2021 Toyota Highlander Service Brakes Problems
Owners have filed 67 complaints with NHTSA about service brakes problems on the 2021 Toyota Highlander, 13% of all complaints for this model year. Half of the reports with a mileage happened before 14,855 miles. The words owners use most often: “feels like” (22% of reports).
- 67service brakes complaints
- 14,855median miles at failure
- 4mention a crash
- 2mention an injury
- 0related recalls
- 11%of reports with a speed happened at 50+ mph
What owners describe
Phrases that appear unusually often in these complaints compared with complaints about other cars.
- Feels like: mentioned in 15 of 67 complaints (22%)
- Lurches forward: mentioned in 6 of 67 complaints (9%)
- Brake actuator: mentioned in 6 of 67 complaints (9%)
- Press harder: mentioned in 5 of 67 complaints (7%)
At what mileage do service brakes problems happen?
Based on 2 complaints that reported the odometer reading.
How serious are the reports?
Of 67 complaints, 4 mention a crash, 2 an injury.
Toyota Highlander service brakes complaints by model year
| Model year | Service Brakes complaints | Share of that year | Median miles |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 Highlander | 2 | 20% | 15,000 |
| 2024 Highlander | 8 | 19% | — |
| 2023 Highlander | 19 | 10% | — |
| 2022 Highlander | 37 | 14% | 1,800 |
| 2021 Highlander | 67 | 13% | 14,855 |
| 2020 Highlander | 38 | 12% | 15,592 |
| 2019 Highlander | 18 | 4% | 5,500 |
| 2018 Highlander | 53 | 20% | 13,490 |
| 2017 Highlander | 28 | 10% | 14,750 |
| 2016 Highlander | 19 | 17% | 26,500 |
| 2015 Highlander | 15 | 8% | 10,000 |
| 2014 Highlander | 3 | 2% | 23,000 |
| 2013 Highlander | 16 | 8% | 26,000 |
| 2012 Highlander | 12 | 7% | 7,500 |
| 2011 Highlander | 13 | 7% | 64,300 |
| 2010 Highlander | 25 | 12% | 69,300 |
| 2009 Highlander | 21 | 16% | 152,450 |
| 2008 Highlander | 66 | 16% | 155,000 |
| 2007 Highlander | 29 | 23% | 127,000 |
| 2006 Highlander | 71 | 26% | 150,500 |
| 2005 Highlander | 6 | 3% | 116,667 |
| 2004 Highlander | 6 | 2% | 110,961 |
| 2003 Highlander | 10 | 4% | 137,000 |
| 2002 Highlander | 4 | 1% | 120,000 |
| 2001 Highlander | 3 | 2% | 88,536 |
When owners reported it
Related recalls (0)
No safety recall lists service brakes for the 2021 Toyota Highlander. A pattern of complaints does not always lead to a recall.
What owners report
Short excerpts of recent complaints, with personal details removed. Full reports are on NHTSA.gov.
When traveling at slower speeds and applying the brakes on a slight decline, my 2021 Toyota Highlander HYBRID lurches forward with alarming force. On probably 5 separate occasions, this has nearly resulted in me lurching into traffic running perpendicular to me. I have come within 2-3 feet of…
While driving and applying the brakes to come to a complete stop at low speed (approximately 5â15 mph), the vehicle intermittently loses brake responsiveness for a brief moment during the transition from regenerative braking to hydraulic (friction) braking. This causes the vehicle to lurch…
I had the dealer perform the repair described in Toyota Technical Service Bulletin T-SB-0059-23 (Hybrid Regenerative Brake Transition Feeling Improvement), which reprograms the brake actuator control module. Following this repair, the vehicle continues to exhibit the same lurching behavior at the…
Frequently asked questions
Do all 2021 Toyota Highlanders have service brakes problems?
No. NHTSA has 67 owner complaints about service brakes for the 2021 Toyota Highlander (13% of the 531 complaints for this model year). Complaint data shows that the problem is reported, not how many of all cars sold are affected.
Was there a recall on the 2021 Toyota Highlander service brakes?
No recall currently lists service brakes for this vehicle.
At what mileage do service brakes problems start?
The median reported mileage is 14,855 miles: half of the reports with a mileage came before that.
What do owners say about service brakes problems on the 2021 Toyota Highlander?
The most frequent phrase is “feels like”, in 15 of 67 complaints, followed by “lurches forward” (6).
Other 2021 Toyota Highlander problems
- Power Train problems (227)
- Structure problems (52)
See all 2021 Toyota Highlander problems or service brakes problems across all Highlander years.