They are very well built, solid frame and body. It's heavy but built like a tank and fairly reliable. Just do your regular maintenance and you're good to go.
I inherited Mom's 03 V6 4wd. 42k mi. An amazing car. Always garaged. I have a '17 Tacoma 4WD and a '19 Highlander. Fair to say, we are done right? Rip Ma. 10/21/20
I have an 05 highlander v6 I’ve owned since new. 350,000km and counting. Overall very reliable car. Some issues I’ve had are rear wheel bearings cratering at 200k km, front wheel bearings at about 300k and some minor suspension issues some of which were covered under warranty. Brakes are shite. All four calipers seized at various times and the brake pads and rotors don’t seem to last very long. I think the brakes are undersized for the size of the vehicle. Through experience I discovered that Toyota has two different brake pads - ceramic and semi-metallic. Get semi-metallic. If you get OEM Toyota you have to ask for these or they will sell you the ceramic ones. Nothing wrong with them, they work fine but you will be much happier with the semi-metallic. These vehicles are NOT quiet on the highway. I’ve had several sets of tires and the road noise is notably loud with all of them. If you do all the recommended maintenance you will be rewarded with the usual Toyota long life. 17 years old and EVERYTHING on the vehicle works like when it was new. Not even a burnt out light and very little rust. These things are just about bullet proof.
I just purchased the 2005 Highlander with the V6 too! Loving it. What routine maintenance have you done to achieve 350,000 km. I’m at 222,000 and not sure what maintenance the previous owner did. It looks and runs like new.
WARNING , I just bought an 05' model AWD , 145K miles , beautiful car , drove 125 miles to go buy it , took it for a test drive , everything was fine , bought it, in the first 20 miles heading back home , the check engine and SVC light came on , stopped at an Autozone and had the car checked , turns out it's the 02 sensor , ( $ 600 ) , got back on the road , 20 miles farther down the road , the A/C took a crap, cost of repair unknown , powered the 2 right windows down for some air , wouldn't come back up unless using the window switch on the actual door , and after 123 miles back , and only 2 miles to go , the drive shaft decided to take the car into earthquake zone , ( $1,300 ) just for the parts , ) turns out you can't buy just the U Joints for thins thing you have to buy the entire drive shaft assembly ... BEWARE .... also be aware that any used Toyota should have the timing belt replaced if over 100,000 miles , , also, the cruise control didn't work, the horn doesn't work, , in ll this car will now cost me another $2,500 just to be road worthy ...Buyer beware , I'm 65 and on Social security , it will take me months to get it all fixed , my wife and I now have to walk to everywhere .Horrible nightmare , what a horrible experience . Best of luck to the rest of you .
My ac went out, as well as my windows and door locks, power steering lines, struts. These are large and heavy vehicles that will require constant repair at high mileage despite what everyone says.
I have the very 1st year model of this car. It was the "family car" back in the day & we used it on road trips & driving. It's actually the 2.4 2AZ-Fe engine. Currently it has around 273,000 & it just adds miles everyday. I love the 2.4 engine because I tune it up myself & I put Castrol High Milage on this car. Makes it feel newer & run smooth as it is.
@@lucasmills1246 right. Because timing chain doesn't need to be changed while timing belts do. & yeah of course. For my car though I drive it a good 5,000 miles & it burns a good 2 quarts. Cuz I buy the 5 quart bottle. Need 4 for the oil change. But during the drive, I need to fill up. Not too much but enough. I've used castrol, valvoline & pennzoil all high milage. & all get burned.
@@T3l3MuNd0 that's not too bad, I had a 95 camry that took a quart a week, it also had a bad seal though. Be happy you have that right now, it might be getting old but keep that oil in and she will take you where you wanna go every time
@@lucasmills1246 Thanks. & 1 quart a week?! Ouch. . . But luckily I buy my oil at Wal-Mart & I just compare the prices of what I want brand wise. They're so cheap there that I buy maybe 2 or 3 of the 5 quart bottles at a time. & I'm happy about my old 1st gen highlander. We actually have an older car. 97 Rav4 with the 3S-FE engine. Slow as can be. Ghetto to the max, yet it NEVER burns oil & it never had a "check engine" light pop up.
@@T3l3MuNd0 Toyota are still great, but there was a big quality change in the engines somewhere around 99-2000. Those older 90's Toyota were built too good, they probably lost money on the fact that nobody needed new cars.
Loved the video man, I’m selling my first car, and decided to go with the highlander for my next one cause from all the research I’ve been doing on it, it’s just so reliable and good. And this video really sealed the deal!! Thanks a lot!!!! - Nate
I have a 2006 Highlander base AWD. It has a sunroof, Gold color, and very comfortable captain's chairs. Bought it in December for $6000. Went through 7 snowstorms in Massachusetts and had no problems. Mine is a Unicorn in that it is a 4cylinder mated with AWD. Supposedly this is supposed to 350,000 miles. Comfortable ride. Gas mileage 17 - 20 MPH in mixed driving.
This is my favorite variation of the Highlander. And one of my favorite cars in general. What I really like about the 2000s cars is their designs. Some of them (like this Highlander) have an exterior design that look ahead of their time. Others look like their 90s counterparts.
'04, v6, 2wd, 245k, what a good car. 2d owner. 26-30mpg highway, 19-24mpg city. Only problem is finding location of running boards tie-in to electrics. Just regular maintenance.
I just bought a friends who could no longer/ drive for 2004 5,000.00/ 29,000miles. Due to its 19 year age, replaced all fluids/new timing belt and water pump and lastly got new tires....so excited, hopefully will be the last vehicle i buy.
...just had my 27 year old Towncar trashed by an impaired driver - friend/mechanic (who kept that Lincoln running for the past 17 years has a 2001 Highlander for $4300...which is about what I can afford now...I'll most likely buy it - for at least until my suit is resolved...the old car had close to 300K miles on it and while the engine was remarkably in good condition, the tranny was beginning to go - so the accident may have been a blessing in disguise...
I still see the 1st gen highlanders everywhere on the road, in my opinion these were the best made ones, i know they were all made in japan so thats probably why they are still going
I didn't like the 3.0 , but yes 3.3 , I'm currently driving a 2006 2.4 4 cylinder does great 👍🏽 226k miles quite ride not the fastest but lots of room , love Toyotas my other car 2004 Lexus ES 330 love it ! , 187k miles
I want to change the rear differential oil on my 2005 V6 Highlander with four-wheel-drive and I’m confused if it has LSD or not such that I need a gear oil that is compatible with LSD. In the factory service manual I did find that when you rebuild the differential, you’re supposed to coat the carrier seal with LSD hypoid gear oil so that makes me think maybe it is LSD but I’m not sure.
Did you rotate the tires every 3-5K I have wondered how the k02 would do as far as road noise, seems loud from the video but I know if you dont keep at rotated they will get load also does the video exaggerate the noise?
New sub, thanks for the high quality review! I have a 2003 Highlander 4wd with the 3.0 liter engine and 268,000 miles on it, it runs and drives great! Mine doesn't have anywhere near the road noise that yours has, I'm wondering if that might be the tires? Some brands of tires can cause high levels of road noise.
They are very well built, solid frame and body. It's heavy but built like a tank and fairly reliable. Just do your regular maintenance and you're good to go.
no its a unibody,as is the lexus rx models and the rav 4,,, the 4 runner is the one thats a frame on body, as is the full size Sequoya..
Yes it’s a unibody, basically a lifted Camry.
@r6toolitt: Hey do you still have it? I have an 02 Highlander with 160K miles, I wanna take it to college with me (6HRS) way what to do?
I inherited Mom's 03 V6 4wd. 42k mi. An amazing car. Always garaged. I have a '17 Tacoma 4WD and a '19 Highlander. Fair to say, we are done right? Rip Ma. 10/21/20
I am sorry for your loss.
Amen
I’ll be getting my moms 04’ Highlander in May. They’re helping me out after my car died. So grateful
I have an 05 highlander v6 I’ve owned since new. 350,000km and counting. Overall very reliable car. Some issues I’ve had are rear wheel bearings cratering at 200k km, front wheel bearings at about 300k and some minor suspension issues some of which were covered under warranty. Brakes are shite. All four calipers seized at various times and the brake pads and rotors don’t seem to last very long. I think the brakes are undersized for the size of the vehicle. Through experience I discovered that Toyota has two different brake pads - ceramic and semi-metallic. Get semi-metallic. If you get OEM Toyota you have to ask for these or they will sell you the ceramic ones. Nothing wrong with them, they work fine but you will be much happier with the semi-metallic. These vehicles are NOT quiet on the highway. I’ve had several sets of tires and the road noise is notably loud with all of them. If you do all the recommended maintenance you will be rewarded with the usual Toyota long life. 17 years old and EVERYTHING on the vehicle works like when it was new. Not even a burnt out light and very little rust. These things are just about bullet proof.
if u want quiet ,get a lexus rx model,very quiet,but without a 3rd row seat..little smaller, lighter and faster too.
my highlander is 21 years old now and has 100k, no rust and NO no issues, it’s amazing how good of a car this is
I just purchased the 2005 Highlander with the V6 too! Loving it. What routine maintenance have you done to achieve 350,000 km. I’m at 222,000 and not sure what maintenance the previous owner did. It looks and runs like new.
I had a 2006 with the 3.3 V6 i sold it with 200k miles running smooth like butter never had any major issues.
I have one of these, an 04 V6 with awd. It’s a great car and a tank in the snow, I love it
Same! I even take mine on the beach, yikes but she goesssssssss
01-04 were the best years. Built and shipped in from Japan 05 and up they were built in Mexico/USA
@@izzywashington5465 I didn’t know that about the 05 and up cars, my dad’s 06 was built in Japan
@@izzywashington5465 I have an '05 and it was built in Japan.
01 to 07 where built in Japan. Mine is 2005 and it was built in Japan
WARNING , I just bought an 05' model AWD , 145K miles , beautiful car , drove 125 miles to go buy it , took it for a test drive , everything was fine , bought it, in the first 20 miles heading back home , the check engine and SVC light came on , stopped at an Autozone and had the car checked , turns out it's the 02 sensor , ( $ 600 ) , got back on the road , 20 miles farther down the road , the A/C took a crap, cost of repair unknown , powered the 2 right windows down for some air , wouldn't come back up unless using the window switch on the actual door , and after 123 miles back , and only 2 miles to go , the drive shaft decided to take the car into earthquake zone , ( $1,300 ) just for the parts , ) turns out you can't buy just the U Joints for thins thing you have to buy the entire drive shaft assembly ... BEWARE .... also be aware that any used Toyota should have the timing belt replaced if over 100,000 miles , , also, the cruise control didn't work, the horn doesn't work, , in ll this car will now cost me another $2,500 just to be road worthy ...Buyer beware , I'm 65 and on Social security , it will take me months to get it all fixed , my wife and I now have to walk to everywhere .Horrible nightmare , what a horrible experience . Best of luck to the rest of you .
My ac went out, as well as my windows and door locks, power steering lines, struts. These are large and heavy vehicles that will require constant repair at high mileage despite what everyone says.
I had this exact vehicle last year and it was amazing. Only reason I don’t still have it is because I traded it for an 01 4Runner.
I'd trade that for a unicorn 4runner too, especially if it's had the radiator replaced and no rust.
I still have my 2001 Highlander!! Great SUV. It just keeps going and going.
How many miles??
@@jesusflores9424 215k
Hey do you still have it? I have an 02 Highlander with 160K miles, I wanna take it to college with me (6HRS) way what to do?
Toyota is just the most reliable vehicles in the world 🌎
I have the very 1st year model of this car. It was the "family car" back in the day & we used it on road trips & driving.
It's actually the 2.4 2AZ-Fe engine. Currently it has around 273,000 & it just adds miles everyday.
I love the 2.4 engine because I tune it up myself & I put Castrol High Milage on this car. Makes it feel newer & run smooth as it is.
It's weird that they put a timing chain on that engine but not the v6 limited. Does yours burn oil?
@@lucasmills1246 right. Because timing chain doesn't need to be changed while timing belts do.
& yeah of course. For my car though I drive it a good 5,000 miles & it burns a good 2 quarts. Cuz I buy the 5 quart bottle. Need 4 for the oil change. But during the drive, I need to fill up. Not too much but enough.
I've used castrol, valvoline & pennzoil all high milage. & all get burned.
@@T3l3MuNd0 that's not too bad, I had a 95 camry that took a quart a week, it also had a bad seal though. Be happy you have that right now, it might be getting old but keep that oil in and she will take you where you wanna go every time
@@lucasmills1246 Thanks. & 1 quart a week?! Ouch. . . But luckily I buy my oil at Wal-Mart & I just compare the prices of what I want brand wise. They're so cheap there that I buy maybe 2 or 3 of the 5 quart bottles at a time. & I'm happy about my old 1st gen highlander.
We actually have an older car. 97 Rav4 with the 3S-FE engine. Slow as can be. Ghetto to the max, yet it NEVER burns oil & it never had a "check engine" light pop up.
@@T3l3MuNd0 Toyota are still great, but there was a big quality change in the engines somewhere around 99-2000. Those older 90's Toyota were built too good, they probably lost money on the fact that nobody needed new cars.
Loved the video man, I’m selling my first car, and decided to go with the highlander for my next one cause from all the research I’ve been doing on it, it’s just so reliable and good. And this video really sealed the deal!! Thanks a lot!!!!
- Nate
I have the 2003 limited. My mechanic told me that it's like the 4 runner and will last forever. He said the doors will fall off before it dies.
This channel deserves way more subscribers
Thank you for that. Just glad to have those of you that are here!
I have a 2006 Highlander base AWD. It has a sunroof, Gold color, and very comfortable captain's chairs.
Bought it in December for $6000. Went through 7 snowstorms in Massachusetts and had no problems.
Mine is a Unicorn in that it is a 4cylinder mated with AWD. Supposedly this is supposed to 350,000 miles. Comfortable ride. Gas mileage 17 - 20 MPH in mixed driving.
It's cool to see a fellow Oregon person on TH-cam!!! Thanks for this video I'm looking in to a Highlander upgrade from my 06 RAV4.
I have a 2004 and it’s been great.
This is my favorite variation of the Highlander. And one of my favorite cars in general.
What I really like about the 2000s cars is their designs.
Some of them (like this Highlander) have an exterior design that look ahead of their time. Others look like their 90s counterparts.
You made the coolest awesome videos please don’t stop doing this love your videos the best ever
Looking at one of these for my first suv. I've always owned cars. Currently drive a 2021 Civic Hatchback but tired of squatting to get In and out.
I got a bad back Highland sits high...easy in and out
'04, v6, 2wd, 245k, what a good car. 2d owner. 26-30mpg highway, 19-24mpg city. Only problem is finding location of running boards tie-in to electrics. Just regular maintenance.
I just bought a friends who could no longer/ drive for 2004 5,000.00/ 29,000miles. Due to its 19 year age, replaced all fluids/new timing belt and water pump and lastly got new tires....so excited, hopefully will be the last vehicle i buy.
Loving my 2004 V6 with 230K miles. Solid! Great video
Still got ?
@@brianmesta9218 yep. 235K
Hey do you still have it? I have an 02 Highlander with 160K miles, I wanna take it to college with me (6HRS) way what to do?
@@randycausey5269 yep - 243K miles
I love the way this generation looks especially in silver
Phenomenal video dude. Thanks for the detailed walk through.
...just had my 27 year old Towncar trashed by an impaired driver - friend/mechanic (who kept that Lincoln running for the past 17 years has a 2001 Highlander for $4300...which is about what I can afford now...I'll most likely buy it - for at least until my suit is resolved...the old car had close to 300K miles on it and while the engine was remarkably in good condition, the tranny was beginning to go - so the accident may have been a blessing in disguise...
I still see the 1st gen highlanders everywhere on the road, in my opinion these were the best made ones, i know they were all made in japan so thats probably why they are still going
Great review. Thank you for your efforts.
The flair out of the fenders is what makes it nice 👍 newer cars all look like transformer robots with the fu man chu front ends .
I wish you would have talked about any problems/fixes with the vehicles and what should be considered instead.
Excellent review
I didn't like the 3.0 , but yes 3.3 , I'm currently driving a 2006 2.4 4 cylinder does great 👍🏽 226k miles quite ride not the fastest but lots of room , love Toyotas my other car 2004 Lexus ES 330 love it ! , 187k miles
I want to change the rear differential oil on my 2005 V6 Highlander with four-wheel-drive and I’m confused if it has LSD or not such that I need a gear oil that is compatible with LSD. In the factory service manual I did find that when you rebuild the differential, you’re supposed to coat the carrier seal with LSD hypoid gear oil so that makes me think maybe it is LSD but I’m not sure.
Hard to tell if the back srats go all rhe way flat or not
Thank you for this wonderful review!
Did you rotate the tires every 3-5K I have wondered how the k02 would do as far as road noise, seems loud from the video but I know if you dont keep at rotated they will get load also does the video exaggerate the noise?
Hey do you still have it? I have an 02 Highlander with 160K miles, I wanna take it to college with me (6HRS) way what to do?
Very good review.
New sub, thanks for the high quality review! I have a 2003 Highlander 4wd with the 3.0 liter engine and 268,000 miles on it, it runs and drives great! Mine doesn't have anywhere near the road noise that yours has, I'm wondering if that might be the tires? Some brands of tires can cause high levels of road noise.
Which brand and tyre spec do u recommend for low cabin noise?
Thanks!
@@sunny6020 Michelin tires have always been excellent for my needs.
@@rjherb5895 thanks for the info
When did you do your timing belt?
Solid review
Exc SUV but Avoid the 2007 4 cyl (burns oil) Recalls
i have a 2004 here in australia and i fuckin love it mate 👍👍👍
That sounds like more then road noise. Maybe the tires
Cant see the clock though. I have a 2002 bad clock placement cmon guys Toyota
I have a 2002 and the clock is perfect fine
Bottom gear moment