I've noticed the same thing with my 2011 Highlander Limited model with the 19-inch stock wheels/tires. Seems to read about ~3MPH faster than the GPS speed.

 

I have tested mine many times. Mine reads 2-3 fast as well (well more solidly 2mph fast now that I have the slightly larger tires)

 

I have a Scangauge II in mine, and I have to calibrate it to mileage, and not the speed, or it would be off as well.

 

It’s a liability issue and not only Toyota has high reading speedos. There are variables that can fluctuate the gauge’s reading. If the speedometer reads low and you are fined for speeding or something worse, then you could potentially go back to the manufacture for damages.

 

Uh, no. The speedo in the 2005 HL is dead on accurate, so that blows your theory anyway. The reason for the inaccuracy is the conversion from the digital signal to the analog gauge. If Toyota put in a digital speedo, you'd see the accurate speed (which is why the odometers are accurate). For speeding purposes, CHP here in Calif automatically deduct 5 mph from the clocked speed to account for possible speedo errors.

Toyota actually allows up to 4 mph at 60 mph. The Tacoma is at 4 mph fast, the HL is at 3 mph (according to the radars that I've checked them against). What's interesting to note is that the Taco varies (it's 3 mph fast at 40 mph), whereas the HL is 3 mph fast at all speeds (it's 3 mph fast at 30 mph and at 65 mph). Sure, the analog gauge could be more accurate, but doing so with tighter tolerances probably costs more money. Cheaper to allow some error.

Toyota's allowable speedo error:

 

My 2011 with 17" wheels reads about 3-4 MPH fast. The odometer seems to be more accurate.

 

My 2011 with 17" wheels reads about 3-4 MPH fast. The odometer seems to be more accurate.

Ditto on my '11 SE with 17" wheels.

 

Our 08 appears to be dead on with the street mounted radar units in Colorado.

 

That is pretty much the universal error rate with Highlander owners as I've observed in these forums the past few years. My Highlander was 3 MPH too fast, and now that I've changed my tires from the OEM 245s to 255s, which changes the turn rate of the tire, the speedometer error is now down to 2 MPH too fast. IMO, that much error in a speedometer is ridiculous....:disappoin

 

My '11 Limited speedometer reads 2% higher than 2 different GPS units at all speeds - 50mph on GPS = 52mph on speedometer, 75 on GPS = 78 on speedo. Better than the '11 Subaru I got rid of which was 4% off across the board.

 

Mine seems to be right no. I got a new garmin so I'll test it later.

 

My camry speedometer is 5mph more than my GPS. I tried my GPS on my Honda SUV and both have same speed. I think Toyota is somehow a bit off. No big deal thou unless theres a speedlaser pointing on you :lol::headbang:

 

Mine 2008 reads about 5mph higher than the actual speed at around 65-70mph. At lower speed the difference is smaller...

 

Toyota speedo's are actually pretty accurate. From personal experience with 4 Toyota's the error vs. GPS were / are:
2005 Corolla: +3% (or 2 mph at 60 mph)
2005 Sienna: +3%
2008 FJ: dead-on
2010 HL: +3%

In most countries, the legal limit is -0 / +10%

Most European cars are usual >5% on the happy side. It think it works as an ego booster to think that you are going faster than what you really are.

The only other car I owned that had a dead-on accurate speedo was a Ford. All others (BMW, Chevrolet, Renault, VW, Suzuki) were anywhere between 5 and 10% over. The VW and BMW were the worst - maybe that's why many people think that German cars are faster

 

Most of the cars I've owned have been dead-on accurate, including some of the biggest POS vehicles I've owned like an Isuzu P'up pickup and a TR7. If British Leyland could produce a vehicle with an accurate speedometer, then one would assume Toyota could do the same. Apparently not. I still say in the modern age that anything over 2 MPH in error is completely unacceptable. :thumbsdow

 

TR7. If British Leyland could produce a vehicle with an accurate speedometer, then one would assume Toyota could do the same.

Ahhh..Leyland motors, and Lucas electrical systems. I still have my 1969 TR6, and it runs great. :chug:

 

Another +3 MPH

+1

My '08 Highlander with stock tire/rim configuration consistently reads +3 MPH when compared against numerous Dynamic Speed Display Signs (AKA "Your speed is..." signs).

IMHO, this is even more incentive to select a different aspect ratio when it's time to replace the tires.

 

My '08 reads 2.5 mph fast at 70mph, about 1.5 mph fast at 40 mph. It has relatively new stock-size tires, so the error will only get larger as tires wear.

 

My '02 HL is spot on; at least at 70mph.

 

noticed my speedometer is off by 3 or 4 miles against my garmin, which i just got a few days ago. The garmin reads 52, my speedometer says 55 or 56. Is there anything we can do about this?

 

When you start comparing any two gauges there are bound to be differences. Does it really matter? How accurate do you expect either to be? These things are general purpose indicators.. not survey measuring devices.
The diameter of your wheel will change both with temperature and speed. You would need to know both to accurately determine the distance traveled in a specified time period. Any deviation from absolute straight will also make a difference. Given that the accuracy of the GPS is also unknown using it a standard is also questionable.

 

After driving 300 miles round trip I discovered that my speedo is off by 2 MPH as compared to my GPS.

Not worried, it's close enough. :thumbsup:

 

Yeah, I've noticed the little difference myself. "zomg! My navi's speedometer is off!" *switch on another* "zomg! My navi's speedometer is off!"... Then realized it's my HL lol


Sent from Autoguide iPhone app

 

Our '07 and '09 Camry Hybrids were/are off by the same amount that our new '12 HL is. Our '09 Venza was spot on. I don't see why they can't make all of their speedos accurate.

Is it possible that the Venza is a USA only vehicle and the speedo doesn't need to be converted from a metric speedo? (side issue, but perhaps related, the outside temp is detected in degrees C, and converted to degrees F)

 

Our '07 and '09 Camry Hybrids were/are off by the same amount that our new '12 HL is. Our '09 Venza was spot on. I don't see why they can't make all of their speedos accurate.

Is it possible that you tell just how far off the 2012 is? In your post it does not say/

 

My daughter's 08 Highlander is off by about 1-2 mph at 70 according to GPS. My GMC is spot on. Same with My accord. My company Ford is off by about 3 mph at 70.

 

There are a ton of variables involved with speedo accuracy. Air pressure and mechanical variables make most of them accurate to within 3-4%. Modern GPS units are accurate to within 1% (as published). That's about as accurate as you are going to get in a car.

 

What I can tell you is that our '12 HL is reads 72 when the GPS says 70. I constantly have to set the cruise 2 mph higher than the speed limit to run at the speed limit. The '09 Venza was reading 70 when the GPS said 70. It's not a huge deal, just seems strange...If they can make the Venza right, why can't they make the Camry and the HL right? They all have the same "DNA". If I really wanted to complain abouut something, I would complain about the "ancient" 5 speed trans in the V6 HL. As far as I know, all the other vehicles in the Toyota line up with the V6 have the 6 speed, as does the 4 cyl HL. :ugh3:

 

I would complain about the "ancient" 5 speed trans in the V6 HL. As far as I know, all the other vehicles in the Toyota line up with the V6 have the 6 speed, as does the 4 cyl HL. :ugh3:

Not to de-rail the thread, but that "ancient" tranny is about as old as the 2GR-FE v6 powering our HL's. It has near seamless/smooth shifts even under towing conditions. Just because its not a 6 speed doesn't mean its insufficient/of less quality. The 6 speed doesn't really change a whole lot anyway. The V6 Venza (which weighs a good deal less than the HL (200-400lb), and is more aerodynamic) only gets 19/26 (18/25 awd) with it which is very similar to the HL's with a 5 speed. The rav4 still uses the 5 speed as well.

:rant: :lol:

and back on topic, the speedo reading 3 mph fast helps me. I have, what most would call, a lead foot. It helps me keep the speed low enough to escape speeding tickets :facepalm: The speedo keeps my inner speeder at bay and the real speed keeps cops away :naughty:

 

The way the 5 speed tranny operates is one of the reasons I bought the 2012 HL limited. Extremely smooth. I would not want any changes to it. If there are, I sure would not want the 1st year out. It is just fine for me. I need to check my speed against my GPS, just out of curiosity. If it is off a couple MPH, it is meaningless to me, Although you would think this would be something that should be dead on.

 

According to my Garmin GPS, my speedometer is reading 3-4 mph high at 70 mph. This is on a week-old Highlander with about 600 miles on the odometer. I expect it to only get less accurate as the tires wear down. I guess that's better than the alternative (reading low) from a traffic violation standpoint, but I don't put much credence in the MPG calculation shown on my multifunction display (it will always say I'm getting better mileage than I am by about 1 MPG, assuming the speedometer and odometer are calibrated the same).

The Mazda Tribute my HL replaced read 1-2 mph high.

 

According to my Garmin GPS, my speedometer is reading 3-4 mph high at 70 mph. This is on a week-old Highlander with about 600 miles on the odometer. I expect it to only get less accurate as the tires wear down. I guess that's better than the alternative (reading low) from a traffic violation standpoint, but I don't put much credence in the MPG calculation shown on my multifunction display (it will always say I'm getting better mileage than I am by about 1 MPG, assuming the speedometer and odometer are calibrated the same).

The Mazda Tribute my HL replaced read 1-2 mph high.

Bad assumption there. The odo is accurate. The error in the speedo is due to the digital to analog conversion. The odo is digital and accurate.