Problems · by component

2017 Toyota Highlander Hybrid fuel/propulsion system problems

26 owner complaints to NHTSA about the 2017 Toyota Highlander Hybrid cite fuel/propulsion system, 12% of all 224 complaints for this model year.

Complaints
26
12% of all complaints
Crashes
1
Reported by owners
Fires
0
Reported by owners
Injuries
1
Reported by owners
01 —Owner reports

What owners say about the fuel/propulsion system

Verbatim from NHTSA complaints, newest first
“After getting gas, the vehicle will not start. It will crank and crank but not turn over, like it is starving for gas. Then after 10-15 minutes it will start barely and to keep it running I have to floor the accelerator. Any other time it starts just fine. There are also no codes causing a check engine light.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Jul 14, 2025Electrical system, Engine, Fuel/propulsion systemODI 11673285
“Toyota manufacturing issue-fuel line is manufactured incorrectly-had gas seeping into cab of vehicle and tailpipe. Severe safety issue Steering wheel/column sticks and almost lose control when driving due to a worn out coupler-poor design and manufacturing.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Jan 7, 2025Steering, Fuel/propulsion systemODI 11634540
“I just bought this car and I noticed when the car is sitting and idling it has a strong smell of raw gas in the passenger compartment. I took it to the fire department and they smelled it as soon as they opened the door. They also said this is not safe and I shouldn't be smelling a strong odor of gas in the passenger compartment.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Feb 10, 2024Fuel/propulsion systemODI 11571212
“This is the SECOND incident with this vehicle in the past 4 months. When going to start my vehicle, it would not start. It gave me this error message: Braking power low, Stop in a Safe Place, See owners manual. There is NOTHING about this in the owners manual. The first time I thought it was battery related and after 3 different chargers on my vehicle, it finally started. Tonight I proceeded to push the button without the foot pedal and the radio came on, so it is definitely not the battery. I've tried several times to start and to no avail. Problem has not been reproduced as i cannot drive my vehicle at this time. No inspection as of yet. No warnings or symptoms prior to failure. Research shows it may have to do with a fuel pump pressure issue. I have paperwork on this issue under a customer support program 23TE01. Hoping this can become a recall and i can get this fixed .”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Nov 13, 2023Electrical system, Service brakes, Fuel/propulsion systemODI 11554968
“I’m not sure why this recall does not show up for my car & we’ve never been notified by Toyota. I have a video of the noise my makes when it’s off on the driveway…I can provide an alternate way as your online system does not allow video. Thank you.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Sep 15, 2023Fuel/propulsion systemODI 11544731
“Car started to not start after getting fuel. Come to find out the purge valve was remaining stuck open. Dealer told me that this was concerning as it was allowing vapor to gather in my engine. Vehicle was confirmed by two different Toyota dealerships to have faulty purge valve. The purge valve would cause all the warning lights to come on in the Highlander, telling you your AWD system was bad to other warning lights. In doing research this seems to be a problem in various years of Toyota Highlanders. Concerning that something related to controlling fuel vapor could be this common and leading to a build up that could cause something more serious to happen.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Aug 15, 2023Fuel/propulsion systemODI 11538652

Showing 6 of 26 reports. Read every report on NHTSA.gov.

Data from NHTSA Complaints API (owner reports, unverified) · synced Nov 11, 2026NHTSA vehicle page

Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.