The Highlander is one of the best-selling family SUVs.
And like any vehicle that’s packed with technology, it has its share of beeps, noises and chimes.
If you’re puzzled why your Highlander keeps beeping, this guide is for you.
Table of Contents
Toyota Highlander Beeping
The most common causes of beeping on a Toyota Highlander include the dash camera, faulty seatbelt sensors, loose electrical connections, low keyfob battery, low tire pressure, defective door latches or one of the driver assistance features.
Spare Keys Left in Vehicle
If you’ve left a spare set of keys in your Highlander you may hear a warning beep when you go to lock the vehicle as it thinks you are trying to lock the keys in the truck.
Dash Camera
If you have the Toyota factory installed dashcam you’ll likely hear this beep on startup.
You won’t see any warning lights come up on the dash, however, if you look behind your rearview mirror where the dashcam is located, you will see the dash camera flashing.
If you see an error flash, you may notice the micro SD card has not been fully inserted into the camera.
By pressing the SD card into the dashcam, this should stop the beeping.
However, if the SD card is in and it’s still beeping, press and hold the ‘action’ button while you turn on the car.
- Make sure the vehicle is completely off
- Make sure you are parked on level ground
- Make sure the camera has shut off
- Press and hold the action button
- Then start your vehicle
By doing so you will recalibrate your vehicle.
You should hear a couple of beeps and see a green light and you’re good to go.
Loose Connection: Seat Belt Sensors
Loose wiring or a bad electrical connection may be triggering a beeping noise.
It’s worth checking underneath every seat in the vehicle and checking / pressing together all the plastic wire connectors to ensure they are all tight.
It’s also a good idea to do the same behind the glovebox.
Key Fob Battery
This one is fairly self-explanatory.
Make sure your key fob battery has plenty of charge and replace it if it doesn’t.
Seatbelt Alarm & Weight on Seat
The seatbelt alarm is a known suspect for annoying beeps.
There might be a faulty sensor that isn’t recognizing that your seatbelt is fastened.
Alternatively, you may have some weight on the passenger seat like a bag of groceries which is triggering an alarm.
In which case you can try fastening the passenger seatbelt.
You may also be interested in our article: 12 Common Problems with the Toyota Highlander
BSM
The Blind Spot Monitor warns the driver if someone is in their blind spot or if someone is coming up behind your vehicle when you start to reverse, a warning light will flash in your mirror and it should also make a beeping sound.
Faulty Switches
A faulty headlight switch or a faulty ignition switch may be the cause of the beeping.
Since the headlights being on, or the key being in the ignition will cause the chime to sound, one of these switches may have a loose connection or be faulty.
Headlight blown
Check to make sure that none of your lights have burnt out, you should check your rear lights and brake lights too.
Toyota Highlander Beeping While Driving
If you are experiencing beeping whilst driving your Toyota Highlander, this may be caused by a faulty door latch, if you have a ‘door ajar’ light on the dashboard then this is almost certainly the case, these latches can often become stuck.
Faulty latches are very common across all vehicles – you may need to have a latch replaced although you should first try lubricating it with something like WD-40.
If it’s not related to the door sensor/latch then it could be caused by a damaged wire.
A lot of mysterious beeps and electrical issues can be traced back to damaged wires or loose electrical connections.
Why Does My Highlander Beep When I Turn It Off
If you are hearing a beep or chime when you turn off your Highlander this is likely because you opened the door first without turning off the engine. It may also be caused by if you left the sunroof open.
No Chime:
- Engine running
- Put vehicle into Park.
- Turn off the Engine
- Open the door.
Chime:
- Engine running
- Put vehicle into Park
- Open the door
- Turn off the Engine
It may be possible to disable this using the Toyota Techstream software.
Toyota Highlander Not Beeping When Locked
If your not Highlander isn’t beeping when you lock it, it may be because the lock beeps have been turned off. The procedure to turn the beeps back on is fairly straightforward.
This trick is common across a wide range of Toyota vehicles from various years and isn’t specific to the Highlander.
- Sit inside the vehicle leave the door open
- Put the key in the ignition
- Release it straight away
- Put the key back in
- Turn the key to ON
- Count to 10
- Press any key on the fob, release.
- Press it again.
- You should hear a beep, that means it worked.
- Step outside the vehicle and test it out.
Related: Toyota Highlander Alarm Going Off? (12 Causes & Solutions)
Other Common Beeping Causes
- Door / rear hatch open or not closed properly
- Traction control (beeps when it activates)
- Exceeding speeds set in cruise control
- Door is open and key is ignition
- Seatbelt not fastened
- Headlights on / key in ignition when door is open
- Low fluids e.g. windshield waher fluid
- Reversing (in some cases)
- Spare set of keys locked in car
- A warning / error condition on the instruments
- Low fuel
- RSA (road sign assist)
- Lane Sway Warning (excessive swaying within the lane markings)
- Lane Departure Alert
- BSM (blind spot monitor)
- ICS (Intelligent Clearance Sonar)
- Park Assist
- PCS (Pre-Collison System)
Resources
https://www.toyota.com/owners/resources/warranty-owners-manuals.highlander.2020
https://www.toyota.com/owners/resources/warranty-owners-manuals.highlander.2018
