NHTSA Complaint #10462121 — 2006 TOYOTA HIGHLANDER

THREE MONTHS AND 6000 MILES PAST THE WARRANTY (66,000 MILES) OUR HIGHLANDER FAILED (OVERHEATED). I GOOGLED THE PROBLEM AND THERE WERE MANY SIMILAR OCCURRENCES WITH THIS ENGINE. OOLANT LEAKED FROM ENGINE ONTO FLOOR IN LARGE AMOUNTS. OUR MECHANIC SAID THREADS WERE STRIPPED AND THREE HEAD GASKET BOLTS HAD PULLED OUT. ONLY SOLUTION, NEW ENGINE OR POSSIBLE REBUILD BY TOYOTA DEALERSHIP. TOYOTA REFUSED TO HELP US. THEY DENIED THAT THIS PROBLEM EVEN EXISTED. BUT WHY WOULD TOYOTA PUT OUT A BULLETIN ON HOW BEST TO REPAIR THIS PROBLEM , IF THE PROBLEM DIDN'T EVEN EXIST? TOYOTA DEALERSHIP DID NOT OFFER TO HELP. WE HAD OUR LOCAL DEPENDABLE TOYOTA MECHANIC REBUILD THREADS FOR $2,700.A LOT OF MONEY TO SPEND ON A TOYOTA WITH UNDER 70,000 MILES. VERY DISAPPOINTED IN TOYOTA'S RESPONSE. THEY NOT ONLY LOST MY FUTURE BUSINESS BUT ALSO MY DAUGHTER'S. CAR WORKS FINE NOW. BUT I NO LONGER HAVE CONFIDENCE IN THE VEHICLE. THAT LOSS OF FEELING OF DEPENDABILITY IS THE WORST PART. *TR