This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.
So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.
Driving South bound on rt. 301 in bowie, md. Began to slow and moved right into the exit lane towards mount oak rd. West bound. Heard a loud noise and the 2001 Toyota Sequoia leaned over toward the drivers side front wheel. It became extremely hard to turn the steering wheel and braking power was greatly reduced and the Sequoia was basically uncontrollable. Was able to steer slight towards the right to avoid being pulled back into traffic. Impacted a safety median, designed to protect cars entering the highway from those exiting the highway, and crossed completely over it the wheel hub had separated from the lower control arm. The tire, wheel rim, hub, steering rack, steering tie rod, control arms, brake lines, drive axle, etc. Had all been damage severely. Pictures of the scene show a single skid mark from the driver's side front wheel clearly. The single skid mark indicates that one wheel was not rotating at all, while the other three were rotating freely, or under the control of the anti-lock brakes. I found no my 2001 recalls. I later found NHTSA campaign id number : 05V225000 indicating a recall due to failed ball joints in the 2002-2004 Sequoia. The Sequoia model was first available as a MY2001 and initial introduction was late in 2000. MY2002 started in the late summer of 2001. I find it hard to believe that so quickly after the model introduction Toyota would make major changes in the suspension and/or ball joints. It was by luck only that no one was injured or killed due to the suspension failure, Toyota needs to react quickly and notify MY2001 owners of this dangerous defect. Not only did the suspension fail, causing the wheel to move back and jam into the rear wheel well area, but it seemed to cause an almost total loss of braking ability. I believe the anti-lock brakes responded to the locked front wheel by modulating the power to the other wheels resulting in less braking force.
The braking system has been a problem since about 10,000 miles, and continues to be a problem today. I have taken my Sequoia to the dealer several times. The dealer has not fixed the problem. Drive shaft thumping/lurching at the end of a full stop continues to be a problem. Fuel gage failure - the fuel gage remains below empty.
While driving at any speed and when the brakes were applied the vehicle surged forward. Dealer has tried to find the cause of the problem on six different occasions. Also, when vehicle was at a stop light it trembled violently.
Brake pedal goes all the way down to the floor and vibration is present while driving on an incline. The driver is concerned that the brake light will stay on until the vehicle shuts off.
Brake problem presented itself by the vehicle vibrating when braking from high speed. All brakes required servicing and then replacement. Emergency brake required adjusting three times within 20,000 miles. When only one window is open at speeds greater than 30 mph, causes severe pressure vibrations inside the vehicle interior. Pressure vibrations extremely distracting and annoying.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Bowie, MD, USA