2009 Toyota HIGHLANDER - Ratings, Complaints and Recalls

The 2009 Toyota Highlander 4-DR. w/SAB provides excellent safety features, including stability control. The car scored a 5 out of 5 for the front crash driver side rating and a 4 out of 5 for the front crash passenger side rating. In terms of side crashes, it received a perfect 5 out of 5 for both the driver and passenger sides. The rollover rating is also high at 4 out of 5. While the overall rating is not specified, the individual crash ratings suggest that this car offers good protection in case of an accident.

Although the car does not have forward collision warning or lane departure warning systems, its stability control feature helps in maintaining control and preventing skidding. In terms of complaints and recalls, there have been 128 complaints and 9 recalls reported for this model. Despite these numbers, the car's strong safety ratings make it a reliable choice for those looking for a safe and secure driving experience.

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Top stats at a glance

Complaint Count

128

Recall Count

9

Investigation Count

2

Safety Rating

Not Rated

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Safety Features

2009 Toyota Highlander 4-DR. w/SAB Safety Features

Here are the safety features that come as standard on the 2009 Toyota Highlander 4-DR. w/SAB

Electronic Stability Control (ESC)

ESC is an advanced safety feature in vehicles designed to help drivers maintain control during challenging driving conditions. By continuously monitoring various factors such as steering angle, vehicle speed, and individual wheel speeds, ESC can detect and reduce the risk of skidding or loss of control. It achieves this by automatically applying brakes to specific wheels to stabilize the vehicle.

Standard
Forward Collision Warning (FCW)

Forward Collision Warning (FCW) is a safety feature in vehicles that helps prevent frontal collisions by alerting the driver of an imminent collision with a vehicle or obstacle ahead. Using sensors such as radar or cameras, FCW monitors the distance and speed of vehicles in front, and if it detects a potential collision, it provides visual and/or auditory warnings to prompt the driver to take evasive action.

No
Lane Departure Warning (LDW)

Lane Departure Warning (LDW) is a safety feature in vehicles that alerts drivers when their vehicle unintentionally drifts out of its lane without signaling. Utilizing cameras or sensors to monitor lane markings on the road, LDW detects when the vehicle crosses these lines and triggers visual, auditory, or haptic alerts to notify the driver of potential lane departure.

No

2009 Toyota Highlander 4-DR. w/SAB Safety Ratings

Here we have the crash and rollover ratings for the 2009 Toyota Highlander 4-DR. w/SAB Where possible we've included the ratings for the oldest and latest models of this car so you can compare how the safety ratings have changed over time.

Frontal Crash Ratings

Combines Driver and Passenger star ratings into a single frontal rating. The frontal barrier test simulates a head-on collision between two similar vehicles, each moving at 35 mph.

Test 2005 Score 2009 Score 2024 Score
Overall Front Crash Rating Not Rated Not Rated 4
Front Crash Driver Side Rating 5 5 4
Front Crash Passenger Side Rating 5 4 4

Side Crash Ratings

Combines Side Barrier and Side Pole Star Ratings into a single side rating.

Test 2005 Score 2009 Score 2024 Score
Overall Side Crash Rating Not Rated Not Rated 5
Side Crash Drivers Side Rating 5 5 5
Side Crash Passenger Side Rating 5 5 5
Combined Side Barrier Pole Rating - Front Not Rated Not Rated 5
Combined Side Barrier Pole Rating - Rear Not Rated Not Rated 5
Overall Side Barrier Rating Not Rated Not Rated 5

Rollover Ratings

The Rollover Resistance test measures the risk of rollover in a single-vehicle, loss-of-control scenario.

Test 2005 Score 2009 Score 2024 Score
Rollover Rating 4 4 4
Rollover Possibility % 0% 0% 0%
Dynamic Tip Result No Tip No Tip No Tip
Side Pole Crash Rating Not Rated Not Rated 5

Complaints for the 2009 Toyota HIGHLANDER

This chart show the number of complaints for each car component. A Higher number of complaints could indicate that this car might have a common fault. Something to look out for when purchasing one.

Component Complaints

Choose a component to see what complaints people have made about them.

Complaint:
"when starting it would make grinding noise,sounds like metallic noise until the engine oil starts circulating.dealer said that its normal due to cold starts but this can happen even when the engine is up to temperature.toyota refuse to remedy the issue."
Components Involved: ENGINE
Date of incident: 2011-01-01
Complaint:
"engine oil filler cap had interior motor part , melt through while driving , almost hurling all the way through , 2 inch cylindrical part viewed when opening hood to inspect damage . braking , trac and vsc engaged and motor failed almost dieing , abs allowed brake pedal to go to floor with vehicle just stopping enough to move from traffic . no injuries and no collisions happened due to violent engine combusting or braking disabled , incident happened at 10 mph entering a parking lot ."
Components Involved: ENGINE
Date of incident: 2023-06-07
Complaint:
"brief engine knock/rattle noise at cold startup (1ar2ar) vds(s):da41a,za3eh wm(s)5td"
Components Involved: ENGINE
Date of incident: 2020-01-09
Complaint:
"oil cooler connected to engine block with a rubber hose. hose failed with oil leak which caused loss of engine oil. car towed and repaired before engine seized. it appears rubber hose was not protected from heat of catalytic converter and rubber degraded. vehicle was in motion on interstate highway when first noticed loss of oil pressure. added oil but oil loss continued. when warning light went on second time stopped vehicle and towed to service. event occurred on may 15, 2020."
Components Involved: ENGINE
Date of incident: 2021-03-05
Complaint:
"vvti cam gear issue, making grinding noise.vehicle just hit 60,000 and out of warranty. earlier tsb from toyota didn't cover this since the vehicle didn't show any signs."
Components Involved: ENGINE
Date of incident: 2019-01-07
Complaint:
"oil coolant line bursts which causes immediate loss of all oil. problem happens while vehicle is in motion, and in this case while in motion on a high trafficked freeway. fix cost about $1,000 out of pocket. this is a very large leak which covers the ground, engine, and undercarriage. if the oil line ruptures while driving, the low engine oil message and engine oil pressure warnings will illuminate. continued use after these warnings will result in complete engine failure due to oil starvation. the line is known to be defective, and a revised part has been issued by toyota but recall has not been issued. covered under a warranty issued by toyota but covers under a short time frame."
Components Involved: ENGINE
Date of incident: 2019-11-07
Complaint:
"i was driving down the interstate in wisconsin during rush hour when i took off my cruise control to slow down to take the next exit. i noticed an abnormal down shift when i took off the cruise control. almost immediately the oil and traction control lights came on. as i slowed to the stop sign at the end of the exit the display screen began dinging and read low oil pressure and immediately stop the car and turn off the engine. i immediately pulled over once out of the way of traffic and shut down the car. upon checking the oil there was none on the dipstick. there was oil dripping down from the grill all underneath the car including in the front tire wheel wells. i also heard knocking from the engine, so i am concerned that the lifters and the top end of the engine may be compromised. this a known issue with toyota, who has refused to issue a recall for faulty oil lines and seals. luckily, i was at an exit where i could safely pull over before more major damage was done to the vehicle. my personal safety, the safety of my family as well as other drivers could have compromised by the neglect that toyota has shown by continuing to ignore this issue."
Components Involved: ENGINE
Date of incident: 2019-10-07
Complaint:
"when vehicle is stationary, engine always makes strange noise upon initial start."
Components Involved: ENGINE
Date of incident: 2019-10-04
Complaint:
"i was turning into a parking lot and i started getting "low oil pressure" alerts on my dashboard. i was worried if it was a sensor issue and kept moving till i parked my vehicle. upon further investigation, i saw that oil had started to drip from where i had turned, and when i parked the car the oil drip got bigger and had pooled under the vehicle. based on the information i got from the toyota dealership, this was a known issue which starts as a small leak but due to pressure, the oil cooler pipe bursts open. this known problem is documented here: https://www.toyoheadquarters.com/threads/2007-2011-toyota-sienna-highlander-and-venza-engine-oil-cooler-pipe-leak-lsc-ze2.358/ toyota refused to pay my repair bill as i was over the mileage requirement by 2700 miles. i cannot understand why toyota did not consider this a safety issue/recall. if this had happened while i was driving on the highway, my engine could have been completely damaged and the heavily leaking oil could have contributed to an accident(s). the toyota dealership also agreed with me that this should have been a safety recall. toyota claims they sent out a letter for this warranty enhancement (ze2) which i never received. toyota has refused to escalate this issue within the company."
Components Involved: ENGINE
Date of incident: 2020-03-06
Complaint:
"oil cooler hose burst in car. yo have about 20 seconds to turn the engine off before it seizes up because all the oil is pouring out of the car. we had it towed to midas dealership and they fixed it. i called toyota because i noticed they had a customer support program covering this problem. i was told if i would have taken it straight to the dealership, it would be covered but instead i had to submit paperwork which i did. well it is not covered. they are claiming that the part on the invoice is not covered. however, the oil cooler hose that burst which is original to the car was rubber and the toyota replacement part is metal. they are merely not covering this because it is not a recall and they are not getting in trouble for it. it is a huge safety issue, as when this bursts (with no heads up), you have only a few seconds to get to the side of the road and turn off the engine. toyota is fully aware of the issue but the gov't has not required them to put in a recall."
Components Involved: ENGINE
Date of incident: 2017-02-02

Recalls for the 2009 Toyota HIGHLANDER

Component Recalls

Choose a component to see what recalls people have made about them.

Recall:
"gulf states toyota is recalling certain model year 2005-2010 vehicles for failing to comply with the requirements of federal motor vehicle safety standard no. 110, "tire selection and rims." these vehicles were sold between september 1, 2005 and june 2, 2008 without the requisite load carrying capacity modification labels."
Consequence:
THIS DOES NOT MEET THE STANDARD REQUIREMENTS.
Remedy:

DEALERS WILL MAIL TO CONSUMERS THE CORRECTED LABEL OR THE CUSTOMER WILL HAVE THE OPTION FOR DEALERS TO INSTALL THE LABEL FREE OF CHARGE. DEALERS WILL ALSO CORRECT THE OWNER'S MANUAL. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON MAY 27, 2010. OWNERS MAY CONTACT GULF STATES TOYOTA AT 713-580-3300.

Component(s) Involved: EQUIPMENT > OTHER > LABELS
Date of incident: 2010-02-03
Recall:
"southeast toyota is recalling certain model year 2005-2011 passenger vehicles for failing to comply with the requirements of federal motor vehicle safety standard no. 110, "tire selection and rims." these vehicles were sold without the requisite load carrying capacity modification labels."
Consequence:
A DRIVER MAY OVERLOAD A VEHICLE WHICH MAY INCREASE THE RISK OF A CRASH.
Remedy:

DEALERS WILL MAIL TO CONSUMERS THE CORRECTED LABEL OR THE CUSTOMER WILL HAVE THE OPTION FOR DEALERS TO INSTALL THE LABEL FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON MAY 27, 2010. OWNERS MAY CONTACT SOUTHEAST TOYOTA AT 1-800-301-6859.

Component(s) Involved: EQUIPMENT > OTHER > LABELS
Date of incident: 2010-02-03
Recall:
"toyota is recalling 27,080 model year 2005 through 2010 passenger cars built from september 1, 2005 to may 4, 2009. these vehicles were not equipped with load carrying capacity modification labels which fails to conform with the requirements of federal motor vehicle safety standard no. 110, "tire selection and rims.""
Consequence:
INCORRECT LOAD CARRYING CAPACITY MODIFICATION LABELS COULD RESULT IN THE VEHICLE BEING OVERLOADED, INCREASING THE RISK OF A CRASH.
Remedy:

TOYOTA WILL NOTIFY OWNERS AND PROVIDE THEM WITH A NEW, ACCURATE LABEL TO BE INSTALLED OVER THE INACCURATE LABEL FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON AUGUST 18, 2009. OWNERS MAY CONTACT TOYOTA AT 1-888-270-9371.

Component(s) Involved: EQUIPMENT > OTHER > LABELS
Date of incident: 2009-06-15

TOYOTA Overall Complaint Ranking

This table shows the ranking of car manufacturers when it comes to most complaints and recalls. The manufacturer with the most complaints is at the top. However this doesn't necassarily mean they should be avoided. Some manufacturers might just have more popular or affordable cars which a lot of people have bought. Which means there's more scope for a complaint to be made. Use the ranking table below as a part your wider research into buying a car.

TOYOTA ranks 3 out of 44 in the complaints ranking table.

Manufacturer Complaint Count Recall Count Ranking
FORD 208,358 3,259 1
CHEVROLET 111,306 2,082 2
TOYOTA 81,019 1,852 3
HONDA 61,937 1,268 4
NISSAN 56,226 930 5
DODGE 45,756 827 6
HYUNDAI 44,150 649 7
GMC 34,441 1,410 8
KIA 29,832 501 9
CHRYSLER 27,698 254 10
TESLA 26,230 730 11
BMW 24,890 1,877 12
VOLKSWAGEN 23,125 829 13
MERCEDES-BENZ 19,066 2,925 14
SUBARU 18,513 703 15
MAZDA 10,599 364 16
PONTIAC 10,430 138 17
CADILLAC 9,434 444 18
AUDI 7,865 1,093 19
BUICK 7,851 279 20
SATURN 7,672 84 21
MERCURY 7,374 135 22
LEXUS 6,373 408 23
LINCOLN 5,897 423 24
ACURA 5,722 382 25
MINI 5,585 366 26
INFINITI 4,000 187 27
MITSUBISHI 3,912 397 28
VOLVO 3,875 727 29
PORSCHE 2,646 1,231 30
SUZUKI 2,272 123 31
FIAT 2,205 80 32
SAAB 1,536 76 33
JAGUAR 1,195 198 34
SMART 528 17 35
GENESIS 436 42 36
ISUZU 249 37 37
ALFA ROMEO 161 37 38
MASERATI 76 46 39
BENTLEY 46 159 40
POLESTAR 42 2 41
LUCID 14 6 42
CODA 4 2 43
MAYBACH 0 0 44

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