
TABLE OF CONTENTS2
HIGHLANDER_UFor your information....................... 8
Reading this manual .................... 12
How to search .............................. 13
Pictorial index .............................. 14
1-1.  For safe use
Before driving ...................... 26
For safe driving ................... 28
Seat belts ............................ 30
SRS airbags ........................ 40
Front passenger occupant classification system ......... 53
Safety information  for children ........................ 60
Child restraint systems ........ 61
Installing child restraints ...... 65
Exhaust gas precautions ..... 79
1-2.  Emergency assistance Safety Connect.................... 80
1-3.  Theft deterrent system Engine immobilizer system............................... 86
Alarm ................................... 88
2.  Instrument cluster Warning lights and indicators........................... 92
Gauge and meters .............. 98
Multi-information  display ............................. 101
Eco Driving Indicator ......... 108
Fuel consumption  information ...................... 109 3-1.  Key information
Keys................................... 114
3-2.  Opening, closing and  locking the doors
Side doors ......................... 121
Back door .......................... 129
Glass hatch........................ 142
Smart key system .............. 147
3-3.  Adjusting the seats Front seats......................... 155
Rear seats ......................... 157
Driving position memory ........................... 164
Head restraints .................. 168
3-4.  Adjusting the steering  wheel and mirrors
Steering wheel ................... 172
Inside rear view mirror ....... 174
Outside rear view  mirrors ............................. 176
3-5.  Opening and closing  the windows
Power windows.................. 178
Moon roof .......................... 182
Panoramic moon roof ........ 186
1For safety and security
2Instrument cluster
3Operation of each 
component 

11
HIGHLANDER_UThe  SRS  airbag  and  seat  belt  pretensioner  devices  in  your  Toyot
a  contain
explosive chemicals. If the vehicle is scrapped with the airbag s and seat belt
pretensioners  left  as  they  are,  this  may  cause  an  accident  such  as fire. Be
sure  to  have  the  systems  of  the  SRS  airbag  and  seat  belt  preten sioner
removed and disposed of by a qualified service shop or by your  Toyota dealer
before you scrap your vehicle.
Special  handling  may  apply,  See  www.dtsc.ca.gov/hazardouswaste/ perchlo-
rate.
Your  vehicle  has  components  that  may  contain  perchlorate.  These   compo-
nents  may  include  airbag,  seat  belt  pretensioners,  and  wireless   remote  con-
trol batteries.
Scrapping of your Toyota
Perchlorate Material
WARNING
■ General precautions while driving
Driving under the  influence:  Never drive  your vehicle when  unde r  the  influ-
ence of alcohol or drugs that have impaired your ability to operate your vehi-
cle.  Alcohol  and  certain  drugs  delay  reaction  time,  impair  judg ment  and
reduce  coordination,  which  could  lead  to  an  accident  that  could   result  in
death or serious injury.
Defensive  driving: Always  drive  defensively. Anticipate  mistake s  that  other
drivers or pedestrians might make and be ready to avoid acciden ts.
Driver  distraction:  Always  give  your  full  attention  to  driving.  Anything  that
distracts the driver, such as adjusting controls, talking on a  cellular phone or
reading can result in a collision with resulting death or serio us injury to you,
your occupants or others.
■ General precaution regar ding children’s safety
Never leave children unattended in the vehicle, and never allow  children to
have or use the key.
Children  may  be  able  to  start  the  vehicle  or  shift  the  vehicle  into  neutral.
There is also a  danger that  children  may  injure  themselves  by p laying with
the  windows,  the  moon  roof,  or  other  features  of  the  vehicle.  In  addition,
heat build-up or extremely cold temperatures inside the vehicle can be fatal
to children. 

23Pictorial index
HIGHLANDER_UInside rear view mirror  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  P. 174
Sun visors  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  P. 478
Vanity mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  P. 478
Interior lights/personal lights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  P. 464
Moon roof switches
*1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  P.
 182
Panoramic moon roof switches
*1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  P. 186
Auxiliary boxes  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  P. 471
Conversation mirror  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  P. 479
“SOS” button
*1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  P. 80
Garage door opener switches
*1. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  P. 489
Assist grips  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  P. 487
*1: If equipped
*2: Refer to “NAVIGATION AND MULT IMEDIA SYSTEM OWNER’S MANUAL”.
1
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321-1. For safe use
HIGHLANDER_U
To  release  plate  “B”,  press  the
release button on buckle “B”.
To  release  plate  “A”,  insert  the
key  ( P.  114)  or  plate  “B”  into
the hole on  buckle “A”.
Retract  the  belt  slowly  when
releasing  and  stowing  the  seat
belt.
Holding  plate  “A”  and  “B”
together,  insert  both  plates  into
the holder on the roof.
Releasing and stowing the seat b elt (for the third center seat)
Release button
Plate “B”
Buckle “B”
1
Buckle “A”
Buckle “A”Plate “B”
Plate “A”
Plate “A”
O
P 

451-1. For safe use
1
For safety and security
HIGHLANDER_U
WARNING
■SRS airbag precautions
● Do  not  allow  a  child  to  stand  in  front  of
the  SRS  front  passenger  airbag  unit  or
sit on the knees of a front passenger.
● Do not allow the front seat occupants to
hold items on their knees.
● Do  not  lean  against  the  door,  the  roof
side  rail  or  the  front,  side  and  rear  pil-
lars.
● Do  not  allow  anyone  to  kneel  on  the
passenger  seat  toward  the  door  or  put
their head or hands outside the vehicle.
● Do  not  attach  anything  to  or  lean  any-
thing  against  areas  such  as  the  dash-
board,  steering  wheel  pad  and  lower
portion of the instrument panel.
These  items  can  become  projectiles
when  the  SRS  driver,  front  passenger
and driver’s knee airbags deploy. 

461-1. For safe use
HIGHLANDER_U
WARNING
■SRS airbag precautions
● Do  not  hang  coat  hangers  or  other  hard  objects  on  the  coat  hook s. All  of
these  items  could  become  projectiles  and  may  cause  death  or  ser ious
injury, should the SRS curtain shield airbags deploy.
● If a vinyl cover is put on the area where the SRS driver’s knee airbag will
deploy, be sure to remove it.
● Do  not  use  seat  accessories  which  cover  the  parts  where  the  SRS  side
airbags  and  SRS  seat  cushion  airbag  inflate  as  they  may  interfe re  with
inflation  of  the  airbags.  Such  accessories  may  prevent  the  side   airbags
and  seat  cushion  airbag  from  activating  correctly,  disable  the  system  or
cause  the  side  airbags  and  seat  cushion  airbag  to  inflate  accid entally,
resulting in death or serious injury.
● Do not strike or apply significant levels of force to the area  of the SRS air-
bag components. 
Doing so can cause the SRS airbags to malfunction.
● Do  not  touch  any  of  the  component  parts  immediately  after  the  S RS  air-
bags have deployed (inflated) as they may be hot.
● If breathing becomes difficult after the SRS airbags have deplo yed, open a
door  or  window  to  allow  fresh  air  in,  or  leave  the  vehicle  if  i t  is  safe  to  do
so. Wash off any residue as soon as possible to prevent skin ir ritation. 
●Do not attach anything to areas such as
a door, windshield, side window, front or
rear pillar, roof side rail and assist grip. 
● Vehicles  without  a  smart  key  system:
Do  not  attach  any  heavy,  sharp  or  hard
objects  such  as  keys  and  accessories
to  the  key.  The  objects  may  restrict  the
SRS  driver’s knee airbag inflation  or  be
thrust  into  the  driver’s  seat  area  by  the
force of the deploying airbag, thus caus-
ing a danger. 

471-1. For safe use
1
For safety and security
HIGHLANDER_U
WARNING
■SRS airbag precautions
● If the areas where the SRS airbags are stored, such as the steering wheel
pad  and  front  and  rear  pillar  garnishes,  are  damaged  or  cracked ,  have
them replaced by your Toyota dealer.
● Do  not  place  anything,  such  as  a  cushion,  on  the  front  passenger’s  seat.
Doing so will disperse the passenger’s weight, which prevents t he sensor
from detecting the passenger’s weight properly. As a result, th e SRS front
airbags for the front passenger may not deploy in the event of  a collision.
■ Modification and disposal of  SRS airbag system components
Do not dispose of your vehicle or perform any of the following modifications
without consulting your Toyota dealer. The SRS airbags may malfunction or
deploy (inflate) accidentally, causing death or serious injury.
● Installation, removal, disassembly and repair of the SRS airbag s
● Repairs,  modifications,  removal  or  replacement  of  the  steering  wheel,
instrument panel, dashboard, seats or seat upholstery, front, s ide and rear
pillars or roof side rails
● Repairs  or  modifications  of  the  front  fender,  front  bumper  or  s ide  of  the
occupant compartment
● Installation  of  a  grille  guard  (bull  bars,  kangaroo  bar,  etc.),   snow  plows,
winches or roof luggage carrier
● Modifications to the vehicle’s suspension system
● Installation  of  electronic  devices  such  as  mobile  two-way  radio s  and  CD
players
● Modifications to your vehicle for a person with a physical disa bility 

481-1. For safe use
HIGHLANDER_U
■If the SRS airbags deploy (inflate)
●Slight abrasions,  burns,  bruising  etc.,  may  be  sustained  from  S RS  airbags,
due to the extremely high speed deployment (inflation) by hot g ases.
● A loud noise and white powder will be emitted.
● Parts of the airbag module (steering wheel hub, airbag cover an d inflator) as
well as the front seats, parts of the front and rear pillars, and roof side rails
may be hot for several minutes. The airbag itself may also be h ot.
● The windshield may crack.
● For U.S.A.: For Safety Connect subscribers, if the SRS airbags  deploy or in
the event of a severe rear-end collision, the system is designed to send an
emergency call to the response center, notifying them of the ve hicle's loca-
tion (without needing to push the “SOS” button) and an agent wi ll attempt to
speak  with  the  occupants  to  ascertain  the  level  of  emergency  an d  assis-
tance required. If the occupants are unable to communicate, the agent auto-
matically  treats  the  call  as  an  emergency  and  helps  to  dispatch  the
necessary emergency services. ( P. 80)
■ SRS airbag deployment condi tions (SRS front airbags)
● The SRS front airbags will deploy in the event of an impact tha t exceeds the
set threshold level (the level of force corresponding to an approximately 12 -
18 mph [20 - 30 km/h] frontal collision with a fixed wall that  does not move or
deform).
However, this threshold velocity will be considerably higher in  the following
situations:
• If  the  vehicle  strikes  an  object,  such  as  a  parked  vehicle  or  sign  pole,
which can move or deform on impact
• If  the  vehicle  is  involved  in  an  underride  collision,  such  as  a  collision  in
which  the  front  of  the  vehicle  “underrides”,  or  goes  under,  the   bed  of  a
truck
● Depending on the type of collision, it is possible that only th e seat belt pre-
tensioners will activate.
● The SRS front airbags for the front passenger will not activate if there is no
passenger  sitting  in  the  front  passenger  seat.  However,  the  SRS  front air-
bags for the front passenger may deploy if luggage is put in the seat, even if
the seat is unoccupied. ( P. 53)
● The SRS seat cushion airbag on the front passenger’s seat will  not operate
if the occupant is not wearing a seat belt.