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	7,124
Model years covered	1974–2010	1997–2026
Worst model year	2001	2019
Best model year	2005	2025
Crashes reported	203	701
Fires reported	207	86
Injuries reported	133	381
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 1 158 335 316 337 289 346 159 502 178 272 229 230 281 161 250 137 369 353 625 365 618 311 232 55 13 1

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 988 13.9%

Brakes 745 10.5%

Engine & Cooling 713 10.0%

Electrical System 623 8.7%

Other & Unspecified 608 8.5%

Windows, Mirrors & Wipers 529 7.4%

Body & Structure 449 6.3%

Acceleration & Cruise Control 447 6.3%