2016 Toyota Highlander Hybrid: what breaks, and at what mileage
What breaks on the 2016 Toyota Highlander Hybrid
On the 2016 Toyota Highlander Hybrid, the failure owners report most often is other brake problem, with 2 reports on file. Across every failure mode on this year, half the dated reports were filed before 40,000 miles.
What breaks on the 2016 Toyota Highlander Hybrid
Owners have reported 7 named failure modes on the 2016 Toyota Highlander Hybrid, and the three most-reported carry 44% of everything filed.
Other brake problem leads with 2 reports and about 0.0 per 1,000 vehicles.
Master cylinder or brake booster failure follows with 1 report, median 50,000 miles.
Other fuel system problem follows with 1 report, median 75,000 miles.
By system, the reports fall mostly into brakes (3), fuel (1) and steering (1).
When these failures get reported
9 of the reports on the 2016 Toyota Highlander Hybrid came with an odometer reading, and half of those were filed before 40,000 miles.
Cumulatively, 56% by 50,000 miles, 89% by 100,000 miles and 89% by 150,000 miles of the dated reports had been filed.
The busiest stretch is between 20,000 and 30,000 miles, which alone holds 22% of the dated reports.
33% of the dated reports were filed below 36,000 miles.
Tick median reported mileage Solid middle half of reports Faint 10th to 90th percentile Colour how bad the failure is when it happens
How reports accumulate
Every report with an odometer reading, cumulative, from 0 to 200,000 miles. A curve that climbs early is a car with early problems, whatever its total.
- Line share of reports filed by that mileage
- Dashed the median reported mileage
Severity, and what it costs
Across the named modes, 1 an injury. Those are the words owners used in their own complaints, and NHTSA does not verify them, but they are the closest thing in this data to a measure of what a failure actually did.
The average severity weight across every report on this year is 5.11, where a stalled engine or a failed airbag weighs many times more than a rattling trim panel, and a figure this high means the reports are dominated by failures with safety consequences rather than annoyances. The weighting is set out in full on the methodology page.
What the top failures cost to put right, as editorial estimates for an independent US shop rather than figures from NHTSA: other brake problem at $300–$1,800, master cylinder or brake booster failure at $450–$2,200, other fuel system problem at $300–$2,200 and other steering problem at $350–$2,400. Dealer labour, a seized bolt or a part that is no longer made can push any of these past the top of its range.
Every reported failure mode
| Failure mode | System | Reports | With reading | 25th | Median | 75th | Per 1,000 | Typical repair | Severity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Other brake problem | brakes | 2 | 2 | — | 103k | — | 0.0 | $300–$1,800 | High |
| Master cylinder or brake booster failure | brakes | 1 | 1 | — | 52k | — | 0.0 | $450–$2,200 | Critical |
| Other fuel system problem | fuel | 1 | 1 | — | 75k | — | 0.0 | $300–$2,200 | High |
| Other steering problem | steering | 1 | 1 | — | 28k | — | 0.0 | $350–$2,400 | High |
| Other wheel or tire problem | wheels | 1 | 1 | — | 28k | — | 0.0 | $200–$1,500 | High |
| Other speed control problem | adas | 1 | 1 | — | 42k | — | 0.0 | $250–$2,000 | Critical |
| Other body or interior problem | body | 1 | 1 | — | 15k | — | 0.0 | $200–$2,000 | Moderate |
| Unclassified problem | other | 1 | 1 | — | 75k | — | 0.0 | — | Moderate |
This year had no usable recall paperwork, so the fleet-size estimate is the median of other years of the same model. Repair costs are typical independent-shop ranges for the failure, not figures from these reports.
How often, against how many were built
Scaled by an estimate of how many of these cars exist, the 2016 Toyota Highlander Hybrid draws about 0.2 per 1,000 vehicles, which puts it in the 67th percentile of complaint rates among 2016 vehicles we can rate.
That denominator is the weakest number on the page and it is fair to say so plainly. This year had no usable recall paperwork, so the fleet-size estimate is the median of other years of the same model.
The working figure is 43,197 vehicles. If the true number is twice that, every rate on this page is half what it says; the ranking against other 2016 vehicles, which is what the risk score uses, is far more robust than the rate itself.
What owners wrote
Verbatim from NHTSA complaint narratives, trimmed for length. The odometer reading is the one the owner gave.
Other brake problem
I was stopped and in park with the vehicle running when the "check vsc system," "check ABS, brake malfunction" warning lights came on. They have since gone away and returned intermittently. Fortunately, there was no failure while in motion, but dealer estimated $4600 for repair. If this is the same problem for which warranty coverage was extended for 2006-07 models, this appears to be an ongoing issue.
Other fuel system problem
Stopped in intersection waiting to make a left turn. When attempting to accelerate engine did not start hybrid warning stated hybrid system failure stop immediately. Glided to a parking space. Attempted to restart engine continue to get same warning. After three attempts called aaa and toyota dealership. I was urged to tow the vehicle. After approximately 20 minutes, attempted to start again the vehicle turned on as if nothing happened. All warning lights at that time were extinguished. Dealership found a general warning on vehicle computer. Dealership could find nothing wrong with the vehicle.
How 2016 compares with the other years
Across the 6 model years of this car that carry enough reports to score, 2021 comes out best at 64 and 2006 worst at 68.
Scores compare each year against other cars of the same model year, so a low number on an older car is a real result and not an artefact of age.
Shorter is better. Years with too few reports to score are shown without a bar rather than as a zero, because no data is not good news.
Where these figures stop being useful
9 owner reports; fleet size borrowed from other years of the same model. Every count on this page is therefore a floor: it is the number of owners who went to the trouble of filing with a federal agency, which is a small and self-selected fraction of the owners who had the fault.
Of those 9 reports, 9 carried an odometer reading, so the mileages here describe 100% of the sample rather than all of it. Owners also round: readings pile up on multiples of ten thousand, which is why this site publishes "about 90,000 miles" and not "91,438".
Named failure modes come from matching phrases in the complaint text, so a badly worded complaint can land in the wrong bucket. The effect washes out across hundreds of reports and does not wash out across five.
And nothing here predicts what one car will do. These are other people's complaints, filed years apart, on cars maintained by strangers. Read the page as a map of where this model year has previously gone wrong, then have the specific car in front of you inspected.
Questions this page answers
What are the most common problems with the 2016 Toyota Highlander Hybrid?
The most-reported failures are other brake problem (2 reports, median 105,000 miles), master cylinder or brake booster failure (1 report, median 50,000 miles) and other fuel system problem (1 report, median 75,000 miles). Counts come from owner complaints filed with NHTSA, which are voluntary, so they show what owners bothered to report rather than every fault that occurred.
Where this comes from. Every figure above is computed from NHTSA owner complaints and recall records for this exact make, model and year. Complaints are voluntary and self-selected, so treat counts as a floor. The methodology page writes out each formula, and the same numbers are available as JSON.
What breaks at my mileage Compare with another car
Source Owner complaints and recall records published by the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, model years 1996–2027 Figures rebuilt Published by AtWhatMileage How every figure is computed