Page 222 of 712

2224-1. Before driving
HIGHLANDER_U (OM48A12U)
WARNING
■Trailer towing precautions
To tow a trailer safely, use extreme care and drive the vehicle in accordance
with the trailer’s characteristics and operating conditions. Failure to do so
could cause an accident resulting in death or serious injury. Vehicle stability
and braking performance are affected by trailer stability, brake setting and
performance, and the hitch. Your vehicle will handle differently when towing
a trailer.
■ To avoid accident or injury
●Do not exceed the TWR, unbraked TWR, GCWR, GVWR or GAWR.
● If the gross trailer weight is over 2000 lb. (907 kg), a sway control device
with sufficient capacity is required.
● If the gross trailer weight is over 5000 lb. (2268 kg), a weight distributing
hitch with sufficient capacity is required.
● Adjust the tongue weight within the appropriate range. Place heavier loads
as close to the trailer axle as possible.
● Do not exceed 65 mph (104 km/h), the posted towing speed limit or the
speed limit for your trailer as set forth in your trailer owner’s manual,
whichever is lowest. Slow down sufficiently before making a turn, in cross
winds, on wet or slippery surface, etc. to help avoid an accident. If you
experience a vehicle-trailer instability from reducing a certain speed, slow
down and make sure you keep your vehicle speed under the speed of
which you experience the instability.
● Do not make jerky, abrupt or sharp turns.
● Do not apply the brakes suddenly as you may skid, resulting in jackknifing
and loss of vehicle control. This is especially true on wet or slippery sur-
faces.
● Do not exceed the trailer hitch assembly weight, gross vehicle weight,
gross axle weight and trailer tongue weight capacities.
● Do not use cruise control when towing.
● Slow down and downshift before descending steep or long downhill
grades. Do not make sudden downshifts while descending steep or long
downhill grades.
Page 223 of 712

2234-1. Before driving
4
Driving
HIGHLANDER_U (OM48A12U)
WARNING
●Vehicle-trailer instability is more likely on steep long downhills. Before
descending steep or long downhill grades, slow down and downshift. Do
not make sudden downshifts when descending steep or long downhill
grades. Avoid holding the brake pedal down too long or applying the
brakes too frequently. This could cause the brakes to overheat and result
in reduced braking efficiency.
● Vehicles with a compact spare tire: Do not tow a trailer when the compact
spare tire is installed on your vehicle.
■ Hitch
Trailer hitch assemblies have different weight capacities established by the
hitch manufacturer. Even though the vehicle may be physically capable of
towing a higher weight, the operator must determine the maximum weight
rating of the particular hitch assembly and never exceed the maximum
weight rating specified for the trailer-hitch. Exceeding the maximum weight
rating set by the trailer-hitch manufacturer can cause an accident resulting
in death or serious personal injuries.
■ When towing a trailer
Toyota recommends trailers with brakes that conform to any applicable fed-
eral and state/provincial regulations.
●If the gross trailer weight exceeds unbraked TWR, trailer brakes are
required. Toyota recommends trailers wi th brakes that conform to all appli-
cable federal and state/provincial regulations.
● Never tap into your vehicle’s hydraulic system, as this will lower the vehi-
cle’s braking effectiveness.
● Never tow a trailer without using a safety chain securely attached to both
the trailer and the vehicle. If damage occurs to the coupling unit or hitch
ball, there is danger of the trailer wandering into another lane.
NOTICE
■When installing a trailer hitch
Use only the position recommended by your Toyota dealer. Do not install
the trailer hitch on the bumper; this may cause body damage.
■ Do not directly splice trailer lights
Do not directly splice trailer lights. Directly splicing trailer lights may damage
your vehicle’s electrical system and cause a malfunction.
Page 226 of 712

2264-2. Driving procedures
HIGHLANDER_U (OM48A12U)
■Turning the key from “ACC” to “LOCK”
Shift the shift lever to P. ( P. 234)
■ If the engine does not start
The engine immobilizer system may not have been deactivated. ( P. 80)
Contact your Toyota dealer.
■ When the steering lock cannot be released
■ Key reminder function
A buzzer sounds if the driver’s door is opened while the engine switch is in
the “LOCK” or “ACC” position to remind you to remove the key. Push in the key and turn it to the
“LOCK” position.
1
2
When starting the engine, the engine
switch may seem stuck in the “LOCK”
position. To free it, turn the key while turn-
ing the steering wheel slightly left and
right.
WARNING
■
When starting the engine
Always start the engine while sitting in the driver’s seat. Do not depress the
accelerator pedal while starting the engine under any circumstances.
Doing so may cause an accident resulting in death or serious injury.
■ Caution when driving
Do not turn the engine switch to the “LOCK” position while driving. If, in an
emergency, you must turn the engine off while the vehicle is moving, turn
the engine switch only to the “ACC” position to stop the engine. An accident
may result if the engine is stopped while driving. ( P. 555)
Page 232 of 712

2324-2. Driving procedures
HIGHLANDER_U (OM48A12U)
WARNING
■When starting the engine
Always start the engine while sitting in the driver’s seat. Do not depress the
accelerator pedal while starting the engine under any circumstances.
Doing so may cause an accident resulting in death or serious injury.
■ Caution while driving
If engine failure occurs while the vehicle is moving, do not lock or open the
doors until the vehicle reaches a safe and complete stop. Activation of the
steering lock in this circumstance may lead to an accident, resulting in
death or serious injury.
■ Stopping the engine in an emergency
If you want to stop the engine in an emergency while driving the vehicle,
press and hold the engine switch for more than 2 seconds, or press it briefly
3 times or more in succession. ( P. 555)
However, do not touch the engine switch while driving except in an emer-
gency. Turning the engine off while driving will not cause loss of steering or
braking control, but the power assist to these systems will be lost. This will
make it more difficult to steer and brake, so you should pull over and stop
the vehicle as soon as it is safe to do so.
Page 237 of 712

2374-2. Driving procedures
4
Driving
HIGHLANDER_U (OM48A12U)
■Message displays
Message illustrations used in this section are intended as examples, and may
differ from the image that is actually displayed on the multi-information dis-
play.
■ S mode
●When the shift range is 5 or lower, holding the shift lever toward “+” sets the
shift range to 6.
● To prevent excessive engine speed, a function was adopted that automati-
cally selects a higher shift range before engine speed becomes too high.
● To protect the automatic transmission, a function is adopted that automati-
cally selects a higher shift range when the fluid temperature is high.
■ Downshifting restrictions warning buzzer
To help ensure safety and driving performance, downshifting operation may
sometimes be restricted. In some circumstances, downshifting may not be
possible even when the shift lever is operated. (A buzzer will sound twice.)
■ Snow mode automatic deactivation
Snow mode is automatically deactivated if the engine is turned off after driv-
ing in snow mode.
■ When driving with cruise control or dynamic radar cruise control acti-
vated
Even when performing the following acti ons with the intent of enabling engine
braking, engine braking will not activate while driving in S mode and down-
shifting to 5 or 4 because cruise contro l or dynamic radar cruise control will
not be canceled. ( P. 261, 266)
■ If the shift lever cannot be shifted from P
P. 617
■ If the S indicator does not come on or the D indicator is displayed even
after shifting the shift lever to S
This may indicate a malfunction in the automatic transmission system. Have
the vehicle inspected by your Toyota dealer immediately.
(In this situation, the transmission will operate in the same manner as when
the shift lever is in D.)
Page 238 of 712

2384-2. Driving procedures
HIGHLANDER_U (OM48A12U)■
If the automatic transmission fluid temperature warning message is dis-
played
When the warning message goes out, the vehicle can be driven again.
If the warning message does not go out after waiting a while, have your vehi-
cle inspected by your Toyota dealer.
■ AI-SHIFT
The AI-SHIFT automatically selects the suitable gear according to driver per-
formance and driving conditions.
The AI-SHIFT automatically operates when t he shift lever is in D. (Shifting the
shift lever to S cancels the function.) If the automatic transmission fluid temper-
ature warning message is displayed while
driving, make sure to return to D position
driving and reduce speed by easing off
the accelerator pedal. Stop the vehicle in
a safe place, shift the shift lever to P and
let the engine idle until the warning mes-
sage goes out.
WARNING
■ When driving on slippery road surfaces
Do not accelerate or shift gears suddenly.
Sudden changes in engine braking may cause the vehicle to spin or skid,
resulting in an accident.
Page 240 of 712
2404-2. Driving procedures
HIGHLANDER_U (OM48A12U)
To set the parking brake, fully
depress the parking brake pedal
with your left foot while depress-
ing the brake pedal with your right
foot.
(Depressing the pedal again
releases the parking brake.)
*1:For U.S.A.
*2: For Canada
■Parking brake engaged warning buzzer
P. 577
■ Usage in winter time
P. 323
Parking brake
Operating instructions
*1*2
NOTICE
■Before driving
Fully release the parking brake.
Driving the vehicle with the parking brake set will lead to brake components
overheating, which may affect braking performance and increase brake
wear.
Page 251 of 712
2514-3. Operating the lights and wipers
4
Driving
HIGHLANDER_U (OM48A12U)
WARNING
■Limitations of the Automatic High Beam
Do not rely on the Automatic High Beam. Always drive safely, taking care to
observe your surroundings and turning high beam on or off manually if nec-
essary.
NOTICE
■Notes when using the Automatic High Beam system
●Do not touch the camera sensor.
● Do not subject the camera sensor to a strong impact.
● Do not disassemble the camera sensor.
● Do not spill liquid onto the camera sensor.
● Do not apply window tinting or stickers to the camera sensor or the area of
windshield near the camera sensor.
● Do not install a parking tag or any other accessories near or around the
camera sensor.
● Do not overload the vehicle.
● Do not modify the vehicle.
● Do not replace windshiel d with non-genuine windshield.
Contact your Toyota dealer.
Observe the following to ensure that the
Automatic High Beam functions correctly.