• October 22, 2015Visibility

  Power Window Master Switch may Melt

  NHTSA campaign 15V-689 · 1,814,284 vehicles potentially affected · Visibility

  The defect: Toyota Motor Company (Toyota) is recalling certain model year 2009-2011 Tundra, Sequoia, Corolla, Corolla Matrix and Scion xB, 2008-2011 Highlander and Highlander Hybrid, 2007 Camry and Camry Hybrid, 2009 Camry and Camry Hybrid, 2006-2011 RAV4, 2006-2010 Yaris, and 2009-2010 Scion xD and Pontiac Vibe vehicles. During the manufacturing of the Power Window Master Switch (PWMS), grease lubricant may have been inconsistently applied to the sliding electrical contacts.

  The risk: If the sliding electrical contacts are not protected by lubricant, debris and moisture that get into the switch may cause a short circuit and the switch assembly may overheat and melt, increasing the risk of a fire.

  The remedy: Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the switch, applying a lubricant if no abnormality is found. If abnormality is found, the PWMS circuit board will be replaced, free of charge. The recall is expected to begin December 20, 2015. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-800-331-4331. Toyota's number for this recall is C0M.

• September 4, 2013Hybrid and electric propulsion

  Inverter Failure may cause Hybrid Vehicle to Stall

  NHTSA campaign 13V-396 · 133,081 vehicles potentially affected · Hybrid propulsion system

  The defect: Toyota is recalling certain model year 2006-2010 Highlander hybrid vehicles manufactured February 16, 2005, through July 29, 2010; and model year 2006-2008 Lexus RX400h vehicles manufactured February 23, 2005, through December 2, 2008. The Intelligent Power Module (IPM) inside the inverter module may contain transistors that have higher operating temperatures than the solder can support and the transistors may be heat damaged by the solder. If this occurs, various warning lamps, including the malfunction indicator lamp, slip indicator light, brake system warning light, and master warning light, will be illuminated on the instrument panel.

  The risk: The vehicle may enter a fail-safe/limp-home mode that limits the drivability of the vehicle. It is possible that the hybrid system will shut down while the vehicle is being driven, causing the vehicle to stall unexpectedly, increasing the risk of a crash.

  The remedy: Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will replace the IPM free of charge. Owners may contact Toyota at 1-800-331-4331. Vehicles that had their IPM replaced under recall 11V-342 are not affected by this campaign.

• October 10, 2012Visibility

  Power Window Master Switch may Melt

  NHTSA campaign 12V-491 · 2,519,424 vehicles potentially affected · Visibility

  The defect: Toyota is recalling certain model year 2007-2009 Camry, Camry Hybrid, RAV4, Corolla, Corolla Matrix, Tundra, Sequoia, Highlander, Highlander Hybrid, Yaris, Scion xB, Scion xD and Pontiac Vibe vehicles. The power window master switch assemblies in some of these vehicles were built using a less precise process for lubricating the internal components of the switch assemblies. Irregularities in this lubrication process may cause the power window master switch assemblies to malfunction and overheat.

  The risk: If the switch overheats, it may melt, possibly resulting in a fire.

  The remedy: Toyota will notify its owners, and dealers will inspect the switch and apply a special grease that inhibits heat build up or replace any switch damaged by the defect, free of charge. Toyota owners that experience a problem with a switch should not attempt to make repairs, but should contact their Toyota dealer or the Toyota Customer Experience Center at 1-800-331-4331. General Motors will contact the Pontiac Vibe owners affected by this recall and GM dealers will inspect and repair switches as necessary. Those owners may contact Pontiac Customer Care at 1-800-762-2737.

• April 21, 2011Air bags

  Inadvertent side airbag deployment

  NHTSA campaign 11V-245 · 307,848 vehicles potentially affected · Air bags

  The defect: Toyota is recalling certain model year 2008 highlander, highlander hybrid, and model year 2007-2008 rav4 vehicles. In the curtain shield airbag (csa) system, there are two sensors in the airbag sensor assembly which are designed to detect vehicle roll angle. If one of these sensors malfunctions, the airbag warning light (malfunction indicator light: mil) will illuminate and the roll detection system will be suspended; however, the airbag csa remains available in the event of a side crash. If both sensors fail nearly simultaneously after initial airbag system check, the csa and the seat belt pretensioner could be inadvertently activated.

  The risk: Inadvertent activation of the csa and/or the seat belt pretensioner can cause injury to a vehicle occupant.

  The remedy: Toyota will replace the airbag sensor assembly with a new one containing improved roll rate sensors, free of charge. Toyota intends to send an interim owner notification to owners early to mid-may, 2011 when sufficient parts and remedy becomes available. Owners may contact toyota at 1-800-331-4331.

• June 15, 2009Equipment

  Incorrect gvwr labels

  NHTSA campaign 09V-223 · 27,080 vehicles potentially affected · Equipment

  The defect: Toyota is recalling 27,080 model year 2005 through 2010 passenger cars built from september 1, 2005 to may 4, 2009. These vehicles were not equipped with load carrying capacity modification labels which fails to conform with the requirements of federal motor vehicle safety standard no. 110, "tire selection and rims."

  The risk: Incorrect load carrying capacity modification labels could result in the vehicle being overloaded, increasing the risk of a crash.

  The remedy: Toyota will notify owners and provide them with a new, accurate label to be installed over the inaccurate label free of charge. The safety recall began on august 18, 2009. Owners may contact toyota at 1-888-270-9371.

• April 18, 2008Seat belts

  FMVSS 208/third row rear seat belts

  NHTSA campaign 08V-181 · 90,189 vehicles potentially affected · Seat belts

  The defect: Toyota is recalling 90,189 my 2008 highlander and highlander hybrid passenger vehicles equipped with a third row seat. These vehicles fail to conform to the requirements of federal motor vehicle safety standard no. 208, "occupant crash protection." the non-driver designated seating positions (dsp) on these vehicles is equipped with seat belt assemblies that have a feature that converts the retractor from an emergency locking retractor (elr) to an automatic locking retractor (alr). The belts convert to the alr mode after the webbing has been fully withdrawn from the retractor. The system is designed so that as the belt is released into the retractor, the system remains in the alr mode so…

  The risk: However, for the two third row dsp's on these vehicles, the alr mode deactivates before the webbing is fully retracted, so that it will not lock when certain rear-facing crs's that have a short seat belt routing path are installed in the vehicle. This can allow the seat belt webbing to spool out during normal driving maneuvers, which could affect the stability of a child restraint installed at those seating positions. As such, this could discourage the use of a child restraint and in the event…

  The remedy: Dealers will install a newly designed seat belt component free of charge. The recall is expected to begin on or about december 18, 2008. Owners may contact toyota at 1-800-331-4331.

Check by VIN

A campaign rarely covers every Highlander Hybrid built in 2008. Enter your 17-character VIN to find the recall campaigns filed for your make, model and model year. The VIN is on the driver’s side of the dashboard (visible through the windshield), on the door-jamb label, and on your registration and insurance documents.

Vehicle identification number Find my recalls

Is a recall still open on your vehicle? Only NHTSA’s official VIN check can say whether a campaign applies to your exact vehicle and whether the repair has already been done.

Copy VIN and open NHTSA.gov

Your VIN is decoded with NHTSA’s public vPIC service to identify the make, model and year. It is not stored and is not added to any page address.

Other Toyota Highlander Hybrid model years

• 2022 4
• 2021 4
• 2020 4
• 2007 2
• 2006 6

Common questions

Does the 2008 Toyota Highlander Hybrid have any recalls?

Yes. NHTSA lists 6 campaigns for the 2008 Toyota Highlander Hybrid: 15V-689 (Power Window Master Switch may Melt); 13V-396 (Inverter Failure may cause Hybrid Vehicle to Stall); 12V-491 (Power Window Master Switch may Melt); 11V-245 (Inadvertent side airbag deployment); and 2 more.

How do I know if my 2008 Toyota Highlander Hybrid has an open recall?

Enter your VIN in NHTSA’s recall lookup. Most campaigns cover only part of a model year’s production, and the lookup also shows whether the repair has already been done on your vehicle.

Will the dealer charge to fix the 2008 Toyota Highlander Hybrid?

No. Safety recall repairs are done free of charge by Toyota dealers. Quote the NHTSA campaign number when you book.