Chevrolet Monte Carlo vs Toyota Highlander

Both cars' complete complaint records, side by side.

Read the totals carefully. NHTSA publishes no sales figures, so the car that sold more collects more complaints regardless of quality. The rows worth weighing are the proportions — the share of complaints that involved harm, and which part dominates.

Measure	Chevrolet Monte Carlo	Toyota Highlander
Complaints on file	2,964	7,196
Model years covered	1974–2010	1997–2026
Worst model year	2001	2021
Best model year	2005	2025
Crashes reported	203	704
Fires reported	207	88
Injuries reported	133	384
Deaths reported	16	10
Most complained-about part	Electrical System	Transmission & Drivetrain
Share of complaints involving harm	18.9%	16.5%

Chevrolet Monte Carlo by year

1 2 2 1 3 7 6 9 5 1 244 255 218 129 170 332 417 319 204 275 155 146 54 3 6

74 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 91 95 96 97 98 99 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 10

Complaints filed with NHTSA, by model year. Bar colour is the FaultScore grade: A B C D F ungraded

What breaks

Electrical System 626 21.1%

Engine & Cooling 518 17.5%

Brakes 395 13.3%

Steering 207 7.0%

Lights 170 5.7%

Transmission & Drivetrain 166 5.6%

Airbags 137 4.6%

Fuel & Propulsion 136 4.6%

Toyota Highlander by year

1 1 158 335 316 337 289 348 159 502 178 272 229 230 282 162 254 138 371 357 633 372 638 320 238 59 13 4

97 98 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26

Complaints filed with NHTSA, by model year. Bar colour is the FaultScore grade: A B C D F ungraded

What breaks

Transmission & Drivetrain 1,021 14.2%

Brakes 753 10.5%

Engine & Cooling 718 10.0%

Electrical System 627 8.7%

Other & Unspecified 615 8.5%

Windows, Mirrors & Wipers 531 7.4%

Body & Structure 453 6.3%

Acceleration & Cruise Control 447 6.2%