NHTSA Complaint #11533574 — 2017 TOYOTA HIGHLANDER

Several times on the highway when getting up to speeds around 70mph the transmission would rev but not accelerate or maintain speed - usually slowing to around 40-50mph or slower depending on the hill grade. The check engine light came on, initially was told it was probably a fluke. The mechanic couldn’t get it to do the same thing for him. Brought it back again when the issue persisted. He suspected the transmission was slipping, referred me to the dealer. The light was off by then, the dealer said they couldn’t diagnose with no light so we needed to wait until it came on. It finally came on while driving on I71 but the car completely lost all power and I was stranded on the side of the highway and had to be towed to the dealer. I did a quick google search and saw a class action suit for this vehicle and year in which the plaintiffs complained of the same issues. Toyota opened an extended warranty on vehicles with this transmission. I called Toyota to see if my VIN was included and they confirmed it is. The person I spoke with (“Cannon”) assigned case # 20612000768. Per the dealer, my vehicle only met half of the criteria to be included under the program. We were stuck with a $6,149 bill to replace the transmission. The dealer won’t even guarantee it for 30 days because it’s a used Toyota transmission, which to me speaks volumes.