Used 2003 Toyota Highlander Consumer Reviews
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Best Car Ever
Tracy, 07/20/2019
2003 Toyota Highlander Limited Fwd 4dr SUV (3.0L 6cyl 4A)
7 of 7 people found this review helpful
I bought my 2003 Highlander used 7 years ago with 113,000 miles on it. Only a few minor repairs that had to be done and its still going strong at 268,000. My previous car was bought off the showroom floor and died two weeks after I paid it off. I will drive my Highlander until the wheels fall off!
- Safety
- Technology
- Performance
- Interior
- Comfort
- Reliability
- Value
Blown Head Gasket Engine 4cyl Bad News
toml1958, 11/02/2011
2003 Toyota Highlander Fwd 4dr SUV (2.4L 4cyl 4A)
19 of 22 people found this review helpful
Beware of the dreaded code stating leakage in exhaust system, for this is an idication of the head gasket going and leaking coolant. Upon further review it is found thatrear head bolts are stripped due to excessive heat most like caused by foam insulator pad between plastic intake manifold and engine. Some say engine is toast, but the fix rec. is a time sert insert kit (approx $500 helicoil) with drill guide. Mine is to be currently repaired at about a total cost of $2,900.00 as long as the helicoil kit holds the head bolt torque, we will see? It is a design flaw in my opinion as it seems to be a regular issue with the four cylinder Highlanders approx.2001-2005? Failure was at 160,000 mi.
2003 Toyota Highlander for sale near you
3 of 77 listings
- Base 4dr SUVMSRP: $6,000209 mi away
- Base 4dr SUVMSRP: $5,756213 mi away
- Base 4dr SUVMSRP: $7,295214 mi away
See all 77 listings
Good Car
graphical87, 09/22/2011
2003 Toyota Highlander Fwd 4dr SUV (2.4L 4cyl 4A)
10 of 11 people found this review helpful
I've had my Toyota highlander for about 5 months now. When I first got it it had almost 216,000 miles. It's a great SUV and pretty reliable with decent gas mileage. At about 218,000 miles the temperature gauge started going up , almost to red. It would go up and then down to normal and repeat. Turned out I blew a head gasket. While it was at the shop being repaired they found that the head bolts were stripped which is a known problem with this year ,make and type of engine my highlander has. Ended up paying $3,700 to get fixed. Despite the major repair I haven't had any other problems with it. I'm at 222,000 miles and it runs great. I'm hoping on making it to 300,000 + miles.
Awesome suv
David, 10/04/2016
2003 Toyota Highlander Limited Fwd 4dr SUV (3.0L 6cyl 4A)
6 of 6 people found this review helpful
Went looking for a new one and ran across this flawless 2003. What gem. Love it
- Performance
- Interior
- Comfort
Great Value
A. Palermo, 04/03/2006
2003 Toyota Highlander Limited Fwd 4dr SUV (3.0L 6cyl 4A)
5 of 5 people found this review helpful
I drive this car everywhere as you can tell by the mileage, 75000 in 3 years. I wanted something comfortable for all passengers and this fit the bill and even after all the miles, it still rides comfortably. I also wanted an SUV that I could fit large items in the back and the highlander has the size I need. One of the problems with all the fancy SUVs on the market is that by paying $30000 or more you hate to get it dirty and use it for more then driving around town. Not the Highlander. It's priced right and I don't mind getting it dirty!