Toyota Highlander

scanner · February 2003

2001 FWD V6.
18mpg city.
24mpg hwy.

landdriver · February 2003

2001 V6 AWD:
21 mpg combination city and highway, flat smooth terrain, conservative acceleration.

banner1 · February 2003

2002 V-6 AWD. All short distance stop & go.
Only getting approx. 12 mpg.
I hope its because of still breaking in, only 3,100 miles & the very cold weather.
It seems that my mileage is not even close to those posted. Have any Highlander owners started out with poor gas mileage & increased after broken in?

junepug · February 2003

2003 V6 FWD Base model. We are experiencing 19.51 mpg for mixed town and country driving. I do drive about 20 interstate miles per week in one evening. Current mileage is 3,682. We live in central NC in a small town without a whole lot of traffic. We took the Highlander through the mountains of Eastern Kentucky to visit the in-laws and averaged 24.5 for the entire trip. At that time the car only had only been driven 1,000 miles. Am very happy with the mileage so far. It is much better than the two previous vehicles which were both Jeep Cherokees with the 4.0 engine.

tfuzz · February 2003

2001 V6 AWD using regular gas the overall average was 19.14 at 31,000 miles, combination city and highway. Normal load was 2 adults, 1 teen and about 80 lbs of dogs.

BUT, that included a 5,509 mile trip pulling a 2800 lb. tent trailer over a number of high mountain passes--same load as above, plus travel/camping gear. For that trip, using premium fuel, the average was 17.79.

Taking out the trip with the trailer, the overall average comes out to about 19.55.

dougweaver · February 2003

None yet .. picking up our special order HL tomorrow morning. With gas prices rising I'm glad we went with a 4CYL FWD now. If gas prices ever come back down to about a $1 I will question why I didn't go with the 6CYL. But I'm happy now. By the way our HL is Gold with ivory leather seats, gold package, vehicle skid control, side airbags, roof rack, rear spoiler, front hood guard, aluminum wheels, fake wood dash and various other things. In other words a loaded up 4CYL FWD. Looking forward to it. dpw

bigdad · February 2003

I have a 2002 V6 2WD with tow package with almost 15K miles on it since bought in Sept 2002.
I get between 21.7 and 22.7 for mixed driving (nearly always right at 22 except if I use premium, then it goes up about .5 or so....not enough to pay for the difference)
In freeway driving I get between 23.5 and 25.5 (mostly right at 24 and again, premium gives me a slight increase of about .7 or so). I drive at 75-80 mph on freeway, so I am quite pleased with this mileage.
When I tow my 750 pound motorcycle or personal water craft (about 1000 pounds each counting trailers) the mileage drops to 21 on the freeway.
I recently towed a newly purchased boat from Jacksonville Florida to East Tennessee (uphill the whole way!!)at about 55-60 mph. The boat exceeded the tow rating of 3500 pounds....it weighs 4200 plus the trailer (5.7 Liter inboard/outboard V8 that is 24 ft. long on 26 ft aluminum trailer with alum wheels). I got 14 mpg and that 3.0L was working hard all the way (600 miles)

banner1 · February 2003

2002 V-6 AWD
3,200 miles, all stop & go.
12 mpg. Easy acceleration. There must be something wrong. I have not seen any other messages with this same low mileage. Any possible causes or solutions?
How could a H2 Hummer get 10mph & HL 12??

tidester · February 2003

How could a H2 Hummer get 10mph & HL 12??

I think you said it yourself.

3,200 miles, all stop & go.

The HL is rated at 18 city/22 hwy. If it's mostly stop and little go then your mileage will vary. As an extreme example, consider that if you spend "ALL" your time idling then you will get 0 mpg.

tidester, host

nippononly · February 2003

the sticker says 18 city, it actually gives a range of 12-24...and you could expect to get the bottom of the range if ALL your driving is stop and go.

sportsterer · February 2003

seems like we're gettin maybe 20 or so around town and country, maybe 22 on the open road, out here in the far away climes, but of course that's also because the car is green, and as anyone knows, green cars get the best mpg. kind of a quantum mechanical thing, more than likely...

phrosut · February 2003

6 cyl, AWD, 5500 miles. 11 country miles to work (ascending 1500 ft) and back, we consistantly averaged 19.1 mpg. 1/2 mpg lower on the way to work, getting back up to 19.1 by the time we got back home (mostly downhill).

Changed to synthetic at 5000 miles. Now it is 19.7 on the same trip. And, of course, it would go down to 19.2 on the way up, returning to 19.7 by the time we got home.

Last week I filled with 92 octane to see if it made any difference. I guess it did, but not worth it: it's still 19.7 at the end of the day but it only goes down to 19.5 on the uphill trip each day. Can't figure why that doesn't change the "end of the day" mileage, but it's obviously not enough to warrant the higher price, even though (as a percentage of increase) higher octane is a bargain these days.

mauriceojeda · February 2003

Does anyone's Highlander automatically lock the doors when DRIVE is engaged or when a certain mph is reached?

If so is this something that the dealer can program?

thanks for any info!

dominor5 · February 2003

I get 12-15 mpg in straight city/stop-and-go traffic; 12 nowadays I think because I set the tire pressure at 27 psi due to the Duellers' poor performance in packed snow or ice. On the highway though, the highest mpg I've experienced is 24 on a 250-mile trip; the average is around 21, and I drive comparatively fast. Don't worry about it, enjoy the drive.

brad_22 · February 2003

My mileage has decreased recently - averaging about 14 in mixed driving. Basically, I'm refilling every 270 miles (when the light comes on). I used to consistently get 300+ miles per tank, sometimes 400 on long trips. Once the weather improves (I'm in the DC area), I'll give the engine a thorough once-over.

By the way, I've got about 38K miles on it so far.

banner1 · February 2003

Thank you to all that took the time to respond to my questions about the low mpg. My main concern was that there was something wrong with my Highlander. Now that I see others have had similar numbers at times makes me feel better & I'm sure as the weather warms up the mileage will improve. Thanks again.

cmcardle · February 2003

Nope, think you have to hit the button yourself.

rmui1 · February 2003

mauriceojeda, if your vehicle has an alarm system it might possibly be programable to lock the doors when you start the car up. Many alarm systems do this, the one (which comes on some Highlanders) that's referred to in the Highlander owners manual I think , but not sure, might do this.

nimrod99 · February 2003

Not to assume you are calculating you mpg incorrectly - but to consistently get 12 mpg seems wrong (even stop and go).

Do you fill up at the same gas station?. I ask because there is a slight possibility that their pumps may be calibrated incorrectly (ie it says 12 gallons when you actually got 11.5 gallons).

To really check your vehicle. Try going on a 100 mile trip in the country with no stop and go traffic. Then recheck your mpg.

If you don't get 18+ mpg - then you will know you have a problem.

wwest · February 2003

According to Lexus the AWD RX300 (and HL) final drive ratios are: Front, 3.291:1 Rear 2.928:1

Then my assumption would be that for every engine revolution the rear wheels would (want to) move the vehicle farther than the front. The rear wheels turn faster than the front for any given engine speed.

If the above assumption is correct then the rear wheels would always provide the primary motive force, would they not?

I have proven, at least to my own satisfaction, that the AWD RX300 on low traction surfaces is ALWAYS predominantly a FWD vehicle.

So what gives? Can anyone explain?

cliffy1 · February 2003

You are asking us to explain why your theory doesn't stand up to new information that you have provided? Interesting. I have no answer but perhaps it has something to do with the fact that your theory is not correct.

It could also be that you are assuming that the drive shafts are turning at the same rate of speed. Is it possible that they are not? This is a serious question as I am unsure if that is possible.

wwest · February 2003

If the current design will turn the rear wheels farther than the front for the same engine speed then why does the vehicle test out as predominantly FWD?

It would appear that with this disparate F/R final drive ratio the front wheels would be simply free-wheeling along, with the rears doing all the (motive force) work.

And maybe it was only my theory until I put the RX on the 4 wheel dynamometer. Then it became quite factual, if the front and rear wheels are not forced to turn at the same rate due to high roadbed traction then the front wheels get the majority of the available engine torque, 90/10 initially and only up to 75/25 if the low traction condition persists.

awchan13 · February 2003

Don't know if anyone is still interested...but I was looking through my owner's manual today and this is what it said on Pg 259 and 260. I know there was an earlier debate over snow chain and snow tire use. Here's what the car manufacturer recommends....which I'd tend to trust....

"Four-wheel drive models: Do not use tires of different brands, sizes and constructions. This may damage the drive system."

"Snow tires should be installed on all wheels." - max speed 75mph.

"Chain Installation. Install the chains on the front tires as tightly as possible. Do not use tire chains on the rear tires." - max speed 30 mph. There is also a large caution section about managing turns correctly with chains, so you will not lose control.

I've always used chains on front wheels only on FWD or AWD vehicles. It just takes good defensive driving and you'll be fine.

dano42 · March 2003

2003 4WD V6

Just purchased in December. Was getting 15mpg with combination driving in Michigan weather. Now getting 18mpg with 2,400 mile on odometer. Anxious to see what we get with highway driving.

dano42 · March 2003

Noted some previous comments about a rough ride. We noticed it too on our new HL. Someone suggested checking tire air pressure as HLs are shipped with up to 40 lbs. I checked and, sure enough, the tires were are 38 lbs. Decreased to 32lbs (where they should be) and we are now experiening a much better ride.

jrfiero · March 2003

Re post 7423, by mikey00, copied below. That post says retorquing should be every 5K miles under normal driving conditions. My Scheduled Maintenance Guide says 15K miles. Everything except oil & filter change for the 5K and 10K services is below the line which reads "Additional Maintenance Items for Special Operating Conditions." So whether you choose a 5K or 7.5K interval, all Toyota says you have to do until 15K under normal operating conditions is change the oil and filter. Special Operating Conditions are listed beginning on p18 of my Scheduled Maintenance Guide, and they are similar to those conditions which would cause you to choose the 5K intervals. Those conditions are on p17.
I'm curious that in all cases Toyota uses the singular "bolt" if they really want you to retorque eight bolts.
Jonas

7423 of 7940 Re: torquing the driveshaft? by mikey00 Dec 21, 2002 (2:51 pm)
It's really no big deal. There are 8 bolts on the driveshaft that Toyota claims should be re-torqued at 54 ft-lbs every 5k under normal driving conditions (not just towing). I did mine twice in the last 30k. There is no driveshaft on fwd. I don't actually do a complete re-torque, that is I do not loosen and tighten to 54 ft-lbs. I just check each of the 8 bolts to make sure they are at at least 54 ft-lbs. I question the need for this service but still do it because it is Toyota recommended, not like the many un-necessary dealer recommended fluid changes.

skyreb · March 2003

This morning I left home with 1 inch of new snow on the drive. (Northern NH with 28 inches of compacted old snow in the yard, and snowing heavy as I write) This afternoon I returned home with a measured 9 inches of new snow on the drive. I thought about this board, and some of the nay sayers that argue against the AWD. Frankly, I doubted the HL would climb my long steep drive with that much snow. I crossed 18 inches of plow "droppings" at the street, then up my drive with 9 inches of snow. The HL never slipped once. Right up the drive, into the garage with absolutely no problem. I know it is not a true 4x4; I know it does not have a low range; I would not take it off road, but from real world, everyday, experience, it will go where no FWD can go. This is my point, if you need the added security of being able to get home following an unexpected heavy snow, do not have any doubt about the AWD in the real world. (regardless of what others say)!!

johnnieliu · March 2003

skyreb,

Do you have VSC/Traction Control on you HL?

wwest · March 2003

is useless for most of us who only need good on-road adverse condition driving capability. Momentum oftentimes makes up for otherwise inadequate AWD types.

nippononly · March 2003

rear wheels have lower final drive ratio on HL, doesn't that mean the exact OPPOSITE? It would imply there is less power going to the back, and that the vehicle is moderately FWD-oriented? If it were a 50/50 split on dry pavement, the back wheels would want to kick loose all the time! You would have to send more power frontward.

Where do you get all this technical info on RX/HL? Do you have the factory shop manuals?

cmuniz · March 2003

wwest - Low range is not useless for most of us. I have a vehicle with low range and use it frequently under snow and ice conditions on paved roads and my 200 ft gravel driveway to keep the vehicle going downhill at a very slow speed and thus avoid using the brakes to slow down. I live in the mountains and it is very useful to prevent downhill skids. A skillfull driver like yourself may not need it, but it sure makes me feel safer.

wwest · March 2003

Yes, I have shop manuals, but there is an abundance if information out there on the net also.

Low range/skillfull...

Lived about two miles back on a gravel then dirt road with lots of uphill/downhill slopes. My judgement was that low range was TOO low, granny grunt style.

Glad your's is a help.

skyreb · March 2003

There has been debate about the AWD and it's "shortcomings." Do not believe them ... in the real world the AWD is a great performer.

I live in northern NH (we have had deep snow on the ground since mid November)(naturally, the drive has been plowed after every snow event). Yesterday, I left for church with it snowing, but only 1 inch on the drive. When I returned, it was a measured 9 inches deep, and snowing hard. I have a long 300 foot drive, and it is steep. The plow had left the entrance to my drive with a berm of about 14-18 inches. I did not think I could make it w/out getting the snow thrower out and clearing a path. The HL crossed the berm, and moved right up the 9 inches of snow without slipping. I was most impressed.

The AWD is not a true 4x4; it does not have a low range; I would not take it off road, but it sure goes when a FWD will not. Knowing I can get home when the snow is deeper than forecast is very comforting.

Happy HL'ing to all.

wwest · March 2003

And just how do you know a FWD HL wouldn't have done exactly the same thing?

skyreb · March 2003

To all: I am sorry that I repeated myself. My computer does not auto go to the end of the discussion, and when I did not see my first post even after clicking "last page" I thought it had not been received.

Now. I do not have traction control. Just a 2001 unlimited V6, AWD. Nothing fancy.

I do not know that a FWD HL could not have made it, but I know my FWD Acura would not have, and my neighbor's 2x4 pickup could not make it (even with CMU blocks in the bed). wwest has repeatedly spoken against the AWD and cited test to support the point. But admits to having zip experience with the vehicle in real world snow. I have, and without any doubt in my mind, I know it performs.

Up here in the north woods, weather forecasting is very questionable. When my wife leaves home, we never know when an unexpected snow will fall. It is a big comfort to me to know she will be able to get home, and up the driveway. Yesterday, the National Weather Bureau predicted nothing more than a 1" accumulation.

The HL is not a perfect vehicle, and there are features I wish were different. I do not want to continue the AWD debate, but I believe this aspect of the vehicle is better than spoken by the nay sayers, and I thought others might enjoy hearing from someone that drives in winter conditions daily over an extended period of time.

dougweaver · March 2003

My wife just called from work. She works at the mall. Our 5 day old HL now has a broken window on the drivers side front door. She does not know how it happened. It was parked out away from the other cars. The Security guard says he was in that area most of the day and he didn't see anything. So we are trying to figure out if someone did it on purpose by hitting it or if the window may have been improperly installed and/or a temperature change may have caused it to break. I called the sales guy at Toyota to see if they have had this problem before. He says the only time they had a broken window, was in a Camry, and they found a rock in the floor board that had been thrown through it. He is going to check the service announcements tomorrow to see if they have had any problems with the windows. So now it's a guessing game. Unfortunately my auto insurance has a $500 deductable. Any ideas or opinions are appreciated. Thanks dpw

wwest · March 2003

My real problem is that this is a Lexus and it is not nearly as capable as it could be, should have been. I think back to Boeing when I was in QA and the manufacturing folks tried to sell me a "load of poles."

I really and sincerely doubt if the AWD version of the RX300 is a justifiable investment when compared to the FWD RX300 when both have VSC.

The ML AWD system was introduced to the world in 1997 and it's taken until now, next month, for Lexus to bring it to market.

The RX330 (ML's) AWD system is lighter, less expensive to manufacture, and if Lexus is brave enough to make the VSC's AWD firmware reasonably aggressive, might even be more capable than even the ML itself.

Now if the RX330 has the climate control fixed....

stever · March 2003

Skyreb, you can always delete your posts at any time with the Delete button by the message title.

Dougweaver - bummer. Are you sure the deductible applies for glass breakage? Sometimes that's treated differently....

In the news, "the Highlander mid-size sport utility vehicle (SUV) posted best-ever February sales of 8,298, an increase of 7.9 percent." link (Yahoo)

Steve, Host

stringfellowh · March 2003

Just a reminder to all who can still see snow from their windows-wash the salt off your HL. The HL seems to be crevice-rich with regard to areas where road salt can hide and exact a rusty revenge a few months from now if left unchecked.Here are some areas I noticed excessive salt accumulations:
Check and flush the space between the sheet metal and the mud guards.
Shock tower/strut assemblies-and wheel well areas, paying close attention to the inner top lip of each well.
Rocker panels-front and rear. This is an area that is often over looked when washing the HL. Do yourselves a favor..wash it and apply a good polish/wax.
Lower rocker panels-this bottom portion of the rocker panels are, for the most part, sealed via crimp/spot welds, but there are crevices where salt has penetrated.As long as your underneath, give the underside a once over with the hose.
Inner door, bottom-check and flush the drain holes on each door.
Hatch/rear door area.
Finally, check your engine bay. Despite the plastic work on the underside, there was still a fair amount of sand/salt/etc in this area.

dougweaver · March 2003

Thanks Steve for the info. I will check with my insurance company tomorrow. dpw

stever · March 2003

I have a $500 deductible too, but I think the glass is separate (and smaller). Most insurance companies will fix little chips for free and many glass dealers will waive the deductible for windshields or used too (not $500 though!).

Guess I should flip through my policy that came in the mail today :-)

Steve, Host

kybill · March 2003

what a shame. I know how long you've waited for your HL and if it were me, I'd be highly pi--ed. As for how it may have broken, around here, vandals use pieces of porcelain from spark plugs. When thrown at window glass, it just shatters them, pretty cleanly and doesn't require much force. You might check for that. Also, like you, with a new vehicle, I always parked well away from other cars, to avoid damage from dents, etc. Unfortunately, the isolation may make it an easier target. Hope you get it resolved.

pasqual · March 2003

I have an 02 H/L V6 AWD so far 3 complaints about it.
#1- Heating system is really poor especialy to warm the feet.
#2- The wind noise
#3- Cheap speakers

I know wind noise was an issue with the 01's and Toyota dealers have changed the seals.Has anybody experienced wind noise with the 02's

scanner · March 2003

Mauriceojeda,

Apparently, the answer to your question is NO and NO!

wwest · March 2003

If you have the automatic climate control system you may be able to help your heating problem by unplugging the A/C refrigerant pressure switch/sensor. On my RX its behind the front grille just in front of the radiator/condensor assembly.

NipponDenso, the Toyota/Lexus climate control supplier has some idiot engineers that think passenger comfort means cool and dry airflow even when the radiant cooling quotient is the predominant human comfort factor.

NipponDenso designs these systems to first, always, cool the incoming airflow to as low as 34F and then hopefully reheat it to your comfort level.

dougweaver · March 2003

Found out today my auto insurance also has a $500 deductible on glass coverage. So I will paying it all out of my pocket. The Toyota dealership is giving me a pretty good discount, so I'm satisfied with that. It will cost me $287 plus tax. So thats not to bad. Ordered it today and should probably be delivered tomorrow. So I'm pleased it will be behind us shortly and we can move on. I will always wonder what caused it to break ... but we'll never know. dpw

stever · March 2003

Rats - maybe I should rethink my coverage (maybe I really should read my policy!).

oh well...

Steve, Host

bobo36 · March 2003

The highlander does not come with the 3rd seat if your looking for that from Toyota you have to look at the Sequoia is what your looking for. I work for Toyota and I can tell you that if you are a family van your going to be excited about the new Family van coming out in March.

dmuzyka · March 2003

Sorry it took so long to get back. We drove the V6 and weren't impressed. Yes, it had more 'go' than the 4cyl., but, again, it felt heavy and lumbering. A few weeks after we drove the 6 (and my wife was zeroing in on the Escape/Tribute), I talked her into giving the 4 a test drive, and almost immediately during the drive she gave me the 'look'. I drove it too, and although under full load it strained a little to get up and go in the merge lane (our salesman was really overweight), the car just felt more balanced with the 4. I really wish we could find the side airbags more easily, but it looks like we'll be waiting 120-150 days.....I'm still blown away that the side bags are hard to get.

xcarnut · March 2003

Thank you for your real world test and report about actual useability of HL AWD system.
Just a follow up question, do you stock tires or are they different from std Toyt supplied Bridgestone Dueler ?
Anyone else pls post your experiences, its far more enjoyable and informative to read real world expereience instead of tech speak.

Toyota Highlander

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