Top 5 Problems Toyota Highlander SUV 2nd Generation 2008-13

In this video, we're going over the top five problems on this second-generation Toyota Highlander.

Now there is nothing wrong with this vehicle, there's nothing wrong with buying one or owning one. Every vehicle has their problems, these are just the top five that we have found.

Number one, the water pump. Now the water pump is located on the front of the motor right under that pulley right there. And a lot of times they will leak, the seals behind the pulley will leak. You'll notice some coolant dripping on the ground. In that case, you just need to replace it. Now you always want to check some other things out, check your coolant hoses, check your radiator, check your thermostat. See if any of that other stuff is leaking also, but don't just assume it's the water pump, but most of the time it is.

Number two, the VVT actuator gears. Now they're located underneath these valve covers. Now, this is what gives you the variable valve timing. These are the solenoids that command those. So oil flow goes into these areas right here. These solenoids actuate the oil pressure to the gears and the gears can make adjustments so they can get your variable valve timing. Now the gears themselves are what actually is the fault. Now to get to those, you got to pull the valve covers off and get to the timing chains. You're gonna have to take those off, replace those. To help prevent these going bad it's always a great idea to change your oil regularly and make sure that the oil level is always up to par.

Number three, door latch actuators. Now the latch and lock assembly is located right here. Now what you may notice is when you go to lock or unlock your vehicle one of the doors may not lock or unlock, and in that case, the actuator is probably the cause for that. To replace that, you're gonna have to take the inner door panel off. Access the actuator, replace it. It comes as a whole, you can't replace just the actuator side of it, you have to replace the lock and the actuator together. It's really not that bad.

Number four, the knock sensor. Now the knock sensor is located underneath the intake on this vehicle. It's kind of a big job to get to, you have to pull the plenum off and then you have to pull that lower intake off just to access the knock sensor. Now you may not notice any drivability issues with it if it's bad, but you may notice a check engine light and a code for a knock sensor. And most likely it's the sensor itself or the wiring going to it.

Number five, ignition coils. Now the ignition coils are located right here. Now this is a V6 motor, so we have three in the front, there'll be three in the back. When you do this job, you want to take and get a new intake gasket because you're gonna have to take that off as well. Now some of the symptoms you may notice is the engine running extremely rough, a check engine light. Most likely the check engine light will be flashing. And if you scan it for the codes, you should get a P0300 through P0306. When you go to replace the ignition coils it's always good to put a new spark plug in as well.

So there's our top five problems for this Toyota Highlander. If you enjoyed this video, make sure you subscribe to our channel, ring that bell, turn on all notifications so you don't miss any of our videos.