Problems with 2003 Toyota Highlander VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL

Tl* the contact owns a 2003 toyota highlander. while driving 20 mph, the vehicle unintentionally accelerated at high speeds without warning. the contact was able to bring the vehicle to a complete stop and turn off the engine. the vehicle was not taken to a dealer or independent mechanic for diagnostic testing or repairs. the manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. the failure mileage was 185,000.

Tl* the contact owned a 2003 toyota highlander. while the vehicle was in reverse, it accelerated independently. the contact stated that the brake pedal was depressed, but failed to effectively slow down the vehicle. the gear shifter button was pushed into drive and the vehicle sped forward and crashed into a tree. the air bags failed to deploy. there were no injuries and a police report was not filed. the vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic. the failure recurred twice prior to the crash. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was notified of the failure. the approximate failure mileage was 150,000. the vehicle was destroyed. *js

Saturday june 18 2016 at 6:40 a.m. driving on tully road in my 2003 toyota highlander. my speed was 35 miles per hour when the car suddenly accelerated at a high rate of speed. i applied my brakes to slow down the highlander this had no effect on slowing down the highlander. the brakes went into anti locking mode the wheels started to pulsate. while this was happening my foot was not on the accelerator , but on the brakes. the highlander was not slowing down but increasing speed. i down shifted into a lower gear, the engine raced at a high rpms. i then put the car in neutral the rpms still racing at a high rate. i then applied the brakes again to slow down. the highlander started to slow down i then turned off the engine and then came to a stop. i waited for a minute and started the car the engine raced at a high rpms as if my foot was pushed all the way down on the accelerator, but my foot was not on the gas pedal. i waited again ...

Pulling into a parking space at kaiser hospital as i hit the brake the car unexpectedly accelerated. the car sped forward while my foot was still on the brake. i hit a tree causing damage to the left front area of the car (lights, fender, bumper) had car repaired. at the time i thought that i had accidentally hit the gas pedal;however, one month later while approaching an intersection, as i stopped, the same thing happened. luckily no car or pedestrian was in the intersection. i was able to stop the car by shifting into park. took the car to my mechanic. he was unable to replicate the problem. since this unexpected acceleration occurred in the same way (coming to a stop with foot on brake and gear-shift in drive) , in a five week period, it could be a transmission or accelerater problem. i no longer feel confident driving the car and consider it unsafe.

Tl* the contact owned a 2003 toyota highlander. the contact stated that while the brake pedal was depressed, the vehicle accelerated rapidly without warning causing a crash. the contact sustained injuries to her left foot. medical attention was required. a police report was filed. the vehicle was towed and deemed destroyed. the manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. the failure mileage was 51,082.

Grandmother was leaving and drove through a closed wrought iron gate that was over 10' tall and 16' wide. continued accelerating through a parking lot across the street, drove over a large decorative boulders and came to halt after crashing into a neighbors fence. she said that she attempted to stop in front of her gate to open it but the breaks would not work and the car kept accelerating. thankfully it ended how it did leaving her with minor injuries. it is also disgusting knowing that it could have been much worse and if a car defect is the reason nothing will be done until deaths begin to occur. *tr

On 7-11-13, going at highway speed on route 52 in north carolina, the throttle became stuck wide open causing my car to accelerate beyond my control. i slowed down to get off on the side of the highway, but i could not stop the car, only slow it down, to approximately 10-15 mph. got back on the road and took the next exit. again i could not stop the car, and though i slowed again to about 10-15 mph, i drifted through the intersection at the stop sign, with traffic approaching from both left and right! i turned sharply left, got off to the side of the road, and turned the key off to stop the car. god was watching, because no collision occurred. when i started the engine again, it roared like i've never heard it before. somehow, i don't remember how, i got the car about 100 yards down the road to a marathon gas station, to get completely off the road and out of the way. a man stopped and walked over to me, telling me that my throttle was stuck because of a faulty tps (throttle position sensor). ...

Car accelerated and chased into house in nov 20011. car accelerated in parking lot dec. 2012. no damage this time but in 2011 there was 14,000 $ damage to house and car. car was checked out at toyota twice ,no problem found. wife will never drive the car again. she is infear of hurting someone. *tr

Tl*the contact owns a 2003 toyota highlander. while driving approximately 25 mph, the contact applied to brakes but the vehicle began to accelerate. the contact tried several ways to stop the vehicle (shifting into neutral, using the emergency brake) but the vehicle continued to rev. the tires also were spinning. the contact shifted into neutral again and turned the vehicle off which stopped it. the vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer who stated that the transmission dropped and the extra floor mat caused the failure. the vehicle had not been repaired. the current and failure mileages were 90,000. updated 03/24/11*lj the consumer stated the floor mat was nowhere near the gas pedal. it was securely in place. updated 11/16/11

Auto was stopped three feet from another auto. sudden non initiated acceleration (full throttle) with damage to other vehicle severe, minimal to highlander. *tr

2003 toyota highlander. consumer submits documentation related to unintended acceleration issues with vehicle *tgw the consumer stated the vehicle accelerated out of control and subsequently, crashed into a concrete divider, struck a palm tree and then a metal light pole. even after the vehicle came to rest, the engine continued to rev very fast. it finally stopped a few seconds after the impact. *jb

Tl* the contact owns a 2003 toyota highlander. while attempting a right turn at approximately 5 mph, the vehicle abnormally accelerated and crashed into another vehicle. there were no injuries. a police report was available. the vehicle was towed to an authorized dealer where they were unable to diagnose the failure. the vehicle was not repaired. the failure and current mileages were 95,000.

Tl*the contact owns a 2003 toyota highlander. while driving 50 mph, the accelerator pedal became stuck to the floorboard in the open throttle position. the vehicle proceeded to accelerate without driver intent. the contact was able to stop the vehicle by turning it off. the vehicle was taken to the dealer for diagnostic testing. the current and failure mileages were 86,000.

Tl*the contact owns a 2003 toyota highlander. he stated that while driving 2 mph with his foot on the brake pedal, it accelerated on its own without a warning and crashed into a building . there were front end damages to the vehicle. there were no injuries. the vehicle was towed. a police report was available. the dealer was contacted and they stated that his vehicle was not on the recall list. there were repairs made to the vehicle. the failure and current mileages were 62,300.

2003 toyota highlander, i have a randomly occurring problem with the gas pedal sticking when you are trying to accelerate from a stop. my year model is not included in the current recall but i wanted to make you aware that there are other possible problems out there. i have called the dealership and they said without being able to duplicate the problem there is nothing that i can do and it is randomly occurring. *tr