2019 Toyota Highlander problems

“The component that failed was the transmission. My safety was at risk because I was going uphill and the engine surged then the transmission seized, almost causing a rear-end incident with my family in the car. The dealer confirmed that the transmission has failed. No incident happened so only the dealer needs to be involved at this time. There were no warning lamps indicating to me that the transmission failed. Upon discovering that the transmission was not downshifting (based on the engine not downshifting uphill), I put the car into manual mode to determine if I could manually shift down or not, it would not downshift. Attempting to downshift to gears 4, 3, 2, or 1 was not possible, the lowest gear was gear 5 and the engine had no torque to get up the hill that it was seized on. The 2019 Toyota Highlander was serviced for the automatic transmission fluid at 100K miles and failed at about 120,450 miles.”

“My husband was driving my car out of town, and while driving approximately 70 mph, my car stopped going. When he pressed the gas pedal, the engine revved, but did not move forward. He had to coast down the interstate and pull over on the side of the road. He said he almost got tear ended by a semi-truck. I called roadside assistance through my insurance company and it took them 2.5 hours to get to us. We had to have it towed about 70 miles to a shop and pay $184.00. The body shop we towed it to said it is the transmission. He said he knew it to be a common issue with 2019 Toyota Highlanders. I looked it up online and found several instances of similar stories. There was no warning.”

“Transmission is failing and accelerating past 40mpg produces very loud sound that seems it could break any moment. It is available for inspection. Safety is compromised as it could experience failure and abruptly lose ability to accelerate. Problem has been confirmed by independent service center who has also contacted Toyota Dealership regarding possible replacement and about the issue at hand. Has not yet been inspected by manufacturer, police, or insurance rep. No warnings and it first occurred June 2026 of this year. Contacted Toyota Brand Engagement Center and denied any assistance.”

“My 2019 Highlander was driving totally normal, when all of a sudden the transmission started slipping and then would no longer accelerate. I was on a windy back road in Alaska with no service, so after letting it sit for a bit I tried to drive it again. It then drove maybe 1/2 more miles before slipping completely and no longer accelerating. No check engine lights came up. I got it towed to my house where a mechanic took a quick scan and said there was a number of transmission codes popping up.”

“The contact owns a 2019 Toyota Highlander. The contact stated while driving 60 MPH, the check engine warning light illuminated and the vehicle lost motive power and stalled. The vehicle was jumpstarted and operated as designed. The contact stated that on another occasion, after refueling the vehicle and driving, the vehicle jerked, lost motive power, and stalled without warning. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer to be diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted or notified of the failure. The failure mileage was unknown.”

“The contact owns a 2019 Toyota Highlander. The contact stated that while attempting to depress the brake pedal, the brakes failed to operate as intended. The contact stated that after taking the foot off the brake pedal, the brakes started working as intended. The vehicle was drivable. The vehicle was driven to the residence, and the contact researched and became aware that there were several owners who had the same failure. The failure mileage was 69,000.”