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2008 Toyota Highlander Hybrid Problems and Recalls
Owners filed 197 complaints with NHTSA about the 2008 Toyota Highlander Hybrid, most often about the brakes (55% of complaints, typically around 120,000 miles). It is the 2nd most complained-about Highlander Hybrid model year since 2000 and has 6 recalls.
Most common 2008 Toyota Highlander Hybrid problems
Brakes
108 complaints · 55%Half of these problems showed up before 120,000 miles. Parts named most often: antilock/traction control/electronic limited slip, antilock.
On june 15th, 2016 while over 200 miles from home on a family trip with my pregnant wife and 2 year old son in the car driving down a 2 lane highway with a semi truck behind US at approximately 45 MPH constant speed our 2008 Highlander Hybrid brakes locked up, a warning tone sounded, several lights lit up on the dash…
Check brake system warnings; code traced to accumulator not holding pressure (c1391 abnormal leak of acc press). $2,500+ repair. This same part was already covered under a warranty extension for the camry hybrid and they are built on the same platform. Should be covered for the highlander as well.
Electrical
35 complaints · 18%Half of these problems showed up before 123,000 miles. Parts named most often: instrument panel.
I entered a gas station and my car just stopped. It would not restart and was towed to northridge Toyota (northridge,ca) where I was informed the "inverter" failed, and only replacement by a Toyota service center may be made due to internal component high voltage parts, at a cost of $8,244.00 + labor in the amount of…
My 2008 Toyota Highlander Hybrid was just deemed totaled by the car dealership (newburgh Toyota) and my insurance company (liberty mutual), because of excessive rodent damage. It turns out that the rodents were attracted to the wiring because toyoyta uses eco-friendly soy-based coating on their wires which attract…
Stability control
25 complaints · 13%Half of these problems showed up before 126,000 miles.
My 2008 Toyota Highlander Hybrid was just deemed totaled by the car dealership (newburgh Toyota) and my insurance company (liberty mutual), because of excessive rodent damage. It turns out that the rodents were attracted to the wiring because toyoyta uses eco-friendly soy-based coating on their wires which attract…
We purchased a 2008 Highlander Hybrid in 2016. The car was practically maintenance free until last week. All service except oil changes have been done by the local Toyota dealer. My wife was pulling out of the driveway when the ABS/vsc lights came on and the console said to pull over. A code scan said it was c1391…
Speed control
18 complaints · 9%Half of these problems showed up before 70,000 miles.
I was on a slight incline, as I was approaching a traffic light, I hit the brakes. While I thought the vehicle was going to stop, it began to accelerate. I hit the brakes numerous times and eventually came to a stop. When I brought my vehicle to Toyota, they simply dismissed the issue indirectly saying I didn't know…
The contact owns a 2008 Toyota Highlander Hybrid. The contact stated that while driving 35 MPH, the vehicle hesitated while engaging the brakes. As a result, the vehicle suddenly accelerated abnormally. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who was unable to duplicate the failure. The manufacturer was made aware of the…
Engine
13 complaints · 7%Half of these problems showed up before 120,000 miles.
The contact owns a 2008 Toyota Highlander Hybrid. While driving approximately 40 MPH, the engine stalled and the instrument panel warning indicators flashed. The vehicle was towed to the dealer where it was diagnosed that there was water in the hybrid battery compartment and the compartment needed to be replaced. The…
The contact owns a 2008 Toyota Highlander Hybrid. While driving 35 MPH, the vehicle stalled without warning. The vehicle was towed. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 120,000.
Transmission
11 complaints · 6%Half of these problems showed up before 70,500 miles.
2008 Toyota highlander experienced hybrid system failure. It turns out its a inverter assembly failure. There was class law suit filed in 2006 for the same failure https://topclassactions.com/lawsuit-settlements/lawsuit-news/1074-Toyota-highlander-hybrid-class-action-lawsuit/ my car 2008 model experienced same failure…
The vehicle stalled (lost control of steering and engine ceased to operate) while driving at around 35 MPH. "hybrid system warning" was displayed and it advised to pull over and contact dealership immediately.
Wheels and tires
11 complaints · 6%Half of these problems showed up before 18,000 miles.
Toyo open country a20 tires 245/55/19 which came as standard equipment on 2008 Toyota Highlander Hybrid wore significantly and prematurely. At 18000 miles these tires were worn nearly to the wear bars resulting in extremely poor wet and snow traction leading to sliding and hydroplaning. The tread also began to peel on…
My 2008 Highlander Hybrid limited has about 16k miles on it. I just had my tires inspected by a shop that changes my oil. My tires are almost worn down to 2/32's! They mentioned that this was very abnormal and these tires were no longer safe to drive on.
Other or unspecified
10 complaints · 5%Half of these problems showed up before 117,500 miles.
The car just stopped moving - engine was running & all systems were on. The warning systems starting displaying the following messages: check hybrid system, check vsc system, check brake system, check 4WD system. The car had no 'limp' mode, and I was fortunate enough to coast to a parking space. Prior to this the car…
Failed ABS brake accuator assembly. This is a known issue and Toyota has paid for camry owners to have theirs fixed free of charge. The dealer wants $3800 to replace mine. With as many complaints as there are out there coupled with the danger involved with this part failing there should be a recall. It caused US to…
Complaints are owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects. One complaint can name several components, so shares add up to more than 100%.
2008 Toyota Highlander Hybrid recalls
Visibility and wipers: power window devices and controls
Risk: If the sliding electrical contacts are not protected by lubricant, debris and moisture that get into the switch may cause a short circuit and the switch assembly may overheat and melt, increasing the risk of a fire.
Fix: Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the switch, applying a lubricant if no abnormality is found. If abnormality is found, the pwms circuit board will be replaced, free of charge. The recall is expected to begin december 20, 2015. Owners may contact toyota customer service at 1-800-331-4331. Toyota's number for this recall is c0m.
Full defect summary
Toyota motor company (toyota) is recalling certain model year 2009-2011 tundra, sequoia, corolla, corolla matrix and scion xb, 2008-2011 highlander and highlander hybrid, 2007 camry and camry hybrid, 2009 camry and camry hybrid, 2006-2011 rav4, 2006-2010 yaris, and 2009-2010 scion xd and pontiac vibe vehicles. During the manufacturing of the power window master switch (pwms), grease lubricant may have been inconsistently applied to the sliding electrical contacts.
Hybrid system: inverter
Risk: The vehicle may enter a fail-safe/limp-home mode that limits the drivability of the vehicle. It is possible that the hybrid system will shut down while the vehicle is being driven, causing the vehicle to stall unexpectedly, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will replace the ipm free of charge. Owners may contact toyota at 1-800-331-4331. Vehicles that had their ipm replaced under recall 11v-342 are not affected by this campaign.
Full defect summary
Toyota is recalling certain model year 2006-2010 highlander hybrid vehicles manufactured february 16, 2005, through july 29, 2010; and model year 2006-2008 lexus rx400h vehicles manufactured february 23, 2005, through december 2, 2008. The intelligent power module (ipm) inside the inverter module may contain transistors that have higher operating temperatures than the solder can support and the transistors may be heat damaged by the solder. If this occurs, various warning lamps, including the malfunction indicator lamp, slip indicator light, brake system warning light, and master warning light, will be illuminated on the instrument panel.
Visibility and wipers: power window devices and controls
Risk: If the switch overheats, it may melt, possibly resulting in a fire.
Fix: Toyota will notify its owners, and dealers will inspect the switch and apply a special grease that inhibits heat build up or replace any switch damaged by the defect, free of charge. Toyota owners that experience a problem with a switch should not attempt to make repairs, but should contact their toyota dealer or the toyota customer experience center at 1-800-331-4331. General motors will contact the pontiac vibe owners affected by this recall and gm dealers will inspect and repair switches as necessary. Those owners may contact pontiac customer care at 1-800-762-2737.
Full defect summary
Toyota is recalling certain model year 2007-2009 camry, camry hybrid, rav4, corolla, corolla matrix, tundra, sequoia, highlander, highlander hybrid, yaris, scion xb, scion xd and pontiac vibe vehicles. The power window master switch assemblies in some of these vehicles were built using a less precise process for lubricating the internal components of the switch assemblies. Irregularities in this lubrication process may cause the power window master switch assemblies to malfunction and overheat.
Air bags: side/window
Risk: Inadvertent activation of the csa and/or the seat belt pretensioner can cause injury to a vehicle occupant.
Fix: Toyota will replace the airbag sensor assembly with a new one containing improved roll rate sensors, free of charge. Toyota intends to send an interim owner notification to owners early to mid-may, 2011 when sufficient parts and remedy becomes available. Owners may contact toyota at 1-800-331-4331.
Full defect summary
Toyota is recalling certain model year 2008 highlander, highlander hybrid, and model year 2007-2008 rav4 vehicles. In the curtain shield airbag (csa) system, there are two sensors in the airbag sensor assembly which are designed to detect vehicle roll angle. If one of these sensors malfunctions, the airbag warning light (malfunction indicator light: mil) will illuminate and the roll detection system will be suspended; however, the airbag csa remains available in the event of a side crash. If both sensors fail nearly simultaneously after initial airbag system check, the csa and the seat belt pretensioner could be inadvertently activated.
Equipment: labels
Risk: Incorrect load carrying capacity modification labels could result in the vehicle being overloaded, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Toyota will notify owners and provide them with a new, accurate label to be installed over the inaccurate label free of charge. The safety recall began on august 18, 2009. Owners may contact toyota at 1-888-270-9371.
Full defect summary
Toyota is recalling 27,080 model year 2005 through 2010 passenger cars built from september 1, 2005 to may 4, 2009. These vehicles were not equipped with load carrying capacity modification labels which fails to conform with the requirements of federal motor vehicle safety standard no. 110, "tire selection and rims."
Seat belts: rear/other
Risk: However, for the two third row dsp's on these vehicles, the alr mode deactivates before the webbing is fully retracted, so that it will not lock when certain rear-facing crs's that have a short seat belt routing path are installed in the vehicle. This can allow the seat belt webbing to spool out during normal driving maneuvers, which could affect the stability of a child restraint installed at those seating positions. As such, this could discourage the use of a child restraint and in the event of a crash, the child may not be adequately protected possibly resulting in injury.
Fix: Dealers will install a newly designed seat belt component free of charge. The recall is expected to begin on or about december 18, 2008. Owners may contact toyota at 1-800-331-4331.
Full defect summary
Toyota is recalling 90,189 my 2008 highlander and highlander hybrid passenger vehicles equipped with a third row seat. These vehicles fail to conform to the requirements of federal motor vehicle safety standard no. 208, "occupant crash protection." the non-driver designated seating positions (dsp) on these vehicles is equipped with seat belt assemblies that have a feature that converts the retractor from an emergency locking retractor (elr) to an automatic locking retractor (alr). The belts convert to the alr mode after the webbing has been fully withdrawn from the retractor. The system is designed so that as the belt is released into the retractor, the system remains in the alr mode so that a child restraint system (crs) can be tightly secured.
Recall repairs are free at any franchised dealer. Enter your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see which recalls are still open on your car.
NHTSA defect investigations
Pedestrian alert sounds
Summary
Nhtsa received a petition on or about july 18, 2022, requesting that federal motor vehicle safety standard (fmvss) 141 be applied to all electric and hybrid vehicles operating in the united states. The petition can be reviewed at NHTSA.gov under odi number 11486072. Fmvss 141 establishes performance requirements for pedestrian alert sounds for motor vehicles. The standard applies to hybrid and electric vehicles that have a gross vehicle weight rating of 4,536 kg or less or are defined as low-speed vehicles. The standard became fully applicable to all such vehicles manufactured on or after march 1, 2021.on january 27, 2023, NHTSA opened defect petition (dp) 22-005 to evaluate the subject matt
Steering column separation
Summary
On november 16, 2018, the office of defects investigation (odi) opened an engineering analysis (ea18-006) as an upgrade to a preliminary evaluation (pe18-005).â the investigation focused on allegations of steering wheel separation from the lower steering column after using the tilt and/or telescoping mechanism. Given the separation occurring when operating the tilt and/or telescoping function and failure of both shear capsules to maintain the lower steering column mounting position, potential for shear capsule damage in the known failures due to collisions, the overall low rate of occurrence, and the updated manufacturer documentation, this investigation is closed.â the closing of this inves
Upper steering column separation
Summary
On may 4, 2018, the office of defects investigation (odi) opened preliminary evaluation pe18-005 to investigate three allegations of steering column separation for model year (my) 2008 through 2013 toyota highlander vehicles. Two (2) of the 3 complaints were received by odi in april 2018 and occurred while the vehicle was in motion. Since opening pe18-005, one (1) additional voq involving steering column separation has been received. This incident occurred while the vehicle was stationary.as part of pe18-005, odi examined the field data, warranty data, and relevant technical information submitted by toyota in response to the pe18-005 information request letter. Ten (10) additional incidents
Power window master switch fire
Summary
On october 10, 2012, toyota initiated a safety recall of approximately 2.5 million u.s. Vehicles involving the following models and model years:2007-2009 camry and camry hybrid, 2009 corolla and corolla matrix, 2008 highlander and highlander hybrid, 2007-2009 rav4, 2008-2009 scion xb and xd, 2008-2009 sequoia, 2007-2008 tundra, 2007-2008 yaris, and 2009 pontiac vibe.see NHTSA recall number 12v-491 for more details, including the affected vehicle manufacture dates for each vehicle model.note that only early-production 2009 model year vehicles are included in the recall.toyota and gm dealers will inspect the power window master switch (pwms) assemblies and apply a specialized grease that inhib
Power window master switch fire
Summary
Odi has identified certain toyota vehicles experiencing a higher rate of fire and thermal event incidents among all toyota vehicles that use the same power window master switch design.they include a total of approximately 1.4 million model year (my) 2007 through 2009 camry, camry hybrid, rav4 and yaris vehicles built from approximately september 2006 through august 2008, as well as all my 2008 highlander hybrid vehicles.this preliminary evaluation has been upgraded to an engineering analysis (ea12-006) to further study the alleged defect and its consequences.the odi reports cited above can be viewed at www-odi.NHTSA.dot.gov/owners/searchnhtsaid under the following identification numbers: 104
Questions about the 2008 Toyota Highlander Hybrid
- What are the most common problems with the 2008 Toyota Highlander Hybrid?
- By NHTSA owner complaints: brakes (108 complaints, typically around 120,000 miles); electrical (35 complaints, typically around 123,000 miles); stability control (25 complaints, typically around 126,000 miles).
- How many recalls does the 2008 Toyota Highlander Hybrid have?
- 6 recalls listed by NHTSA, the latest from October 22, 2015 (visibility and wipers). Check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see which ones are still open on your car.
- Is the 2008 a bad year for the Toyota Highlander Hybrid?
- It is the 2nd most complained-about Highlander Hybrid model year since 2000, with 197 complaints. Complaint counts are not adjusted for how many cars were sold, so popular years collect more of them, and the newest years have had less time to.