2025 Toyota Grand Highlander

Driving on highway and suddenly panoramic sunroof glass shattered spontaneously. It nearly caused us to crash into median due to the sudden extremely loud noise that sounded like a gunshot at close range and then the sound of glass shattering and hitting into sunroof shade and top of car. My 18 year old daughter was driving and it was extremely scary for her and myself. No nearby vehicles on either side of the road or near an overpass. We were fortunately near an exit and able to safely remove vehicle from road. I feel extremely lucky that no accident or injury occurred and credit my daughter's ability to stay calm and not panic at highway speed. To date, the car insurance company Travelers states it is not covered as there was no accident and dealership states it is not a warranty item (but they have escalated it to Toyota corporate for further review) and no one is willing to repair it so far (including stand alone glass companies!). But it will certainly be several thousand dollars in repairs. In the meantime I cannot drive my car when there is any chance of rain or really at highway speed. No warning prior, no history of any cracks or damage to sunroof prior. The car is just barely 1 year old.

The component that was available for inspection was our gas tank. It provided a profuse smell of fumes coming out of the tank and/or exhaust. You could also see vapors coming out of the gas tank when driving. The fumes alone are extremely toxic and extreme levels. The safety of me, my two young children and husband is all at risk. The smell of the gas and the view of the vapors from the gas tank puts the vehicle at an extreme fire risk. The smell of the fumes out it at a toxic inhalant risk - especially having two young children. This has caused great fear within me and the safety of my children is at extreme risk. No. I have taken the vehicle to the dealer 2-3 times, advised each time there is no issue with the vehicle. However, the smell of the gasoline has happened 6-8 times since purchasing the vehicle in May 2025. The vehicle has only been inspected by the dealer. Unsure who else to bring it to. The first time it was towed because the smell of the gas was in the cabin of the vehicle and I did not feel safe having my two small children in it with the extreme gas smell. No, no warning lamps. No indicators. The first time it happened I was alone with my two small children and the only indicator was the vapors coming out of the tank that were visible, and the extreme smell of the gasoline when I would roll my window down.

After a complete stop at a stop sign there is hesitation/stalling when trying to accelerate. Sometimes the hesitation is several seconds and then the engine kicks in and lurches forward. Couple times this has been a safety issue as it happens when I’m trying to pull out on a busy road. The delay/hesitation has caused me to almost get hit a few times. There are no lights or warning messages when this happens. It happens a multiple times a week especially during hot weather when AC is on full (LO temp setting and maximum fan) and is usually during the first few minutes of operation usually at the same stop signs on my route to pickup my kids after the car has been sitting unused overnight. I also notice that the hybrid battery indicator is usually always at 3 bars. Dealership hasn’t been able to reproduce as it's a very specific scenario (not driving/in garage overnight and short drive). Instead they went and applied T-SB-0040-25 but this hesitation is still happening after the software update. This needs to be handled like a safety issue/recall worthy with a complete fix! Not just some drivability issue that only gets applied if we ask about specific T-SBs.

On occasion the car will not accelerate from a dead stop like it should. I think it’s turbo lag. There have been a few times I thought I was going be broadsided pulling out into traffic when normal acceleration would have been safe but with a dead pedal for a few seconds it was terrifying. I’ve brought this up to two different dealers and they say without being able to experience it there’s nothing they can do. Someone going to die because of this.

This vehicle has just over 18,000 miles on it and is 14 months old. It has a manufacturer design defect that allows small stones or birds to hit and puncture the air conditioning condenser. It is a known defect and Toyota refuses to warranty their product, forcing the consumer to pay out of pocket $1,500-$1,700 for repairs. Oddly, the sister Lexus vehicle has a screen over the condenser to prevent this.

After coming to a complete stop at a stop sign or stop light, then trying to go, the vehicle will stall. It will not go when given gas. The first time it happened, I was at a busy intersection with oncoming traffic coming towards me with the pedal to the floor, nothing would happen for 5-10 seconds. It was terrifying. Thank god the car coming towards us went around in time. It then happened again in my neighborhood a week later. Thankfully that time I wasn’t in traffic. I have noted that it seems to happen when very hot outside (Florida July summer) and air is on full blast. Also seems to be happening only during the first trip of the day, within the first 5-10 minutes of said trip. The dealership has not been able to recreate this to see for themselves. I think it would have to be with them overnight and they start it/drive it for the first time that day. It has now happened a total of 3 times since I’ve been driving it (2.5 months). I have 3 children and very worried I will get t-boned one day when it stalls next. I love my car so much so it’s heartbreaking that I have to drive it in fear. No lights/warnings/messages when this happens.

Radiator issue summer of 2025, when in back to back traffic at low speeds my vehicle overheated at a stand still took vehicle in to dealership with no real answers. The following summer 2026 same scenario but the engine was smoking. Took into dealership and they stated the connection for the radiator fan was disconnected which meant it was not colling the engine. A month later the AC is blowing hot air when AC is set to the coolest setting, scheduled another appt with dealership likely another radiator issue. Fuel gauge inaccuracy. Manual states 17 gallon tank capacity but my car states empty and can only fill the tank with 14 to 15 gallons. Dealership had no help and stated it does that to protect the hybrid engine. Transmission shifting issues, in the summer hotter temperatures I notice at times the transmission has difficulty shifting in lower gears and really revs up the RPMs to shift sometimes. At times the the transmission shift is jerky or harsh when going speeds form 20- 40 mph.

Subject: Potential Safety Defect Report – Infotainment System Interference with Driver Assistance Systems This submission reports a potential safety-related software interaction issue involving infotainment startup processes and Toyota Safety Sense 3.0 (TSS 3.0). During startup conditions, infotainment system activity coincides with delayed or unavailable driver assistance alerts and camera system functionality. Observed Conditions: - Delay or suppression of collision warning alerts - Temporary loss of rear and surround-view camera feeds - System unresponsiveness during startup sequence Safety Concern: Potential reduction in driver situational awareness during low-speed maneuvering due to system prioritization conflicts. Request: Evaluation for potential systemic safety defect and determination of whether further investigation or corrective action is warranted.