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Hybrid Vehicles Toyota Highlander Hybrid New Toyota Highlander Hybrid Owners - Give Us Your Report
143 messages, Last post on Nov 19, 2009 at 10:23 AM
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After filing a report with Toyota regarding the issue of no power after leaving the car off and untouched for a few days, I was told by Toyota that all who have experienced this problem should call Toyota at 800-331-4331 to report it, as if it is indeed a widespread problem, they need as much info. as possible in order to report back to the dealers and possibly issue a recall. Thanks!! |
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Replying to: llbonner (Mar 17, 2008 4:35 pm) In the '06 version, whenever the little 12V battery is disconnected or loses power, the idle speed controller loses parameters it needs to more efficiently run the engine. There was a tech bulletin asking shops to reset the controller if they touch the 12V. A shop will reset the controller so it can relearn the characteristics of your specific engine and adjust various parameters to run at what it believes to be maximum efficiency. During this time, your mileage will start out poor and progressively improve as it learns. Another possibility to the low mileage is break-in. We babied our HH for a long time and the mileage kept improving over the first 2000 -> 5000 -> 7000 -> 12000 miles. It has now settled to 25-26 MPG given our normal driving style, our terrain and our traffic characteristics (lights, stop signs, traffic volume). If I am extra careful, I can get 27-28 MPG. Hilly and mountainous terrain, lots of lights and short stop signs, lots of fast moving traffic requiring a lot of jack-rabbit start and stop or heavy acceleration are all factors that can impact efficiency. Tire pressure can also be a possible cause if they are too low. Tire type too if they are too heavy. Cold weather and use of Winter definitely impact mileage. I understand the '08 version has the "EV" button that changes engine performance to favor fuel efficiency? May be try that mode? The '06 HH is not a magic car that can instantly get stellar mileage. The '08 HH is much better, from what I have read so you should theoretically see better mileage as things break in, weather warms and so on. Good luck. |
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We got a HH November 2006 so it ia 2007 HH and love the car. The only complaint is that the battery under the hood that provides the power to the accessories and the ability to start the car dies. Our first one lasted 6 months before we saw issues. We took it into the dealer 10 times and had it tested each time and they kept saying it was fine. We carried a battery to jump the car in the back and had to use it 3+ times a week to jump the car to get it started. Finally I dropped off the car at the dealer and told them to keep it until they changed the battery or gave me a new car. It took 3 days of them calling saying what do you want us to do with the car. Finally they tested the battery after they stressed it and it died for them also. They put in a new battery and we have gone 4 months and the battery light has started again. Has not gone dead yet but every now a then we get a service battery light. I fought with the Dealer and Toyota for months dont want to do it again but, I will. I think they undersized the battery in the HH and should have run an emergency wire from the main battery's to the mini battery under the hood. It would be nice to not be stuck and able to press a button and get temp power from the huge battery packs under the seat to get going. TOYOTA are you listening you undersized your battery in the HH. Anyone else had a similar experience.?
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Replying to: toyotax2 (May 05, 2008 9:31 am) We got our 06 HH around August '05 and the original 12V still works fine. The 12V has a little window that shows different colors. Blue is good and it has been blue all this time. Good luck and let them know you post on-line so a bad response could easily spread like wild fire on-line. May be that will get them to at least do the warranty work. |
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| This is not to challenge the validity of anyone else's concerns and complaints, but just to say that not everyone has them. My 2007 now has 28,700 miles and I love everything about it, get great mileage (26+ even w/ a short commute that wrecks the mileage), and haven't had any battery problems leaving the car for a week or so, or any other problems at all. | |
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Replying to: toyotax2 (May 05, 2008 9:31 am) I own a 2007 Highlander Hybrid and have now experienced a dead battery and inability to start the car 3 times now. Once after about 3 weeks of non-use and twice after approximately 11 days of non-use. Took the car to the dealer who assured me that everything checked out just fine. Would have lived with problem (although very inconvenient and potentially dangerous ie. if coming back to an airport after a trip) but was speaking to a group of individuals two of whom experienced the same problem with their Highlander Hybrids. Clearly this is not a random problem. One of the individuals was told by his dealer that battery is terribly undersized and should be replaced with a battery with greater capacity. Called Toyota Central (1-800 331 4331 as recoomended in someone elses comments) and they were singularly unhelpful and uninterested. I pointed out that multiple people seem to be having this problem and was asked by them why I was not disconnecting my battry (WHY DON'T THEY PROVIDE A CUTOFF SWITCH ON THE DASHBOARD FOR THIS PURPOSE IF THIS IS NECESSARY?) Does anyone in America disconnect their battery for 2-3 weeks of non-use? I insisted on speaking to a supervisor and was told by her that there is a warning on page 100 + something indicating that the Hybrid must be driven for 30 minutes every 2 weeks to guarantee starting. I pointed out that 2 people in my narrow circle of acquaitance seem to be having this problem and as a result this seems to be a larger problem and a Toyota not a customer problem, however, they simply didn't bite. If this is the appropriate working condition of the car I suggest they post a big red warning on the dashboard indicating that vehicle has to be used 30 min every two weeks or it won't start. I don't think this would be a major selling point if people actually knew or were aware of this inconvenience. The Highlander Hybid is a hot product but Toyota still has a responsibility to provide a useful working product that operates according to the local norm. Every other car I know can last two weeks without having to drive it and still start. If this one can't they should fix it or post a more prominent warning. If your experiencing this problem (and I can't believe that there aren't many since I know 2 personally) I would complain like crazy to Toyota, on line, and to the National Safety Council (as I believe this has a safety as well as inconvenince component). In the mean time Toyota should be embarressed that those writing here about having this problem and myself and at least two other people locally are being ignored. I expected more Toyota when I bought their product. |
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The Highlander is the first hybrid I've owned, and we love it. We have learned how to coast as often as possible, and we love the nav. Yesterday the dealer who sold us the car, Middletown Toyota of Middletown Ct, snagged us as the 15000 mile service. We brought our Highlander Hybrid in for an oil change. The service advisor showed us an official looking chart explaining many other services "needed" at 15000 miles, including a tune up and new PCV valve. They said it was because the car is a hybrid. The charge for the service was $250 rather than the $25 the oil change cost. We thought this was Toyota's recommendation, and since we had never owned a hybrid before, we believed the dealer. When we got the car back, we read the manufacturer's recommendation, that said we didn't need any of that extra service until 60000 miles. The dealer ripped us off for $225 in service we didn't need. I post this since the only reason I fell for it was being a new hybrid owner, so if you don't want to be a rube like me, thoroughly know your service needs before you walk into the dealer service department. |
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My first observation is that the HH forum is not very active. I'm used to the Camry Hybrid forums that have daily activity. I guess I'll have to focus my time on more productive activities now.  It's good too to see that the HH people (Hybrid Haters) are no longer active. I've read through some of the early posts and it seemed like a lot of people here as well as the TCH forums went out of their way to bash hybrid technology. I guess after seeing $5 diesel fuel and even seeing their beloved GM apply hybrid technology in their "gotta have one" pickup trucks, they had to shut up. I've never had to defend my purchases in the past and I've had many impractical vehicles, but many people do honestly and sincerely question the purchase of a hybrid. After two and a half years driving a Camry Hybrid, I have a better idea as to what I can expect with the Highlander. Yes I do wish it had the 4cy hybrid setup, but this will have to do as it is what is available for now. I didn't expect my HH to replace my Expedition, it replaces my car. Thus having the awd, large storage, easy access, comfortable room AND having better FE than most cars certainly makes this a painless decision. Also due to its practical use, it will replace the 14mpg Expedition on many nominal duties that the car couldn't handle previously. I know my driving habits and see no reason why I can't match or exceed the EPA ratings. But even if I don't, 24 to 25 is pretty amazing for a vehicle like this. Over the past years it has become obvious to me many people don't know how to calculate their FE in mpg's. They typically quote their car's abilities based on a recent road trip, seldom do they know their overall average. I've tracked FE on most of my cars for 20+ years and typically I average very close to the lower city number although the large percentage of my driving miles were interstate. Even still many don't realize that going from a vehicle that gets 17 mpg to 25 mpg is almost a 50% gain in FE. I hear them say, well 25 mpg is not all that great. Hey, that can cut your gasoline bill in half! Anyway, I don't have to justify myself and educating people is not in my job description so .... I don't have a lot of miles on the HH yet, just picked it up this week. Will take it on our first road trip this weekend and have a trip to NYC planned in early Dec. The main use of the HH will be for my wife to comfortably and safely commute to our son's house to babysit our granddaughter. My wife has a bum knee and the HH is a lot more comfortable and has easier entry / exit than the car. Getting into the rear with the power liftgate is going to be a real plus when carrying a baby carrier. We can actually use the liftgate for the other grandchild to stand under if the weather is bad while loading the baby. The interior is heads and shoulders more handsome than the Camry and most cars that I have seen. Yes, I wish the Japanese would copy the Germans on interiors, but I'll take Japanese technology and electronics anyday over German Engineering. The HH gives you all of the advantages of high seating / view, carry capacity, comfort and the room of an SUV without the guilt of knowing you're driving a gas hog just to drive the kids around. That did not use to bother me but more and more I find that wasting natural resources, especially when you fund terrorist activities by doing so just doesn't make sense. I'm still waiting on the hybrid sports car. I'm ready for another sports car but am willing to wait until the technology gets applied across the car lines. I'd really like a Vette that gets 30 mpg (average, not just highway). I do wish it was cheaper since that would make it available to many who really could benefit from the operational savings. For now the HH just makes a lot of sense for me. It's a good fit with our lifestyle and needs.
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| ... I continue to be impressed with the quality of this vehicle as I become more familiar with it. The safety features are amazing. I'm having fun working on maximizing the FE. | |
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Replying to: wvgasguy (Nov 20, 2008 4:55 am) Nice post. Our 2008 HH is now a little over 2 weeks old. We took it on a road trip this past weekend which was almost 600 miles round total. We averaged 26 to 27 mpg the whole trip. I'm not sure what you mean about people not knowing how to calculate their FE: Don't you simply trip your odometer at every fill up and divide the total miles by number of gallons at a complete fill up? Maybe I'm one of those doing it wrong? Anyhow, my calculation pretty much matches up with the number showing up on the onboard computing system. I was so curious if it was accurate that when I saw the system reporting 29 mpg only 90 miles after a fill up that I filled it up and sure enough, less than 3 gallons were needed! So we are at about 800 miles now and getting about 26 to 27 mpg. I hope this continues.
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