2007 Toyota Highlander Hybrid

I TRY TO START THE CAR AND IT DID NOT START. ALL LIGHT WAS ON INCLUDING VSC/HYBRID SYSTEM CAR WAS TOWED TO TOYOTA DEALER. THEY BLEED THE BRAKE AND ERASED THE CODE. DRIVE THE CAR FOR THE NEXT 2 DAYS. CAR FAILED TO START AGAIN ALL LIGHT ON VSC/HYBRID CAR WAS TOWED TO TOYOTA DEALER. DIAGNOSIS IS FAILED INVERTER ASK $8357.82 FOR REPAIR BECAUSE THE RECALL IS NOT LAUNCHED AND I CALL TOYOTA MOTORS CANADA TELL ME THEY WILL NOT REPAIR RECALL FOR USA VEHICLE . TOYOTA MOTORS USA WILL NOT AUTHORIZE FOR REPAIR IN CANADA OF SAFETY DEFECT (TOYOTA SAFETY RECALL 13V-396) ALSO REFUSING TO REPAIR IN THE USA IF I BRING THE CAR TO TOYOTA CAR DEALER IN NEW YORK STATE BECAUSE RECALL NOT LAUNCHED. THE CAR HAVE BEEN TOWED TO MY HOUSE. *TR

I WAS DRIVING WITH MY FAMILY ON BOARD ON 680-S BETWEEN WALNUT CREEK AND SAN RAMON. I WAS GOING AROUND 65-70 MPH IN THE FAST LANE WHEN THERE WAS A LOUD POP SOUND FROM THE FRONT AND ALL THE POWER FROM ENGINE DIED DOWN. I HAD TO SWITCH LANES WITH THE EMERGENCY LIGHTS ON AS THE SPEED KEPT DECREASING WITH NO ACCELERATION. THIS WAS ON A BUSY FREEWAY WITH HIGH SPEEDS. WE WERE LUCKY TO PULL OVER WITHOUT BEING HIT. I PULLED OFF TO THE SHOULDER AND TRIED TO ACCELERATE BUT COULD ONLY GO ANOTHER 10 FEET TO A SAFER LOCATION. I HAD TO GET MY VEHICLE TOWED TO THE DEALERSHIP. THERE WAS NO SERVICE AVAILABLE UNTIL TODAY. I GOT A PHONE CALL FROM THE DEALERSHIP TELLING ME THAT THE INVERTER IS THE CAUSE OF THIS AND WILL COST OVER $8,000 TO REPLACE. THEY ALSO TOLD ME THAT EVEN THOUGH THERE IS A RECALL FOR THE INVERTERS OF THE 2006 AND SOME 2007 HIGHLANDER HYBRIDS, MINE WAS NOT ON THE LIST. I PURCHASED MY 2007 HIGHLANDER IN OCTOBER 2006. I THINK THE RECALL SHOULD EXTEND TO ALL 2007 HIGHLANDERS AS THERE IS A GROWING NUMBER OF THESE CARS HAVING THE SAME ISSUES THIS YEAR AS WELL AS PREVIOUS YEARS. *TR

I WAS DRIVING ON I15 NEAR LAKE ELSINORE ON THE WAY HOME FROM A TRIP AND THE CAR LOST POWER ON THE FREEWAY IN RUSH HOUR AND BIG RIG TRAFFIC. WE WERE LUCKY TO ROLL OFF TO THE RIGHT AND ESCAPE DEATH BY A 40 WHEELER CRASH. THE CAR WAS TOWED TO TOYOTA CARLSBAD WHERE ALL MAINTENANCE WAS PERFORMED PER SCHEDULE SINCE THE CAR WAS PURCHASED. THE LAST SERVICE WAS AT 108,800 ON JUNE 23, 2013. THE COST OF THE REPAIR IS $8200 FOR THE PART PLUS LABOR. TOYOTA WOULD ONLY OFFER TO PAY 1/2 OF THE INVERTER COST BUT THE CAR WAS NOT WORTH PUTTING THAT KIND OF MONEY INTO AND I WAS FORCED TO BUY A NEW CAR. TOYOTA CORPORATE HAS MY CASE AND THEY ARE TERRIBLE. THEY ARE OFFERING $1000 "GOOD WILL" AND $500 FOR THE TOWING. THIS IS A HIGHLY DANGER DEFECT AND THERE SHOULD BE GOVERNMENT ACTION AGAINST TOYOTA. *TR

WHILE ACCELERATING FROM A STOPLIGHT AND DRIVING IN A 45MPH ZONE, OUR 2007 HIGHLANDER HYBRID BEGAN TO ACCELERATE ON ITS OWN. THE ENGINE REVVED AS IF SOMEONE WERE FLOORING THE GAS PEDAL. NEITHER MY HUSBAND NOR I KNEW WHAT WAS HAPPENING. THEN WE HEARD A LOUD THUD SOUND FROM THE BACK SEAT AND WE LOST POWER STEERING, POWER BRAKES, AND WE STARTED TO DECELERATE. TRAFFIC WAS AVERAGING 45-50MPH AROUND US. THANKFULLY, MY HUSBAND WAS ABLE TO SAFELY COAST US INTO THE RIGHT LANE, THEN INTO A PARKING LOT, AND THEN INTO A PARKING SPOT. AFTER THAT WE WERE NOT ABLE TO START THE VEHICLE AND WE HAD MULTIPLE ERROR MESSAGES FLASH ACROSS THE INSTRUMENT PANEL: "CHECK HYBRID SYSTEM" & "CHECK VEHICLE STABILITY". WE WERE TOLD BY TOYOTA THAT OUR ERROR CODES INDICATED THAT THE INVERTER "BLEW UP" & NEEDS REPLACEMENT. THEY DID NOT MENTION ANYTHING ABOUT THE RECALL WHICH I FOUND WHILE RESEARCHING. WE ARE 13 VIN NUMBERS AFTER THE RECALL FOR THIS SAME ISSUE. WE WERE TOLD THE PART COSTS $10,000 BEFORE TAXES & INSTALLATION. TOYOTA WON'T HONOR THE EARLIER RECALL AND SO I'VE TOWED THE VEHICLE HOME. :( *TR

VEHICLE WAS TRAVELING OUT OF STATE WHEN IT SUDDENLY STALLED AND LOSS ALL POWER. FORTUNATELY WAS ABLE TO PULL INTO A REST STOP WHICH WAS 100 MILES FROM MY HOME. HAD THE VEHICLE TOWED TO TOYOTA DEALERSHIP IN HATTIESBURG, MS AND THEY STATED THE PROBLEM WAS WITH THE INVERTER AND IT WOULD COST APPROX. $8000 TO FIX. TOYOTA HAS HAD A RECALL ON THE EXACT SAME INVERTER FOR MODEL YEARS 2006 AND 2007. I CONTACTED TOYOTA HEADQUARTERS AND THEY STATED THAT THE RECALL DOES NOT APPLY TO MY VIN NUMBER ALTHOUGH IN READING COMPLAINTS BY OTHERS ONLINE, MY VEHICLE AND DESCRIPTION OF THE PROBLEM AND DIAGNOSIS BY THE DEALER ALL FIT. TOYOTA KNEW IT HAD A PROBLEM WITH THE INVERTER SYSTEM AND I WAS NEVER ALERTED TO A POTENTIAL PROBLEM WITH THE SYSTEM AS I WAS NOT THE ORIGINAL OWNER. I AM LUCKY THAT MY CHILD WAS NOT IN THE VEHICLE AT THE TIME AND ALSO LUCKY THAT I WAS NOT INVOLVED IN A CRASH AS A RESULT OF THIS PROBLEM. THEY REFUSE TO ADDRESS MY CONCERNS OR PAY FOR THE REPAIRS FOR THIS DEFECTIVE SYSTEM WHICH THEY KNEW WAS DEFECTIVE WHEN I PURCHASED THE VEHICLE. *TR

DRIVING MY BELOVED 2007 HIGHLANDER HYBRID (HH) HOME FROM WORK, I WAS ON THE FREEWAY IN THE SLOW LANE AND HEARD A LOUD "POP" SOUND. I IMMEDIATELY SAW NUMEROUS WARNING MESSAGES FLASH ON THE DASHBOARD - "CHECK HYBRID SYSTEM", "CHECK VCS SYSTEM", AND "CHECK POWER STEERING." THANKFULLY MY CAR DID NOT STOP IMMEDIATELY ON THE FREEWAY AS OTHERS HAVE BUT I WAS ABLE TO GET OFF THE FREEWAY AND TO MY TRUSTED MECHANIC BEFORE THE SYSTEM COMPLETELY FAILED. ACCORDING TO THE DEALERSHIP THAT NOW HAS MY CAR, THE INVERTER HAS FAILED BUT THIS VIN NUMBER WAS NOT IN THE TOYOTA RECALL OF 2006/2007 HH CARS. I HAVE 146,000 MILES AND THIS PART SHOULD NOT HAVE FAILED. THOUGH I PURCHASED THE CAR USED JUST 2 YEARS AGO, I HAVE MAINTAINED IT EXACTLY AS DIRECTED AND THE CARFAX ON THE CAR SHOWED THAT THE PREVIOUS OWNER HAD ALL OF THE REQUIRED MAINTENANCE DONE AT A DEALERSHIP USING THE TOYOTA MAINTENANCE SCHEDULE. THOUGH THE FULL EXTENT OF THE DAMAGE WILL NOT BE DETERMINED UNTIL AFTER THE INVERTER IS REPLACED (IT IS BELIEVED THAT THE POWER STEERING WENT OUT AT THE SAME TIME AND THERE IS THE POTENTIAL FOR OTHER DAMAGE AS WELL), THE INVERTER ISSUE ON THESE VEHICLES CONTINUE TO PLACE PEOPLE IN VERY DANGEROUS SITUATIONS. I FEEL VERY FORTUNATE THAT I WAS NOT IN ONE OF THE FAST LANES AND THAT THE CAR DIDN'T STOP WORKING; I WAS FORTUNATE TO GET OFF THE FREEWAY AND TO A SAFE LOCATION. I KNOW THAT THE NHTSB HAD A HAND IN THE 2011 RECALL OF THE 2006/2007 HH VEHICLES AND I BELIEVE THAT THERE ARE STILL VEHICLES ON THE ROAD THAT WERE NOT INCLUDED IN THE RECALL THAT PROBABLY SHOULD HAVE BEEN (MINE INCLUDED.) PLEASE CONTINUE TO MONITOR THIS SITUATION AND HOLD TOYOTA ACCOUNTABLE FOR THE POOR DESIGN/MANUFACTURING OF THEIR HYBRID TECHNOLOGY. *TR

NHTSA ACTION NUMBER : PE11005 EXACT SAME SITUATION. THIS ISSUE KILLS THE CAR IMMEDIATELY WITH NO TIME TO PREPARE. I WAS VERY LUCKY AS I WAS JUST ENTERING ONTO THE FREEWAY. I DRIFTED OVER TO THE RIGHT MEDIAN. IF I WAS IN THE MIDDLE OR FAR LEFT LANE THIS WOULD HAVE BEEN A MAJOR SAFETY CONCERN. THERE ARE MORE HIGHLANDERS HYBRIDS IN MY VIN RANGE THAT ARE COMING OF AGE AND SHOULD HAVE THESE DEFECTIVE INVERTER ASSEMBLY PARTS REPLACED ASAP. *TR

I WAS EXITING A PARKING LOT ONTO THE STREET. I SUDDENLY LOST POWER WHILE I WAS WAITING TO MERGE INTO TRAFFIC. MY CAR WAS IN DRIVE BUT I HAD MY FOOT ON THE BRAKE WHEN MY CAR WENT DEAD. THERE WERE WARNINGS FLASHING AT ME FROM MY DASHBOARD. I PUT MY CAR IN PARK. TURNED OFF THE ENGINE AND RESTARTED MY CAR BUT THE SAME THING HAPPENED PLUS I BEGAN TO ROLL BACKWARDS DO TO THE SLIGHT INCLINE IN THE PARKING LOT EXIT. I QUICKLY PUT MY CAR IN PARK AGAIN, TURNED ON MY HAZARD LIGHTS, AND WAIVED THE CARS BEHIND ME TO GO AROUND. I WAS ABLE TO PUT MY CAR IN REVERSE AND BACK IT UP TO A SAFE AREA IN THE PARKING LOT. I CALLED THE TOYOTA DEALERSHIP IN CHARLOTTE WHERE I PURCHASED THE CAR AT AND CONTINUED HAVING IT SERVICED. THEY TOLD ME TO HAVE IT TOWED TO THE NEAREST DEALERSHIP IMMEDIATELY. I CALLED THE SERVICE DEPARTMENT AT TEAM TOYOTA MALL OF GA TO LET THEM KNOW I WAS BRINGING IT IN. AFTER THEIR MECHANIC DETERMINED IT WAS THE FAULTY INVERTER IN THE TRANSMISSION, I WAS TOLD IT WOULD COST ME $8,000 TO FIX IT. I STILL OWED $15,000 ON THE CAR. I FOUND OUT ABOUT THE RECALL ON 2006-2007 HIGHLANDER HYBRIDS FOR THE SAME FAULTY INVERTER. THE DEALERSHIP SAID MY CAR WAS INELIGIBLE FOR THE RECALL SINCE THE VIN WAS NOT LISTED. I CALLED TOYOTA AS ADVISED AND OPENED A CASE NUMBER. I RECEIVED THE WORST CUSTOMER SERVICE AND CONSTANT RUN AROUND FROM TOYOTA. THEY OFFERED TO GIVE ME $1,000 TOWARDS THE REPAIRS OR $2,500 FOR A NEW OR TOYOTA CERTIFIED USED VEHICLE. I'M STILL WAITING TO FIND OUT WHY MY CAR WASN'T INCLUDED ON THE LIST THOUGH IT MET THE CRITERIA. I AM TRULY SHOCKED BY THE DISMISSIVE ATTITUDE I'M CURRENTLY GETTING FROM TOYOTA AS IF THEY DIDN'T KNOW ABOUT THE FAULTY INVERTER. MY CAR BROKE DOWN ON MY WAY HOME TO NORTH CAROLINA. NOW I'M TRAPPED IN GEORGIA WITH NO WAY OF GETTING HOME TO MY HUSBAND AND CHILDREN. I'M STILL WAITING ON TOYOTA'S DECISION ABOUT MY CASE, IN GA. *TR