2018 Toyota Highlander

I am having an issue with my brake assist in my 2018 Toyota Highlander. This car was purchased new and has had regular service/ maintenance with the dealership since purchased. 1st incident was minor in nature. My brake was gently applied and the ABS feature turned on and brake system engaged without any need. 2nd incident brake was applied and at the halfway point the brake stopped working. It felt like it locked. I could not stop my car as I was approaching another car. Car stopped at the last possible moment before impact. The situation was extremely dangerous for myself, my kids and the other driver. Later on during my drive I gently applied my brake and the brake would not release to it original position until a few seconds later. This time the brake light came on. Once the car came to a stop, I shifted my gear to park and the brake light disappeared. The car was then sent to a service station for analysis. Service Station advised that there was a hissing sound coming from the front of my engine when the brake was applied. They recommended that I send vehicle back to dealership as they concluded that the car has a brake assist issue. The car was towed to the Toyota dealership where they mentioned that there was a recall for this exact issue however, my specific VIN is not included. I travel everyday with my kids and this is a real safety issue that needs to be addressed. No car should be on the road with faulty breaking systems. This can cause unnecessary loss of life. These vehicles should be included in this recall, especially mine. I filed a case with Toyota and am waiting to hear back from them. Please help make the roadways safe. Consumer stated diagnosis was completed and relayed that there was a brake booster failure. The brake master cylinder and brake booster system will need to be replaced.

Approaching a stop light brakes didn’t work. The automatic system activated and the car stopped right before I rear-ended the car in front of me. I took it to a Toyota dealership and they diagnosed a faulty brake booster pump with a price of $2500 to replace. I see this isn’t a unique problem for the 2018 Highlander but after talking with Toyota they denied any coverage since my vehicle has 48,000 miles and is out of warranty.

MY 2018 Toyota Highlander XLE had a break malfunction April 15, 2022. The Brake light illuminated, "low brake power" flashed briefly and the pedal became stiff and unable to press for braking. I swerved to avoid rear ending the car in front of me. Brought it in to Toyota and they want $2000 to fix the break booster vacuum, and said it is not covered by warranty. My car only has 46k miles! This part is clearly faulty and Toyota should replace it. Accordingly to Toyota vehicle Maintenance Schedule, the vacuum pump for the brake booster needs to be replaced as a regular maintenance or "wear" item every 120,000 miles. This is a very expensive maintenance item (>$600 in parts, ~$2000 including labor and shop materials), that needs to be performed by a Toyota certified technician. In addition to being very expensive, what will discourage many vehicle owners from performing this service, one may expect that many owners who perform their own vehicle maintenance or use independent mechanic shops will simply miss this service altogether. Being a safety critical item, the vacuum pump should be designed to last the entire lifespan of the vehicle (just like other brake system components: ABS pump, vacuum booster, master cylinder, etc.). The short lifespan of the vacuum pump and the requirement to replace it on a regular basis is indicative of a defective or deficient design. Making the replacement of the vacuum pump a scheduled maintenance item is a just way for Toyota to avoid liability due to premature failures of a substandard safety component, especially in light that other brake system components are designed to last for the entire life of the vehicle, and are not considered wear items in the maintenance schedule (except for brake pads, of course). Toyota should redesign the vacuum pump to increase its lifespan in-line with the rest of the brake system components, and perform the replacement under a safety recall or service campaign, at no cost to vehicle owners.

Just like the other complaints with the brakes, I also received the error message "“Braking Power Low, stop at a safe place”. Also like the other complaints here, I went to the dealership where I purchased the car and they told me it is not covered and considered as a recall for my vehicle. EVEN though the same problems have been identified for the same make and vehicle under recall #18V211000. I also called the Toyota Corporation and they said since my VIN number wasn't specifically affected, it's not part of the recall. I don’t think it’s right that Toyota can say it is not covered simply because they haven’t identified it with my specific vin and or the manufacturer they used. This is horrible and obviously, there is an issue with the brake system that could lead to collisions.

My car stopped working and the following error message showed up "Braking Power Low, Stop in a Safe Place." I have a photo of this error message. When researching this error message, it MAY be related to NHTSA Campaign Number 18V-211. The research I've done says on multiple websites this error is related to brake booster pump. The dealership is saying there was no such recall, but I was able to find the recall notice on this issue through the NHTSA website. I would appreciate a phone call at [XXX]. Again, I have a photo of the error message that showed up on my dashboard. INFORMATION Redacted PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).