2014 Toyota Highlander problems
NHTSA has received 163 complaints about the 2014 Toyota Highlander, and 22% of them involve electrical system. After that come body & structure (21%) and wipers, windshield & visibility (6%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 163 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Electrical system 22% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 8 and 1
- Injuries and deaths
- 9 and 1
- Typical mileage
- 39,000 miles 110 complaints with mileage
Source: NHTSA owner complaints
Where the complaints are
Share of this model year's complaints by the part of the car involved. One complaint can name more than one part, so the shares can add up to more than 100%.
When problems show up
View the numbers
| Mileage | Complaints |
|---|---|
| 0k to 20k miles | 29 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 28 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 31 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 8 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 7 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 2 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 2 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 0 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 1 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 2 |
| 200k+ miles | 0 |
What the data shows
Among the 110 complaints that report mileage, the typical (median) problem appeared at about 38,000 miles. For electrical system specifically, the median reported mileage is about 40,000 miles (26 complaints with mileage).
Safety-related details: 8 complaints mention a crash; 1 complaint mentions a fire; 9 injuries reported; 1 death reported.
Looking only at complaints filed within five years of the model year (so older and newer years are comparable), the 2014 ranks 18th most-complained-about out of 24 model years of the Toyota Highlander with enough data (120 complaints in that window). It is also covered by 4 safety recall campaigns.
What owners wrote
A few complaints as filed, shortened and with personal details removed. The first ones are among the most serious reports for this model year; the rest are typical.
I was driving my vehicle on our street, which is considered a private road, while preparing to turn around a bend in the road, a 94yr old woman walked in front of my car, was struck, and died. At no time during my turn did I see the woman as she stepped in front of my car. Research of the 2014 highlander revealed many owners had difficulty seeing any object or person due to the blind spot of the left side mirror.
To avoid two deer crossing road (bull bridge road, south kent, ct) on curve, lost control on right shoulder, hit straight on the utility wood pole. My speed was in between 25 and 30 MPH. During the accident, all airbags did not go off and the seat belt did not lock me up. The impact caused my chest, back, neck and head injuries.
Stationary vehicle. Power rear lift gate will open or close on demand only sporadically. It may begin to open or close and move just several inches, or perhaps a foot. It thus requires the operator to manually open or close the gate which is very difficult to accomplish especially for smaller or elderly people as the resistance is severe, requiring an enormous amount of effort and risk of injury. This is an ongoing problem and occurs continuously.
Tl* the contact owns a 2014 toyota highlander. The contact stated that an abnormal squeaking noise was heard coming from the rear driver side of the vehicle. The noise occurred intermittently while making turns. The dealer was not contacted. The contact researched the failure online and found that the failure was due to a damaged rear suspension. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified. The failure mileage was 46,000.