Does your HL have these Cosmetic Issues?

[Solorange]

My wheels are starting to flake around the center cap.

My center armrest is spliting in the spot we always rest our elbow when driving.



Do you think if I take it in to the dealership they will fix it under warrenty? I only have 22300miles on my Highlander so far.

[peterk9]

Originally Posted by Solorange

My wheels are starting to flake around the center cap. My center armrest is spliting in the spot we always rest our elbow when driving.
Do you think if I take it in to the dealership they will fix it under warrenty? I only have 22300miles on my Highlander so far.

No problems of any kind on my '09. Note that I don't use the alloys for winter driving. I doubt these items would be covered under warranty but it doesn't hurt to ask.

[Solorange]

Unfortunatly I don't have a second set of rims for the winter. These wheels should hold up for winter. Nobody else has any of these issues?

[jgayman]

Originally Posted by peterk9

No problems of any kind on my '09. Note that I don't use the alloys for winter driving. I doubt these items would be covered under warranty but it doesn't hurt to ask.

I doubt that it has anything to do with winter driving. My '01 HL alloy wheels have endured 10 years of PA winter driving without any pealing or corrosion.

[abimom]

I wish my wife's Highlander wheels looked that good. All of hers are showing the rust, just more towards the spoke areaas, not near the center cap. The dealer quoted her last year a price to fix them and put on a thicker clear coat. Decided it would be best and cheaper to buy aftermarket rims if they ever needed to be changed and just keep these for now.

[allanbradl]

I have just finished reading the maintenance chapter of the owner's manual, many of this problems can only be avoided by daily routine cleaning and washing. Dirt must be viped off the rims immideately after driving in unfavourable conditons and etc. Daily maintenance is recommended to be performed by your toyota dealer or by yourself ( that is beside the scheduled maintenance). It sets the record straight pretty much.

[JMSinMD]

Originally Posted by Solorange

Unfortunatly I don't have a second set of rims for the winter. These wheels should hold up for winter. Nobody else has any of these issues?

If you are interested I have a set for sale

[Solorange]

I wash the Highlander once a week so I doubt that is the problem.

JMSinMD I would love to buy a second set of wheels, but unfortunatly we need to use the money to fix up things around the house.

I just had a thought maybe the mechanic at the dealership knicked them up with his impact gun when I had them rotate the tires.

[Dman1]

Originally Posted by jgayman

I doubt that it has anything to do with winter driving. My '01 HL alloy wheels have endured 10 years of PA winter driving without any pealing or corrosion.

Did you typically drive on salted roads during that time, or sand. Salt is usually the culprit. Where I live, tons of salt is always used on the roads. I had alloys on an older vehicle that I used in the winter and summer for six years, and they were pitted quite bad...not close to failing, but they looked bad. Ever since then, I have run winter tires and rims to both protect my alloys from the salt and to be able to drive home safely during wintery driving conditions.

So, it could still be as a result of winter driving if you typically drive on salted roads.

[AXMACD]

I drove on my alloys for half a winter IF THAT and there is a bit of corrosion. I have steel wheels now so they alloys haven't gotten any worse. The alloys on my last Highlander were flaking pretty bad by the end of it..

[toy08]

Haven't had any problems. Although I do use a 2nd set for winter. Since you wash your car weekly, are you using something to clean the wheels? I used to spray tire foam on my car and didn't know I had to wipe off the excess on the wheels. Later on, the wheels started flaking because of that.

[luck123]

One chip in that clear, and the salt and water gets in there, reacts with the aluminum which causes clear to separate from the alloy and flake. Seen this happen on many alloy wheels, especially those driven during winter up here. This is not a Toyota only problem.

If you can't store in the winter, keeping your wheels clean helps, but throwing on a coat of wax every now and then goes a long way. I keep a separate wax pad and wax for my wheels. You should also touch up any nicks in the clear. I had to do just that because of the lack of care taken by the morons at the dealer using the impact gun. Besides that, mine look almost as good as new.

I am pretty sure they will not cover the wheels under warranty, and getting them repaired means stripping them down to bare alloy, then refinish....not an inexpensive option.

As far as the armrest goes, I could swear that there was a thread on this issue...folks with 08s having their armrest split. I could be wrong, but a search may turn something up.

[sweeneyp]

Originally Posted by luck123

As far as the armrest goes, I could swear that there was a thread on this issue...folks with 08s having their armrest split. I could be wrong, but a search may turn something up.

There was a thread about that, mine have split like you mentioned, but that thread concerned with the armrests in the door panel, not the center arm rest. The leather in the Highlander is definitly not the best leather, I have tried to keep it in good condition with the leather conditioner/cleaner you can buy. Hopefully I can prevent it from splitting. Those cleaners/conditioners might prevent some more cracks from forming on your armrest.

[JimT]

The dealership replaced mine when they started chipping near the centre cap. It wasn't a winter or salt issue, as it happened at very low mileage. I have more winters on the replacements, and still no issues.