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2009 Toyota Highlander Hybrid Problems and Recalls
Owners filed 40 complaints with NHTSA about the 2009 Toyota Highlander Hybrid, most often about the brakes (55% of complaints, typically around 122,000 miles). It is 4th of 19 Highlander Hybrid model years by number of complaints and has 4 recalls.
Most common 2009 Toyota Highlander Hybrid problems
Brakes
22 complaints · 55%Half of these problems showed up before 122,000 miles.
While driving from orlando to tampa florida my wife had the ABS brake warning light came on and a weird noise coming under the vehicle. She was able to make it home and we took the car to dealer. They said we needed to replace the brake actuator at a cost of more than $3,400! We can't understand why such a small part…
The contact owns a 2009 Toyota Highlander Hybrid. While driving up a hill at 20 MPH, the vehicle stalled and the ABS, traction control, steering system, and battery warning indicators illuminated. In addition, "stop vehicle in a safe place immediately" appeared on the instrument panel. The contact had to depress the…
Service Brakes, Electric
7 complaints · 18%Half of these problems showed up before 8,000 miles.
Brakes fade for a brief moment -- perhaps half of a second -- and then come back. Although the brakes are being applied consistently throughout, the sensation is as if the driver were easing off the brake and then coming back on with more pressure.
Right front brake "clanks" when brake pedal is pressed fairly hard. Dealer claims this is normal for highlanders and that his entire inventory exhibits the same symptoms. (start last year and continues; comments are from dealer today -- june 3, 2010.)
Engine
5 complaints · 13%Half of these problems showed up before 60,000 miles.
Depressed accelerator after being stopped at traffic light. Car jerked forward, stopped and would not restart. Warning messages for the hybrid system (message was 'stop immediately and notify dealer'), brake system and 4 wheel drive. Car was towed to dealer who determined it was failure of hybrid inverter requiring…
Driving about 40mph went to accelerate and the whole car stopped responding to anything. Couldn't drive it at all, was able to limp to side of road, at first couldn't turn vehicle off. Once able to turn off and back on car would drive. Warning messages came on "check brake system-have your vehicle checked by dealer…
Electrical
3 complaints · 8%Parts named most often: 12v/24v/48v battery.
Depressed accelerator after being stopped at traffic light. Car jerked forward, stopped and would not restart. Warning messages for the hybrid system (message was 'stop immediately and notify dealer'), brake system and 4 wheel drive. Car was towed to dealer who determined it was failure of hybrid inverter requiring…
Abs light on with warning, brakes performing poorly. The ABS actuator assembly and break pump failed requiring replacement with a cost of over $3764 in repairs. The Toyota camry hybrid had millions of recalls for the ABS actuator but the Highlander Hybrid was currently not on recall. I own a 2000 Toyota 4 runner with…
Hybrid system
3 complaints · 8%Parts named most often: inverter.
The contact owns a 2009 Toyota Highlander Hybrid. The contact stated that while driving approximately 50 MPH, the check hybrid system warning light illuminated then the vehicle suddenly stalled. The vehicle was towed to the dealer for diagnostic testing. The technician stated that the hybrid inverter would have to be…
We took the vehicle to the dealer in for a 5,000 mile service maintenance. After our service advisor looked over the vehicle he said we needed new set of tires as the current ones were at the wear indicators. Our service advisor also said our vehicle was in the open campaign (NHTSA campaign number: 13v396000) to…
Complaints are owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects. One complaint can name several components, so shares add up to more than 100%.
2009 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.
Seats
Risk: If the front passenger seat occupant sensing system is out of calibration, the front passenger airbags may not deploy or they may deploy inappropriately for the passenger's size and position. This could increase the risk of personal injury during the event of a vehicle crash necessitating airbag deployment.
Fix: Southeast toyota will notify owners, and dealers will test the sensitivity of the occupant detection sensors, and recalibrate them as necessary. The recall began on march 21, 2013. Owners may contact southeast toyota at 1-800-301-6859.
Full defect summary
Southeast toyota distributors, llc (set) is recalling certain models interspersed through model years 2009 through 2013 as follows: model year 2009-2012 tacoma, 4runner, camry, camry hybrid, prius, and rav4; model year 2009-2010 avalon, fj cruiser, and highlander hybrid; model year 2010-2013 model year corolla, sienna and tundra; model year 2009-2013 highlander and venza; model year 2012 prius v; and model year 2010-2012 sequoia. During modification by set to include accessories such as leather seat covers, seat heaters or headrest dvd systems, these vehicles may not have had the passenger seat occupant sensing system calibration tested. Without passing the calibration test, the occupant sensing system may not operate as designed.
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."
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
Questions about the 2009 Toyota Highlander Hybrid
- What are the most common problems with the 2009 Toyota Highlander Hybrid?
- By NHTSA owner complaints: brakes (22 complaints, typically around 122,000 miles); service Brakes, Electric (7 complaints, typically around 8,000 miles); engine (5 complaints, typically around 60,000 miles).
- How many recalls does the 2009 Toyota Highlander Hybrid have?
- 4 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 2009 a bad year for the Toyota Highlander Hybrid?
- It is 4th of 19 Highlander Hybrid model years by number of complaints, with 40 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.