%) in this vehicle snapshot. POWER TRAIN: 54 complaints, 20.5% of reports POWER TRAIN 54 · 20.5% SERVICE BRAKES: 43 complaints, 16.3% of reports SERVICE BRAKES 43 · 16.3% · 4 crash reports FUEL SYSTEM: 28 complaints, 10.6% of reports FUEL SYSTEM 28 · 10.6% ENGINE: 20 complaints, 7.6% of reports ENGINE 20 · 7.6% · 1 fire reports ELECTRICAL SYSTEM: 15 complaints, 5.7% of reports ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 15 · 5.7% AIR BAGS: 10 complaints, 3.8% of reports AIR BAGS 10 · 3.8% · 8 crash reports STRUCTURE: 9 complaints, 3.4% of reports STRUCTURE 9 · 3.4% · 1 crash reports 1 fire reports STEERING: 8 complaints, 3.0% of reports STEERING 8 · 3.0% FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: 6 complaints, 2.3% of reports FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 6 · 2.3% · 2 crash reports UNKNOWN OR OTHER: 81 complaints, 30.7% of reports UNKNOWN OR OTHER 81 · 30.7% · 10 crash reports 1 fire reports 0% 25% 50% 75% 100%

UNKNOWN OR OTHER is an NHTSA classification artifact and is always listed last.

View component data as a table
System / Component Complaints Share of Reports Safety Reports (Crashes / Fires)
POWER TRAIN 54 20.5% 0 crashes · 0 fires
SERVICE BRAKES 43 16.3% 4 crashes · 0 fires
FUEL SYSTEM 28 10.6% 0 crashes · 0 fires
ENGINE 20 7.6% 0 crashes · 1 fires
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 15 5.7% 0 crashes · 0 fires
AIR BAGS 10 3.8% 8 crashes · 0 fires
STRUCTURE 9 3.4% 1 crashes · 1 fires
STEERING 8 3.0% 0 crashes · 0 fires
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 6 2.3% 2 crashes · 0 fires
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 81 30.7% 10 crashes · 1 fires
NHTSA Consumer Complaints, NHTSA Safety Recalls, and NHTSA Defect Investigations Snapshot 2026-08-22 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Problem & Recall Timeline

Observed complaint volume and manufacturer recall actions over time

Problem & Recall Timeline Owner reports in this snapshot begin in Jan 2018; the first recall shown was reported in Dec 2017. 2018-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 2018-Q2: 7 owner reports 7 2018-Q3: 10 owner reports 10 2018-Q4: 6 owner reports 6 2019-Q1: 13 owner reports 13 2019-Q2: 6 owner reports 6 2019-Q3: 10 owner reports 10 2019-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 2020-Q1: 11 owner reports 11 2020-Q2: 19 owner reports 19 2020-Q3: 14 owner reports 14 2020-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 2021-Q1: 10 owner reports 10 2021-Q2: 5 owner reports 5 2021-Q3: 6 owner reports 6 2021-Q4: 5 owner reports 5 2022-Q1: 6 owner reports 6 2022-Q2: 6 owner reports 6 2022-Q3: 7 owner reports 7 2022-Q4: 5 owner reports 5 2023-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2023-Q2: 5 owner reports 5 2023-Q3: 10 owner reports 10 2023-Q4: 9 owner reports 9 2024-Q1: 3 owner reports 3 2024-Q2: 5 owner reports 5 2024-Q3: 10 owner reports 10 2024-Q4: 10 owner reports 10 2025-Q1: 3 owner reports 3 2025-Q2: 4 owner reports 4 2025-Q3: 6 owner reports 6 2025-Q4: 11 owner reports 11 2026-Q1: 18 owner reports 18 2026-Q2: 12 owner reports 12 2026-Q3: 5 owner reports 5 Owner reports Dec 2017 Jul 2026 Recall campaign 17V831000 ◆ Recall campaign 17V831000 Recall campaign 18V211000 ◆ Recall campaign 18V211000 Recall campaign 18E107000 ◆ Recall campaign 18E107000 Recall campaign 20V012000 ◆ Recall campaign 20V012000 Recall campaign 20V682000 ◆ Recall campaign 20V682000 Investigation DP22005 ● Investigation DP22005
  • Campaign 20V012000 was reported 567 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
  • Campaign 20V682000 was reported 863 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
View timeline records as a table
Date Record type Count Record identifier
2018-Q1 Owner reports 2
2018-Q2 Owner reports 7
2018-Q3 Owner reports 10
2018-Q4 Owner reports 6
2019-Q1 Owner reports 13
2019-Q2 Owner reports 6
2019-Q3 Owner reports 10
2019-Q4 Owner reports 2
2020-Q1 Owner reports 11
2020-Q2 Owner reports 19
2020-Q3 Owner reports 14
2020-Q4 Owner reports 2
2021-Q1 Owner reports 10
2021-Q2 Owner reports 5
2021-Q3 Owner reports 6
2021-Q4 Owner reports 5
2022-Q1 Owner reports 6
2022-Q2 Owner reports 6
2022-Q3 Owner reports 7
2022-Q4 Owner reports 5
2023-Q1 Owner reports 1
2023-Q2 Owner reports 5
2023-Q3 Owner reports 10
2023-Q4 Owner reports 9
2024-Q1 Owner reports 3
2024-Q2 Owner reports 5
2024-Q3 Owner reports 10
2024-Q4 Owner reports 10
2025-Q1 Owner reports 3
2025-Q2 Owner reports 4
2025-Q3 Owner reports 6
2025-Q4 Owner reports 11
2026-Q1 Owner reports 18
2026-Q2 Owner reports 12
2026-Q3 Owner reports 5
Recall campaign 1 17V831000
Recall campaign 1 18V211000
Recall campaign 1 18E107000
Recall campaign 1 20V012000
Recall campaign 1 20V682000
Defect investigation 1 DP22005
NHTSA Safety Recalls Snapshot 2026-08-22 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Safety Recalls (5)

Official safety recall campaigns filed with NHTSA

  1. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 17V831000

    Report date
    Component:
    EQUIPMENT
    Consequence:
    An incorrect load information label can result in the operator overloading the vehicle and increasing the risk of a crash.
    Remedy:
    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.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  2. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 18E107000

    Report date
    Component:
    Not available in the source record
    Consequence:
    The ECM damage may result in the engine stalling, increasing the risk of a crash.
    Remedy:
    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.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  3. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 18V211000

    Report date
    Component:
    SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC
    Consequence:
    A sudden loss of braking assist can increase the risk of a crash.
    Remedy:
    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.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  4. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 20V012000

    Report date
    Component:
    FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE
    Consequence:
    If the fuel pump fails, the engine can stall while driving, increasing the risk of a crash.
    Remedy:
    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.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  5. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 20V682000

    Report date
    Component:
    FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE
    Consequence:
    If the fuel pump fails, the engine can stall while driving, increasing the risk of a crash.
    Remedy:
    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.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →
NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Complaint Narrative Explorer

Verbatim owner-reported defect narratives from NHTSA public records

Data: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation · snapshot 2026-08-21
Safety incident filters
Showing 0 of 264 complaints · page 1 of 11

No complaints match the current filters.
EPA Fuel Economy Database Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Estimated Ownership Cost

EPA fuel economy ratings and annual operating cost estimates

Data: US EPA Fuel Economy Guide · snapshot 2026-08-21
Supported range: 1,000–60,000 miles per year
Supported range: $1.50–$10.00 per gallon
55% city45% highway
Estimate unavailable

EPA fuel-economy data is unavailable for this vehicle.

No estimate is shown when required EPA values are unavailable.

 Open Ownership Cost Calculator →

Adjacent Model Years

Immediate preceding and succeeding model year records

NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Methodology & Data Integrity

Data sourced from NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation. Snapshot date: 2026-08-21.

Read our complete data methodology → Sources