2008 Toyota Highlander

HIGHLANDER HYBRID 2008 WE WERE DRIVING ON A COUNTRY BACK ROAD. IN IDAHO, WE HAD JUST STOPPED AT A STOP SIGN AND WENT TO DRIVE FORWARD AFTER GOING AROUND 100-200 METERS AND THE CAR LURCHED FORWARD WHILE I WAS DRIVING AND THEN THE SCREEN WITH ALL THE WARNINGS BEGAN GOING OFF. ALL OF THEM SAYING PULL OVER TOT THE SIDE OF THE ROAD AND THAT ALL THE SYSTEMS WERE FAILING. ALL THE WARNINGS SAID THINGS TO TAKE THE CAR TO DEALER. WE PULLED OVER TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD AND THEN TRIED TO GET THE CAR TO MOVE FORWARD BY PUTTING IT IN DRIVE AND YOU COULD HEAR THE CAR TRYING TO DO SOMETHING BUT NOTHING HAPPENED. THE CAR DID TURN ON BUT THAT WAS IT.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2008 TOYOTA HIGHLANDER. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING AT 65 MPH, THE ENGINE OIL COOLER PIPE RUPTURED WITHOUT WARNING WHICH CAUSED THE VEHICLE TO STALL. THE CONTACT PULLED OVER, SHUTOFF THE VEHICLE AND INSPECTED THE VEHICLE. THE CONTACT BECAME AWARE THAT THE OIL WAS COMPLETELY DRAINED FROM THE ENGINE. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC TO BE INSPECTED. THE INSPECTION CONFIRMED THE DRIVER'S ASSESSMENT. THE MECHANIC INFORMED THE CONTACT OF A MANUFACTURER'S EXTENDED WARRANTY COVERAGE ON SIMILAR VEHICLES HOWEVER, THE WARRANTY HAD EXPIRED ON THE VEHICLE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT HE WAS NEVER NOTIFIED OF THE EXTENDED WARRANTY PRIOR TO THE FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 82,156.

WHILE DRIVING MY CAR AT APPROXIMATELY 55MPH ALL THE DASHBOARD LIGHTS FLASHED AND THEN THE CHECK HYBRID SYSTEM LIGHT CAME ON AND STAYED ON. IT SAID THAT THERE WAS A PROBLEM WITH THE HYBRID SYSTEM TO PULL OVER AS SOON AS YOU COULD SAFETY AND TO CONTACT THE DEALER. WELL THE ENGINE DIED ABRUPTLY AND LOSS POWER IMMEDIATELY. LUCKILY I WAS ON A ONE LANE ROAD WITH A SHOULDER AND NO ONE IMMEDIATELY BEHIND ME. THE MECHANIC SAID THAT IT WAS A LOWER END MOTOR FAILURE BUT REALLY COULD NOT FIGURE OUT WHAT IS WRONG WITH IT. IN FACT IT IS STILL AT THE MECHANIC'S AND THEY ARE STILL TRYING TO FIGURE IT OUT. IT APPEARS THAT IT MAY BE THE ENGINE INVERTER BUT STILL NOT SURE. THIS IS A VERY UNSAFE SITUATION AND TOYOTA SHOULD HAVE ADDRESS THIS. MY CAR IS A 2008 HIGHLAND HYBRID WITH 119,000 MILES ON. *TR

THE RUBBER OIL COOLER LINE (PART NUMBER: 040004-29131) OF OUR 2008 TOYOTA HIGHLANDER BURST AT 139,000 MILES CAUSING AN OIL SPILL AND COMPLETE AND IRREVERSIBLE ENGINE FAILURE DUE TO OIL STARVATION WHILE VEHICLE WAS IN HIGH-SPEED MOTION IN A CONGESTED HIGHWAY DURING ICY-AND FOGGY CONDITIONS. DRIVER MANAGED TO REMOVE THE VEHICLE FROM THE ROAD, NOT CAUSING ANY ACCIDENTS, JUST BEFORE THE ENGINE IRREVERSIBLY BROKE AND SHUT DOWN. TWO DAYS PRIOR THE INCIDENT, OIL-CHANGE SCHEDULED SERVICE WAS PERFORMED BY A TOYOTA-CERTIFIED DEALERSHIP SHOWING NO SIGNS OF ENGINE/ENGINE OIL-COOLING LINE ABNORMALITIES. DEFECTIVE SOFTWARE DISPLAYED WARNINGS ON THE DASHBOARD OF LOW ENGINE OIL/PRESSURE SECONDS BEFORE THE ENGINE SHUT DOWN. THIS DEFECTIVE PART HAS BEEN SPECIFICALLY ACKNOWLEDGED IN THE TOYOTA'S 2014 "WARRANTY ENHANCEMENT PROGRAM, ZE2" FOR REPAIRS AT NO COST UNTIL JANUARY 31, 2016 OR PAST THAT DATE FOR "10 YEARS FROM THE DATE OF FIRST USE OR 150,000 MILES, WHICHEVER OCCURS FIRST." TOYOTA CLAIMS THEY MAILED A LETTER FOR "SEVERAL MONTHS" AFTER "LATE JULY 2014" FOR ZE2 TO OWNERS BUT THE OWNER OF THIS VEHICLE NEITHER EVER RECEIVED SUCH LETTER NOR WAS NOTIFIED BY TOYOTA CORP./DEALERSHIP. VEHICLE HAS BEEN UNDER *CONSISTENT, SCHEDULED, AND REGULAR CAR SERVICES* SINCE ITS ORIGINAL AND SOLE PURCHASE IN 2008. THIS SHOULD HAVE BEEN A RECALL TO THE NHTSA UPON *UNREASONABLY DANGEROUS DESIGN* FOR USING RUBBER PRESSURIZED PIPES IN V6 ENGINES INSTEAD OF METAL-BASED MATERIALS, DEFECTIVE PART AWARENESS, INCIDENT HISTORY, AND THE EXTENT OF THE HIGH HAZARD RISK THAT INVOLVES THIS PART FAILURE: OIL SPILL (NOT OIL LEAKING AS STATED IN ZE2) CAN OCCUR AT HIGH RESULTING IN A NON-OPPORTUNITY TO PREVENT VEHICLE LOSS AND HIGH PROBABILITIES OF CRASH, INJURIES, FIRE, AND/OR FATALITIES. THIS IS ALSO EXACERBATED BY THE EMBEDDED DEFECTIVE SOFTWARE IN TERMS OF POOR TIMING TO DISPLAY ENGINE FAILURE.

THE ENGINE OIL COOLER PIPE ON MY 2008 HIGHLANDER WAS DEFECTIVE AND LEAKED AT 124,000 MILE/12 YEARS (IN FEB 2020). HAPPENED WHILE I WAS ON A HIGHWAY & SMOKE IN MY CABIN. TOYOTA HAS SET A LIMIT OF EXTENDED LIMITED WARRANTY (LCS-ZE2) TO FIX THIS DEFECT BUT ONLY IF IT OCCURS AT < (OR EQUAL) 10 YRS OR 150,000 MILES. MANY REPORTS ON THE WEB INDICATE CARS PAST THE TOYOTA ARBITRARY CUT OFFS FOR TIME AND MILES. THIS IS A SERIOUS SAFETY DEFECT/RISK BECAUSE ALL OF THE OIL COULD LEAK OUT FROM A DEFECTIVE PIPE & ENGINE COULD CATCH FIRE OR FREEZE. I HAD SMOKE IN THE CABIN AND A LOW OIL PRESSURE WARNING LIGHT. OF NOTE, MY CAR WAS SERVICED (OIL CHANGE) AND A MULTIPOINT INSPECTION BY TOYOTA 3 WEEKS PRIOR TO OIL LEAK (IN JAN 2020) AND THE OIL LEAK WAS NOT NOTED. THIS MEANS THAT THE LEAK OCCURRED RECENTLY AND WELL PAST THE ARBITRARY TIME INTERVAL/MILEAGE LIMIT SET BY TOYOTA. AT NO TIME DID MY TOYOTA DEALER NOTIFY ME REGARDING THE EXTENDED WARRANTY ENHANCEMENT OR THAT THIS COULD E A PROBLEM OR NOR DID MY TOYOTA DEALER SPECIFICALLY LOOK FOR THIS PROBLEM ON MY CAR DURING INSPECTION. A FULL SCALE RECALL IS REQUIRED FOR THIS DEFECT, NOT A LIMITED WARRANTY ENHANCEMENT LETTER. ATTACHED ARE 1- THE INVOICE TO FIX THE OIL ENGINE PIPE LEAK 2- THE INSPECTION FROM TOYOTA DEALER WITH NO EVIDENCE OF AN OIL LEAK (JAN 2020) 3-WARRANTY & WEBCHAT OTHER OWNERS COMPLAIN OF SIMILAR DANGEROUS EFFECTS OF THE OIL LEAK AND EXPENSIVE REPAIRS THAT OCCURRED PAST THE TOYOTA ARBITRARY LIMITS 4. INVOICE DOCUMENTING THE OIL CHANGE (JAN 2020) SHOWING NO EVIDENCE OF A LEAK WHEN TOYOTA SET THE LIMITS ON THE EXTENDED WARRANTY OF 10 YEARS OR 150,000 MILES, THEY HAD NO IDEA IF THAT WOULD BE SUFFICIENTLY IN LENGTH TO CATCH ALL THE PROBLEMS. BECAUSE TOYOTA OWNERS KEEP THEIR VEHICLES FOR A LONG TIME, THESE ARBITRARY INTERVALS ARE NOT SUFFICIENT. THEREFORE A FULL RECALL IS REQUIRED.

ON MY WAY HOME ON SATURDAY NIGHT, ABOUT 2 TO 3 STREETS FROM MY HOUSE, MY DASH STARTED TO SAY LOW FUEL. I CONTINUED TO DRIVE HOME BECAUSE I WAS SO CLOSE. I GET HOME AND JUMPED OUT OF THE VEHICLE TO LISTEN TO MY CAR AND EVERYTHING SOUNDED GOOD. I SHUT THE CAR OFF. ON MONDAY MORNING, I WALKED OUT AND NOTICED ALL THE OIL IN THE CAR HAD LEAKED OUT OF THE CAR ONTO MY DRIVEWAY. I IMMEDIATELY CALLED TOYOTA AND THEY SAID THEY WOULD SEND A TOW TRUCK. THE TOW TRUCK DRIVER ARRIVED AND CHECKED THE OIL WITH THE DIP STICK. SINCE THERE WAS NO OIL IN THE VEHICLE, WE DID NOT START THE ENGINE. HE TOWED THE CAR TO TOYOTA (WHERE I HAVE ALL MY WORK DONE INCLUDING INSPECTIONS-WHICH THE LAST ONE WAS DONE 3 WEEKS PRIOR TO THIS INCIDENT). THE TOYOTA MECHANICS LOOKED AT THE VEHICLE. THEY CALLED ME AND SAID A HOSE UNDER THE ENGINE HAD CRACKED CAUSING THE OIL TO LEAK OUT. THEY HAD TO ORDER THE PART AND IT WOULD FIXED AND READY BY TUESDAY. THE PART DIDN'T COME IN AS EXPECTED AND THE CAR WAS NOT FIXED UNTIL WEDNESDAY. I LEFT WORK ON MY BREAK TO PICK UP THE VEHICLE WEDNESDAY NIGHT WHEN THEY CALLED AND SAID IT WAS READY. I PICKED UP THE VEHICLE FROM TOYOTA AND DROVE BACK TO WORK. ON THE WAY, I NOTICED A NOISE COMING FROM THE ENGINE BUT ASSUMED IT WAS OK SINCE IT WAS JUST FIXED. AFTER MY SHIFT (THURSDAY MORNING), I CAME OUT AND STARTED THE CAR. IMMEDIATELY AFTER STARTING THE VEHICLE, A LOUD BANGING NOISE CAME FROM THE ENGINE. I CALLED TOYOTA AND HAD THEM TOW THE VEHICLE BACK TO TOYOTA. THEY LOOKED AT THE CAR AND CALLED ME AND STATED THE ENGINE HAD BLOWN AND THAT IT WOULD COST $7000 TO REPLACE. THEY SAID I COULD KEEP THE VEHICLE THERE UNTIL I DECIDE WHAT TO DO.

ON THE HIGHWAY AT 75 MILES/HOUR (WITH MY 3 SMALL CHILDREN IN THE BACKSEAT), LOSS OF ENGINE OIL PRESSURE. DIAGNOSED AS THE ENGINE OIL COOLER PIPE, OIL WAS EVERYWHERE WITHOUT ANY IN THE ENGINE. THIS IS A KNOWN ISSUE ON MANY ENGINES WHICH WAS COVERED BY TOYOTA FOR A LIMITED TIME/MILEAGE WITH A LIMITED EXTENDED WARRANTY UNDER A "CUSTOMER SUPPORT PROGRAM (ZE2)." WE WERE NEVER NOTIFIED OF THIS POTENTIAL ISSUE, AS WE WOULD HAVE ELECTED TO FIX THIS PRIOR TO AN OIL BLOWOUT, TO PREVENT A POTENTIAL ACCIDENT WITH LOSS OF THE ENGINE WHILE DRIVING, PARTICULARLY WITH OUR CHILDREN IN THE VEHICLE.

2008 HIGHLANDER, ENGINE OIL COOLER PIPE FAILED, DROPPED 4 QTS OF OIL ON THE HIGHWAY, WHICH LED TO A SLIPPERY SITUATION, I PULLED OVER BUT A CAR BEHIND ME SKIDDED THROUGH THE OIL AND REAR ENDED THE CAR IN FRONT OF THEM DUE TO THE OIL LEFT ON THE ROAD IMPACTING THEIR SAFE STOPPING DISTANCE. THIS FAILED PART WAS A RUBBER HOSE HOLDING HOT MOTOR OIL NEXT TO THE CATATLYTIC CONVERTER, TERRIBLE DESIGN, TOYOTA REPLACED THIS ORIGINAL RUBBER HOSE WITH PART 04004-29131 THAT WAS METAL PIPES NOT HOSES. THIS PART WAS ELIGIBLE FOR A TOYOTA EXTENDED WARRANTY COVERAGE (TOYOTA WARRANTY ENHANCEMENT ZE2) TILL 2016 OR SO, BUT I WAS NEVER NOTIFIED VIA MAIL OF THE ISSUE, THEREFORE DID NOT KNOW ABOUT IT UNTIL AFTER MY CAR BROKE DOWN. THERE ARE MANY DOCUMENTED ISSUES OF THIS PART FAILING, AND ALSO MANY DOCUMENTED ISSUES OF TOYOTA FAILING TO NOTIFY CUSTOMERS DUE TO THEIR INABILITY TO LINK VIN TO MAILING ADDRESS PRIOR TO 2014. I FEEL THAT TOYOTA DIDN'T NOTIFY ME PROPERLY, WHICH CAUSED AN UNSAFE SITUATION FOR ME AND OTHER MOTORISTS. HAD THIS BEEN A RECALL, THEY WOULD HAVE BEEN OBLIGATED TO MORE FORMALLY NOTIFY CUSTOMERS AND DEALERSHIPS ABOUT THIS HAZARD, AND WOULD HAVE TO FIX THEM ALL, VS. THE RELATIVELY SMALL NUMBER THAT THEY DID FIX. I CALLED TOYOTA MOTOR CORP CUST SERVICE, AND THEY TOLD ME THEY NO LONGER HAD ANY FINANCIAL OR NOTIFICATION OBLIGATION FOR THIS DESIGN & SAFETY DEFECT AS THE 'WARRANTY ENHANCEMENT' HAD EXPIRED. PLEASE REQUIRE A RECALL! THERE ARE THOUSANDS OF CARS ON THE ROAD TODAY WITH THIS UNSAFE CONDITION READY TO CAUSE PROBLEMS!