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Highlander Hybrid Electrical/Lighting Problems

2

Comments

  • twnd111twnd111 Member Posts: 6
    Yes. I have had almost your identical experiences with my 08 HH. What is exasperating is that I owned two previous Highlanders, not hybrid, and never had the slightest battery problem, even after leaving light on accidentally all night and/or doors open. What is going on? Is the battery seriously small for the car? I am paranoid now about checking and re-checking, but it's bound to happen again... and today I saw the same dip in battery power while sitting in traffic. I thought if you were driving the battery was being charged, not drained!
  • carclueless5carclueless5 Member Posts: 4
    My car has never sat for more than a day without being driven and I still had this problem. The dealer told me it's a common occurrence since the battery is small and to expect to replace it again in about another 3 years. Other than this it has been an absolutely wonderful car and I would recommend it to anyone. Enjoy your new car.
  • colcbpcolcbp Member Posts: 9
    would be interested in learning battery type and brand other HH owners have installed.

    Leaving for Phoenix Friday to pickup my 2006 HH from a non-Toyota dealership and will be paying Toyota for an inspection before forking over $$$ to seller. Am looking for all items of concern at which I can aim the mechanics. Thanks. Chuck :D
  • wolfcalwolfcal Member Posts: 19
    hey chuck: i am an owner of a 06 HH, I would have them pull and replace the small battery inside the engine compartment and put in a 5year battery. the one that came installed in the 06 was a three year battery and thats up now,,,dont wait for it to die, not worth it....My dealer charged me 80 dollars for the battery....other than that, I LOVE LOVE LOVE driving this car, I have not had any problems with leaving the lights on, or radio for any amount of time, as others have seemed to experience...I also live in cold climate, 3000ft,,,snow,,,and drive only 7miles back and forth to work,,,this is the worst for batteries and have not had a problem since changing to the 5year battery....the power of this vehicle can actually be scarry if you step on it:>, i would compare it to my mustangs from my youger years...no other complaints on body, engine or electrical that i had.....oh, by the way, I recommend cheveron gas for the best gas mileage, with the computer read out, you can see the difference in gas mileage from different gas stations,,,,I have seen ranges from 20.8 to 26.7, cheveron being the most consistant and highest mpg...
    gl
    chris
    p.s. oh, dont spill a bottle of water under the drivers seat, it plays havoc with the gps system which is stored under there:>
  • colcbpcolcbp Member Posts: 9
    Have my 06HH Ltd for about a month now and just last evening after my wife brought it back from shopping I went out to garage to check for who knows what. Saw blue light from interior of our car. Checked to find that the little ring light surrounding the ignition switch was still lit, no other light was on in the car. All doors appeared closed correctly and locked. BUT when I unlocked, opened and closed the driver's door, the light went out. Am willing to bet the little switch under that rubber cap in the drivers door opening is going bad. Caution everyone to make sure doors are all shut securely to avoid current drain and find some morning that your car won't start.
  • colcbpcolcbp Member Posts: 9
    :) Have car about a month now w/dealer newly replaced battery (no nav so don't have to worry about spilling water under driver's seat ;-) getting routinely just shy of 27mpg driving city, freeway, my wife and myself -- using Chevron mid-grade. Picked up a 06 Toyota book aimed at their technicians and sales folks written on product launch to introduce the HH. In one of the tables at the rear of the book, it lists octane rating as 91, while my owner's manual only says for "better performance" to use 91 octane. What are everyone's thoughts?
  • wvgasguywvgasguy Member Posts: 1,405
    it lists octane rating as 91, while my owner's manual only says for "better performance" to use 91 octane. What are everyone's thoughts?

    Waste of money. I can't imagine even wanting a hybrid if you were planning to push it to it's limit. Even then you probably only want maximum acceleration occasionally for a short burst. The V6 has been more than I need and I usually drive with the econ button on anyway. I'm not familiar with high altitudes and that might be a help (or hurt)
  • wolfcalwolfcal Member Posts: 19
    funny thing, with the computer always listing my mpg, i have never tried the upgraded gas to see if it improves the gas mileage drastically..i have always used the lowest octane gas...im probably really cheap is the reason,,,but, im on a trip up to oregon right now and will have to fill up twice to get home and im thinking i will use the highest octane both times and see if i get a lot better than 26, which was the average to get here.. it will have to hit into the 30+mpg range for it to be worth it....as far as more power goes, with the hh i dont need anymore power:>
    will report back
    chris
  • stevegoldstevegold Member Posts: 185
    Don't hold your breath but let us know. Speed, wind and incline make a difference. So does your driving style.
  • rodonnellrodonnell Member Posts: 37
    Just curious. For anyone with the 07 HH that has had their 12 volt battery replaced and for any of those who have experienced a discharged battery. Toyota has a TSB out, EG050-06. specifically for the 07 HH about relearning the Idle Speed control. The procedure requires the use of the Toyota Diagnostic Tester and running a program while operating the car.

    For those who have had their battery replaced by Toyota, do you know if the TSB was also accomplished?

    Anyone sufferring any adverse problems after changing the battery, or for that matter after the battery has been disconnected without performing the TSB?
  • twnd111twnd111 Member Posts: 6
    .....What's a TSB?.......
  • rodonnellrodonnell Member Posts: 37
    A Technical Service Bulletin. Toyota issues them continuously to the Dealer service network.
  • wolfcalwolfcal Member Posts: 19
    for the 06, i have nothing that says they did this procedure, and have had no problems since battery replacement.. no service recall for this year on that problem either.
    chris
  • wolfcalwolfcal Member Posts: 19
    ok, two tank fill ups.....91 octane.. shells new gas, and then cheveron...540 miles.....NO DIFFERECNE....24.7 to 26.7 average, same as the low grade fuel.
    conclusion..im using the regular unleaded...
    chris
    p.s. btw: no noticeable increase in power either in the hh.
  • wwestwwest Member Posts: 10,706
    HH's primary source of power (=TORQUE) comes from the hybrid battery and electric drive motors.
  • gabs1gabs1 Member Posts: 1
    I have had the identical problem with my 2006 Toyota Highlander Hybrid. Every time it rains or on a cold day with excessive moisture, the Climate Control stops working and the GPS screen shuts down with a meesage that there is a connection problem. The READY light no londer displays and the hybrid electrical system no longer works. I can only control the drive side window and the dash lights up with ABS, parking brake etc. messages as well. Since October of 2008 we have been to our local Toyota dealership where we bought the car for over 6 times and they have replaced numerous parts in an attempt to fix the problem. 2 days ago it happened again right after it started raining and now it is back with them again. Has this happened to you again and how was it resolved? Any one else with similar problem. BTW, we also park it slightly nose down on a sloped driveway.
  • itsnicitsnic Member Posts: 4
    I am a new owner of 08 HH and now have approx. 5k on odometer. Up to now, vehicle has operated flawlessly with mpg improving. My concern is this weekend while interstate driving with dvd playing, head lights on, we came upon a traffic jam that required we idle in place for approx. 15 minutes. In that time, the battery meter showed that the battery discharged to two remaining bars. Once I noticed that, I turned all power items off and I moved to the berm of road and traveled to exit, turned around and drove to recharge battery. What would have happened if I was not able to resume driving to recharge? Is it normal for that amount of battery discharge to occur in that short a period of time? Are there any recommendations for those types of situations?
    Thanks
  • cdptrapcdptrap Member Posts: 485
    When it reaches two pink bars, the ICE (gas engine) should come on and run to recharge the battery pack. If the ICE does that, then all is normal. If the ICE does not start to recharge, then something is wrong.

    The ICE will normally run until there are four blue bars before shutting off.

    It is normal for the battery to run down to two pink bars when we have AC blasting and music playing while parked.
  • wvgasguywvgasguy Member Posts: 1,405
    Are there any recommendations for those types of situations?

    Just relax and know that your vehicle is saving gas while draining the battery. The ICE will indeed kick back on and power up the battery when it needs to (assuming you are not sitting there in neutral)
  • rodonnellrodonnell Member Posts: 37
    What you experienced is completely normal. Don't bother with turning everything off, your car was designed to operate just this way. For reference, when I drive over to pick my wife up from work, I will have the same symptoms. AC on, Idle, Radio playing, etc and the battery will drain down to the point there the ICE starts up after about 15 minutes.
  • condor2007condor2007 Member Posts: 4
    I am also frustrated. My 2007 HH has failed to start 3 times in last 7 months and everytime the dealer claims that the battery was discharged probably due to my fault and all they did was charge the battery and it starts again. I know that I did not leave any lights ON. It is my wife's car and she is also terrified of driving the car now, because she feels that she can be stranded anywhere at anytime. I am so sorry that she chose the HH. Toyota is not a very responsive company to customer problems, very unlike for a Japanese company. Maybe I will send a letter to Nagoya directly.
  • wolfcalwolfcal Member Posts: 19
    after replacing the small battery under the hood, which was a 3 year battery, with a 5 year battery, my 06 hh has not had a single problem. and I truely love my car....maybe spend the $80 to replace the battery under the hood and give it a go..what could it hurt....if it dies again after that,,,you have a problem
    chris
  • rodonnellrodonnell Member Posts: 37
    I would bet my last dollar that a door was left adjar. Easy to do, and the interior light will burn until the battery dies.

    You could also disconnect the negative battery cable and then connect an ammeter in series to see if you have a current draw, but then you would be in the position of having to reset your idle solenoid.

    Although I have not experienced this battery failure on my 07 with 102,000 miles, I do carry one of those battery jump boxes in the back. Just in case.
  • wwestwwest Member Posts: 10,706
    BDW vehicle typically do not have an idle solenoid.
  • rodonnellrodonnell Member Posts: 37
    Actually they do. the idle solenoid resetting procedure is discussed under a TSB from toyota. I dont have the number at the moment, but will post it once I find it.
  • wwestwwest Member Posts: 10,706
    Sorry, meant DBW, E-gas, E-throttle. Those systems have a servomotor with dual/redundent feedback to position the throttle butterfly valve throughout its full range.
  • jhoffman18jhoffman18 Member Posts: 1
    My son shut the rear door manually after I pushed the button to close it. It's been 45 minutes, all the doors are closed and the ceiling light will not go off (I suspect it thinks the rear door is still open (which it isn't)). Of course it's Sunday and no dealers are open. Suggestions?
  • bdymentbdyment Member Posts: 573
    Someone probably moved the light switch on the ceiling light to the on position. There should be three positions--off--on all the time and on when the doors are opened. Move the switch to the last position and this should correct the problem.
  • twnd111twnd111 Member Posts: 6
    Does anyone have any suggestions for replacing the standard battery on the 08 HH? I have had it with someone forgetting to shut the tailgate all the way for just a short while and seeing my battery die.... I have read that the answer is to just get a larger capacity battery. Which one is best?
  • monte8monte8 Member Posts: 75
    "Which one is best?"

    Take a look at the Nov. 2009 issue of Consumer Reports, pp. 52-55.

    Possibly the Interstate MTP-24.
  • chungkao21chungkao21 Member Posts: 1
    I don't see an answer to this problem, so I'll post mine. My Interior lights are also not turning off when they are supposed to. For me, though, ONLY the Front Interior lights are constantly on; the center and rear Interior ceiling lights turn on and off as they should, when I use the Main switch next to the Front Interior Lights. OFF/Door/ON positions all work for the Center and Rear lights, but not the Front Interior lights.

    So, my problem is not the switch, as it can control the Center and Rear Interior lights, and it is not the door sensors/switches because opening and closing each door can control the Center and Rear Lights just fine. It's just the stupid Front Interior lights. I've taken out the bulbs so that my battery doesn't drain, but I still need to solve the problem. Anyone have any insights?
  • monte8monte8 Member Posts: 75
    Have you taken it in to the dealer? It sounds like a wiring problem.
  • wolfcalwolfcal Member Posts: 19
    the front interior lights are also linked into a swithch that is connected to your door locking mechanism...when you hit the latch open button on your electronic key chain thing your front interior lights go on, also upon leaving the car the front lights stay on for a while and then shut off unless you hit the lock door button on the key chain thing...and then they go off immediately.....if they stay on in the later case, look for the switch that controls this.....or talk to the dealer:>
    chris
  • bamadorbamador Member Posts: 1
    I have an '06 HH which has been running fine until today. Went out this am and it is dead as a doornail. Any ideas?
  • wolfcalwolfcal Member Posts: 19
    you can research the battery replacement on this site...
    it is usually the smallll battery in the engine compartment, especially if it hasnt been replaced yet.....
  • carclueless5carclueless5 Member Posts: 4
    Yup, I had the same problem last year. I had it towed to the dealer and they replaced the battery (at my cost). I think it cost me about $230 total. I had others tell me I could have replaced the battery myself, but being a girl without any mechanical inclinations I didn't want to screw it up and make more problems. The only downer was the battery turned out to be bad and had to go through the whole process again about 2 months later. at least that time they didn't charge me for another battery. Since then it has been running great.
  • twnd111twnd111 Member Posts: 6
    I gave up, put in a new heavy duty battery in my HH, and it has been great... no more battery drains. Wondering though why my mileage has gone to pieces,,, shows I am getting about 18 mpg since the change.... read something about resetting the idle, can I do this myself?
  • wolfcalwolfcal Member Posts: 19
    that doesnt make sense. dropping to 18mpg...my 2006hh gets 25-26 normal mountain driving....i wonder if you diconnect the battery terminals, wait a minute and then reconnect them, if that will reset the whole system like with other computers...cant hurt to try...by the way, cheveron gas is the best according to my 4 years of driving and computer readings...normal unleaded....
  • 5toyotas5toyotas Member Posts: 1
    I have several Toyotas and have talked several family and friends into purchasing Toyotas too. But all good things come to an end (I guess). I bought a new 2007 Highlander Hybrid with all the extras. It was supposed to be my dream car and take me into retirement. HA! The car has had countless electrical problems, and I'm on my third battery. Things in the car don't work properly or consistently. The dealer tries to blame me for every failure this car has. Now he's trying to tell me I don't drive enough and that's why I need another new battery. Come on Toyota, give me a break. I didn't come down with yesterday's rain. Eventually I'm going to be off warranty and on my own. Then what?
  • wolfcalwolfcal Member Posts: 19
    Didn't come down with yesterdays rain. I love it. There is no way your on your third battery, I don't care if your care is just sitting there for two a month with no driving, that just can't happen. But if it really is: I would take your toyota to another dealership upon any next problem..Your warrenty is good at all dealerships and sounds like you have a lemon dealership Your car needs a master mechanic from toyota to work on it if it continues to have anymore problems. Keep all your records and if needed make a complaint on the toyota corporate site...
    good luck, I have the 2006 toyota and it is my dream car. I love driving again and that hasnt happened since I owned Mustangs...
  • eggwyteggwyt Member Posts: 1
    About 5 weeks ago while driving around our hometown of Albuquerque, our '07 HH (~45000 mi) dashboard flashed Check Hybrid System and the master warning light appeared. We were able to park and after waiting a bit retried starting. It was dead; lights on the dash cycled through warnings but it wouldn't start. Had it towed to the local dealer; they replaced the Inverter assembly ($8000 part) under warranty after about 5 days. We made a trip of ~1000 miles to Colorado and back 3 weeks ago without any problems. Then a week ago while in the middle of nowhere New Mexico the same thing as before happened. We were ~120 miles from Albuquerque so had it towed to Roswell. They looked at it the following day and the error showed to be the inverter again. They worked with Toyota Tech Service for about 4 days and double checked all of the connections but nothing appears to be wrong. They've ordered another inverter assembly and should install next week.

    Now we're terrified to drive this car out of town for fear of another failure. We're leaning towards trading it in on another non-hybrid Highlander. I'm wondering if anyone else has experienced anything similar? If so what was your final outcome?
    Thanks,
    Eric
  • myrafmyraf Member Posts: 32
    Hi i have a 2006 hh,had the same problems over and over,it is now at tha speed and toyota dealership said the hybrid system and inverta needs to be replaced at my cost ,14,000 the vehicle is only 4yrs old,and it cost me 45,000. what a nightmare,a few of us are talking class action against toyota, ru still having problems
  • johnmikeswearjohnmikeswear Member Posts: 8
    Yesterday I could have lost my life because my 2006 HH shut down on the I 10 east interstate just north of the exit to the Airport where the 202 and 51 and Mcdowel street merge all together. The car has not had any issues but a battery had been changed in May and new plugs and timing belt and water pump was replaced. I had no warning as I pulled to the middle lane and the car died, with traffic coming at me at 65 to 70 miles per hour. The service alert came on that with all systems and the breaks stopped me dead in the middle of the freeway. The message was Check CSV. I hit the flashers and tried to put the car in park to start it, and it did not start, and then neutral and it did not start. I called 911 and traffic was coming up during the rush hour and I hear the traffic report that there was a car stopped in the middle lane. The DPS Department of Public safety arrived in 8 minutes and stopped traffic and pushed me to the side of the road. I was sitting there bracing for impact at high speed.
    When I was safe the officer came to ask what happened. I explained and joked "It is a Toyota" I also called the dealer ship and while I was getting the DPS to see if they knew how to start and move the care and the repair man said the CSV has to do with traction and What do I expect him to do. He hung up.
    I called AAA and they had a hard time getting to me and had to send two tow trucks and the second was complaining about how dangerous the location was. I had the car taken to the Bell Road Toyota and they were able to get the car in. The called me at noon because I went home to relax had missed work, and the repair was said to be a faulty battery and it was under warranty. I have a extended warranty to 184,000 miles and the care has been in for every service and I have paid for the Toyota warranty because I had hear their were battery issues.
    The service person Steve called me back at 4:00 and said the care was still not starting and the warranty does not pay for diagnostics.
    he called back at 4:30 and said he had bad news the inverte was out and the cost would be $7900. He said the extended warranted would not cover this part of the electrical. I called and they said it is not in the contract and I should have read that the electrical did not cover Hybrid inverters although the electrical is in the policy. I have been reading the complaints and I am so mad at the service. I owe more then the car is worth and now to add to the situation it is not safe and if they fix it it is only warranted for one year. The service person said he understands the issue and he will try and help he said. I did call the Toyota hotline and made a complaint and have a confirmation number. I have the numbers to NHSTA and want to get the President of Toyota. I am going to call the news paper and a local station. The community needs to know I could have been killed or killed someone today without any warning. The care stopped with no warning at speeds of 65 and this could have been a huge disaster for so many. I have lost my faith in Toyota. I have had other issues but it was not a life or death situation. This was and they act as if this is no big deal. Take this company and any other company down with this safety issue. I was also told that the dealership did not have anything on the brake recall and it would be a year. I have not had a brake job and the service person said he has not replaced brakes on the hybrid, "they just don't wear out".
  • anon_in_califanon_in_calif Member Posts: 1
    edited June 2011
    If you're a hybrid owner, and if you're mechanically or electrically inclined and have a multimeter, then I need your help trying to figure out why the Highlander Hybrid is so prone to chewing up 12V batteries.

    I just installed my fourth 12V battery in four years into my 2007 Highlander Hybrid. Based on what I've read on various hybrid car forums this problems is pretty common for the 2007 HH if it's left parked for more than a week at a time on a regular basis. Lots of other Highlander and Lexus RX hybrid owners report similar experiences to mine (multiple new batteries and no fix from the dealer).

    I've done a bunch of research into lead-acid batteries, 12V alternators/voltage regulators, non-hybrid charging circuits, the Toyota hybrid patents, lead-acid charging profiles. And based on this research, I have a theory about the root cause of the frequent 12V battery failures. I strongly suspect that the charging voltage on some Toyota hybrid models is too low to maintain the 12V in a healthy state under all conditions.

    To prove or disprove this theory I need some data. So please do the following for me:

    1. start your engine (READY on the dash display).
    2. measure the DC voltage across the 12V battery's terminals.
    3. optional: if you have a oscilloscope, measure the ripple voltage and look for switching transients.
    4. pls post a response to this thread with the following info:

    year, model (HH, Prius, RX400h, etc), air temp, DC voltage, [ripple voltage]

    for example, my report is this:

    2007, Highlander Hybrid, 55F, 13.9V
    2007, Highlander Hybrid, 75F, 13.9V

    based on these two data points I'm guessing that the charging circuit in my 2007 HH is incorrectly (or badly) designed. It seems to put out a very well regulated, constant 14V regardless of the state of charge of the 12V battery, or its temperature, or even whether the gas engine is running (or the engine RPM). A charger that puts out a constant 14V is worthless if you want a lead-acid battery to reach its full design lifetime.
  • eriweneriwen Member Posts: 15
    edited July 2011
    With 2006 and 2007 Highlander Hybrids, a recall just came out from Toyota. It was issued 6/29/11.
    I thought the reason my car stopped working, from one of the other discussion forums, that it was the inverter problem. Unfortunately, with my car the engine has fallen apart. Toyota does not know the cause, but parts of the engine got loose and damaged other things. HOW could that happen? I have a 2006 with 87,000 miles. Toyota does not know what happened. Of course, though, they expect me to pay for part of the repairs since it is over warranty (60.000 miles) and I did not have an extended warranty. Right now, we are looking at a new short block.
    I filed a complaint with NHTSA and called Toyota national customer care. I am not letting this go; they need to fix it and people need to know of this potential engine problem.
  • pavon3307pavon3307 Member Posts: 1
    edited July 2011
    We just received the notice on our 2006 Highlander Hybrid concerning the inverter issue. Our hybrid currently has 92k on it and I've been using it to tow my brenderup horse trailer for over 2 years. This was why we bought this car in the first place.

    Upon reading the additional information on this recall, Toyota suggestions you not tow anything until the problem is fixed. Mind you, this is just the "preliminary" notice; the "second" letter will not come out until January 2012.

    So, we're not suppose to tow for the next how many months? I have 3-4 horse shows just this summer, one this week, and now I'm not suppose to use my hybrid??

    I called my dealer—they can't help me. I called Toyota Customer service—they listen and said they can't help and pointed me back to the dealer. Said to try and get the dealer to do the repair now since I have a Gold extended warranty. The dealers don't even have the part yet. What a mess.

    We can't be the only ones with this issue. I bought this car for towing as I didn't want to purchase a truck. My trailer is a European design and will never put more than 165lbs on the tongue fully loaded.

    We've owned Toyota's since 1984; one for 19 years. I'm beginning to wonder about my loyalty to this company.
  • coastal5coastal5 Member Posts: 1
    edited March 2012
    i had a similar issue while driving from NC we had no gps, radio control or climate control via lcd dispay unit. Display would say "external a/c connection problem" Dealer said that display may be shorting out, but they needed to replace unit under drivers seat first. $900. + Still not working, when pushing the audio button on the display it says the audio system is off. I can still use the knobs on radio itself ,but cant see what station or which cds are being played. Not sure what to do.
  • bchihybchihy Member Posts: 6
    Having read many of these posts , I have questions. I bought my 06 Hi Hy new in June, 2005. Have had almost no problems , and have 94,000 miles . The safety recall work on the inverter was done this past Feb just before a trip. I held my breath, but all was fine. I do not tow with it , and live in Mich. I do have the 100,00 warranty. My questions : Does anyone know if I can relax now that the resister has been replaced in the IPM/inverter? Also, if it does fail , am I likely to get it repaired at no cost? I was planning to hand the car over to my wife , and get another new Hi Hy , but now wonder about both thoughts. My vin is 60005527.
    Tnx,
    Very concerned
  • wolfcalwolfcal Member Posts: 19
    hey bchihy: we have about the same car, year and date bought. We just went out of warrenty 100k, yipee. My wife is the main driver of the car, and I get to drive it on long trips (9hours), I love this car. We did have to replace the small battery inside the engine compartment, the car died when it went under voltage and I will replace it again at exactly the five year mark. Other than that, no problems.
    Question for you though, put your foot hard on the brake and hold it down, then turn the key to start the car, keep holding your foot down hard for lets say one minute , just sitting there....what if any noise does the abs pump make? When the weather is cold, 30ish, mine makes a strange noise, took it to the dealer and made it happen again, found another 06 on the lot and it did it also, we all surmised it was an 06 thing.... :shades:
  • bchihybchihy Member Posts: 6
    Hi Ya Wolfcal ; Will try that . Won't get the chance for a day or so. Sounds like you may plan to keep the car??? We did tires at 50k and the timing belt at 75k or so, and that is it. Hate to trade it in and get so little. I also am curious about the new hybrids, trouble wise.
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