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.
Rear passenger electric sliding door does not open or close and failed one day. The door latch assembly is electrically operated and there is no manual override. The door can only be operated electrically and cannot be opened manually at all with out making a $1500 - $3500 repair to replace the faulty electrical system (door latch assembly and door motor) of the vehicle. This is a potentially life threatening situation for small children since if there is an accident how are you going to get the children out of the vehicle since the door cannot be operated manually? this issue needs to be investigated and a total recall of all electrical door assemblies need to be made for all years affected and a manual override needs to be engineered such that children's lives are not at risk due to faulty engineering.
Both sliding doors broke within 6 months of one another; one still operates manually, the other cannot be opened at all. Toyota states the $3000 repair will not be converted under warranty though this appears to a very frequent problem discussed on online chatrooms.
The driver's side door hinge is broken and makes opening and closing of the door difficult and seems unsafe. We took it too the dealer and they told us it's not covered and will cost too much money for us to repair.
Due to what I have learned is among nearly all 2004 Toyota Sienna owners, the sliding can doors freeze shut and can't be opened. On christmas day 2012, my van was parked on the street, and at about 1am I went out to start the van and warm it up for my family, about 15 minute later I came out with the kids to leave. I then discovered that the doors were frozen shut. I tried pulling many times and then tried having someone go inside the van and push while I pulled, it didn't work. Then I had my wife take the kids back in the house while I worked on it, I got the door to open about an inch and I stuck my fingers in and gripped the edge of the door for better leverage and to avoid damaging the handle. I then pulled really hard and it came a little further open. It then engaged the automatic close and shut my 4 fingers into the door. I was then alone outside with one hand stuck in the door, I screamed for help and finally some people came outside and ran inside the van from the drivers door and two people kicked on the door from the inside while one pulled from the outside until they broke the frozen seal. My fingers were in extreme pain and I couldn't bend any of them for several hours. I had deep grooves on either side of my fingers and to this day I have scar tissue build up on the backside of my fingers from he compression damage. This again happened to my 3 year old daughter a year later when she ran and tried to open the door. Fortunately her fingers were smaller so there was less damage to her fingers than mine. But in either case, had there not been other people there to help. There would be no hope of saving yourself. I should note that I am a 6' 28 year old male who works in construction and is in good shape. With all of my effort, including putting my feet on the passenger door and pulling I couldn't open the door. This has broken both of our automatic doors.
The driver door welds have broken, which causes the door to be difficult to open and close. Research on the matter revealed eventually the entire door check mounting panel can fail, causing the door to close unexpectedly and become a safety issue. I called Toyota's Consumer Affairs department, and they refused to take any corrective action. Toyota was aware of this problem years ago, which was documented in their own tsb #NV003-07. As a senior citizen, I am afraid I will be injured by this defect, which is becoming worse as time progresses.
- Fort Pierce, FL, USA
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2004 Toyota Sienna xle limited: The rear door/hatch closes randomly after opening. The method of opening does not seem to make a difference whether by remote or interior door controls. Three times now I was nearly crushed in the door, barely escaping in time. It is beyond reason why this has not been addressed already as it is clearly an issue that has or will cause bodily harm and not a new issue. A well documented defect that is not addressed...wow. The vehicle was parked when the incidence(s) occurred. Whoever has the authority please put this item on recall before someone is seriously injured or worse! thank you.
The vehicle was parked in a shopping center parking lot. I had lifted the taligate with the power lifter. As my wife was bending into the cargo area to get tote bags, the door came down on her. She jumped aside. The door continued to come down. This happened again in the manual mode. We took the van to the dealer. They "verified customer's concern." Because these struts have been the subject of a recall or extended warranty and because this is a safety issue, I contended that Toyota should pay for the repair/replacement, although the warranty had expired. We did not go forward with the work. The dealer referred me to corporate, where I had already established a case. I have talked again with corporate. The case is under review.
There is an issue with the door check mounting panel on both of the minivan's front doors. The door check mounting panel is the piece that keeps the door open, and if the part fails the door can swing freely and unexpectedly shut ' obviously a concern for parents with kids. Toyota has traced the problem back to bad spot welds performed at the automaker's princeton, Indiana factory.
Driver side second row passenger power sliding door suddenly stopped working. Only slightly budges manually and electrically then has to be forced closed. Mechanic suspects broken cable and quoted me $1,500 - $2,000 to repair. Really? and if the other door stops working like the hundreds of complaints I am reading on just one blog (repairpal)? I love this van and have babied it with on-time maintenance and repairs but this is too much! I can't afford this but safety is a major concern to me as this exit no longer exists.
When opening the power/sliding door, passenger side, a wire snapped and the door got stuck in an almost closed position and would not budge. I am told this is a known problem at Toyota. The cable used is very thin for the load it bears. Poor design, which apparently they have fixed in later models.
When opening the door at the driver side (left), a big popping sound can be heard. Tsb: NV003-07 door check popping noise this is a known problem for all the car made during the time.
The contact owns a 2004 Toyota Sienna. The contact stated that the dashboard was cracked and the spare tire carrier cable was loose. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign number: 14V273000 (tires). The contact stated that the parts needed for the repair were not available. The manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 200,000.
Driver's door check broken loose from a spot weld on 2004 Sienna xle van. Toyota issued a technical service bulletin, NV003-07 revised on it. Toyota will only fix it for 5 years or 100,000 miles. Because it is a structural defect it should be covered by their lifetime warranty. The remedy is to replace the entire door......updated 10/01/15
Driver side door's started making a popping noise around 2012, with only 60,095 miles on the vehicle. The door became unwieldy and did not "check" itself when opening and closing, which resulted in bruised legs, but no serious injuries (thus far). My local Toyota dealer in puyallup, wa indicated it would cost $2000 to replace the door. I opted to have a weld performed on the door for $200 by a certified auto body repair shop. The weld held until just recently (circa 2/2015), and the issues resurfaced. Once again, the door is unwieldy and doesn't "check" itself when opening and closing, resulting in bruised legs and safety & property concerns. I did some internet research into this problem and, unbeknownst to me, Toyota had offered a "warranty enhancement" for this issue. This is documented in Toyota technical service bulletin tsbnv003-07. However, I never received any notification of this warranty enhancement from Toyota. I am fastidious about processing & saving paperwork of this kind. We are the original owners of the vehicle and have not moved since the vehicle purchase date. Moreover, our Toyota dealership failed to make mention of the warranty enhancement as well, when we asked for a quote to repair the problem. I called Toyota Corp today, and it is unwilling to extend the warranty enhancement any further to address this specific issue. It seems that we didn't use the car often enough for this defect to become manifest during the enhanced warranty period. Nor were we ever notified of the problem by Toyota Corp. The salient point here is... it doesn't seem right that a consumer is burdened with a costly repair for an admitted and obvious safety defect that is a potential source of injury to persons and property, as a consequence of "light vehicle use" and insufficient communication by Toyota.
The contact owns a 2004 Toyota Sienna. The contact stated that the driver side door weld had fractured which caused the door to crack and move out of place. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic for a diagnosis. The technician stated that the hinges needed to be replaced and welded. The vehicle was repaired but the failure recurred. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 65,000. The VIN was unavailable.
After driving the minivan to drop off the children at daycare, the driver side power door was open automatically but afterward, would not close. The motor that opens and closes the door would not respond to the button that opens and closes the door. It would not respond to the remote control button that open and closes the door. That driver side door stayed stuck in the open position. I attempted but could not push it to get it close. I attempted to press and use the button on the dashboard that would make the door go into manual mode but once the motor is engage to drive open the door, it seems that it would not disengaged. Again, the door just stay stuck in the open position. I ended up driving the minivan slowly on the side roads for about 5 miles to get back home with the driver side door open and park it back in my garage. I called Toyota headquarter today (2-9-2015) to file my safety concern/complaint and am given a complaint #[xxx] Toyota will not help me rectify the safety defect, they said it was out of warrantee. I would have to take care of the safety defect myself. Please look into this matter. Luckily, this incident happened in phoenix, Arizona where weather is usually not an issue. I use to live in minneapolis, Minnesota. This van was purchase there in Minnesota in fact. I can imagine a scenario where if the door would not close during winter with children in it, it could be dangerous and catastrophic in terms of exposing the passengers to the harsh elements. Information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).
The front driver side entry door makes a popping noise when it is opened and closed. After looking at several on-line resources I found it is caused by a faulty spot weld where the door check strap attaches to the door. When viewed you can see door check strap mount move and flex as the door is opened and closed.
Drivers door shell ripped from the door check mount when opening. The drivers side front door previously made loud snap noise, found problem, check mount was replaced in Apr 2012 at 43500mi. Mid Dec 2014 same noise returned, only this time, the door shell ripped and swung very wide open from a light gust of wind. The door sheet metal is nearly torn completely away, and the door check mount is just barely hanging on. If any one had been standing there it would have knocked them down, or worse. Sorry for the rant. Now, I've learned that Toyota has known about this specific problem with this vehicle year and model, but they refused to take adequate action, only informing some, and calling it a minor problem. Its going to cost over $2000 to replace the door. Minor? and that won't fix the design problem. It'll likely happen again in another 20K+ miles. Thank you for your concern. Updated 1/29/16
The automatic doors do not function. It is impossible to open one and the other only from outside. I brought this in after the cable snapped and was told the recall on the cable was only good up to 100000 miles not the 150000 I had. They then told me it was an old car what did I expect. I would like my passengers to be able to exit the van if something were to happen to me. This van has had 3 radiators the last one costing over $600 to replace. When does Toyota need to take responsibility for building a $38000 dead trap?
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Ijamsville, MD, USA