Vehicle Data Hub

2023 Toyota Highlander problems

NHTSA has received 248 complaints about the 2023 Toyota Highlander, and 13% of them involve body & structure. After that come engine (11%) and seats (8%).

At a glance

Complaints
248 filed with NHTSA
Most reported
Body & structure 13% of complaints
Crashes and fires
21 and 0
Injuries and deaths
19 and 0
Typical mileage
32,000 miles 24 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

Complaints by mileage, 2023 Toyota Highlander Complaints by odometer reading in 20,000-mile steps. The median is about 32,000 miles. 0k to 20k miles: 6 complaints 20k to 40k miles: 8 complaints 40k to 60k miles: 6 complaints 60k to 80k miles: 0 complaints 80k to 100k miles: 0 complaints 100k to 120k miles: 0 complaints 120k to 140k miles: 1 complaints 140k to 160k miles: 1 complaints 160k to 180k miles: 0 complaints 180k to 200k miles: 0 complaints 200k+ miles: 2 complaints 040k80k120k160k200k miles Typical: 32,000 miles
Based on 24 complaints that include mileage. 83% were reported before 60,000 miles. The amber marker shows the median: half of these complaints happened before that mileage.
View the numbers
MileageComplaints
0k to 20k miles6
20k to 40k miles8
40k to 60k miles6
60k to 80k miles0
80k to 100k miles0
100k to 120k miles0
120k to 140k miles1
140k to 160k miles1
160k to 180k miles0
180k to 200k miles0
200k+ miles2

What the data shows

Among the 24 complaints that report mileage, the typical (median) problem appeared at about 32,000 miles.

Safety-related details: 21 complaints mention a crash; 19 injuries reported.

Looking only at complaints filed within five years of the model year (so older and newer years are comparable), the 2023 ranks 5th most-complained-about out of 24 model years of the Toyota Highlander with enough data (248 complaints in that window). It is also covered by 9 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 in an accident on [XXX] on [XXX] in Elizabeth, Indiana in front of the casino. They changed a two lane road into a one lane road by using mobile traffic lights. As I tried to brake, the car sped up and the car auto corrected in the lane on the left when I tried to avoid the impact by going right. When I crashed into the other vehicle, my air bags did not deploy. I hurt my back, neck, and chest(from the seatbelt/impact). I had no choice or option to avoid impact. On my left was oncoming traffic.

April 2024 CrashInjury

The contact owned a 2023 Toyota Highlander. The contact stated that while his friend was driving at 45 MPH, he failed to yield when exiting the interstate at an exit ramp. As a result, the driver t-boned the passenger side of another vehicle. The air bags did not deploy. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was towed to a tow yard and deemed a total loss by the contacts insurance provider. A police report was filed and injuries were reported.

Reported at 26,000 miles, August 2024 CrashInjury

The contact owns a 2023 Toyota Highlander. The contact stated that while driving at lower speeds, pulling into an uphill driveway, the vehicle had independently accelerated while the accelerator pedal was depressed. In addition, the contact stated that she was not able to depressed in time and had crashed into the left side of the house, causing damage to the front driver-side bumper and quarter panel.

Reported at 59,000 miles, January 2026 Crash

The contact owns a 2023 Toyota Highlander. The contact stated that while attempting to start the vehicle, the driver’s and passenger’s side mirrors moved downward independently, causing the contact to manually adjust the side mirrors. A dealer was contacted. The vehicle was taken to the dealer to be diagnosed; however, the diagnostic result was unknown. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 28,000.

Reported at 28,000 miles, January 2024

Other model years of the Highlander

Best and worst years for the Toyota Highlander