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2015 Toyota Highlander

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

Similar to other model years

Owner complaints for the 2015 Toyota Highlander do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 186.5.

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When problems were reported

Mileage at the reported incident

124 reports with mileage · 67 unknown

NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.

What to inspect

Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.

  • Electrical System. Review the 52 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Structure. Review the 31 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Steering. Review the 25 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

17 crash reports6 fire reports12 injury reports

Electrical System complaints

52 reports
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70 miles · May 8, 2015
Electrical System

HELLO, I WOULD LIKE TO GET NHTSA'S HELP BECAUSE TOYOTA WON'T PROVIDE ANY REMEDY FOR THIS PROBLEM. ON 4/17/2015, I BOUGHT A TOYOTA 2015 HIGHLANDER LE PLUS FROM TOYOTA NORTH BRUNSWICK (NJ) AND NOTICED BUZZING SOUND AFTER DRIVING ONLY ~30 MINUTES. BUZZING SOUND COMES FROM DASHBOARD AREA CONSTANTLY, ~ONCE EVERY MINUTE (IN THE…

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HELLO, I WOULD LIKE TO GET NHTSA'S HELP BECAUSE TOYOTA WON'T PROVIDE ANY REMEDY FOR THIS PROBLEM. ON 4/17/2015, I BOUGHT A TOYOTA 2015 HIGHLANDER LE PLUS FROM TOYOTA NORTH BRUNSWICK (NJ) AND NOTICED BUZZING SOUND AFTER DRIVING ONLY ~30 MINUTES. BUZZING SOUND COMES FROM DASHBOARD AREA CONSTANTLY, ~ONCE EVERY MINUTE (IN THE BEGINNING OF DRIVING) TO ~EVERY SECOND (AFTER DRIVING AN HOUR). THE NOISE IS FROM THE AIR BLEND SERVO (RELATED TO AC) AS ACKNOWLEDGED BY LOCAL TOYOTA SERVICE DPT, BUT TOYOTA KEEPS SAYING THAT THE NOISE IS NORMAL NO MATTER HOW OFTEN IT HAPPENS BECAUSE THE REGIONAL TOYOTA FIELD TECHNICAL SPECIALIST (FTS) [XXX] SAID SO, I.E. TOYOTA CAN'T HELP YOU. (NOTE: HE HASN'T EVEN CHECKED MY VEHICLE IN PERSON.) I THINK THE NOISE ITSELF CAN HAPPEN FROM TIME TO TIME, BUT THE PROBLEM IS FREQUENCY, JUST LIKE SNEEZING EVERY SECOND IS NOT NORMAL EVEN THOUGH SNEEZING ITSELF IS NORMAL TO HUMAN. A TOYOTA TECHNICIAN TOLD ME THE OTHER DAY THAT REPLACING AIR BLEND SERVO IS PRETTY EXPENSIVE BECAUSE THE WHOLE DASHBOARD NEEDS TO BE TAKEN APART. I SUSPECT TOYOTA WON'T FIX THIS UNDER ITS WARRANTY UNLESS THIS PROBLEM BECOMES LIFE THREATENING, I.E. TOO EXPENSIVE FOR TOYOTA. MY FAMILY AND FRIENDS ASK "HOW CAN YOU DRIVE WITH THIS CRAZY NOISE?". THE NOISE IS ALMOST LIKE SLEEPING W/ 100 GNATS IN THE SAME ROOM. I AM A DRIVE WITH OVER 20 YEARS' EXPERIENCE AND HAVE ALWAYS USED NEW VEHICLES, BUT NEVER EXPERIENCED THIS KIND OF PROBLEM WITH NEW VEHICLES FROM OTHER MANUFACTURERS. PLEASE HELP ME WITH THIS PROBLEM. THANK YOU. P.S. I ALSO FOUND MORE PEOPLE WITH SAME PROBLEM AND FRUSTRATION: HTTP://WWW.TOYOTANATION.COM/FORUM/333-3RD-GENERATION-2014/1077937-WEIRD-VIBRATING-BUZZING-NOISE.HTML. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10715419

200 miles · Dec 15, 2014
Electrical System

I PARKED MY CAR IN THE GARAGE AND SEVERAL HOURS LATER I HAPPENED TO NEED SOMETHING OUT THERE. WHEN I ENTERED I HEARD AN ELECTRIC MOTOR RUNNING EVEN THOUGH THE CAR HAD BEEN TURNED OFF FOR SEVERAL HOURS. CRAWLING UNDER THE CAR I FOUND THAT THE SOUND WAS COMMING FROM A MOTOR NEAR THE REAR AXLE. I REPORTED IT TO MY TOYOTA DEALER A…

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I PARKED MY CAR IN THE GARAGE AND SEVERAL HOURS LATER I HAPPENED TO NEED SOMETHING OUT THERE. WHEN I ENTERED I HEARD AN ELECTRIC MOTOR RUNNING EVEN THOUGH THE CAR HAD BEEN TURNED OFF FOR SEVERAL HOURS. CRAWLING UNDER THE CAR I FOUND THAT THE SOUND WAS COMMING FROM A MOTOR NEAR THE REAR AXLE. I REPORTED IT TO MY TOYOTA DEALER AND THEY ADVISED THAT IT WAS A MOTOR THAT MAY RUN HOURS AFTER THE CAR IS TURNED OFF TO PURGE THE CARBON CANISTER. THEY ADVISED THAT THEY FOUND THAT INFORMATION IN THEIR SERVICE MANUAL, BUT NOT THE OWNERS MANUAL. ONE TIME OUR LAWN MOWER DECIDED TO LEAK DURING THE NIGHT RESULTING IN HEAVY GASOLINE FUMES IN THE GARAGE. MY CONCERN IS THAT IF SOMETHING LIKE THAT SHOULD HAPPEN AGAIN I DO NOT THINK ANY ELECTRIC MOTOR ON THE CAR SHOULD BE ABLE TO UNILATERALLY DECIDE WHEN TO RUN AFTER THE CAR IS TURNED OFF. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10664203

Official recalls

1

15V144000 · Steering:electric Power Assist System

Mar 13, 2015

Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain model year 2015 Camry, Camry Hybrid, Highlander, and Highlander Hybrid, and 2014-2015 Rav4 vehicles. A component of the electric power steering (EPS) electronic control unit (ECU) may have been damaged during the manufacturing process. Over time, this damage may result in failure of the electric power steering system.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: An unexpected loss of power steering increases the risk of a crash.

Remedy: Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the serial number of the EPS ECU or steering column assembly. If the number is within the affected range, the EPS ECU will be replaced, free of charge. The recall began on May 7, 2015. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-800-331-4331.

Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗

NHTSA investigations

0

No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.