I’ve had my Platinum for almost 3 weeks...

1). The center console opens when I rest my arm on it
2). I cannot plug my phone in via USB while using the Pandora app built into the vehicle, I have to open the app on my phone and use the Bluetooth input
3). I have windnoise from my panoramic moonroof while sitting still and having a cross wind (quiet while driving)
4). Remote start is worthless, has a range of less than 100 feet, WTH?
5). Agree on tire pressure being unavailable
6). Screen Off images do not rotate automatically, it can only store 3 which is also disappointing.
7) GPS estimated time is absurdly inaccurate. The drive home from the dealership said 9.5 hours on the car unit and 8.2 on the cell phone gps. That seems to be a constant inaccuracy

 

A couple of additional features that I was spoiled with on my previous 2015 Subaru Outback:

Lack of full speed dynamic cruise control. Highlander kicks out below 25 mph whereas Subaru would take the car down to a full stop and then reengage just by flicking a switch on the steering wheel or stepping on the accelerator. I found this very useful in bumper to bumper, stop and start traffic jams. Highlander requires you to speed up to about 30 mph before you can resume. Newer Toyotas have the full speed version so I would expect next generation Highlander to have this as well.

The clock - both in the dash and in the GPS system. On the Subaru it would automatically update in the spring and fall for daylight savings time changes. The Highlander requires the dash clock be updated manually and also requires you the go into the navigation menu to click or unclick the DST setting.

 

A couple of additional features that I was spoiled with on my previous 2015 Subaru Outback:

Lack of full speed dynamic cruise control. Highlander kicks out below 25 mph whereas Subaru would take the car down to a full stop and then reengage just by flicking a switch on the steering wheel or stepping on the accelerator. I found this very useful in bumper to bumper, stop and start traffic jams. Highlander requires you to speed up to about 30 mph before you can resume. Newer Toyotas have the full speed version so I would expect next generation Highlander to have this as well.

.

Good to know. That would be the only reason I would consider a new one at this point.

 

1. No digital speed readout
2. No actual tire pressure display
3. Overboosted steering
4. Power hatch is stupid slow.
5. No led or hid headlights. My 2018 Camry that cost 24k has led. Why doesn't my 42k 2018 highlander have them.
6. No led tag lights. Again 24k dollar Camry has them.
7. Led interior lights would also be nice for the price.
8. No hood struts. Once more 24k dollar Camry has them.

All of these are very minor complaints. Overall it's still the best vehicle we have ever owned.

 

My 2012 camry and and previously owned 2012 Jeep have hood struts too...forgot about that negative lol.. BTW i just joined the highlander group on FB. I think I saw your sig pic or atleast a pic that matches your Lander on there. You on there?

 

1 - sunroof - too many switches, too many sequences to fully close
2 - headlamps - no HIDs at this price point (Limited for Canada = Platinum for US)
3 - wheels - 19" chrometec wheels feel like they're made of cast iron. Doesn't help with ride comfort or handling and probably works against fuel economy goals. I put on 18s flowformed wheels for winter and they felt a good 30 lbs lighter EACH corner.
4 - navigation - cannot input while in motion
5 - seats - Memory presets cannot recalled while out of Park
6 - steering wheel - heated at 3 and 9 only??
7 - trunk - power hatch is unnecessarily slow
8 - automatic headlamps - takes 30 seconds to realize we're in a tunnel. Sample rate is just too long. However if you start up the car in the dark the headlamps fire up instantly. What gives? It's not a sensor or sensitivity problem, it just doesn't check fast enough.
9 - clock - on board clock not the same as the system time in the NAV. Redundant
10 - transmission - 8 speed programming is terrible. I get that it's hesitant to downshift, but I hate how it upshifts on turns. Always in the wrong gear when it comes time to get back on the throttle.
11 - TPMS - it took a month before the car realized I took the factory wheels off and I was running winter wheels without TPMS lol.

 

11 - TPMS - it took a month before the car realized I took the factory wheels off and I was running winter wheels without TPMS lol.

are your stored wheels in the garage with your highlander or close by? In the winter when I have winter wheels on my camry it takes a good 20 miles or so for it to realize it(the sensors aren't there) every day. Same place on my way to work it starts flashing and turns on. So if you don't drive real far it might not ever come on.

 

Eliminate needing a button to open fuel door. I like the pushing to release fuel doors. And make the fuel fill hole the new easy fill type/no cap type.

Eliminate the engine turning off opening the door after using the remote start. Of course better range needed. I went with Viper.

Better driver's seat, the horizontal part you sit on. Tilt the whole horizontal, not just the front edge.
And make the front passenger seat just as adjustable as the driver's.

Better, more intuitive compass. Just tell me what direction I'm headed.

Easier to use cruise control. I liked the old GM style on the turn signal. My 2016 Corvette left thumb control is really easy, hands on, intuitive. I really like to have the option for the cruise to be turned all the time. Not engaged, but turned on like the Vette.
I have hit the wipers several times going for the cruise on the HL.
Cruise is too complicated and less intuitive than others. You need to move your right hand down to engage it. Then up or down not always quickly intuitive. Not so with the two I mentioned.

 

I echo most of what has already been noted here. My biggest compliant at this price point are the lights. Halogen headlights and no LED tails? Come on Toyota, at least make it an upgrade in the Limited & Platinum trims.

One thing that bugs me is the HVAC functions. If I turn it off, the rear stays on until I press rear. To me, Off means off, including rear. Also when I turn on the HVAC, it doesn't automatically have all zones sync'd. All my other cars do this when you first turn it on.

 

I thought they had LED tail lights?

 

I have a 14 so they are not. 17+ have LED tails I believe.

 

What I expected from my HL might be a little lower then most since I bought the LE with AWD/V6. With that said, there's very few if any things I don't like about the HL. Even though it's the LE version - it still has MORE features then my 98 Pathfinder that was fully loaded. The HL doesn't have the Leather or sun roof but that's OK since I prefer cloth seats and never use the sun roof anyways. But I'm amazed at all the features the HL LE has that the Pathfinder didn't.

 

1. Transmission shift logic. Nuff said on that.
2. When you exit the vehicle with the lights in the ON position, there is an obnoxiously loud warning buzz. Come on, the lights turn themselves off, I don't need this reminder! And no way to disable it either.
3. No 12V power source behind 2nd row seating.
4. Radio controls hard to reach when driving.

 

Its been some time since a list of rants post....and I thought I would run through some of the points made and give my take on it.

I also have the LE, and have very few picky things I expected to be different as the base car and trim. It is a $28,000 SUV. All else you pay is for the trim, and I never found much of them worth it. In fact some major ones were a negative vs a upgrade worth paying for.
Like... the JBL sound system being #1 issue. Another was the plastic wheels, and I was already done with Limited, and was down to the XLE. No cloth seat option. For a 110F weather in summer climate, cloth is nice. So the only difference between the LE and XLE : power trunk was stupid slow, stereo was still unacceptable. and climate control was auto(I prefer manual controls), BUT had nicer wheels..whoopi. Save $8K and put in a real sound system with savings. Captain chairs were a negative for me and the reason for the HL "8seater" (theoretical) in the first place.

Safety features on the trim were useless to me as I am still alert and pay attention most of the time. Besides I would likely turn one of the features off for it bugging me, and then be pointless. When I hit 70 AND my senses are worn, or if I take up drinking while driving, I can find them useful. The point of the auto cruise control would be for traffic purposes, otherwise I don't see much a point. And it doesn't deliver here either. But I can see any of these features bring a smile to anyone that is willing to pay for it, and enjoy it.

So for the LE, I have a few, but they are small and they are not all functional.....

1. Entune and sound quality sucks across the range of trim levels.
2. Climate control changes from outside to recycle with cool to heat setting. Off knob is not on the Off position. No rear AC control from front.
3. Roof rails are only a 1 point mounting system as opposed to a other vastly versatile systems.
4. Seats jiggle a bit. Not always.
5. 2nd row could have had one latch to bring forward and fold down.
6. rear carpeting is the cheapest quality I have seen in over 10 cars I have experienced.
7. Painted interior plastic trim is easy to scratch and looks cheap. but easy to deal with
8. Cheap red sticker on toggle to indicate the lock/unlock position looks cheap.
9. Headrests dont have a tilt position/wife doesn't like it.
10. The car jumps fast with a little bit of gas on take off, and then doesn't get out of gear and has a dead zone at times. I have adapted, but still not 100%

That is about it.

Here is some point by point replies to the lists made....

I have had the Highlander for about a month now. I like a lot about it(way more than I dislike) It is the wife's daily vehicle but here is my list of things I don't like so far:

1. Panoramic Moon Roof takes two presses to Close fully- Stupid design
2. Noisy seat coolers- Seems like the fan is right behind my head when they are running at higher settings
3. Brown accents on my Black interior - don't mind the brown stitching in the leather seats but the other areas(dash tray and interior door grabs) shouldn't be brown in my opinion.
4. No digital Speedometer - C'mon Toyota
5. No Tire Pressure readout - C'mon Toyota
6. No HID/LED headlights on a platinum??? I plan to putting a kit in but for a $50k vehicle this day and age this should be standard..
7. No Remote Start - See above about headlights
8. Heated steering wheel should be fully heated- Spoiled by my previous jeep I guess
9. Start/Stop is the dumbest thing ever but we are stuck with this with all new vehicles I am afraid
That's it as far as I found so far.. Just little pet peeves but I do love the vehicle other than these few minor annoyances..

1. trim issue
2. trim issue
3. I felt the same way, hot weather state got me the gray leather with blue accents
4. meh
5. I know!
6. trim issue?
7. trim issue
8. trim issue
9. I know!
10 trim issue, hub caps.

-----
Stetson_GBR

I’ve had my Platinum for almost 3 weeks...

1). The center console opens when I rest my arm on it
2). I cannot plug my phone in via USB while using the Pandora app built into the vehicle, I have to open the app on my phone and use the Bluetooth input
3). I have windnoise from my panoramic moonroof while sitting still and having a cross wind (quiet while driving)
4). Remote start is worthless, has a range of less than 100 feet, WTH?
5). Agree on tire pressure being unavailable
6). Screen Off images do not rotate automatically, it can only store 3 which is also disappointing.
7) GPS estimated time is absurdly inaccurate. The drive home from the dealership said 9.5 hours on the car unit and 8.2 on the cell phone gps. That seems to be a constant inaccuracy

1. Hmm, maybe you lean and push down and slide back? Not had this issue.
2. I know! Entune sucks on all trims
3. Some wind noise issues, trim issue increases these issues.
4. trim options issue
5. I know!
6. see #2
7. see #2

-------------------

burban0428

1. No digital speed readout
2. No actual tire pressure display
3. Overboosted steering
4. Power hatch is stupid slow.
5. No led or hid headlights. My 2018 Camry that cost 24k has led. Why doesn't my 42k 2018 highlander have them.
6. No led tag lights. Again 24k dollar Camry has them.
7. Led interior lights would also be nice for the price.
8. No hood struts. Once more 24k dollar Camry has them.
All of these are very minor complaints. Overall it's still the best vehicle we have ever owned.

1. meh
2. I know!
3. Good one, Slightly, yes I agree.
4. trim issue...I know!
5. trim issue (I hearz ya)
6. see #5
7. yeah, but they would not make them bright, so I dont mind changing them to bright ones myself.
8. DISAGREE. I prefer no struts. Safety issue, less parts to replace in long run, as they will fail at some point.
----------------------------------------

poker838

1 - sunroof - too many switches, too many sequences to fully close
2 - headlamps - no HIDs at this price point (Limited for Canada = Platinum for US)
3 - wheels - 19" chrometec wheels feel like they're made of cast iron. Doesn't help with ride comfort or handling and probably works against fuel economy goals. I put on 18s flowformed wheels for winter and they felt a good 30 lbs lighter EACH corner.
4 - navigation - cannot input while in motion
5 - seats - Memory presets cannot recalled while out of Park
6 - steering wheel - heated at 3 and 9 only??
7 - trunk - power hatch is unnecessarily slow
8 - automatic headlamps - takes 30 seconds to realize we're in a tunnel. Sample rate is just too long. However if you start up the car in the dark the headlamps fire up instantly. What gives? It's not a sensor or sensitivity problem, it just doesn't check fast enough.
9 - clock - on board clock not the same as the system time in the NAV. Redundant
10 - transmission - 8 speed programming is terrible. I get that it's hesitant to downshift, but I hate how it upshifts on turns. Always in the wrong gear when it comes time to get back on the throttle.
11 - TPMS - it took a month before the car realized I took the factory wheels off and I was running winter wheels without TPMS lol.

1. trim issue
2. trim issue... and I don't mind getting brighter better lights than OEM, so I rather have the option than have some lower worked in part I would likely replace anyway
3. trim issue!
4. I know! entune sucks in function and is good in GUI
5. trim issue
6. trim issue
7. trim issue
8. Check your setting options
9. Love my clock
10. I know
11. I know! that sucks
-------------------------------------

 

Its been some time since a list of rants post....and I thought I would run through some of the points made and give my take on it.

I also have the LE, and have very few picky things I expected to be different as the base car and trim. It is a $28,000 SUV. All else you pay is for the trim, and I never found much of them worth it. In fact some major ones were a negative vs a upgrade worth paying for.
Like... the JBL sound system being #1 issue. Another was the plastic wheels, and I was already done with Limited, and was down to the XLE. No cloth seat option. For a 110F weather in summer climate, cloth is nice. So the only difference between the LE and XLE : power trunk was stupid slow, stereo was still unacceptable. and climate control was auto(I prefer manual controls), BUT had nicer wheels..whoopi. Save $8K and put in a real sound system with savings. Captain chairs were a negative for me and the reason for the HL "8seater" (theoretical) in the first place.

Safety features on the trim were useless to me as I am still alert and pay attention most of the time. Besides I would likely turn one of the features off for it bugging me, and then be pointless. When I hit 70 AND my senses are worn, or if I take up drinking while driving, I can find them useful. The point of the auto cruise control would be for traffic purposes, otherwise I don't see much a point. And it doesn't deliver here either. But I can see any of these features bring a smile to anyone that is willing to pay for it, and enjoy it.

So for the LE, I have a few, but they are small and they are not all functional.....

1. Entune and sound quality sucks across the range of trim levels.
2. Climate control changes from outside to recycle with cool to heat setting. Off knob is not on the Off position. No rear AC control from front.
3. Roof rails are only a 1 point mounting system as opposed to a other vastly versatile systems.
4. Seats jiggle a bit. Not always.
5. 2nd row could have had one latch to bring forward and fold down.
6. rear carpeting is the cheapest quality I have seen in over 10 cars I have experienced.
7. Painted interior plastic trim is easy to scratch and looks cheap. but easy to deal with
8. Cheap red sticker on toggle to indicate the lock/unlock position looks cheap.
9. Headrests dont have a tilt position/wife doesn't like it.
10. The car jumps fast with a little bit of gas on take off, and then doesn't get out of gear and has a dead zone at times. I have adapted, but still not 100%

That is about it.

Here is some point by point replies to the lists made....



1. trim issue
2. trim issue
3. I felt the same way, hot weather state got me the gray leather with blue accents
4. meh
5. I know!
6. trim issue?
7. trim issue
8. trim issue
9. I know!
10 trim issue, hub caps.

-----
Stetson_GBR



1. Hmm, maybe you lean and push down and slide back? Not had this issue.
2. I know! Entune sucks on all trims
3. Some wind noise issues, trim issue increases these issues.
4. trim options issue
5. I know!
6. see #2
7. see #2

-------------------


1. meh
2. I know!
3. Good one, Slightly, yes I agree.
4. trim issue...I know!
5. trim issue (I hearz ya)
6. see #5
7. yeah, but they would not make them bright, so I dont mind changing them to bright ones myself.
8. DISAGREE. I prefer no struts. Safety issue, less parts to replace in long run, as they will fail at some point.
----------------------------------------


1. trim issue
2. trim issue... and I don't mind getting brighter better lights than OEM, so I rather have the option than have some lower worked in part I would likely replace anyway
3. trim issue!
4. I know! entune sucks in function and is good in GUI
5. trim issue
6. trim issue
7. trim issue
8. Check your setting options
9. Love my clock
10. I know
11. I know! that sucks
-------------------------------------

Phil;

Our XLE was 34k even. I love the simulated leather interior, sliding hole in the roof, and the extra sound proofing that makes the interior quiet. Front and rear air is nice and the power gate is great for anyone not into athletics for the grab and pull competition. Love the aluminum wheel style. Better than most custom designs. Rear hatch window is a crowd pleaser which if your former vehicle had one you would find it mandatory. 34k Isn't a huge price tag for the quality / features we found as we looked at other makes. One can find annoyances with anything but over all Toyota knocked this one out of the park. I know everyone needs headlamps that light up the adjacent county but stock units seem fine as I don't drive mach 3. We added running boards for passenger safety as it is a bit high for many to jump in. Storage area volume is great ( holds a full size go cart with a Corvette body ) and towing ability is out of this world. It replaced my 3/4 ton Chevrolet truck as our car hauler.
As mentioned not everyone can be satisfied. At the value what SUV comes close ????

 

Guys, unfortunately Toyota doesn't care about your rants... they sold 215,775 HLs in US last year, so who cares about LED or speedometer display... after all, their software guys are all busy fixing the Entune bugs. :wink:

 

Makes one wonder why someone would buy a vehicle that they have so many dislikes about! My first thought is maybe they missed something during their due diligence but naw, couldn’t be that. Stupid Toyota engineers.

 

1. Worry my transmission will go out after the power train warranty
2. Start and stop, there is a mandatory replacement of starter and vacuum. This is the dumbest idea ever, but great for mfr. It helps to sell car. Bad for people who owns their car over 10 years.
2B: lack of button to permanently disable this feature. Hope Toyota will help us out here.

3. center console: I have hard time opening it with my right hand and reach in to get stuffs while driving
4. weatherstrips on 4 doors near the bottom, all types of dirt and debris get stuck there. At the end of each car wash, I have to take a sponge, bucket of water, and a picking tool to get all the debris out. Never had this issue with other cars in the past including other Toyota. One of these days, I will post a picture.
5. headlamps
6. roof racks: I refer the traditional type where I can tie things up without the crossbar
7. android/apple displaying content to entertainment system. (lack of)

Have I missed anything?
007

 

I know what your talking about with the mud/dirt on the bottom inside of the door. Really annoying. I found if I hold the hose under and spray up into there it cleans it out pretty good. I live on a muddy driveway so I deal with this a lot.

 

Mine is missing two cylinders and 100 hp.

 

Sounds like a dealership issue. I would demand a trade in!


On another note...
I forgot to add to my list (I'll update it)...
I think the thinner paint and thinner paneling is another thing I might not care for, Specially the paint ...or maybe the quality is something the years will prove to be great?

 

Agree with many points - cheap, easily scratched plastic, half-heated wheel (WHY?), jiggly captain’s chairs, no HID headlights (which, in fairness, I knew when I purchased)

One that really bothers me and my wife is around smart key locking. When exiting the car with multiple people, the driver must wait for all doors to be closed before touching the lock portion of the handle. If it’s touched before everyone is out of the car, there’s a lot of beeping and nothing happens. On my other car, a BMW, I can touch the lock portion of the handle and walk away without waiting for everyone. The driver’s door locks immediately but the rest of the doors won’t lock (and the car won’t give the confirmation chirp) until everyone else has closed their doors. Once the last door closes, all doors lock and the car chirps. This is the way it should work!! We’ve had the BMW for five years and there are no drawbacks to the approach that we’ve been able to detect.

Are we the only ones irritated by the Highlander making you wait to lock?

 

My 2012 camry is like this too but I am used to it now. If I don't want to wait to press the door handle sensor I just walk away and lock with the fob once everyone has closed the doors...but with the camry I have to keep my fingers crossed that they actually lock as I am having door lock actuator problems with that right now. Hoping Toyota doesn't still use the same ones in the newer Highlander as it is a common problem with a lot of Toyotas..

 

Coming from a venza that had this, there are two features that are absent in the HL that I would have really liked to have. 1. Power retracting side mirrors. Very handy in a big wide car.
2. Auto easy entry power seats that pull back to give you easy room to enter and exit.

Sent from my SM-G950W using Tapatalk

 

Right about the mirrors. Parking in narrow spots, concrete underground garage, I had them on my Traverse this one replaced.

One trick I use in some vehicles is to program setting number two as an exit. I hit number 2 and the seat goes all the way back, lowers, and the steering wheel moves up and out of the way.

 

Buyers Remorse ? Should have kept what I had ? I go through this every time I sell, or trade. i agree with you guys, except, are these issues noticed before driving off the dealers lot ? I am sure none of the complaints will change the trade in, or sale value. My wife has zero complaints for the 2018 XLE-AWD.

I have driven it a total of 28.8 miles, dealer to home. Ordered it, she is happy, that is all I care about, my Toyota pickup has window noise, rides a little rough, hauls everything, bad mpg, can go to the lumber yard, Lowes or Home Depot, by itself, knows the way, no complaints. Power retracting mirrors are available on BMW, Mercedes.

I recently asked her, what she likes best about it. Her answer, she does not have to push a button to unlock on the drivers side, if she has the key in her purse.
Just pull the dh, it auto opens. If I knew these new Highlanders had all the issues discussed here, I would have bought a Yugo.

 

I may have had a list of complaints but ultimately my wife and I really like the HL

 

I agree with most everything here. My biggest annoyance by far used to be the sound quality of the JBL Entune system. But since upgrading the front speakers I'm happy with it. Overall I don't like the Entune system with it's many quirks and bugs.

I'll add:
Radar cruise control causes vehicle to brake at an alarming rate when another vehicle in front and to the right exits highway.
Auto high beams that don't always react quick enough to oncoming vehicles, or switch to low on reflections from signs, etc.
Steering Assist on with lane departure alert gives odd added power assist feeling to the steering under normal driving.
Buttons to the right of the NAV screen cumbersome to reach.
Lack of lighting by front USB ports.

 

If you have zero annoyances with your car then good for you but there are some design choices that are clearly for cost cutting reasons.

Unless you're paying north of $200k - there isn't a car out there that doesn't have cost cutting design choices. NOT ONE.

 

I didn't realize LED or HID headlights were only expected at that price point. Oh wait...

Sure these are "luxuries" and if you have a base model, you don't expect any of this, but at the price point of Limited and Platinum it'd be nice to see some of these "luxuries", like factory LED/HID, available. Furthermore, these standard in 20k cars these days. Sure I could go aftermarket, but there are somethings I like better from the factory, headlights are one of them.

 

Definitely some of my gripes were discovered after a couple months. I've never had a car that didn't have something that I didn't like. If only I could take the highlander, then steal a couple things from the pilot and cx-9 then I could make what I would call the perfect vehicle. But in the end the highlander had by far the most pros and that's why we have it.

 

I get what he's saying, but I think most of our options complaints are reasonable at the 40-45k+ range, especially since these are just parts bin stuff found standard elsewhere in the lineup/competitors. I mean it's not like I'm wanting semi-aniline leather and 28 way power seats.

 

I understand what you’re saying but my point of view is that if people do their due diligence before purchasing a vehicle and still decide to buy it, they don’t really have a leg to stand on when it comes to complaining about the known issues or have nots! Are their things I wish that were different? Absolutely. Am I going to complain about it or become annoyed? At my age I enjoy everything I can get. Well, maybe not the shingles I recently had. It is what it is.

 

That is a good one regarding to power folding side mirrors, especially for people with tight spaces like us.
To add to that, I wish our side mirrors would automatically lower when our car is in reversed. I found myself manually (with joystick of course) lowering a mirror when doing parallel parking. Love that feature in the GS350 (lexus)

However, that's why they have the Limited with around camera. I am sure Toyota has thought about that.


Regarding to complaints on headlamps. The problem I see is 99% of the test drives are done during daytime. So no one will be able to see how poor these lights are before making a purchase. I bet Toyota would fix that (for free) if buyers are walking away during test drives. Lets hope future car review (Motortrend/Car and Driver)in the future would include headlamp rating.

007

 

I would be willing to bet the 4th Gen Highlander will have most of what we gripe about after seeing the latest Camry, Avalon, Corolla Hatch, and Rav 4's...Seems Toyota is stepping up its game adding some things we wish for such as LED lights, Apple Car play etc. They will just wait until the next redesign of the HL to add them I would imagine..

 

Oh for sure. In the grand scheme of things, these cars are their bread and butter and pretty much sell themselves. Toyota doesn't need to change a thing and they'll still sell like hotcakes!

 

(1) Can't see the LCD display at all most of the time due to sun glare.