Recall Register

2005 Toyota Highlander: recalls and complaints

NHTSA lists 6 recall campaigns for the 2005 Toyota Highlander. The newest campaign is 16V396000. NHTSA received the report on 2 Jun 2016. The NHTSA record gives the component Seats / Front Assembly / Seat Heater/Cooler. NHTSA has 224 complaints on file for this model year. 1 NHTSA investigation names this model year.

The NHTSA recall file shows no do-not-drive advisory and no park-outside advisory on these campaigns.

This page cannot show if a recall applies to one vehicle. The NHTSA VIN lookup shows the unrepaired recalls of one vehicle.

Remedy of the newest campaign, 16V396000, in the NHTSA record

SET will notify owners, and dealers will disconnect the seat heaters, free of charge, and refund the purchase price of the seat heater accessory. The recall began on July 14, 2016. Owners may contact SET customer service at 1-866-405-4226. SET number for this recall is SET16B.

Complaint information entered into NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation vehicle owner's complaint database is used with other data sources to identify safety issues that warrant investigation and to determine if a safety-related defect trend exists.

NHTSA publishes these words. Source: NHTSA Datasets and APIs, section Complaints, read on . Complaint file through . Recall file through .

Since the last update

No tracked figure of this page changed in a data update. What the log tracks

All updates to the register

Recall campaigns

6 campaigns, newest first. 2,565,009 units in total.

  • 16V396000Seats / Front Assembly / Seat Heater/Cooler
  • 11V539000Engine and Engine Cooling
  • 11V112000Vehicle Speed Control / Accelerator Pedal
  • 10V499000Service Brakes, Hydraulic / Foundation Components / Master Cylinder
  • 10V035000Equipment / Other / Labels
  • 06V253000Vehicle Speed Control / Accelerator Pedal
  1. 16V396000Received . 7,749 units.

    Seats / Front Assembly / Seat Heater/Cooler

    Defect, in the NHTSA record
    Southeast Toyota Distributors, LLC (SET) is recalling certain 2005-2011 4Runner, Highlander, Sequoia, and Sienna, 2005-2010 Avalon and Tundra, 2006-2008 Camry Solara, 2006-2010 Highlander hybrid, 2006-2011 Rav4 and Tacoma, 2007-2010 FJ Cruiser, 2007-2011 Camry hybrid, 2009-2010 Venza, 2010-2012 Prius, 1988-1990 and 2005-2010 Camry, and 1989 and 2009-2010 Corolla vehicles equipped with aftermarket accessory seat heaters with a copper strand heating element. The electrical wiring in the seat heaters may be damaged when the seat cushion is compressed.
    Consequence, in the NHTSA record
    If damaged, the copper strand heating element may short circuit, increasing the risk of a fire.
    Remedy, in the NHTSA record
    SET will notify owners, and dealers will disconnect the seat heaters, free of charge, and refund the purchase price of the seat heater accessory. The recall began on July 14, 2016. Owners may contact SET customer service at 1-866-405-4226. SET number for this recall is SET16B.

    Report filed by Southeast Toyota Distributors, LLC. Manufacturer campaign number SET16B. Owner notification date in the NHTSA record: .

  2. 11V539000Received . 420,326 units.

    Engine and Engine Cooling

    Defect, in the NHTSA record
    Toyota is recalling certain model year 2004 avalon vehicles; 2004 and 2005 camry, camry solara, highlander, and sienna vehicles, 2006 highlander hybrid; 2004 and 2005 lexus es330 and rx330; and 2006 lexus rx400h vehicles manufactured from june 1, 2004 through march 31, 2005, equipped with the 1mz-fe or 3mz-fe engine. The amount of adhesive agent applied between the outer ring and the torsional rubber damper (inner ring) in the crankshaft pulley may be inadequate. If the adhesive is insufficient, there is a possibility that the outer ring may become misaligned and it may not properly rotate with the inner ring, causing noise and/or illumination of the battery discharge indicator light.
    Consequence, in the NHTSA record
    In some cases, the belt for the power steering pump may become detached from the pulley which could result in a loss of power steering and a sudden increase in steering effort, increasing the risk of a crash.
    Remedy, in the NHTSA record
    Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will check the crankshaft pulley to identify whether it was produced by the u.s. Supplier. If so, the dealer will replace the pulley with a new one at no charge. The safety recall is expected to begin during early january 2012. Owners may contact toyota at 1-800-331-4331.

    Report filed by Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing. Owner notification date in the NHTSA record: .

  3. 11V112000Received . 769,379 units.

    Vehicle Speed Control / Accelerator Pedal

    Defect, in the NHTSA record
    Toyota is recalling certain model year 2004-2006 highlander, highlander hybrid, and model year 2004-2007 lexus rx330, rx350, and rx400h vehicles. If the forward retention clip used to secure the floor carpet cover, which is located in front of the center console, is not installed properly the cover may lean toward the accelerator pedal and interfere with the accelerator pedal arm.
    Consequence, in the NHTSA record
    If this occurs, the accelerator pedal may temporarily become stuck in a partially depressed position rather than return to the idle position. A stuck accelerator pedal may result in unintended and sustained vehicle speeds and make it difficult to stop, increasing the risk of a vehicle crash.
    Remedy, in the NHTSA record
    Dealers will replace the floor carpet cover with a newly designed one free or charge. The safety recall is expected to begin during march 2011. Owners may contact toyota at 1-800-331-4331.

    Report filed by TOYOTA MOTOR NORTH AMERICA, INC.. Manufacturer campaign number BOA/BLC. Owner notification date in the NHTSA record: .

  4. 10V499000Received . 728,544 units.

    Service Brakes, Hydraulic / Foundation Components / Master Cylinder

    Defect, in the NHTSA record
    Toyota is recalling certain model year 2005-2006 avalon, model year 2004-2006 highlander, model year 2004-2006 lexus rx, and model year 2006 lexus gs and is vehicles. Brake fluid containing polymers is used that acts as lubricants for certain brake system components. If replacement brake fluid is used that does not contain such polymers, or that contains only small amounts, a part of the rubber seal located at the rear of the brake master cylinder may become dry, and the seal may curl during movement of the piston. If this occurs, a small amount of brake fluid could slowly leak from the seal into the brake booster.
    Consequence, in the NHTSA record
    A leak of brake fluid could lead to a change in brake pedal feel and overtime a degradation in braking performance increasing the risk of a crash.
    Remedy, in the NHTSA record
    Dealers will replace the seal with a newly designed one. This service will be performed free of charge. The safety recall began on november 15, 2010. Owners may contact toyota at 1-800-331-4331 and lexus at 1-800-255-3987.

    Report filed by TOYOTA MOTOR NORTH AMERICA, INC.. Owner notification date in the NHTSA record: .

  5. 10V035000Received . 271,417 units.

    Equipment / Other / Labels

    Defect, in the NHTSA record
    Gulf states toyota is recalling certain model year 2005-2010 vehicles for failing to comply with the requirements of federal motor vehicle safety standard no. 110, "tire selection and rims." these vehicles were sold between september 1, 2005 and june 2, 2008 without the requisite load carrying capacity modification labels.
    Consequence, in the NHTSA record
    This does not meet the standard requirements.
    Remedy, in the NHTSA record
    Dealers will mail to consumers the corrected label or the customer will have the option for dealers to install the label free of charge. Dealers will also correct the owner's manual. The safety recall began on may 27, 2010. Owners may contact gulf states toyota at 713-580-3300.

    Report filed by GULF STATES TOYOTA, INC.. Owner notification date in the NHTSA record: .

  6. 06V253000Received . 367,594 units.

    Vehicle Speed Control / Accelerator Pedal

    Defect, in the NHTSA record
    On certain sport utility and hybrid vehicles, the two retaining clips for the driver's side forward center console can become loose. If both clips separate from the floor carpet cover, the cover may lean toward the accelerator pedal, causing interference with the accelerator pedal rod.
    Consequence, in the NHTSA record
    This condition may interfere with the accelerator pedal returning to the idle position increasing the risk of a crash.
    Remedy, in the NHTSA record
    Dealers will replace the two floor carpet cover retaining clips free of charge. The recall began on july 24, 2006, and should be completed by early september 2006. Owners may contact toyota at 1-800-331-4331 or lexus at 1-800-255-3987.

    Report filed by TOYOTA MOTOR NORTH AMERICA, INC.. Manufacturer campaign number 6LD 60F. Owner notification date in the NHTSA record: .

The campaign number opens the NHTSA record. Each quotation is the text of the NHTSA recall file.

Recall campaign: One recall in the NHTSA recall file, with one campaign number. A campaign can name many makes, models and model years.

Units: The number of vehicles or products that a recall can include. The manufacturer or the firm reports the number to the agency.

Complaints by component

224 complaints, 289 component mentions.

A complaint can name more than one component. Each component that a complaint names is one component mention. The figure per 1,000 component mentions shows how many of each 1,000 mentions name the component.

  • 2005 Toyota Highlander
  • All 2005 vehicles
2005 Toyota Highlander: complaints by component, per 1,000 component mentions
Component2005 HighlanderAll 2005 vehiclesHighlander, all yearsMentions
Power Train186.9115.1142.654
Vehicle Speed Control138.451.761.640
Steering9075.350.626
Electrical System86.5121.987.225
Visibility72.721.94421
Service Brakes, Hydraulic4531.319.513
Air Bags31.186.749.49
Exterior Lighting31.139.819.89
Structure27.766.262.48
Engine and Engine Cooling27.754.925.88

The table shows the 10 components with the most mentions, of 30.

Complaints that report a crash
35
Complaints that report a fire
4
Injuries in the complaints
20
Deaths in the complaints
0
Date of the newest complaint
8 Feb 2026

These figures are the entries of the persons who sent the complaints.

Complaint: A report about a possible safety problem that a person sends to NHTSA. This site shows the number of complaints and not their text.

Complaints about the 2005 Toyota Highlander, by the year NHTSA received them. The largest year is 2010, with 53 complaints.

Investigations

NHTSA investigations that name the 2005 Toyota Highlander
NumberTypeSubjectComponentOpenedClosedCampaign
RQ10003Recall queryUnintended and Uncontrolled AccelerationElectrical System / Software16 Feb 20101 Mar 201111V112000

Investigation: A study of a possible safety defect by the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation. An investigation with no closing date in the NHTSA file is open.

Other model years

The number under each year is the number of recall campaigns.

Official channels

Cite this page

Recall Register. 2005 Toyota Highlander: recalls and complaints. https://recallregister.com/vehicle/toyota/highlander/2005/. Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation, recall, complaint and investigation files. Data through .

Sources

Source
NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation
Licence
US government work, public domain
Recall file through
30 Sep 2026
Complaint file through
30 Sep 2026
First complaint in the file
1 Jan 1995
Manufacturer in the recall file
Southeast Toyota Distributors, LLC

The NHTSA record is the authority. A complaint count is the number of different complaint numbers for the make, the model and the model year. How the register is made. Report an error.

Questions

How many units are in the recall campaigns for the 2005 Toyota Highlander?
2,565,009 units in 6 campaigns. A campaign can name other models and model years, and its units include them.
How many recall campaigns does the Toyota Highlander have for all model years?
NHTSA lists 51 recall campaigns for the Toyota Highlander, model years 1997 to 2026. 6 of them name the 2005 model year.
Which component do the complaints about the 2005 Toyota Highlander name most often?
Power Train: 54 of 289 component mentions, or 186.9 per 1,000. For all 2005 vehicles the figure is 115.1 per 1,000.
Is an NHTSA investigation of the 2005 Toyota Highlander open?
No. The 1 investigation that names this model year has a closing date in the NHTSA file.