Anyone else also have to close their doors harder than normal for it to shut?
I have a 2021 Highlander XLE and its become pretty annoying to have to try multiple times to close the door properly. I always hated when people slammed my car doors to close, but now it seems that we need to.

My 2021 XLE doors seem heavier than my 2013 Santa Fe Sport. So I have to give it more effort to get them to close.

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Amount of force needed varies from make and trim levels of different cars and with age of the seals.

See if the door is easier to close either with the window partially open, or the opposite door open. If so it is caused by a buildup of air pressure upon motion of closing due to new or effective door seals. If the same open or closed it is the force of the locking mechanism. If all door locks take the same amount of pressure to close....then you are not closing them with enough force.

 

When it's new you do have to slam the doors. That breaks in over time.

 

Good doors , they are heavy enough to protect you from side impact, don't compare cheap made Hyundai .
Just go look Palisade reasonably , its nice interior but sleezy with like Aluminum or fake Al knobs and push button. But it's good cars- Pilot, Highlander, Palisade, Telluride, Traverse (even entry level Acadia), Explore, Ascent, Atlas all them have plus and minus just per preference and price . I like VW and Volvo brands but i would not buy them as family vehicle on long term without warranty. Explore is excellent truck !!! I think best buy all around.
But I got Highlander is solid and proof brand, reliability and used value.

 

I like my Highlander. I like the doors being on the heavier side. I know I am getting some protection. For my boys the doors are heavy for them to close them. So I have to check behind them.

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They are harder to close for the first 6 months-1 year due to seals being new and springy. Once they settle in the door will be fine. Mine used to also not seem to open and it would drive me nuts. Had to tell ppl to retry once leaving the vehicle.

 

HL XLE 2022 new

Same issue, and only with driver's door.
Checked other doors - they close much better.
If it takes 6m-12m to settle the latch, then why only the driver's door like that?
I wonder if it's worth to mention that when I will do service...

 

Dear K3Dubeu,
Did your 2021 Highlander XLE doors get easier to close over time from 10 months ago when you first posted this? Two months ago, on 9-24-21, I bought a new 2021 Highlander XLE here in Maryland and the drivers side door from day one took alot of force to close. The other doors don't seem to have the problem so I suspected a defective latch, etc. I asked at the service dept, since I'm also having a (backordered) factory trailer hitch put on next week, and the Asst Service Mgr told me that Toyota intentionally did that because of wind noise reported by drivers in the past apparently due to an incomplete seal. So they made it a tighter seal apparently, by perhaps increasing the size of the door seals, etc and he said it would wear in over time, as some of the others on this thread have indicated. But it is a pain when the door stays open a little and the alarm buzzer goes off.

I also just did a test of closing the drivers side door while having open the passenger side door, as Thomcat indicated, and it seemed a little easier to close, so air pressure within a new vehicle with all the new seals could be a factor as well I suppose.

So thanks for any updates- I can't seem to find anything else about it on the internet or Toyota mentioning it anywhere.

 

Normal for the first 8 months to a year. As vehicle gets older seals will wear in place closing off any gaps or air leaks. As you close door you force circular type seals to crush and form in place.
In a few months you will forget about this alltogether

 

My '22 HiHy Platinum was like this at first. Really bothered my, especially when it went through a car wash with the door ajar! Driven to the conveyer by a car wash employee. I have owned way more new vehicles than I should have, and this was the first one that had this issue, including at least 3 other Highlanders and many other new Toyotas. Like others have said, it did get better, I have now owned it 11 months. Something isn't right.

I also had the loud pop sound when the front passenger door was opened. It also seems better now.

 

So it got better? not perfect yet?
What about other doors?

 

I greased my hinges with lithium grease. It used to stop just before latching if I didn't slam it. Closes smooth now like the rest. 2016 Highlander Limited.