The decision followed weeks of unsuccessful attempts by the vehicle owner, Dona Wilkie, to obtain assistance from the automaker, with the company eventually agreeing to pay for the repair after the consumer affairs programme Consumer Matters intervened.
Wilkie said the trouble began in August when she drove her Highlander to Calgary to drop off her son at university. What she expected to be a routine journey instead became a worrying experience as the vehicle began changing gears aggressively and producing an unusual noise.
“As I was pressing the accelerator, it would whine. At first, quite low. It was like a humming and then it got louder as the trip went on,” Wilkie said.
Concerned by the worsening symptoms, the British Columbia resident contacted her Toyota dealership upon returning home. She was subsequently informed that the vehicle required a new transmission, a development she said came as a complete shock because she had purchased the Highlander brand new.
“I was shocked,” she said.
The situation became more frustrating when the dealership informed her that the vehicle had exceeded its 100,000-kilometre powertrain warranty by approximately 600 kilometres, leaving her responsible for the replacement cost.
Wilkie, however, maintained that the transmission problems had started while the warranty was still active.
“I have the oil change receipt showing 98,278km before I left for Calgary. The whining with aggressive shifting started at approximately 98,500 km,” she said.
Despite her account, she was presented with a repair bill of $13,586.88.
“Where am I going to get that money? I can’t afford that,” Wilkie told Consumer Matters.
Warranty dispute over servicing history
Wilkie said her dealership contacted Toyota Canada to request a goodwill exception that would cover the repair despite the vehicle being outside the warranty mileage limit.
According to her, the request was rejected because she had not serviced the vehicle at a Toyota dealership and there were no previous records of transmission fluid servicing.
The decision left her stunned, as she said she had maintained the vehicle diligently and retained records of work carried out by independent service providers.
“It’s absolutely ridiculous. Absolutely ridiculous,” she said.
The dispute drew criticism from the Automobile Protection Association (APA), a non-profit consumer advocacy organisation that represents motorists and raises concerns about vehicle reliability and repair practices.
George Iny, the organisation’s director, questioned the relevance of the dealership servicing history to the reported transmission failure.
“That kind of excuse is laughable because you can’t make a connection between oil changes of the engine and transmission failure for a known problem. Literally, dozens of these transmissions are failing in Canada,” Iny said.
He further criticised what he described as the practice of automakers refusing assistance to customers whose vehicles develop problems outside warranty coverage.
“It’s one of the things carmakers do to blow off their customers,” he added.
Existing technical bulletin raises concerns
The controversy has also drawn attention to a technical service bulletin issued by Toyota Canada in February 2021 concerning certain 2021 Highlander, Camry and Avalon vehicles equipped with UA80E or UA80F transmissions.
The bulletin addressed vehicles that might exhibit loud whining or grinding noises, symptoms that bear similarities to those described by Wilkie.
Iny said the APA had received more than 60 complaints involving failures of the eight-speed transmission, with the Highlander accounting for the majority of the reported cases.
The organisation is now preparing a letter to Toyota Canada seeking an extension of the warranty coverage for affected transmissions.
“We’d like to see an extended warranty for this, really lifetime coverage for a transmission of this nature,” Iny said.
Such an extension, if adopted, could offer greater protection to owners who encounter similar mechanical failures after their original warranty expires.
The APA’s concerns also raise broader questions about how automakers respond to recurring complaints involving major vehicle components and whether existing warranty arrangements adequately protect consumers against expensive repairs.
Toyota reverses decision after media intervention
After learning of Wilkie’s situation, Consumer Matters contacted Toyota Canada for an explanation.
Wilkie said she received a telephone call from the automaker the following day, informing her that the company would cover the full cost of replacing the transmission.
In a statement to the programme, Toyota Canada said the request had already been under review when the media organisation contacted the company.
The automaker stated: “...This customer’s request for an out-of-warranty repair exception was already under review when you contacted us and, considering the specifics of her individual situation, Toyota Canada has opted to cover the costs of the customer’s repair.”
Global BC, which also sought clarification from Toyota Canada about the initial rejection of Wilkie’s goodwill request despite her independent servicing records, said it did not receive a response to its questions.
Wilkie, meanwhile, said she had spent weeks trying to obtain a resolution before the media became involved. She added that she had even taken steps to file a small claims notice in an attempt to recover the anticipated repair costs.
“I was waiting weeks to get a response. I even went to the extent of filing a small claims notice, and it wasn’t until Consumer Matters reached out that they reached out to me,” she said.
With Toyota Canada agreeing to pay for the repair, Wilkie has since received a loaner vehicle while awaiting the replacement transmission, which she expects to be completed by the end of the week.
Although the decision resolves her immediate financial predicament, the APA’s call for broader warranty protection could keep the spotlight on transmission reliability and the handling of similar complaints by Toyota Canada.
For Wilkie, the outcome means she will not have to shoulder the $13,586.88 bill herself. For other motorists, however, questions remain about the extent of assistance available when major mechanical failures occur near the end of a vehicle’s warranty period.