Toyota Highlander

Price Paid:  $31600.00 from Toyota of Bloomfield

Year / Model Reviewed:
2001 Highlander Limited

Summary:
This has been the biggest lemon ever. At around 70,000 miles the engine is burning oil. This burning is about a quart every 1000 miles. I was told by the dealership that the valve seals in the engine need to be replaced for $1300. Of course there is nothing Toyota is willing to do but I have read other reviews and have come across at least 10 others with the same problem. At 117,000 miles the check engine light came on. I also have had many problems with the power window mechanism on the driver door. There must be a short in the wiring because it has failed more than once. I will be trading this piece of garbage in by the end of this month. Toyota's had a great reputation prior to this purchase but their quality has gone down dramatically.

Strengths:
Decent ride.

Weaknesses:
Engine burns oil. Driver window module. Have to reach in rear passenger side to close window. Vibration noise with the sunroof open car interior vibrates

Price Paid:  $15000.00 from Florida

Summary:
Sort of decent vehicle, overall, but that's about it. The qualify Toyota used to be famous for just isn't there. I'm sure everyone is aware of the wind noise when the rear windows are down. Our highlander required a new rear main engine seal at 62K miles (just out of warranty, of course. The engine runs rough at idle and the dealer really couldn't pinpoint why. While all vehicles have problems occasionally, the reason I plan to steer clear of toyota in the future is their service after the sale. The dealers seem to avoid any and all liablilty for problems wherever possible, and Toyota Corporate Customer Relations are absolutely no help. A friend at work had the engine fail in his 2004 Tacoma (with 38K miles) due to Toyota's now famous engine sludge problem. They refused to replace the engine under the warranty because he changed his own oil and couldn't produce receipts for all oil changes. With those kinds of problems and Toyota's poor response, there will be no more Toyotas in my driveway in the future.

Strengths:
Fairly smooth ride for an SUV. Has always started up and got me where I was going (even if I did leave an oil puddle here and there).

Weaknesses:
Wind noise. Engine issues. Poor customer service.

Similar Products Used:
Toyota Previa

Price Paid:  $33500.00 from toyota dealer

Year / Model Reviewed:
2006 Highlander limited

Summary:
Good reliability,

Strengths:
Good safety protection

Weaknesses:
Unstable on the highway, passing a truck makes the vehicle to be displaced on the road. Hesitates on acceleration than downshifts and lurches forward. Wind noise at speed. Driver seat cramped. Steering whell tilts only. Poor radio. Dirt and water enter engine compartment. Toyota dealer said nothing wrong with vehicle.

Similar Products Used:
Traded with a 2007 Mazda CX9. Far superior vehicle for approx same money.

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 4 of 5

Used product for
More than 1 year

Visitors rate this review
2.69 of 5, 16.00 votes

Price Paid:  $31200.00 from Toyota DesMoines

Year / Model Reviewed:
2003 Toyota Highlander

Summary:
I have had my Highlander since fall of 2002 (41, 656 miles on it). I have loved it and never had any problems with it. It sits great, and I can reach the pedals and see over the steering wheel comfortably (I'm 5'4). I have noticed that when the car is really cold that it stays in second gear no matter how fast you go until the engine heats up and then it shifts into third. It has to be pretty cold outside to do that though. The dealer says thats just the way the transmission is made and it's not a defect. It can be annoying though. My only other complaint is lack of storage in the front. My CD compartment is always overflowing and there's only two cupholders in front. I wish I would have waited until the third-row seat came out. That would have been great because if you have two kids in car seats, it takes a pretty skinny person to sit comfortably in the back. Mine has side mirror defrosters, Homelink (so I don't have to carry a garage door opener, it's right in my sun visor), a sliding cover that closes in the back to conceal anything being stored (nice when you're Christmas shopping and don't want to haul stuff around but don't want to leave it visible in the car). Handles great, rides very similar to a car since it sits a little lower than most SUV's, that reduced height may be minimal but it gets rid of the side-to-side sway that you get in a lot of SUV's. Gas mileage is supposed to be 18 to 22 mpg. I would say that's about accurate. I've never had a single issue go wrong with it. I use the Snow/ACT button in the snow and it does ride better then (I have full-time AWD), but I too have never found any information about it in the manual (other than its location).

Strengths:
Handling, reliability and asthetics.

Weaknesses:
Accessible front-seat storage, limited back seat space if you have little kids.

Similar Products Used:
Toyota Tundra

Overall Rating
 4 of 5

Value Rating
 4 of 5

Used product for
More than 1 year

Visitors rate this review
3.27 of 5, 11.00 votes

Price Paid:  $27000.00 from Price Toyota New Cas

Year / Model Reviewed:
2004 Toyota Highlander

Summary:
Very good quality and value (for the stripped down version anyway). High reliability, but has some driver ergonomics design flaws that are hard to ignore. The Highlander is very comfortable and quiet. The suspension (and stock Bridgestone tires) are very well controlled, but are tuned to the "great ride" side, not sporty side. I've had absolutely zero machanical problems with the vehicle in 1.5 years of owning it. However, the 5 speed auto transmission can get annoying when rolling through a stop and then you hit the gas. It seems that it doesn't know what gear to be in 1st or 2nd-- then when it finally decides to go into first (after a 1 second pause), it really slams into 1st, and is hard to control. I've found that if you push the "Snow/ACT" button, it smooths out this rough action. I haven't been able to figure out what this "Snow/ACT" button does exactly in the manual or on the web, but it may favor starting off in 2nd gear??? After living with the car for a year, the driver ergonomics has really been bothering me. There is no telescoping steering wheel or movable pedals on this car, as on others (like my Nissan Murano). I'm a standard size guy, 5'10" with normal proportions (for an American, not a Japanese person- maybe that's the problem?). When I adjust the seat to get a comfortable reach to the gas/brake, the steering wheel is WAY far away, especially at the top. The tilt steering does nothing to help. I have to move the tilt back too straight or move the entire seat forward to reach the steering wheel comfortably, which hurts my legs. At first I thought I could live with it, but I'm hating it more and more, especially on long rides. My wife just bought a Nissan Murano LE with a 6 cylinder and CVT (continuously variable transmission) about 3 months ago. It's absolutely wonderful. Much sportier than the Highlander, great gas mileage, and the driver ergonomics are very comfortable.-- it has moveable foot pedals to get the position right. I even like the CVT. The CVT keeps revs low which helps MPG, but the engine is very torquey. If you need more acceleration, just hit the gas, and the CVT lets the revs rise immediately, and you get plenty of acceleration. I highly recommend the Murano over the Highlander, even though it costs more with all the extras. The Murano is funny looking, but it just works better for me than the Highlander.

Strengths:
Value. All Wheel Drive. Very comfortable. Gas mileage is not bad for an SUV. Reliability

Weaknesses:
Driver ergonomics- steering wheel too far away, transmission takes too long to shift sometimes, abrupt 1st gear engagement. Yes, I have the pain in my ears when leaving the window down, so I don't do it. Yes, the radio stinks too. Also, compared to my Murano, it's rather boring. Stock "comfy" tires are not great in the snow, but the AWD makes it acceptable.

Similar Products Used:
2005 Nissan Murano, 1999 Ford Explorer