2002 Toyota Highlander — Known Issues & Recalls

Your car accelerated on its own while driving and wouldn't stop, causing you to rear-end another vehicle. After repairs, the problem happened again — the car accelerated to over 100 mph with your foot off the accelerator and both feet on the brake, forcing you to shut off the engine to stop it. A diagnostic scan revealed a communication fault code (C1203) between the engine control module and the vehicle speed controller, which appears to be part of a known class action lawsuit issue. Resolving this will likely require Toyota to reprogram or replace the engine control module and vehicle speed controller.

While driving at 15-25 mph on a city street, your car suddenly accelerated on its own even though you were pressing the brakes as hard as you could. You were able to regain control by shifting to neutral and using the emergency brake, but Toyota's inspection found no problems and declared the case closed. You're concerned this unexplained acceleration could happen again and may indicate a serious safety issue that their inspection missed.

Your accelerator pedal is sticking, causing your vehicle to accelerate on its own at high engine speeds (4000-5000 RPM). This happened suddenly enough that you needed to have the car towed to a repair facility. A mechanic will need to inspect the throttle cable, pedal assembly, or fuel injection system to identify what's causing the sticking.

When you shift your car into reverse, it sometimes suddenly accelerates without warning. This unpredictable acceleration could make it difficult to control the vehicle while backing up. The issue may involve the transmission's reverse engagement or throttle control system and should be inspected by a mechanic.

Your sun visors fall down completely while you're driving, blocking your view of the road ahead. This happens unexpectedly at any time and creates a dangerous driving situation. The issue likely involves a faulty visor clip or latch mechanism that needs replacement or repair.

Your driver's side sun visor keeps falling down and blocking your vision while driving. This is the fourth visor you've had to replace in about 13 years—the problem first appeared at 22,600 miles and has recurred multiple times despite replacements. The visor falls to eye level, creating a safety hazard on the road. The fix would involve replacing the sun visor assembly with a properly functioning unit.

Your driver's side sun visor won't stay fully up—it hangs halfway down and blocks your view, especially when you brake or change speeds. The visor suddenly flips down further without warning, creating a visibility hazard. You've had to use bungee cords or rubber bands to hold it in place so you can see, but this prevents you from using the visor for its intended purpose of blocking the sun. The fix likely involves replacing the visor's internal spring mechanism or the entire visor assembly.

Your driver's side sun visor only moves between two positions—fully down or fully up—and can't be adjusted to intermediate angles. This makes it difficult for taller drivers to block sun glare effectively while maintaining visibility. The visor may need to be replaced or its adjustment mechanism repaired.

Your airbags failed to deploy during a crash at 50 mph, resulting in serious injuries to the driver. The vehicle was destroyed in the collision. The airbag system will need complete diagnostic testing and likely replacement of the airbag modules and control unit.

Your airbag warning light keeps turning on. This indicates a problem with your airbag system that needs to be diagnosed and repaired by a technician using a diagnostic scanner to identify the specific fault.

Your airbag warning light stays on whenever it's 20°F or colder outside, even after the engine and cabin warm up. The light only turns off if you completely shut down and restart the engine. This happens whether you're parked or driving at any speed.

Your sun visors fall down on their own and block the driver's and passenger's view of the road. This is a safety concern because it can obstruct your visibility while driving. The manufacturer has not addressed this issue. Fixing this will likely involve replacing the sun visor clips or the entire visor assembly.

Your driver's side sun visor won't stay in the up position and keeps dropping down in front of your face, blocking your view of the road. This happens repeatedly and creates a visibility hazard while driving. The visor's support mechanism or hinge may need adjustment or replacement to keep it properly secured.

Your car is experiencing multiple electrical system failures including windshield wipers operating erratically, a burning smell when charging, the engine stalling and restarting unexpectedly while driving, speed control malfunctions, and door locks cycling on and off. You've also noticed difficulty steering the car and a burning smell from the electrical system, with warning lights appearing and disappearing. These issues suggest a serious electrical system problem that may require professional diagnosis to identify whether the problem is in the battery, alternator, wiring, or main electrical control modules.

Your passenger side brake light flickers on and off instead of staying lit, even though you've replaced the bulb multiple times and cleaned the electrical contacts. The driver side brake light works fine. This has caused a safety issue — another vehicle rear-ended you because your brake light wasn't visible. The problem may involve a faulty wiring connection, corroded socket, or a defective brake light switch on the passenger side that needs inspection and repair.

Your Highlander has had ongoing transmission issues that required thousands of dollars in repairs. Even after having the transmission completely replaced 17 months ago, you're still experiencing problems—including clunking sounds when shifting gears in the morning and vibrations during driving. You've had to return to the shop multiple times for repairs, requiring rental cars at your own expense during 2-4 day service visits. The transmission repair or replacement may involve internal component inspection, fluid servicing, or additional transmission work.

Your airbag warning light stays on when it's cold outside and won't turn off until the car warms up, you shut down the engine, and restart it. Additionally, your sun visor keeps falling down while you're driving instead of staying in place. Both of these issues create safety concerns.

You noticed coolant dripping on your garage floor and brought your 2002 Highlander to a Toyota dealership for inspection. The service advisor told you the head bolts are pulling out of the engine block, which is causing the leak. Repairing this problem would require replacing the short block at a cost of over $6,700, and the advisor mentioned this is a known issue with 2AZ-FE engines in Highlanders and RAV-4s. The repair will likely involve removing and replacing the engine's short block to stop the coolant leak.

Your air conditioning blows hot air when set to max AC and the coldest temperature setting. The temperature control knob becomes loose, which causes the AC to malfunction and blow hot air instead of cold. This happens whether your car is parked or driving. The fix will likely involve tightening or replacing the temperature control knob and possibly adjusting the internal AC blend door mechanism.

You installed an aftermarket security alarm system that's supposed to trigger when a window breaks, but it has never worked properly. The dealership found that the microphone sensor had fallen off and reglued it, but the alarm still doesn't activate when you test it by tapping a key against a closed window. The dealer was unable to fix the issue and couldn't identify the root cause. The alarm system may need professional diagnostic work or replacement of the microphone sensor and its wiring connections.