My 2021 Toyota Highlander with 60K Miles Needed a New Transmission, and Now At 65K There’s a New Problem, But the Dealer Can’t Figure It Out

Like many other Toyota Highlander owners, Luis Gonzales faces multiple reliability issues with his 2021 model. 

On the Toyota Highlander Owners Club Facebook page, Luis says his Highlander only has 60,000 miles and needs a new transmission. Now, another issue has developed that the dealer can't figure out. 

For the first issue, Luis says, "Just an FYI- My 2021 Toyota Highlander is making a whining noise when accelerating. I took it to the Toyota dealer, and now it needs a new transmission."

Last year, when Luis had 60,000 on his 2021 Highlander and the transmission failed, it was covered under warranty. However, he's concerned with its reliability. Now, there is another issue that the Toyota dealer has been unable to fix. 

First, is there a problem with the Highlander's transmission? 

According to multiple owner reports, some 2021 Toyota Highlanders have been reported to have transmission problems, specifically a whine or grinding noise under drive conditions. 

This issue is related to the UA80E or UA80F Toyota transmissions and may require a complete replacement. Toyota issued a Technical Service Bulletin T-SB-0008-21 that says an issue with the front carrier assembly pinion shafts may cause the 2021 Toyota Highlander, Camry, and Avalon automatic transmission to have problems. 

What are Highlander Owners Saying?

A Reddit user mentioned that their 2021 Highlander XLE AWD needed a transmission replacement due to this issue at 33,000 miles. 

Panna_banna says, "My two-year-old Highlander with less than 40,000 miles, the transmission started to give. Of course, the warranty is going to replace it. I'm just wondering if anyone else is having this issue as well. From talking to the Toyota tech, they said it's quite a common issue with the Highlander."

GonzarTheGreat - "I have a 2021 Highlander Platinum (35k miles) with transmission issues as well - a known issue with Toyota; TSB states either a whine or grinding noise under drive is the initial symptom." 

"The only fix is a complete transmission replacement due to the part in question (PITA). Replacement transmissions are back-ordered for months. They were good to get us a loaner while this gets sorted out." 

"While I appreciate Toyota acknowledging this and the fix, they are still stating this known defect is covered only by the 5yr/60k warranty. I would be pissed if this happened at 70k."

What Does Toyota Say?

Toyota says, "This repair is covered under the Toyota Powertrain Warranty. This warranty is in effect for 60 months or 60,000 miles, whichever occurs first, from the vehicle's in-service date. Warranty application is limited to the occurrence of the specified condition described in this bulletin" (T-SB-0008-21).

Elaboration:

• Possible Cause: This Highlander transmission issue is believed to be related to the front carrier assembly pinion shafts within Toyotas's UA80E or UA80F transmissions. 
• Fix: The suggested fix by Toyota dealers is a complete transmission replacement, as the part in question is difficult to repair. 
• Potential Delays: It's important to note that due to potential back orders, customers may experience delays in receiving replacement transmissions, as reported on Reddit. 
• Warranty Coverage: While Toyota acknowledges the issue and offers a replacement, the 5-year/60,000-mile warranty will only cover the fix. Given the warranty coverage and potential delays in repairs, it's crucial for owners who are close to the mileage limit to have their transmissions checked for the described issues.
• Loaner Vehicles: As noted in the Reddit post above, some dealerships offer loaner vehicles while awaiting transmission replacements. 

5,000 miles later, Luis is having another issue with his Highlander.

Luis says, “Now with 64,651 miles on my Highlander, I got this message (Voltage Abnormality, Steering Power Low). I took it to the Toyota dealer, and they said it was the battery. They replaced the battery, but the error message is still coming up when I'm making a U-turn or getting off a sharp exit. My car has been at the dealer for about five days, and they can't figure it out."

"The Toyota dealer says they've taken the car on a test drive and have seen the message, but it's not hitting any codes. They've tried 'everything' but can't figure out the issue." 

Comments From Other Highlander Owners

Kevin Murdah - The same issue happened to me last year; Toyota said it was the battery. 

Mindaugas Frismantas - Check your battery connections. My negative cable loosened over time and was the issue. 

Keith Dutton - I follow a mechanic, Samrac, here on Facebook. He had a recent issue (not with a Highlander) that was doing something similar. The battery was good, as well as the + and - cables at the battery. He traced them down into the engine bay and found a corroded contact hooked up to the starter. He replaced it, and he had no more issues.

Shon Sumeet - I'd recommend taking it to a trustworthy local mechanic; look at the car care nuts recent video; most Toyota dealerships now can't seem to be bothered with wanting to do actual tricky fixes on cars and fob off customers, and they only want to focus on servicing and brake pad changes.

I recently wrote a story about a 2024 Toyota RAV4 with the same issue.

Jennifer Partlow-Dube says her 2024 RAV4 has the same "Engine Stopped Steering Power Low" error message. Her 2024 Toyota RAV4 XLE only has 3,900 miles on it, and she's having problems with the small SUV.

Jennifer says, "It happened to me today while idling in my garage. I just got home from an appointment. I put the car in park, idling for a few minutes. Then my car started to shake a little, and the engine just died with the error message saying, "Engine Stopped Steering Power Low." 

Like Luis, she took her vehicle to the Toyota dealer where she bought the car, and they don't know what's wrong and can't find any problem with it. Check out her report here. 

One user on Reddit says, "It seems this has come up numerous times with new RAV4s, but nobody has come to a conclusion as to what's causing the issue. Toyota dealers regularly say it's not throwing a code, so there's no issue, or they blame it on the battery."

Conclusion:

Luis and other Toyota Highlander owners have had transmission problems with their 2021 model-year SUVs. Toyota knows the problem exists and will replace the transmission under the 5-year/60,000-mile warranty. 

Owners are also reporting other battery and error messages that Toyota dealers have not been able to identify. 

We Want To Hear From You

Have you experienced transmission and other issues with a Toyota Highlander? If so, click the red Add New Comment link below and let us know.

Check out my 2024 Toyota Highlander story: I Bought Running Boards For My 2024 Toyota Highlander, and the Dealer Said It Would Be $500 to Install Them, Now They Raised the Price To $1,200

I am Denis Flierl, a Senior Torque News Reporter since 2012. My 30+ year tenure in the automotive industry, initially in a consulting role with every major car brand and later as a freelance journalist test-driving new vehicles, has equipped me with a wealth of knowledge. I specialize in reporting the latest automotive news and providing expert analysis on Subaru, which you'll find here, ensuring that you, as a reader, are always well-informed and up-to-date. Follow me on my X SubaruReport, All Subaru, WRXSTI, @DenisFlierl, Facebook, and Instagram.

Photo credit: Denis Flierl