Mr. Toyota, Sorry Sir, I am not Happy...

[naturoses]

Quality issues:


1. Paint chipping on brand new cars,
2. Bumper color different from metal body color (some colors only),
3. Paint gets scratched easily,
4. Bumper cracks and fog light assembly fall apart if we hit even at 20 MPH or less,
5. Whinning noise,
6. Sock smell in some cars,
7. Blue tooth issues (Lack of connectivity),
8. etc.,


Yours Dealerships: Nothing is new to them but they speak like everything is new and unheard off. Not easy to convince them.


My Belief: I believed in Toyota, a mantra, in the car world. I went along with this mantra but I am gradually losing faith now. Do not get me wrong, I absolutely love my Highlander but when I hear that my other highlanders are suffering some way or the other it bothers me and other members as well.

Hope you see this.

[matt0420]

As a long time domestic owner and fan, I've heard so much crap about poor quality this and poor quality that. I always read that Japanese cars and Toyota's in particular had outstanding quality and fit and finish. I never really bought into any of it, and continued to buy domestic. I never had a serious problem with any of them, so I never really understood all the domestic bashing that went on and always defended the domestics.

Then the FJ Cruiser came out, and I suddenly wanted to own a Toyota. That never happened, but the HL came out soon after, and that became the new dream. I finally got my HL and my damn bumper didnt fit! Needless to say that was completely un-expected as I had heard so much about wonderful Toyota build quality.

So far tho, that has been my only quality gripe with this truck, my first Toyota or "import" in general. I will say that the interior feels awesome and looks very well put together espcially next to my friends 2008 GMC Acadia.

As for the soft paint...I took the truck into my detailers to have him buff out some swirls I found in my quarter panel. He said the paint was REAL SOFT and I'm gonna have a lot of fun with it.

As for rock chips, I'm actually fairly happy with how thats held up so far. I've done a ton of highway driving with the truck, its even been from Toronto to Daytona Florida already, and I havent found one chip yet. Mind you I'm careful regarding what I drive behind and try not to tailgate...

As for the dealer, I'd say mine was helpful in trying to solve my bumper issue...they didnt fight with me even tho the truck had some mileage after bringing it to their attention (about 5000kms), however they didnt know what really needed to be done, and thus the problem drug on from the middle of July till last WEEK! And I know have a new repainted bumper...

[areamike]

I don't know if this is a quality issue, but I have noticed that our HL has some vibration that appears to be coming from the wheels. It's usually at around 40-45mph and continues with increased speed. I'm starting to wonder if it is the crappy Toyo's on it? I checked the pressure and they are all 4 dead-on 30PSI cold.

And I have to agree with matt. I love the layout of the interior. The second row seat has more leg room than any other mid-sized SUV I've ever been in. Every time we have had people travel with us and sit in the 2nd row seat, they always ask if our seats up front are all the way up, cause they have plenty of room back there. We say nope, we got them all the way back. They are amazed.

[Thunderchief]

Originally Posted by matt0420

As for the soft paint...I took the truck into my detailers to have him buff out some swirls I found in my quarter panel. He said the paint was REAL SOFT and I'm gonna have a lot of fun with it.

...

For what it is worth, I just spent 6 years in a Nissan Murano and everyone there had been complaining about "cheap Nissan paint." We would all get surface scratches at all the door handles from fingernails and such. They would buff out with wax and compound but it was a universal bitch over there.

I wonder if we scan a BMW board or a Honda board if we hear the same stuff? I dunno but it would not surprise me.

[areamike]

Originally Posted by Thunderchief

For what it is worth, I just spent 6 years in a Nissan Murano and everyone there had been complaining about "cheap Nissan paint." We would all get surface scratches at all the door handles from fingernails and such. They would buff out with wax and compound but it was a universal bitch over there.

I wonder if we scan a BMW board or a Honda board if we hear the same stuff? I dunno but it would not surprise me.

Funny you mentioned that, I just noticed the other day ours are getting those little scuffs/scratches on both our Corolla and HL. I think they are mostly from the Wife's wedding ring.

[05Moose]

Originally Posted by matt0420

As a long time domestic owner and fan, I've heard so much crap about poor quality this and poor quality that. I always read that Japanese cars and Toyota's in particular had outstanding quality and fit and finish. I never really bought into any of it, and continued to buy domestic. I never had a serious problem with any of them, so I never really understood all the domestic bashing that went on and always defended the domestics.

Amazing, one of the few with a domestic without lots of problems. Each domestic we've owned in the past fell apart on us. Chevy: Excess engine blow-by causing oil to soak the air filter, falling headliner, 3rd brake light (in the vehicle) melting from the heat of the bulb, crappy paint, etc. Ford: Remote trunk release motor failed, raw gas smell coming through the vents while driving (on the freeway and when parked), out-of-balance defective wheels, exhaust noise at startup that caused everyone in the parking lot to look around, but dealership said they didn't know what to do and Ford would have to tell them...so very poor dealership warranty work.

In comparison, this highlander is our 7th Toyota (we did have one Mazda Protege and it was problem free for the 70K+ miles we had it). I'd say each Toyota we've owned had at least one problem once we passed 60K miles (transmission problems on the 05 HL, Front Diff problems on the 05 Tacoma, 98 RAV4 needed a valve job at 70K+ miles, etc). So I don't expect anything different from the HL we just purchased. Everyone takes their reputation and expects zero problems per 1,000 vehicles. But no manufacturer has ever been able to do that. They're just higher up in the top 10. But compared to the domestics we've owned, I can completely understand why people lean towards Toyota.

Now, just in case Mr Toyota ever does see this thread, I think they'd increase their sales and brand loyalty if they increased their powertrain warranty to 10 years/100K miles like others are now doing. Sure, we don't experience all their electrical and other parts failing all the time, but I like to have the cake and eat it too.

[kkovak]

I've had my 2010 HL SE for 10 days now and have 1,000 miles on it, which included a trip across Pennsylvania and back this weekend. My only complaint, so far, is that the HL is not as quiet as my 2003 Avalon on the highway. Just a bit more wind noise than the Avalon but not to the point of annoyance.

My paint was immaculate: had my son who paints in a body shop go over it and no flaws at all. All the parts matched color, etc. Too early to tell about scratches, etc.

No Bluetooth connectivity issues at all (with Moto Razr V3). No other complaints.

Good Luck to all those with issues. Hope Toyota stands up and does the right thing for you.

Ken

[TrailDust]

Originally Posted by naturoses

Yours Dealerships: Nothing is new to them but they speak like everything is new and unheard off. Not easy to convince them.


My Belief: I believed in Toyota, a mantra, in the car world. I went along with this mantra but I am gradually losing faith now. Do not get me wrong, I absolutely love my Highlander but when I hear that my other highlanders are suffering some way or the other it bothers me and other members as well.

Hope you see this.

I'm not defending Toyota, but I thought I'd offer a couple of observations. As far as dealerships are concerned, pretty much every dealership for all makes of cars are independently owned and operated. Vetting prospective dealership owners who might want to offer/highlight top-notch service is trumped by money, and so even with Toyota you all to often end up with unscrupulous dealerships. Still I suppose it's possible that any corporation the size of Toyota could still exercise that level of control over dealerships if attention to product quality was of paramount importance.

As for Akio Toyoda or anyone at Toyota corporate reading this thread, that's doubtful. Toyota Nation is owned by Autoforums.com and has no connection to Toyota corporate. The ironic thing is that people like you and me have called and written Toyota about problems with our Highlanders, yet common problems/issues like the protective lip needed for the rear bumper go unheeded year after year. So much for customer input. Yet Toyota had a major issue a couple years ago over direct links to factory service manuals being posted on TN, so we were told to cease and desist allowing them or face not being able to use the Toyota name. Apparently the piddling amount they earn from copyrighted FSMs completely trumps owner complaints and observations about their vehicles. Sounds like typical corporate-level disconnect to me.

In the end, I'll stick with Toyotas when comparing them to all the other makes of vehicle I've owned over the years. Honda ranks up there too. I'll take some of the bad with the overall good, but that's just me.

[Thunderchief]

Originally Posted by TrailDust

In the end, I'll stick with Toyotas when comparing them to all the other makes of vehicle I've owned over the years. Honda ranks up there too. I'll take some of the bad with the overall good, but that's just me.

I came within an eyelash of getting a Mitsubishi Outlander, all decked out with heated leather seats, a v6, high-end head lights, self opening tail gate, the voice command controls for phones and all sorts of goodies. They even had aim-able fog lights. The real reason though was the 10-120K warranty on the drive train and the 5Y-60K bumper to bumper warranty. In the end, they were not moving much on price and I had been lured to Toyota for the long standing reliability. Beside the fact the Mitsu's have a notorious lousy resale value in the past. I never bought into the accelerator deal with Toyota that much after reading reports of people with 3 sets of floor mats and others just trying to bilk the company with phony claims. I'm sure there was some truth to a few cars but it was blown out of proportion in my opinion.

All I can do is trust my instinct that I made the right choice.

[roadkillrob]

Mr. Toyota himself has also not been happy in a while!

[naturoses]

Guys, I really did not expect so many replies. Thank you, I am loving it. I started worrying after areamike's bumper cracked after hitting a dog. Which part of the dog hit his bumper is different story but it is broken and fog light assembly fell part at such a low speed...

Roadkillrob: Love your statement "Mr. Toyota himself has also not been happy in a while!".

[TrailDust]

Honestly, I think most any vehicle bumper is going to suffer cracked paint with an animal impact, it's just the nature of the plastic commonly used for bumpers: paint can only accept so much surface tension before fracturing. It's just a shame repairs have to cost so much. For a repair like that, I'd use Carsmetics for a quality repair at the best price. Thing is Carsmetics can only be found in California, Florida, and Virginia.

[naturoses]

Originally Posted by TrailDust

Honestly, I think most any vehicle bumper is going to suffer cracked paint with an animal impact, it's just the nature of the plastic commonly used for bumpers: paint can only accept so much surface tension before fracturing. It's just a shame repairs have to cost so much. For a repair like that, I'd use Carsmetics for a quality repair at the best price. Thing is Carsmetics can only be found in California, Florida, and Virginia.

TrailDust, Thank you. I agree with you that car repairs are expensive. To remove a small dent/ding on car doors they charge a min. of $100/- in Boston

[TrailDust]

Originally Posted by naturoses

TrailDust, Thank you. I agree with you that car repairs are expensive. To remove a small dent/ding on car doors they charge a min. of $100/- in Boston

Hey, this might be the perfect excuse to take a short vacation down to Virginia and get it fixed at Carsmetics there.... Might as well kill two birds with one stone.

[areamike]

Originally Posted by TrailDust

Hey, this might be the perfect excuse to take a short vacation down to Virginia and get it fixed at Carsmetics there.... Might as well kill two birds with one stone.

Or one dog with one bumper...

Oh, that's right, the dog was fine....