Page 412 of 576

4126-3. Do-it-yourself maintenance
HIGHLANDER HV_U
6-3.Do-it-yourself maintenance
Do-it-yourself  ser vice 
precautions
If you perform maintenance 
by yourself, be sure to fol-
low the correct procedure 
as given in these sections.
Maintenance
ItemsParts and tools
12-volt battery 
condition 
( P.421)
•Grease
• Conventional 
wrench (for ter-
minal clamp 
bolts)
Brake fluid 
level ( P.420)
• FMVSS No.116 
DOT 3 or SAE 
J1703 brake fluid
• Rag or paper  towel
• Funnel (used  only for adding 
brake fluid)
Engine/power 
control unit 
coolant level 
( P.418)
• “Toyota Super 
Long Life Cool-
ant” or a similar 
high quality eth-
ylene gly-
col-based 
non-silicate, 
non-amine, 
non-nitrite and 
non-borate cool-
ant with long-life 
hybrid organic 
acid technology
For the U.S.A.:
“Toyota Super 
Long Life Cool-
ant” is pre-mixed 
with 50% cool-
ant and 50% 
deionized water.
For Canada:
“Toyota Super 
Long Life Cool-
ant” is pre-mixed 
with 55% cool-
ant and 45% 
deionized water.
• Funnel (used  only for adding 
coolant)
Engine oil level 
( P.416)
• “Toyota Genuine 
Motor Oil” or 
equivalent
• Rag or paper  towel
• Funnel (used  only for adding 
engine oil)
Fuses 
( P.446)• Fuse with same 
amperage rating 
as original
ItemsParts and tools 
         
        
        
     
        
        Page 418 of 576

4186-3. Do-it-yourself maintenance
HIGHLANDER HV_Ube consumed while driving. In the 
following situatio
ns, oil consump-
tion may increase, and engine oil 
may need to be ref illed in between 
oil maintenance intervals.
●When the engine is new, for 
example directly after purchasing 
the vehicle or after replacing the 
engine
●If low quality oil or oil of an inap-
propriate viscosity is used
●When driving at high engine 
speeds or with  a heavy load, 
when towing, or when driving 
while accelerating o r decelerating 
frequently
●When leaving the engine idling for 
a long time, or wh en driving fre-
quently through heavy traffic
■Engine coolant reservoir
The coolant level is satisfactory 
if it is between the “FULL” and 
“LOW” lines on the reservoir 
when the engine is cold.
WARNING
■Used engine oil
●Used engine oil  contains poten-
tially harmful contaminants 
which may cause skin disorders 
such as inflammation and skin 
cancer, so care should be taken 
to avoid prolonged and 
repeated contact. To remove 
used engine oil from your skin, 
wash thoroughly with soap and 
water.
●Dispose of used oil and filters 
only in a safe an d acceptable 
manner. Do not dispose of used 
oil and filters in household trash, 
in sewers or onto the ground.
Call your Toyota dealer, service 
station or auto parts store for 
information concerning recy-
cling or disposal.
●Do not leave used engine oil 
within the rea ch of children.
NOTICE
■To prevent serious engine 
damage
Check the oil le vel on a regular 
basis.
■When replacing the engine oil
●Be careful not to spill engine oil 
on the vehicle components.
●Avoid overfilling, or the engine 
could be damaged.
●Check the oil level on the dip-
stick every time  you refill the 
vehicle.
●Be sure the engine oil filler cap 
is properly tightened.
■If oil is spilled on the engine 
cover
To prevent the engine cover from 
being damaged, remove any 
engine oil from the engine cover 
as soon as possible using a neu-
tral detergent. Do not use an 
organic solvent such as brake 
cleaner.
Checking the coolant 
         
        
        
     
        
        Page 426 of 576

4266-3. Do-it-yourself maintenance
HIGHLANDER HV_U
Rotate the tires in the order 
shown.
Front
To equalize tire w ear and extend 
tire life, Toyota recommends that 
tire rotation is carried out at the 
same interval as tire inspection.
Do not fail to initialize the tire pres-
sure warning system after tire rota-
tion.
Your vehicle is equipped with a 
tire pressure warning system 
that uses tire pressure warning 
valves and transmitters to detect 
low tire inflation pressure before 
serious problems arise.
 The tire pressure detected by 
the tire pressure warning sys-
tem can be displayed on the 
WARNING
■When inspecting or replacing 
tires
Observe the following precautions 
to prevent accidents.
Failure to do so may cause dam-
age to parts of t he drive train as 
well as dangerous handling char-
acteristics, which may lead to an 
accident resulting in death or seri-
ous injury.
●Do not mix tires of different 
makes, models or tread pat-
terns.
Also, do not mix tires of remark-
ably different treadwear.
●Do not use tire sizes other than 
those recommended by Toyota.
●Do not mix differently con-
structed tires (radial, bias-belted 
or bias-ply tires).
●Do not mix summer, all season 
and snow tires.
●Do not use tires that have been 
used on another vehicle.
Do not use tires if you do not 
know how they were used previ-
ously.
●Do not tow if your vehicle has a 
compact spare tire installed.
NOTICE
■Driving on rough roads
Take particular care when driving 
on roads with loose surfaces or 
potholes.
These conditions may cause 
losses in tire inf lation pressure, 
reducing the cushio ning ability of 
the tires. In addit ion, driving on 
rough roads may cause damage 
to the tires themselves, as well as 
the vehicle’s wheels and body.
■If tire inflation pressure of 
each tire becomes low while 
driving
Do not continue driving, or your 
tires and/or wheels may be 
ruined.
Tire rotation
Tire pressure warning 
system 
         
        
        
     
        
        Page 428 of 576

4286-3. Do-it-yourself maintenance
HIGHLANDER HV_Uthe vehicle, particularly around the 
wheels or wheel housings.
• If the tire inflation pressure is 
extremely higher  than the speci-
fied level.
• If wheel without the tire pressure 
warning valve and transmitter is 
used.
• If the ID code on the tire pressure 
warning valves and transmitters is 
not registered in the tire pressure 
warning computer.
●Performance may be affected in 
the following situations.
• Near a TV tower, electric power  plant, gas station, radio station, 
large display, airpo rt or other facil-
ity that generates strong radio 
waves or electrical noise
• When carrying a portable radio, 
cellular phone, cordless phone or 
other wireless communication 
device
●If tire position information is not 
correctly displayed due to the 
radio wave conditions, the display 
may be corrected by driving and 
changing the radio wave condi-
tions.
●When the vehicle is parked, the 
time taken for the  warning to start 
or go off could be extended.
●When tire inflation pressure 
declines rapidly for example when 
a tire has burst, the warning may 
not function.
■Warning performance of the tire 
pressure warning system
The warning of the tire pressure 
warning system will change in 
accordance with th e conditions 
under which it was initialized. For 
this reason, the system may give a 
warning even if the tire pressure 
does not reach a low enough level, 
or if the pressure is higher than the 
pressure that was adjusted to when 
the system was initialized. 
         
        
        
     
        
        Page 441 of 576

4416-3. Do-it-yourself maintenance
6
Maintenance and care
HIGHLANDER HV_U
Remove the dust from the air 
intake vent with a vacuum 
cleaner, etc.
Make sure to only use a vacuum to 
suck out dust and clogs. Attempting 
to blow out dust and clogs using an 
airgun, etc. may push it into the air 
intake vent. (P.443)
If dust and clogs cannot be com-
pletely removed with the air 
intake vent cover installed, 
remove the cover and clean the 
filter.
1 Turn the power switch off.
2 Remove the air intake vent 
cover.
Pull the cover as shown in the illus-
tration to disengage the 6 claws, 
starting from the  claw in the upper 
right corner and pull the cover 
toward the front of  the vehicle to 
remove it.
3 Remove the air intake vent 
filter.
Disengage the claw to remove the 
filter from the rear scuff plate.
Cleaning the hybrid 
batter y (traction bat-
ter y) air intake vents 
and filter
To prevent the fuel economy 
from being affected, visually 
inspect the hybrid battery 
(traction battery) air intake 
vents periodically for dust 
and clogs. If it is dusty or 
clogged or if “Maintenance 
Required for Traction Bat-
tery Cooling Parts See 
Owner’s Manual” is shown 
on the multi-information 
display, clean the air intake 
vent using the following 
procedures:
Cleaning the air intake 
vents
If dust and clogs cannot 
be completely removed 
         
        
        
     
        
        Page 445 of 576

4456-3. Do-it-yourself maintenance
6
Maintenance and care
HIGHLANDER HV_Uminal facing up.
WARNING
■Battery precautions
Observe the following precau-
tions. Failure to do so may result 
in death or serious injury.
●Do not swallow the battery. 
Doing so may cause chemical 
burns.
●A coin battery o r button battery 
is used in the electronic key. If a 
battery is swallowed, it may 
cause severe chemical burns in 
as little as 2 hours and may 
result in death or serious injury.
●Keep away new and removed 
batteries from children.
●If the cover cannot be firmly 
closed, stop using the electronic 
key and stow the key in the 
place where children cannot 
reach, and then contact your 
Toyota dealer.
●If you accidentally swallow a 
battery or put a b attery into a 
part of your body, get emer-
gency medical attention imme-
diately.
■To prevent battery explosion 
or leakage of  flammable liq-
uid or gas
●Replace the battery with a new 
battery of the same type. If a 
wrong type of battery is used, it 
may explode.
●Do not expose batteries to 
extremely low pr essure due to 
high altitude or extremely high 
temperatures.
●Do not burn, bre ak or cut a bat-
tery.
NOTICE
■For normal operation after 
replacing the battery
Observe the following precautions 
to prevent accidents:
●Always work with dry hands.
Moisture may cause the battery 
to rust.
●Do not touch or move any other 
component inside the remote 
control.
●Do not bend either of the battery 
terminals. 
         
        
        
     
        
        Page 453 of 576
4536-3. Do-it-yourself maintenance
6
Maintenance and care
HIGHLANDER HV_Uunit.
7
Install the light unit.
Align the 2 guides and push the 
light unit toward the front of the 
vehicle to install it.
8Install the 2 screws. 9
Install the cover.
■Back-up lights
1 Open the back door and 
remove the cover.
Using a flathead screwdriver, 
remove the cover.
To prevent damage  to the vehicle, 
wrap the tip of th e flathead screw-
driver with tape, etc.
2 Turn the bulb base counter-
clockwise and remove it. 
         
        
        
     
        
        Page 457 of 576

457
7
7
When trouble arises
HIGHLANDER HV_U
When trouble arises
.7-1. Essential informationEmergency flashers .... 458
If your vehicle has to be  stopped in an emergency.................................. 458
If the vehicle is trapped in  rising water ................ 459
7-2. Steps to take in an emer- gency
If your vehicle needs to be  towed......................... 461
If you think something is  wrong ........................ 464
If a warning light turns on or  a warning buzzer sounds.................................. 466
If a warning message is dis- played........................ 476
If you have a flat tire.... 481
If the hybrid system will not  start ........................... 493
If you lose your keys ... 495
If the fuel filler door cannot  be opened ................. 495
If the electronic key does  not operate properly .. 496
If the 12-volt battery is dis- charged ..................... 498
If your vehicle overheats .................................. 504
If the vehicle becomes stuck .................................. 507