2025 Toyota Grand Highlander: problems, recalls and reliability

“On multiple occasions (four) my 2025 Toyota Grand Highlander Hybrid Max has failed to accelerate when I push the gas pedal. Once in traffic, which was extremely scary and a huge hazard. I have contacted the dealership about this issue and have not heard back from them. It has been almost 2 weeks. No warming lamps turned on and this issue lasted about 15 seconds each time. I press the gas, the car does not respond other than an audible RPM raising sound.”Owner report · Engine,Fuel/Propulsion System · May 2026

“The electronic parking brake on my 2025 Toyota Grand Highlander intermittently fails to auto-release when shifting from Park to Reverse or Drive. Curiously, the system does respond to the gear shifter when returning to Park, as the brake will then engage or release as expected once cycled. This indicates a failure specifically in the transition out of the Park position. This intermittent delay or refusal to release prevents the vehicle from moving when expected, creating a potential safety hazard in traffic or during time-sensitive maneuvers. No dashboard warnings are present, and the issue occurs even when the driver's seat belt is buckled and the foot brake is fully depressed.”Owner report · Power Train · May 2026

“The 2025 Grand Highlander XLS front sun roof exploded. Will be taken to dealer upon appointment. Had the interior cover not been closed, we would have been showered with glass particles. According to many articles this is a known defect by Toyota. Lemberg Law phenom. Vehicle will be inspected by Toyoto dealer on Apr 29, 2026. There were no warnings. Outside temp was 64 degrees F. Traveling at 45 mph at 2:30 EDT, Apr 27, 2026. Massive exploding sound, like a gunshot. Pulled over to check vehicle and noticed front sun roof center blown outward and rest of glass fractured.”Owner report · Unknown Or Other · Apr 2026

“We have two forward facing car seats in the third row. When buckled according to the car seat user manuals - the seatbelts do not stay buckled. The seatbelts unbuckle while driving, creating an extremely dangerous situation for our toddlers. We take out and redo their car seats daily due to them being unbuckled while the vehicle is in motion. Our toddlers are not able to unbuckle them - so we know it is a vehicle defect. The car has been taken to the dealership where they simply tell us they can’t find an issue. We do not feel safe in this vehicle and do not want our children in there. No safety lights appear on the dash to notify us that the seats have become unbuckled.”Owner report · Seat Belts · Mar 2026

“Driving when it sounded like a gunshot went off in the car. I looked to the back of my car to see what was around me (nothing), and saw no damage to any windows. I could hear glass cracking so I went to open my moonroof screen to check the glass and I could hear glass on the screen so I closed it right back. I pulled over and was able to confirm the sunroof had busted across the back of the glass. It did not look like it was hit by anything, but like it blew out then spidered across the remainder of the glass.”Owner report · Unknown Or Other · Mar 2026

“Sunroof spontaneously exploded leaving an 8” hole and a completely shattered sunroof. The sunroof is flexed upwards like it was under extreme pressure. The high temperature was 70 degrees in Tuscaloosa today with cloudy skies and misty rain. So there shouldn’t have been any concerns from heat or cold. This left shattered glass every above the sunshade. Fortunately the shade was closed to catch most of the shattered glass.”Owner report · Unknown Or Other · Mar 2026

“The front panel of the sunroof shattered while the vehicle was parked in our garage. Glass shards are inside the car. The dealership submitted a claim to Toyota who denied any material defect and refused to repair under warranty.”Owner report · Visibility/Wiper · Feb 2026