Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (power windows, windshield, wipers, mirrors, sunroof).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2005 Toyota Highlander owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
The driver side visor is drooping more and more. Now it is partly in my line of sight (I'm 6'3") and when I hit a bump it drops down even further and blocks about half of my vision out the windshield. Very dangerous. Before I start driving, I can gently raise it and slowly let it drop to where it stops where it only partially blocks my vision. As long as I can avoid bumps/potholes, it will stay but it doesn't take much of a bump to knock it loose to where it drops down further and becomes a safety hazard by blocking too much of my vision. This started some years ago and has steadily gotten worse.
Tl contact owns a 2005 Toyota Highlander. The contact stated that while driving approximately 65 MPH, the entire sunroof separated from the vehicle. The contact mentioned that the area was completely rusted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 197,000.
2005 Toyota Highlander hybrid. Driving to work in a blizzard on 12/11/09 all dash board lights went on. Dealership found that the sunroof housing failed causing $3,977.16 worth of damage. Being out of warranty the dealer agreed to pay 2,000.00. Toyota customer service another 1,500 and we paid 477.16. We picked up the car on 12/24/09. On 2/2/10 we returned it after noticing a burn spot on each of the plastic head light covers. The dealer found both highbeam bulbs melted,and suggested I had overused them causing the intense heat that did the damage. I am concerned it could be a result of delayed water damage showing up. Our concerns with this car(which we purchased new in nov. Of 2005)goes back to 9/7/06 when the cruise control did not slow the car going down hills. On 2/28/07 we had brake and wiper blade issues. On 4/20/07 the blades locked during a downpour on the 5 freeway. …
On 11/9/2011, while driving on interstate 80 near auburn, ca., the rear window on my 2005 Toyota Highlander spontaneously exploded/shattered. I took it to a Toyota dealer/bodyshop where they replaced the tempered glass at my expense ($468). They claimed they had never seen anything like it. Two weeks later on 11/28/2011, while driving on interstate 80 near rocklin, ca., the right rear passenger door window spontaneously exploded/shattered sending shards of glass into the vehicle and out. The car is getting repaired at my expense ($408). Toyota claims they know nothing about this type of problem. This is a safety hazard worthy of investigation. During the second incident, a passenger would have been severely injured had they been sitting next to the exploding glass. If the window had been the driver-side window, it would have caused a serious crash. …
Both power rear windows came out of their pwr window tracks. This allows the window to fall to the fully open position. When this happened it caused severe air buffeting inside the vehicle. It's so severe that it feels like the vehicle is vibrating apart. This extremely loud painful sound causes panic as to what happened and sever ear pain. The only way to stop the buffeting is to quickly pull off the road and stop. The open window also exposed occupants and pets in the rear seat area to falling out. According to the dealer this is a common defect as the track on the bottom of the window that connects to the power window motor arm migrates slowly along the bottom of the window each time the window is operated until the motor arm falls out of the track. Then the window is free to fall down and cannot be closed until the vehicle is stopped. There is no service bulletin covering this. …
Purchased new Toyota Highlander 2005 model year in July 2005. Vehicle was parked in driveway since. Vehicle only has 23,000 miles. Corrossion developed within 9 months of purchase in these areas: base of antenna, antenna mast, window frames, and aluminum or alloy wheels show bubbling in the surface that are increasing in size and diameter.* dealership and Toyota were contacted to remedy problems with wheels without success. Dealership repainted corroded windows. Dealership and Toyota claim corrosion is due to environment - I have had 2 other vehicles parked in the same location without visible signs of corrossion. I am concern that the continued expansion of the bubbles and corrossion on the wheels will create a safety hazard if it weakens the structural integrity of the whees.
Tl* the contact owns a 2005 Toyota Highlander. The contact stated that the front headlight lenses were deteriorating. There was a presence of a spot that was spreading across the plastic, which May be intermittently melting. The contact indicated that the spot was increasing on the front headlight lense and could impact the contact's visibility upon the use of the low or high beams. The vehicle was taken to the authorized dealer who diagnosed that both headlight lenses needed to be replaced. The vehicle was to be repaired by an authorized dealer. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 82,000.
The driver side sun visor does not stay in place when it is all the way up. Because of the inherent design problem and possibly because of weight and or vibration of the visor it falls down May be up to 30 degrees. There are two possible consequences of this issue: 1. Safety issue: it partially blocks the vision of the driver on the road while driving which is dangerous. 2. Physical injury: while the driver is exiting out of the car or when the driver moves his head forward, there are chances that he/she May bump their forehead to the visor.
The driver's side windshield wiper has a nut which repeatedly comes loose. This causes the windshield wiper to become loose and cease to function. The dealer says that the mechanism was designed to come loose so as to avoid damage to the underlying motor. He said to just keep tightening the nut! In the 27,000 mile life of the vehicle, I have had to tighten it now a total of 3 times. The last time was 6 weeks ago during a snow storm. The inability to correct the problem constitutes a safety hazard due to a design flaw.
Tl contact owns a 2005 Toyota Highlander. The contact stated that the rear windows had been falling off track since May 2009. The rear driver side window and rear passenger side window had been replaced three times. The dealer stated that the cause of the failure was within the mechanism that lowered and raised the windows. The vehicle had not been repaired. The VIN was unavailable. The failure mileage was approximately 50,000 and the current mileage was approximately 71,000.
Window & Wiper complaints in other Highlander years
Frequently asked questions
How common are window & wiper problems on the 2005 Toyota Highlander?
NHTSA has 24 complaints about the windows, wipers & sunroof of the 2005 Toyota Highlander, 11% of the model year's 224 complaints. The component named most often is power window devices and controls (2 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2005 Toyota Highlander window & wiper problems?
No. NHTSA lists no windows, wipers & sunroof recall for the 2005 Toyota Highlander, though it has 6 recalls for other components. If the problem is widespread, a repair may still be covered by an extended warranty or a manufacturer service bulletin — ask a dealer.
At what mileage do 2005 Toyota Highlander window & wiper problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 82,000 miles, and 6% before 25,000 miles.
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.