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.
When the sudden acceleration problem erupted I remember seeing an internal document which related to the rear door latch for Siennas. I own a Sienna and have had to replace the rear latch twice so far. It just brakes apart and it becomes a real huzzle since the rear door cannot be opened. Toyota must replace this latches with a good well manufactured material.
Within a year after buying the 2002 Toyota Sienna the right side sliding door could not be opened from inside. The left side door has the same problem intermittantly. Neither one has been repaired but are seen as a safety concern in the worst case and a constant nuisance otherwise. The issue was not covered under warranty and so remain. The rear door plastic latch broke after about four years, requiring a $200 repair. It broke again after about three more years but this time I repaired it with a metal screw, but a year later it broke in another place and cannot be repaired. The part is made of slightly soft brittle plastic, poorly designed. Interestingly, I recently bought a new Toyota prius and purchased an extended warranty. Reading the fine print I find in the rather long list of exclusions from the "bumper to bumper" warranty are included door latches as well as, ironically, the bumpers.
TL- the contact owns 2002 Toyota Sienna. The contact stated the rear lift gate on the vehicle will not open because the latch is broken. The contact took the vehicle to the dealer and was told there is a plastic link to the latch that had broken and prevents the rear lift gate from opening from the inside and outside. The failure was 175,000 and the current mileage was 183,000.rl
My husband and I purchased a certified used 2002 Toyota Sienna in 2005. Since purchasing the vehicle we have had problems with opening and closing the sliding doors and issue with the trunk. It first started when the trunk would not open any more. The little piece to click it open broke off. Next, the right passenger sliding door would not open from the inside, but could be opened from the outside. Eventually, the outside handle broke off (probably due the inability to open it from the inside). Next the left passenger sliding door started to show similarities to the right sliding passenger door. Eventually, this handle broke off as well and would not open from the inside. To date, the sliding door on the left or the right can not be opened inside or out. This is a safety issue for us and our four kids. The kids have to come through the front to get out of the van. It became somewhat strange to me when I noticed that other Toyota Sienna minivans had handles missing off the back passenger sliding doors. I thought, what is up with the quality of the vans? most individuals driving minivans are transporting children, so I would assume that the vans were constructed to handle the constant opening and closing that occurs from the back passengers. I think this problem should be addressed in a fair way. When we went to inquire about the trunk we were told that it would cost over $200, so we took the optional route of loading groceries, luggage, etc. From the inside. The door incidents have happened this year, 2010. We have owned other vehicles with the kids, namely 1997 Honda Odyssey that did not have any of the handles missing or any problems with getting in and out of the vehicle. I sent a letter to Toyota corporate office on August 22, 2010 via email, no response. I phone Toyota corporate office on August 30, 2010 and was informed that the car was not under warranty (I already knew this) and that there was nothing they could do at this time.
On August 15, 2010 with the 2002 Toyota Sienna in park and with no key in the steering wheel a two year old was able to remove the gear shift from park allowing the vehicle to begin to move backwards. Several people were close by and were able to stop the vehicle which was backing up. Adults then checked the vehicle and in fact were able to move the shifter from park into gear (without the key in its ignition). On August 16 the vehicle was taken to the dealer who confirmed -"customer states the shifter comes out of park without the key in the ignition. Confirmed customer concern. Found shifter cable worn and in need of adjustment."
- West Hartford, CT, USA
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We had some transmission work done on our 2002 Toyota Sienna. After that work was completed the door locks on the van automatically and repeatedly lock with out intervention. This happens when the car is parked, turned off and while driving. We have taken it to the dealership twice while it was happening and they can't figure out how to fix it. The dealership said this issue wasn't related to the transmission work.
1. trunk door latch broken and cannot open. Toyota does not provide a manual trunk release inside the van. 2. passenger side automatic sliding door would not stay closed. It just kept popping open.
Automatic sliding door on Toyota Sienna often does not close. Even when encouraged "manually" to close, it pulls back several times. If auto feature is turned off, it won't pull closed at all. Sliding door on left side won't open from inside. Occasionally locks itself so that it can't be opened from outside either, even if all other doors are unlocked.
Outside door latch on manual sliding door broke. Inside latch still works. Power sliding door refuses to open. Prior to failure, it would try to close several times before actually latching shut. No response from local dealer.
Bought a certified used 2002 Toyota Sienna xle from a Toyota dealership in July 2007. While inspecting it, the driver's side sliding door was acting up. They tried to fix it a couple of times then verbally asked me to bring it back when they had the right parts. 2 weeks later, I brought it in at their request and they 'fixed' it. After I left the shop I noticed it was acting up. I was made to pay for the repairs by the Toyota dealership. This door is acting up right now.
Our 2002 Toyota Sienna automatic lock system started spontaneously locking and unlocking itself. It will do this while it is parked or while driving on the highway. It may do it once or twice, or repeatedly lock and unlock 15 times or more, even during a short commute. It occurs randomly, sometimes multiple times a day, and sometimes not for several days. Rarely will the van stay locked when parked. It is very distracting and a big safety issue. I have tried to have it repaired twice, at 2 different Toyota dealerships. I was told they could not find the source of the problem, as it did not lock and unlock while it was in their care. Of course, it recurred before I returned home.
Driver's and passenger's side automatic sliding doors have been intermittently malfunctioning even after warranty repairs in the past. Sometime, the sliding doors fail to close and stay open, only to be closed manually.
Power door failing to open and close properly. This has been an issue since we purchased the van in 2004. The doors would some times not open under power or would not close under power. We had to manually close/open the door. The passenger side door now will not close under power. When the problem was intermittent, we took the van to the dealer and they said there was no problem. Doing some research on the internet the repair runs in the $1500-$1800 range.
In 2003, ECU unit was replaced on passenger side rear power sliding door as door would intermittently not open or close. Has continued with intermittent problem since replacement until it finally would open by not close. Given the very high volume of complaints about this problem on all years of the Toyota Sienna, I would like for the ODI to open an investigation. All you have to do is google "Toyota Sienna power sliding door problems" and you end up with multiple thousands of hits, with most being chat sites with multiple complaint threads.
I have a Sienna xle 2002 with the electronic sliding doors. From the inside of the van, there are three buttons to open the doors; one on the console, one on the columns between front and back seats and one button in the handle. Periodically the sliding doors will not shut or they will not open. The last time this happened was July 16, 2008 when the kids in the back driver's side tried to open the sliding door and could not. We tried everything and it was jammed shut. It seems like the button in the handle was stuck (which has happened before). This is a very dangerous situation if there was an accident or roll over and my passengers could not get out. I believe this is a defect as I have read many complaints about this problem. My Sienna is still under warranty (7 years), but Toyota will not warranty this lock release button problem because they say it is part of the handle and the handle is not under warranty. I countered that the handle is fine, it is just the button designed in the handle that is broken. If the button was situated elsewhere in the door, I am sure it would be covered. Toyota will not take responsibility for this serious problem that they blatantly know about.
Automatic door locks suddenly and without cause lock and unlock. Sometimes it's while we're driving, sometimes while parked. Sometimes it's front doors only, sometimes back only, sometimes all of them. It seems to happen when it's wet (so far, snowing), though not always. One can be locked inside the vehicle or leave it locked and return to find it unlocked. Dealers along Colorado front range haven't heard of this problem. An internet site suggested a shielded security system harness has fixed the problem for some others. Vehicle is nearly 6 years old with 80K miles. It's never happened before 2/14/08, and it's happened 6-8 times since - though very intermittently.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Round Hill, VA, USA