2010 Toyota Highlander Hybrid Problems, Complaints & Recalls
- Compared with other Highlander Hybrid years
- Far more complaints than other years 5th of 22 for complaints
- Safety recalls
- 4 recalls: check your VIN
- NHTSA crash rating
- Not rated
Owners have filed 22 complaints with NHTSA about the 2010 Toyota Highlander Hybrid. That ranks 5th out of 22 Highlander Hybrid model years for complaints. The most reported problem area is service brakes (5 complaints, 23%), typically at around 35,000 miles. Complaints mention 1 crash, 1 injury. There are 4 safety recalls covering this model year. NHTSA has opened 3 defect investigations involving it.
- 22owner complaints
- 4safety recalls
- 3NHTSA investigations
- 1complaints mentioning a crash
Complaints are unverified owner reports and are not adjusted for sales volume.
Most common 2010 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 | 5 | 23% | 35,000 | — | — |
| Engine | 3 | 14% | 77,000 | — | — |
| Unknown or Other | 3 | 14% | 30,000 | — | — |
| Electrical System | 2 | 9% | 19,000 | — | — |
| Fuel/propulsion System | 2 | 9% | 89,500 | — | — |
| Hybrid Propulsion System | 2 | 9% | 62,000 | — | — |
| Steering | 2 | 9% | 56,030 | — | — |
| Electronic Stability Control (esc) | 1 | 5% | — | — | — |
| Engine and Engine Cooling | 1 | 5% | 1,000 | — | — |
| Equipment | 1 | 5% | 1,000 | — | — |
| Service Brakes, Hydraulic | 1 | 5% | 1,000 | — | — |
| Structure | 1 | 5% | 61,050 | — | — |
| Traction Control System | 1 | 5% | — | — | — |
| Vehicle Speed Control | 1 | 5% | 52,000 | — | — |
One complaint can list several problem areas, so shares can add up to more than 100%.
Complaints by year received
2010 Toyota Highlander Hybrid recalls (4)
Tap a recall to see the problem, the risk and the fix.
Visibility:power window devices and controls
Problem: Toyota Motor Company (Toyota) is recalling certain model year 2009-2011 Tundra, Sequoia, Corolla, Corolla Matrix and Scion xB, 2008-2011 Highlander and Highlander Hybrid, 2007 Camry and Camry Hybrid, 2009 Camry and Camry Hybrid, 2006-2011 RAV4, 2006-2010 Yaris, and 2009-2010 Scion xD and Pontiac Vibe vehicles. During the manufacturing of the Power Window Master Switch (PWMS), grease lubricant may have been inconsistently applied to the sliding electrical contacts.
Risk: If the sliding electrical contacts are not protected by lubricant, debris and moisture that get into the switch may cause a short circuit and the switch assembly may overheat and melt, increasing the risk of a fire.
Fix: Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the switch, applying a lubricant if no abnormality is found. If abnormality is found, the PWMS circuit board will be replaced, free of charge. The recall is expected to begin December 20, 2015. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-800-331-4331. Toyota's number for this recall is C0M.
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.
Equipment:other:labels
Problem: Southeast Toyota is recalling certain model year 2008 and 2010-2013 Toyota Tundra, 2010-2012 Rav4, 2012 Toyota Sequoia, 2010-2011 Toyota Corolla, 2010-2011 Toyota Camry and Camry Hybrid, 2010-2013 Toyota Highlander and Highlander Hybrid, 2010-2013 Toyota FJ Cruiser, 2011 Toyota Land Cruiser, 2010-2013 Toyota Venza, 2010-2011 Toyota 4Runner, 2010-2013 Toyota Tacoma, 2011-2012 Toyota Sienna, 2012 Toyota Prius, 2013 Scion FR-S, 2011 Scion XD, 2011 Scion XB, and 2012 Scion TC vehicles. These vehicles were sold with labels that were outside the allowable one percent of accuracy of actual weight added. Thus, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) Number 110, "Tire Selection and Rims."
Risk: An inaccurate label could lead to owners overloading their vehicles and tires. An overloaded vehicle can result in a tire failure which may result in a vehicle crash, personal injury, or property damage.
Fix: Southeast Toyota will notify owners and provide a corrected label with instructions concerning its installation. A small group of the affected vehicles will need additonal remedies which are still being developed. The recall began on May 28, 2013. Owners may contact Southeast Toyota at 1-800-301-6859.
Seats; air bags:frontal:sensor/control module-inactive
Problem: Southeast Toyota Distributors, LLC (SET) is recalling certain models interspersed through model years 2009 through 2013 as follows: model year 2009-2012 Tacoma, 4Runner, Camry, Camry Hybrid, Prius, and RAV4; model year 2009-2010 Avalon, FJ Cruiser, and Highlander Hybrid; model year 2010-2013 model year Corolla, Sienna and Tundra; model year 2009-2013 Highlander and Venza; model year 2012 Prius V; and model year 2010-2012 Sequoia. During modification by SET to include accessories such as leather seat covers, seat heaters or headrest DVD systems, these vehicles may not have had the passenger seat occupant sensing system calibration tested. Without passing the calibration test, the occupant sensing system may not operate as designed.
Risk: If the front passenger seat occupant sensing system is out of calibration, the front passenger airbags may not deploy or they may deploy inappropriately for the passenger's size and position. This could increase the risk of personal injury during the event of a vehicle crash necessitating airbag deployment.
Fix: Southeast Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will test the sensitivity of the occupant detection sensors, and recalibrate them as necessary. The recall began on March 21, 2013. Owners may contact Southeast Toyota at 1-800-301-6859.
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.
- Steering Column Separation (EA18006) — opened Nov 16, 2018, closed Apr 2, 2024.
- Upper Steering Column Separation (PE18005) — opened May 4, 2018, closed Nov 20, 2018.
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 hybrid inverter failed when accelerating from a red light. A loud clunk was heard and the car would not move forward. The engine was still running but car would not accelerate and had to be pushed out of the road. "check hybrid system" warning flashed. Car was towed to a dealer who confirmed…
All doors and hatch do not lock with the key fob or with the power locks on both the passenger and driver side doors.
Abs - code -1391,this is second time,first time(2016) was changed this part -44510-48080
While using the tailgate close button on the key fob,car shut off and parked, a loud bang was heard while the door was closing and the door jammed, slightly opened and immovable. Had to take the car to a certified toyota repair facility to get the closing servo disconnected so the door would shut…
I almost got in to an accident on 5/11/2018 due to the abs system not stopping the vehicle while driving in i-95. I got a warning light on the dash as i was pressing the brakes, later the car did not wanted to stop, but it did not prevent me from hitting the other car. I press on the emergency…
Other Toyota Highlander Hybrid years
← 2009 Highlander Hybrid · 2011 Highlander Hybrid →
See all Toyota Highlander Hybrid problems by year, every Toyota model, or the Toyota VIN decoder.
Similar Toyota models
Embed this 2010 Toyota Highlander Hybrid badge on your site
Copy this code into your blog or forum post. It shows live complaint and recall counts and links back here.
Frequently asked questions
What are the most common problems with the 2010 Toyota Highlander Hybrid?
Owners most often report service brakes, engine, unknown or other problems. The top one, service brakes, accounts for 5 complaints.
Was there a recall on the 2010 Toyota Highlander Hybrid?
Yes, 4 safety recalls. Enter your VIN at NHTSA.gov to check whether the repairs were done on your car.
Was the 2010 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 2010 has far more complaints than most years. Always get a pre-purchase inspection and check the VIN for open recalls.