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Reliability report · 2022 Toyota Highlander · Updated July 2026 · ~$2,700/yr fuel · what it costs to keep →

The quietest V6 gen-four year — the settled one, if the eight-speed drives clean.

2022 is the final V6 year of the current Highlander and the quietest one in our gen-four V6 data: 222 total complaints, roughly half the 2021 count. The V6 and eight-speed are fully mature, the early-launch software items are long resolved, and the transmission-whine complaints that dominate 2019 and 2021 do not cluster here at the same rate.

What's left is recall housekeeping — a second-row seat-back recliner (26V-128), the front bumper cover (23V-720), two accessory-tire load-rating recalls, and a distributor label — all free. It's a Calm year in the sense that matters: no walk-away failure mode, just verify the recalls and drive the transmission before you buy. Still, this is the same eight-speed family as the louder years, so a clean-driving example matters.

Evidence: 222 NHTSA complaints · 5 recall campaigns · 6 mechanic & forum sources

Canary status

Calm

What that means: 216 complaints on the gas Highlander plus 6 on the Hybrid (222 total) — less than half the 2021 file — and recalls that are seat, bumper, tire, and label items. The last V6 year of the current generation, past the loud transmission-complaint clusters, with no new expensive pattern taking their place.

CalmChirpingSquawkingFainted

222

Federal complaints

5

Recalls

Federal crash tests

5-star scale
Overall
Frontal crash
Side crash
Rollover

Tested variant: 2022 Toyota HIGHLANDER SUV FWD (NHTSA VehicleId 16645)

Source: NHTSA New Car Assessment Program (NCAP) →

Known issues

Ranked by the cost of ignoring them. Every claim carries its source.

Second-row seat-back recliner — recall 26V-128

moderate

Recall 26V-128 (2021–2024 Highlander/Highlander Hybrid) covers second-row seat backs that may fail to lock into position during adjustment, so a seat back might not properly restrain an occupant in a crash. Dealers replace the recliner return springs free; interim owner letters went out in 2026 with the final remedy to follow. Confirm the second-row seats latch firmly in every position during your inspection, and verify the recall by VIN.

Recall spring replacement

$0

Sources: NHTSA complaint database, 2022 Highlander + Highlander Hybrid · NHTSA manufacturer communications (recall documents, CSP 22TE09)

Front lower bumper cover can detach — recall 23V-720moderate

Recall 23V-720 (2020–2023) covers a front lower bumper cover that a minor impact can loosen or detach, becoming a road hazard; the remedy is free repair or replacement. It's the most common structure item in the gen-four complaint files. Verify it shows completed by VIN.

Sources: NHTSA complaint database, 2022 Highlander + Highlander Hybrid · NHTSA manufacturer communications (recall documents, CSP 22TE09)

$0

Recall bumper-cover repair

Eight-speed automatic — mature, but drive itminor

The 2022 uses the same eight-speed as the rest of the generation. In this generation the mechanic source says it 'does not have a problem' the way the 2017 launch unit did — but it is a busy, downshift-happy transmission by design (it shifts to high gears early and revs on hard acceleration), which is normal, for emissions and economy. Because this transmission family produced the whine complaints in louder years, test-drive a 2022 across speeds and listen for any acceleration whine; a clean-driving example is the goal.

This problem spans 2017–2022 — the full UA80 eight-speed automatic story →

Sources: NHTSA complaint database, 2022 Highlander + Highlander Hybrid · Independent mechanic channel transcripts (Car Care Nut current-Highlander review)

Accessory-tire and label recallsminor

Two regional accessory-tire recalls apply: 24V-419 (2022–2024 Highlander L/LE with the Blackout Package's 20-inch wheels) and 24V-452 (certain 20-inch accessory tires), both for insufficient load rating and both free. A Gulf States Toyota label recall (22V-310) covers load-capacity labels that can fade illegible. Housekeeping-grade, but confirm by VIN.

Sources: NHTSA complaint database, 2022 Highlander + Highlander Hybrid · NHTSA manufacturer communications (recall documents, CSP 22TE09)

$0

Recall remedies

Reliability on the Highlander is expected to be very good — this drivetrain has been around for a while.
6 mechanic & owner sources

Open recalls

Free fixes at any Toyota dealer. Run the VIN — “completed” isn’t always completed.

  1. 22V-310Gulf States Toyota load-carrying-capacity labels (2022 Highlander/Highlander Hybrid among others) may fade and become illegible. Replacement label provided free.open
  2. 23V-720Front lower bumper cover (2020–2023) can loosen or detach after minor impact. Free repair/replacement.open
  3. 24V-419Blackout-Package 20-inch tires on certain 2022–2024 Highlander L/LE have an insufficient load rating. Free inspection/tire replacement.open
  4. 24V-452Certain 20-inch accessory tires (Southeast Toyota, 2021–2024) have an insufficient load rating. Free inspection/tire and placard replacement.open
  5. 26V-128Second-row seat backs (2021–2024) may fail to lock during adjustment. Dealers replace the recliner return springs free; interim letters mailed 2026.open

What it costs to keep

The purchase price is what you negotiate. These are the numbers you live with afterward — each one sourced, none of them blended into a fake total.

The ownership picture — 2022 Highlander

Four sourced numbers. No fake total.

Fuel

23 MPG combined (20 city / 28 highway) for the FWD, 3.5L on the EPA federal fuel-economy test.

Source: FuelEconomy.gov (EPA) — EPA’s federal fuel-economy test, recomputed with current gas prices. EPA record 44649 (Highlander).
Other builds EPA lists: AWD, 3.5L 23 MPG · Hybrid AWD, 2.5L 35 MPG · Hybrid FWD, 2.5L 36 MPG.

$2,700/yr

at $4.15/gal · 15,000 mi/yr · 55/45 city/hwy · pulled Jul 12, 2026

Crash losses

Collision losses run about average here. Neither a red flag nor a discount at the insurer.

Source: HLDI — the insurance industry’s loss-data institute — HLDI collision losses, 2020–22 models, published April 2023 (report R-23). 100 = the all-vehicle average. Series read: Toyota Highlander 4dr 4WD.
Other series: Toyota Highlander 4dr 87 · Toyota Highlander hybrid 4dr 4WD 109 · Toyota Highlander hybrid 4dr 109, where 100 = average.

97 vs 100

3% below average

Theft

Stolen about 95% more often than the average vehicle. Worth pricing comprehensive coverage before you buy, not after.

Source: HLDI — HLDI whole vehicle theft losses, 2022–24 models, published May 2025 (report WT-24). 100 = the all-vehicle average. Series read: Toyota Highlander 4dr 4WD.
Other series: Toyota Highlander 4dr 41 · Toyota Highlander hybrid 4dr 4WD 143 · Toyota Highlander hybrid 4dr 24, where 100 = average.

195 vs 100

95% above average

Repair risk

What this specific year is known to need. Pulled from the issues above — the repairs owners actually report, at the costs they report them. Averages from other sites blend every year together; these are this year’s own numbers.

Source: this report — 01 Known issues.

Recall spring replacement$0
Recall bumper-cover repair$0
Recall remedies$0
Why there’s no single “cost to own” number: sites that promise one are guessing at your insurance quote, your annual miles, and your luck. These are the numbers we can actually source — and each one carries its receipt.

Shopping this year?

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Have a specific one in your sights?

The VIN is on the listing. We’ll check this exact car — build, open recalls, and whether the “completed” repairs stayed fixed.

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Before you buy

Print this
  1. 01Test-drive the eight-speed across a range of speeds and listen for any acceleration whine — a clean-driving example is the goal on this transmission family.
  2. 02Confirm the second-row seats latch firmly in every position (recall 26V-128).
  3. 03Verify recalls by VIN: 23V-720 (bumper cover), 26V-128 (seat recliner), 24V-419 and 24V-452 (accessory tires), 22V-310 (label).
  4. 04If it's the Hybrid AWD, check for the high-voltage (HV) cable-corrosion program (22TE09) on salt-belt cars.
  5. 05Confirm the eCVT (the Hybrid's electronically variable transaxle) or transmission fluid history if mileage is climbing.
  6. 06This is the last V6 year — if you specifically want the V6 over the 2023's turbo four, 2022 is it.

Own one already?

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vincanary.com/toyota/highlander/2022