[GHPlatMax]

I picked up the first Grand Highlander at Hamer Toyota in California as soon as it landed.
There is hard enough jerking intermittently when shifting gears on a slow acceleration between 20-35 mph.
Also, when slowing down to accommodate for slowing traffic and gassing to increase speed again there is also hard shifting as if
the clutch or gear is slipping and restarting.

Does anyone else have this issue?

I have had the GH Platinum Max for 1 month and I have experienced this issue. It is, however very intermittent.

I drive about 60-80 miles per day. It’s happened maybe 5+ times in one month.

It is scary when it happens. I notice it more in Eco mode.

 

[jgeary1206]

Have had my GH since August and now has 3,000 miles. I have experienced this jerkiness on several occasions when trying to speed up after starting out slowly when it seemed transmission was in 2nd gear.

 

[jgeary1206]

It happened again today while turning onto an interstate. Going approx 40 mph on the entrance ramp and when I accelerated to enter the interstate, the engine kerked a little and hesitated for a second before getting up to speed. Worried if it happens while trying to pass on the highway.

 

[Tahoe24X7]

My hybrid max has the same problem, after 2 service visits, I was informed that there is no repair at this time, possibly there will be a recall.

Sounds like the transmission is in need of a firmware update - that they don't yet have ready.

 

[SoCalGH]

I picked up the first Grand Highlander at Hamer Toyota in California as soon as it landed.
There is hard enough jerking intermittently when shifting gears on a slow acceleration between 20-35 mph.
Also, when slowing down to accommodate for slowing traffic and gassing to increase speed again there is also hard shifting as if
the clutch or gear is slipping and restarting.

Does anyone else have this issue?

I also have the same issue- owned mine since August. My local dealership is not taking me serious. I was advised to call Toyota Corporate with my issue to see if there are more issues similar across the US.

 

[consultant8555]

I just returned my Grand Highlander Limited Not Hybrid for this issue. Everyone take it back to the dealer. They first tried to say they didn’t see it but I kept recorded when the issue happen. They called in regional and corporate to try and find a solution. They had my car for almost a week. They are now giving me a new car. Take your car back to the dealer- lemon law goes into effect after coming back for the same issue three times.

 

[jrahme]

I am getting my transmission replaced on our hybrid max with 3000 miles due to shudder issue when backing up from garage at low speed with engine on

 

[dude where’s my car]

I picked up the first Grand Highlander at Hamer Toyota in California as soon as it landed.
There is hard enough jerking intermittently when shifting gears on a slow acceleration between 20-35 mph.
Also, when slowing down to accommodate for slowing traffic and gassing to increase speed again there is also hard shifting as if
the clutch or gear is slipping and restarting.

Does anyone else have this issue?

We had our Grand Highlander HybridMax for three months before all the lights on the dashboard flashed and we took it to the dealer. We learned it’s a transmission issue and have been on back order since then with no clue when they will get the part. At this point, we’ve been without the car for longer than we had it for.

 

[jrahme]

We had our Grand Highlander HybridMax for three months before all the lights on the dashboard flashed and we took it to the dealer. We learned it’s a transmission issue and have been on back order since then with no clue when they will get the part. At this point, we’ve been without the car for longer than we had it for.

Mine is waiting for a transmission replacement , they said transmission will be available by end of January

 

[jrahme]

We had our Grand Highlander HybridMax for three months before all the lights on the dashboard flashed and we took it to the dealer. We learned it’s a transmission issue and have been on back order since then with no clue when they will get the part. At this point, we’ve been without the car for longer than we had it for.

Mine is waiting for a transmission replacement , they said transmission will be available by end of January

 

[Jay P]

I got my Grand Highlander hybrid max limited almost six months ago, and it has almost 6k miles on it.
Yesterday all of a sudden we got all dashboard warning lights came on with multiple malfunctioning messages about hybrid systems, driver starter control and AWD system.

Took the car back to dealership and they stated that when check engine warning light comes then all the other warning lights comes on with it by default.

Service guys checked the car and was able to resolved almost all the warning lights but Transmission code keep coming back and they will have to keep my car till Monday.
Dealership will call toyota support on Monday to find the way to resolve the Transmission code issue.

Now I have to wait till Monday to see what happenes.

 

[Jay P]

Mine is waiting for a transmission replacement , they said transmission will be available by end of January

Did dealership give you rental until transmission get replaced??

 

[ed2022de]

I purchased a grand highland in October 2023 and we have already had 3 issues with one being too dangerous to digest: 1. The middle seat got stuck and the dealership spent 3 days fixing it; 2. Left rear door makes loud noise, almost metal on metal; 3- My wife just called me and said the car decelerated to the point of almost stopping in the middle of the road even though she was pressing on the gas pedal. All this was heppening with my kids in it. she also reported a "weird" noise.

 

[tundra317]

I picked up the first Grand Highlander at Hamer Toyota in California as soon as it landed.
There is hard enough jerking intermittently when shifting gears on a slow acceleration between 20-35 mph.
Also, when slowing down to accommodate for slowing traffic and gassing to increase speed again there is also hard shifting as if
the clutch or gear is slipping and restarting.

Does anyone else have this issue?

What fuel are you using. Try using premium fuel like 93 or 97 octane.

 

[tundra317]

It happened again today while turning onto an interstate. Going approx 40 mph on the entrance ramp and when I accelerated to enter the interstate, the engine kerked a little and hesitated for a second before getting up to speed. Worried if it happens while trying to pass on the highway.

Try higher octane fuel like 93 or 97 see if that helps

 

[Sardar]

I have GH Hybrid Strom Cloud color , I have issues with pint, always had touchless wash but it has so many swirls and small scratches. Its been garage kept. any one else has this issue or potential solutions

 

[GHPlatMax]

Well folks, that jerking motion is becoming more frequent. Mostly around 30 MPH. it is very intense though.

They don’t seem to care about the fuel issue so I’m not sure if they will care about the transmission.

I have had the GH Platinum Max for 1 month and I have experienced this issue. It is, however very intermittent.

I drive about 60-80 miles per day. It’s happened maybe 5+ times in one month.

It is scary when it happens. I notice it more in Eco mode.

 

[jrahme]

Well folks, that jerking motion is becoming more frequent. Mostly around 30 MPH. it is very intense though.

They don’t seem to care about the fuel issue so I’m not sure if they will care about the transmission.

Does it happen in eco mode only ? Is there a specific driving pattern that may be triggering this ? For example , are you going on a slight incline and transmission is trying to downshift ? Or are you trying to slow down from a speed ? Is it switching to electric mode while it does this ? Is it happening in sports or normal mode ? Personally I don’t like the eco mode and the fuel efficiency is not worth it

 

[GHPlatMax]

Does it happen in eco mode only ? Is there a specific driving pattern that may be triggering this ? For example , are you going on a slight incline and transmission is trying to downshift ? Or are you trying to slow down from a speed ? Is it switching to electric mode while it does this ? Is it happening in sports or normal mode ? Personally I don’t like the eco mode and the fuel efficiency is not worth it

I switched to normal. It does it there as well. I haven’t noticed if it’s uphill. It feels like normal acceleration, nothing crazy when I’m flooring it. (Love my turbo)
not sure. But I plan to keep an eye on it some more.

 

[nemo7673]

I have a 2024 GH Platinum, purchased beginning of Feb 2024 w/ 9,800 miles on it. I currently have 10,200 miles on it. I traded a 2014 limited Highlander w/ 150,000 miles on it and never had any issues w/ that one. I must say, I miss the V6, I prefer it over the current turbo, even in the standard size Highlander. I've owned Toyota's (both cars & SUVs) for over 25 years, so I'm well versed with them. My concern is what a few mentioned previously...when shifting into park from drive, intermittently, RPMs will rev up, then back down and the car will lunge forward & then "settle" or "jump" backwards before completing the park. I haven't noticed hearing the "rev" however. I read about higher octane gas, so I put in premium last fill (about 1 wk ago) and yesterday, got the same thing, only this was the most noticeable one with the biggest rev & lunge forward & settle backwards. I also read from a few mechanics after stopping to park, shift into neutral, apply the manual parking brake, take foot off brake pedal & then shift into park. This has something to do with the transmission parking pawl, which I know nothing about as I'm not a mechanic. That did work a few times, but has also failed, leading back to the same problem. At first I thought maybe that is what a turbo engine does since I've never owned one. But after much research on google, I'm finding this to be a common issue w/ no resolve from Toyota and most reporting back that it is NOT normal. I would think for a $60,000 vehicle this should not be happening. It makes me wonder if this is why the 1st owner traded it with 9,000 miles on it! OFC the dealership said it was traded b/c the prev owner wanted a truck vs an SUV when I asked why it was returned with 9,000 miles on it, practically still brand new. I will be contacting my Toyota dealer to have it looked at, but they will likely say they cannot "duplicate" the concern reported and my problem will be trying to prove it to them since it is intermittent and I don't know when it will happen, even if I have a tech ride with me. I haven't experienced any issues re jerking with acceleration or getting up to speed when pushing it to get on the interstate for example. I've also not had any dash lights come on indicating anything is wrong. If anyone finds out that there is a recall re this from Toyota or a confirmed issue notice from Toyota w/ no resolve, please let us know here. Thanks for all the input here, this was very helpful information for me to know I'm not the only one experiencing this issue.