Looking for info on the Highlander

Hey all, I’m looking for some information about Highlanders. Presently, we have a Tundra and a 2018 4Runner Pro and I’m considering selling the 4Runner in order to get a vehicle that gets better than 14-15mpg. I love both of our rigs but I’m also trying to think ahead with saving money. I’m thinking about a used Highlander from 2012 - 2020 with a V6 and less than 75k on it. It would be my daily driver and I drive about 25k a year. My question / concern is about the reliability of Highlanders; the V8 5.7 and V6 4.0 are legendary for their reliability due to lack model changes, but the Highlander seems to change a bit more often. I know that recently a Highlander hit the one million mark, but that model was older. Anyhow, any help is appreciated. Thanks.
@McSpazatron
@K-Paul

 

How are you only getting 14 to 15 mpg? I’m lifted 3 inches and have heavy 10 ply tyres and I do about 70 to 75 on the freeway and still get 18 mpg

 

How are you getting 18?!
I’m running Toyo 285/70s in Load E. I guess I should’ve stated that I drive the Tundra 95% of the time, but I’m still confident that the runner isn’t getting 18 ‍

 

We had a 15 Highlander.

The evap did start leaking on us around the 4 year mark. I'm going to take it as a bad part and not bad thing about the Highlander unless its a common thing. The rear power struts like to make noise and need to be greased. But the wifes current 350L does the same thing so who knows.

We did have the 3rd row though it is completely useless for an adult.

 

Thanks for the reply. Yeah, the 3rd row would stay down for us. How many miles do you have on yours?

 

Our is long gone we got rid of it 2 years ago for the 350.

But I believe we had almost 50K on it in little under 5 years. Wife doesn't drive far daily so mileage doesn't get up there.

No major issues with it. I would prefer driving it daily over a lifted 4R or my Tundra. Was mainly city driving but I'd say close to 25mpg average and the 3.5 was more than enough power for it. I don't know if I could honestly think of something I didn't like about it. Its just your regular SUV thats good as a daily driver. But bigger than the RAV I think thats too small.

 

We have an 18 Highlander XLE bought new. Early 18s had some had problems with the 8 speed transmission, both the shifting logic, and manufacturing issues on really early ones. I believe the 8speed was new for that year. Ours was made in August 2018, and those problems seem to have been sorted out by then.

The car care nut has a video on these Highlanders that says early D4S engines also were more prone to leaks or weeping (visible on engine/trans behind the drivers front wheel).

Ours has been trouble free so far, with almost 50k miles on the clock. I’ve done all preventive maintenance myself and haven’t seen any leaks yet. No need for any other service yet, but I’ll probably do the transmission fluid and diff/transfer oils soon.

I am less happy about the 60k spark plugs. I was surprised by that service interval. Unfortunately, like on minivan engines, it wont be a quick job like it is on the 4runner. Also disappointed that Toyota calls for replacement of the electric brake booster at 120k miles. Again, this was a surprise because I hadn’t expected this level of required service (nor mileage-limited brake system). If I knew this was a thing, I would have examined the service schedule before buying. Weird to have a mileage limitation on such a critical system. Not a cheap part, and I don’t suppose labor time will be cheap either.

The vehicle itself is fine, but not as refined with NVH as the 4runner. (To me, the 4runner feels like a more refined vehicle, even if it’s less fancy). The combination of unibody, the hard plastics, and high tire pressures make for a crackly ride in cold weather. The auto climate control sucks, and it’s very harsh with heat application in winter, but it seems to me all Toyotas kinda suck with auto climate implementation. The 8speed transmission is very quick and decisive in how it shifts, but it feels a little too frenetic in daily driving. Ultra defined response to throttle movement, which leads immediately to a shift one way or another. It may be more calm in the 19 model year. (I’ve also driven a 23 V6 and a 24 I-4 turbo with the 8speed, and transmission behavior is noticeably toned down, and it has eco, sport, and normal throttle maps that tune throttle and transmission response to your tastes even more)

We get around 21 mpg overall without trying.

So basically, the Highlander is fine…can’t really complain. Just know that the early Highlanders of that gen transitioned between the a 6speed and the 8speed, I believe in 2018.

 

take a peek at Fuelly and you can see what folks have been getting - I think the average on there is 20 MPG for a typical gas Highlander versus 17 for a 4Runner. (but that’s still a substantial ~20% savings!)

So the savings may or may not be as dramatic depending on how you drive those 25k miles. It’s still definitely better though and I found CarMax to have a nice MPG comparison calculator on their site. (weighing fuel and purchase price savings versus the car’s history)

Have you given any thought to downsizing further? You got the Tundra for anything trucky so maybe an efficient, smaller runabout would be a good option to round out the garage and your wallet. (of course I don’t know your use case beyond getting 15 MPG in a 4Runner)

 

Why not look into Rav4's. My wife's 2013 has been trouble free since we bought it in 2015 and gets 28 on the highway.

 

I have had two 2016 Highlanders, it's the last year for the old 6 speed transmission. Both are flawless and still going strong, I still have one and sold the other to a family member and it's going strong. I've heard early issues with the 8 speed in 2017+ but I don't know if that has been resolved or not.

Do some research on the engines as well. My 2016's require plugs at 120k, some of the other years required 60k plugs. It's a pain in the ass to change the plugs on these, the back ones require some disassembly. I am not that mechanically inclined so plugs on a highlander are something I would pay to have done.