2025 Toyota Highlander: True Cost, Problems & Verdict
9 NHTSA owner complaints · 3 recalls · data-computed verdict. No opinions — public data only.
Editor's note
Avoid the 2018 to 2020 Highlander, which score 46, 40 and 37 on 261, 472 and 306 complaints, and treat the 2017 at 57 as a car that needs its drivetrain history documented. Buy a 2011 to 2016, where every year scores between 78 and 86 and none has more than 210 complaints. Read the full note on the model page. 2025 specifically: a year the record favours — 9 complaints, score 82/100. The caveats in the note apply to other years of this nameplate more than to this one.
Read the guide
Used Toyota Highlander: the years to avoid and the years to buy, including 2025 — written and signed by Adir Trabelsi, 2026-09-16.
Owner complaints: 9 filed with NHTSA
Complaints per year on the road: 9.0
What owners say
Verbatim reports filed with the United States safety regulator (NHTSA) by owners of this exact model year. Public record.
I was backing up the vechial accelerated the steering wheel was turning rapid & a grinding noise causing me too hit another vechial about a month before my husband was driving & the vechial accelerated going toward also we had had some issues with back camera not doing a warning signal with a object behind vechial when the accident happened my vechial has braking system that stops you if something is behind you this …
The contact owns a 2025 Toyota Highlander. The contact stated that while she and her husband were driving at 60 MPH, she heard a loud explosion noise from above her head and felt air whipping on top of her head. The contact stated that the sunroof exploded; however, the sunroof shield prevented the glass from entering the vehicle. The vehicle was steered to the side of the road and inspected, but the contact did not …
The speedometer registers speed up to 7mph over actual speed for the first 15 miles then returns to matching GPS speed. Reported to Toyota, dealer said they have seen this before but not identified a fix as of today
Recalls: 3 campaigns (2 severe)
| Campaign | Component | Summary |
|---|---|---|
| 25V595000 | Electrical System: Instrument Cluster/Panel | Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2023-2024 Toyota Venza, 2023-2025 RAV4 Prime, RAV4, Highlander, GR Corolla, Crown, 2024-2025 Lexus TX, LS, Toyota Tacoma, Grand Highlander, and 2025 Lexus RX, Toyota Crown Signia, Camry, RAV 4 Plug-in Hybrid (PHEV), and 4 Runner vehicles. Due to an error in the instrument panel software… |
| 25V872000 | Seat Belts:Rear/Other:Anchorage | Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2024-2025 Highlander and Highlander Hybrid vehicles. The third row center seat belt roof anchor may have been installed at an incorrect angle, preventing the seat belt from properly restraining the occupant. |
| 25V744000 | Back Over Prevention:Display Function | Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2022-2026 Toyota, Lexus, and Subaru Solterra vehicles equipped with a Panoramic View Monitor (PVM) system. Please see the recall report for a complete list of models. |
What it costs to buy — and what owning it really takes
Class-level estimates, priced as a mid-size SUV of its model year, re-priced to your country. Not a quote, not a valuation of one specific car — condition, mileage and options move it. How these are computed.
What it costs to run
EPA combined 25 MPG · estimated annual fuel cost $2,450
Re-priced automatically from your country's retail fuel, electricity and parts indices — change country in the bar at the top. Estimates; see methodology.
What this car's problems cost to fix
Ranked by the components owners of this exact model year actually complain about. Each figure is flat-rate labour hours x the local shop rate plus a parts band — an estimate of what this kind of failure costs, not a quote, and not a prediction that this car will need it. Formula.
- Vehicle Speed Control2 complaints · typical job: Throttle body, pedal sensor or cruise module replacement (2.5 h labour + parts)$520–$1,150
- Forward Collision Avoidance2 complaints · typical job: Radar or camera module replacement and calibration (3.0 h labour + parts)$780–$2,160
- Unknown Or Other2 complaints · typical job: Diagnosis and mixed repair (2.0 h labour + parts)$360–$940
- Electrical System1 complaints · typical job: Alternator, battery-drain or body-module diagnosis and replacement (3.0 h labour + parts)$540–$1,310
- Steering1 complaints · typical job: Electric power-steering rack or column motor replacement (5.0 h labour + parts)$1,020–$2,500
- Visibility1 complaints · typical job: Glass, wiper or defogger repair (2.5 h labour + parts)$490–$1,200
Other Toyota Highlander years
Toyota Highlander years to avoid, and the best years to buy →
FAQ
What is the most common problem with the 2025 Toyota Highlander?
The most-reported issue in NHTSA complaint data is Vehicle Speed Control (2 complaints in our indexed sample).
Is the 2025 Toyota Highlander a good used car to buy?
Our data verdict is BUY with a reliability score of 82/100, computed from 9 NHTSA complaints and 3 recall campaigns. See the verdict card for the top reasons.
How much does it cost to fix the 2025 Toyota Highlander's most common problem?
2 of the NHTSA complaints filed against the 2025 Toyota Highlander sit in the Vehicle Speed Control group — more than any other component on this model year. The representative job there is throttle body, pedal sensor or cruise module replacement: about 2.5 hours of labour plus parts, roughly $520–$1,150 at a US independent shop and re-priced to your country at the top of the page. It is an estimate of what this class of failure costs, not a quote for this car.
What does a 2025 Toyota Highlander cost to run per year?
About $3,431 a year in fuel or energy plus the maintenance band — roughly $17,155 over five years, before purchase price, insurance and depreciation. Figures come from available EPA fuel-economy data and industry maintenance averages, and are re-priced to your country.
Does the 2025 Toyota Highlander have recalls?
Yes — NHTSA lists 3 recall campaign(s) for the 2025 Toyota Highlander, 2 of them touching fire, crash or stall risk, the most recent recorded 11/09/2025. Check this car's VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls before you buy.
Compare with
Other midsize suvs of about the same age.
What will a 2025 Toyota Highlander really cost YOU per year?
Fuel, maintenance band and depreciation — computed from public data in 10 seconds.
Open the true-cost calculatorData sources
Complaints & recalls: NHTSA ·
Fuel economy: EPA fueleconomy.gov ·
Scoring: our published methodology.
Maintenance bands are industry-average estimates (AAA Your Driving Costs, CarMD index) — labeled estimates, not measurements.
Last updated: 2026-10-04.
Thin evidence — 9 complaints, 3 recalls on record
- 9 NHTSA complaints on record (9.0/yr of exposure) — better than a typical year of this model (16.2/yr)
- 3 recall campaigns, 2 touching safety-critical systems
- Thin complaint record — this score is held close to the model's own average rather than read as evidence of quality