June 14, 2018 RE: Toyota Sienna dashboard cover recall complaint (vin: 5TDZA23C05S326536)

My local dealer, Fred Anderson Toyota of Columbia, promised to replace my 05 Sienna dashboard cover under a Toyota warranty, on July 3rd, 2015, and that they would order the dashboard cover part and that they would call me when it arrived. The service advisor I met with in person each time was Mr. Ron Kirkland. I followed up again on December 17, 2015, when they again told me that the part was not available and that it was on order, and that they would notify me when it arrived. I followed up by phone a few times in 2016, and early in 2017. I got the same reply each time I spoke with Mr. Kirkland. I then followed up again in person on July 26, 2017. I got the same reply from Mr. Kirkland. On June 11, 2018, I again spoke with Mr. Kirkland regarding the lack of progress in completing this recall work. He promised to look into it, and phone me when he had an answer.

I followed up again with Mr. Kirkland on June 14, 2018, when Mr. Kirkland stated that Toyota was no longer able to honor this warranty work. I voiced my displeasure about Toyota, and Mr. Kirklands lack of professionalism in resolving this warranty service in a timely manner back in 2015. I asked one final question of Mr. Kirkland, How much would it cost me if I paid for the dashboard cover replacement? He gave me an estimate of $2,000. More than 50% of the current value of the Sienna. I am now attempting to contact everyone and anyone who will listen, in an attempt to get this situation resolved honoring the dashboard cover replacement as Toyota promised me in 2015.

Lawrence Young Lexington, SC (803) 944-906one

After getting my car serviced today, I looked at the passenger-side dashboard and saw a crack that wasn't there yesterday. It's thin, and covers about 8 inches, but I'm really ticked off. I've had this car for 10 years, and I've babied it. It's in my garage at home, the garage at work or if it's outside, I have a sunshade up and the windows cracked open. I had no idea this was a known problem until I started searching the web for repair suggestions.

This is my 3rd Toyota, and it's the only one that's had a problem like this. I have only 75K miles on this car, and unless I spend what others report to be $900-$1,000 to replace the dashboard, it'll severely reduce the car's resale value (which would have been for a car in "Excellent" condition before this). I'm also worried about the potential for air bag deployment issues (you can see from the picture the crack is just above the passenger-side airbag lettering).

There are cracks on multiple areas of the dashboard. They are mostly located around the AC vents and at the edges, all around the dash board. Toyota customer service representatives do not acknowledge the condition as a manufacturer's defect. therefore, it is not covered for repair or replacement after the standard warranty of 1 year.

The car has been garaged and even has a cover over the dashboard. The cover, probably prevented us from observing the cracks earlier.

I own another vehicle, a 2001 Nissan Pathfinder. It has not been garaged since I purchased the Sienna in 2005. The dashboard has no cracks in it, and it does not have a cover protecting it from the Florida sun and heat.

The Sienna dashboard is definitely an inferior product. Toyota, by this time should have determined it has a problem and corrected it in newer models.

In February of 2010, Toyota selected me as a happy satisfied customer to appear in their SouthEast United States television advertising campaign to discharge the bad publicity they were getting from the gas pedal/car mat issue which was being blamed as the cause of traffic accidents and fatalities. At the time, I was telling the truth ....I had belief in the company that they reflected the essence of their very logo's meaning ."The Toyota logo contains three ellipses, which represent the heart of the customer, the heart of the product and the heart of technological progress and limitless opportunities of the future."

In my family, there have been 23 Toyotas purchased/leased since 1984... Going to my family gathering looks like you're attending a Toyota convention which was part of the positive message I delivered in the commercial.

In 2011, I began to see unusual scratches on my beautiful van's dashboard....they began to "grow" and "widen"....looking like razor slices. At my next scheduled service maintenance visit, I pointed them out to the service rep who quickly reminded me it was not under warranty and wrote on the back of his card the name of a person who could repair them for about $300-$400. He also gave me the web address where I could order a "slipcover" for under $100. His rapid response indicated to me that others were having the same problem. Since the cracks were growing and showing up in multiple places around the passenger side airbag area and now around the radio console, air vents, and all around the instrument panel, I opted to not go the repair route. Letters and calls to Toyota were treated with this response .... " Sorry, but your vehicle is out of warranty".... with an additional denial that others were complaining.

There must be some inferior plastics being used, not only by Toyota, but Dacor Appliances ... Because I recently received a part from Dacor to replace my 2001 Oven Range Membrane panel ... (Dacor was understanding and offered a replacement part ) .... These plastics begin deteriorating just after the warranty expires.

My main concern is the passenger air bag.......could this plastic defect affect the performance of the airbag? Could it prematurely deploy because of the corroding of the plastic material......? Or....could it prevent the airbag's deployment when needed? Because of this issue, I am also reporting it to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).

If you are having similar issues with your Toyota dashboard, please consider reporting your concerns to National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Their website is https://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/ivoq/

The dash board on my 2005 Toyota Sienna XLE Limited which is always garaged, sun shade in use whenever outdoors and very well taken care of, has developed a three inch crack, passenger side, just left of the top of the glove compartment door. The dealer says it is a heat stress crack and that I should contact Toyota Customer Service. I asked if this is a problem he has noticed with other vans. He said just a few. (really!!!) The Toyota Customer Service rep said that it is not covered under warranty because the car is over 36,000miles.They will record my complaint, and they gave me a case number for future reference. However, there is nothing they are willing to do for me. I stated that I thought that since the materials used for the dash must be inferior, they should assist in getting the dash replaced. This they are not willing to do. "SO SORRY CHARLIE !!!!!!!!!!!!