2006 Toyota Highlander Hybrid Problems, Complaints & Recalls
- Compared with other Highlander Hybrid years
- Far more complaints than other years 1st of 22 for complaints
- Safety recalls
- 6 recalls: check your VIN
- NHTSA crash rating
- Not rated
Owners have filed 370 complaints with NHTSA about the 2006 Toyota Highlander Hybrid. That is the most of any Highlander Hybrid model year in the database (22 years). The most reported problem area is service brakes (76 complaints, 21%), typically at around 136,500 miles. Complaints mention 34 crashes, 7 fires, 10 injuries. There are 6 safety recalls covering this model year. NHTSA has opened 3 defect investigations involving it.
- 370owner complaints
- 6safety recalls
- 3NHTSA investigations
- 34complaints mentioning a crash
Complaints are unverified owner reports and are not adjusted for sales volume.
Most common 2006 Toyota Highlander Hybrid problems
Complaints grouped by the part of the car owners reported, with the median mileage when the problem happened.
| Problem area | Complaints | Share | Median miles | Owners mention most | Typical repair cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Service Brakes problems | 76 | 21% | 136,500 | “brake actuator” (29%) | $4,100 |
| Electrical System problems | 74 | 20% | 114,500 | “check vsc” (9%) | $13,000 |
| Hybrid Propulsion System | 45 | 12% | 108,000 | — | — |
| Service Brakes, Hydraulic | 42 | 11% | 38,000 | — | — |
| Vehicle Speed Control | 33 | 9% | 65,000 | — | — |
| Engine and Engine Cooling | 28 | 8% | 92,100 | — | — |
| Engine | 25 | 7% | 115,000 | — | — |
| Steering | 25 | 7% | 96,945 | — | — |
| Electronic Stability Control (esc) | 24 | 6% | 122,000 | — | — |
| Service Brakes, Electric | 21 | 6% | 35,000 | — | — |
| Power Train | 19 | 5% | 103,000 | — | — |
| Exterior Lighting | 15 | 4% | 67,500 | — | — |
| Unknown or Other | 10 | 3% | 84,459 | — | — |
| Air Bags | 9 | 2% | 67,000 | — | — |
| Fuel/propulsion System | 6 | 2% | 106,250 | — | — |
| Visibility | 6 | 2% | 75,000 | — | — |
| Suspension | 4 | 1% | 82,117 | — | — |
| Tires | 4 | 1% | 40,000 | — | — |
| Visibility/wiper | 4 | 1% | 112,233 | — | — |
| Traction Control System | 2 | 1% | 53,250 | — | — |
| Equipment | 1 | 0% | 7,250 | — | — |
| Fuel System, Gasoline | 1 | 0% | — | — | — |
| Fuel System, Other | 1 | 0% | 129,000 | — | — |
| Seats | 1 | 0% | — | — | — |
| Structure | 1 | 0% | 84,000 | — | — |
| Wheels | 1 | 0% | 82,117 | — | — |
One complaint can list several problem areas, so shares can add up to more than 100%.
Complaints by year received
2006 Toyota Highlander Hybrid recalls (6)
Tap a recall to see the problem, the risk and the fix.
Hybrid propulsion system: inverter
Problem: Toyota is recalling certain model year 2006-2010 Highlander hybrid vehicles manufactured February 16, 2005, through July 29, 2010; and model year 2006-2008 Lexus RX400h vehicles manufactured February 23, 2005, through December 2, 2008. The Intelligent Power Module (IPM) inside the inverter module may contain transistors that have higher operating temperatures than the solder can support and the transistors may be heat damaged by the solder. If this occurs, various warning lamps, including the malfunction indicator lamp, slip indicator light, brake system warning light, and master warning light, will be illuminated on the instrument panel.
Risk: The vehicle may enter a fail-safe/limp-home mode that limits the drivability of the vehicle. It is possible that the hybrid system will shut down while the vehicle is being driven, causing the vehicle to stall unexpectedly, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will replace the IPM free of charge. Owners may contact Toyota at 1-800-331-4331. Vehicles that had their IPM replaced under recall 11V-342 are not affected by this campaign.
Engine and engine cooling
Problem: Toyota is recalling certain model year 2004 avalon vehicles; 2004 and 2005 camry, camry solara, highlander, and sienna vehicles, 2006 highlander hybrid; 2004 and 2005 lexus es330 and rx330; and 2006 lexus rx400h vehicles manufactured from june 1, 2004 through march 31, 2005, equipped with the 1mz-fe or 3mz-fe engine. The amount of adhesive agent applied between the outer ring and the torsional rubber damper (inner ring) in the crankshaft pulley may be inadequate. If the adhesive is insufficient, there is a possibility that the outer ring may become misaligned and it may not properly rotate with the inner ring, causing noise and/or illumination of the battery discharge indicator light.
Risk: In some cases, the belt for the power steering pump may become detached from the pulley which could result in a loss of power steering and a sudden increase in steering effort, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will check the crankshaft pulley to identify whether it was produced by the u.s. Supplier. If so, the dealer will replace the pulley with a new one at no charge. The safety recall is expected to begin during early january 2012. Owners may contact toyota at 1-800-331-4331.
Electrical system
Problem: Toyota is recalling certain model year 2006-2007 highlander hybrid and lexus rx400h passenger cars manufactured from february 16, 2005, through august 30, 2006. A module inside the inverter module may contain inadequately soldered transistors that during high-load driving, may be damaged by heat caused by the large current. If this occurs, various warning lamps, including the malfunction indicator lamp, slip indicator light, brake system warning light, and master warning light, will be illuminated on the instrument panel.
Risk: The vehicle may enter a fail-safe/limp-home mode that limits the drivability of the vehicle. It is possible that the hybrid system will shut down while the vehicle is being driven, causing the vehicle to stall unexpectedly, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Toyota/lexus mailed an interim owner notification on july 19, 2011 to advise owners of this recall and the fact that they will receive a future notice when parts become available to complete repairs. Toyota dealers will inspect the hybrid inverter production number to determine whether the inverter contains suspect transistors and replace the module free of charge. Owners may contact toyota at 1-800-331-4331.
Vehicle speed control:accelerator pedal
Problem: Toyota is recalling certain model year 2004-2006 highlander, highlander hybrid, and model year 2004-2007 lexus rx330, rx350, and rx400h vehicles. If the forward retention clip used to secure the floor carpet cover, which is located in front of the center console, is not installed properly the cover may lean toward the accelerator pedal and interfere with the accelerator pedal arm.
Risk: If this occurs, the accelerator pedal may temporarily become stuck in a partially depressed position rather than return to the idle position. A stuck accelerator pedal may result in unintended and sustained vehicle speeds and make it difficult to stop, increasing the risk of a vehicle crash.
Fix: Dealers will replace the floor carpet cover with a newly designed one free or charge. The safety recall is expected to begin during march 2011. Owners may contact toyota at 1-800-331-4331.
Equipment:other:labels
Problem: 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."
Risk: Incorrect load carrying capacity modification labels could result in the vehicle being overloaded, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: 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.
Vehicle speed control:accelerator pedal
Problem: On certain sport utility and hybrid vehicles, the two retaining clips for the driver's side forward center console can become loose. If both clips separate from the floor carpet cover, the cover may lean toward the accelerator pedal, causing interference with the accelerator pedal rod.
Risk: This condition may interfere with the accelerator pedal returning to the idle position increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Dealers will replace the two floor carpet cover retaining clips free of charge. The recall began on july 24, 2006, and should be completed by early september 2006. Owners may contact toyota at 1-800-331-4331 or lexus at 1-800-255-3987.
To see whether a specific car still has an open recall, enter its VIN on NHTSA's official recall lookup. You can also decode a VIN here.
NHTSA defect investigations
- Pedestrian alert sounds (DP22005) — opened Jan 27, 2023, closed Aug 7, 2023, led to recall 22V063000.
- Hybrid inverter failure - vehicle stall (PE11005) — opened Feb 15, 2011, closed Jul 20, 2011, led to recall 11V342000.
- Unintended and Uncontrolled Acceleration (RQ10003) — opened Feb 16, 2010, closed Mar 1, 2011, led to recall 11V112000.
Recent owner reports
Short excerpts of the latest complaints filed with NHTSA, with personal details removed. Full reports can be searched on NHTSA.gov.
The contact owns a 2006 Toyota Highlander Hybrid. The contact stated that while driving 72 MPH, the vehicle failed to accelerate as intended while depressing the accelerator pedal. The check engine and traction control warning lights were illuminated. Additionally, the "Check Hybrid System", "Check…
The contact owns a 2006 Toyota Highlander Hybrid. The contact stated while driving 65 MPH, the vehicle stalled with the check hybrid system and two other unknown warning lights illuminated. The contact managed to coast the vehicle to the side of the highway; however, the vehicle failed to restart…
We were driving down the highway i-30 east up a hill going appt 70 mph when the car went into limp mode and slowed down to 10 mph. Then went to only 1 mph. We checked the battery connection, fuel cap, everything we found online to check.
Tl* the contact owns a 2006 toyota highlander hybrid. The contact stated that the vehicle did not start and the hybrid warning indicator illuminated. The contact also stated that the vehicle was repaired three previous times by naguabo auto toyota (carretera 31 km 3.9, naguabo, pr 00718) regarding…
Currently, the vehicle in motion, however it potentially causes unsafely if not fixed as requested. The reason i come to you for complaint, i do have a situation with carlson toyota and/or toyota motor groups. Here the situation what happens. I do have 2006 toyota highlander hybrid. I drove this…
Other Toyota Highlander Hybrid years
← 2005 Highlander Hybrid · 2007 Highlander Hybrid →
See all Toyota Highlander Hybrid problems by year, every Toyota model, or the Toyota VIN decoder.
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Frequently asked questions
What are the most common problems with the 2006 Toyota Highlander Hybrid?
Owners most often report service brakes, electrical system, hybrid propulsion system problems. The top one, service brakes, accounts for 76 complaints.
Was there a recall on the 2006 Toyota Highlander Hybrid?
Yes, 6 safety recalls. Enter your VIN at NHTSA.gov to check whether the repairs were done on your car.
Was the 2006 Toyota Highlander Hybrid a good year?
Complaint data can't fully answer that, because counts aren't adjusted for sales. Compared with other Highlander Hybrid model years, the 2006 has far more complaints than most years. Always get a pre-purchase inspection and check the VIN for open recalls.