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 differential has very scary noise while driving, mechanic identified that we have to replace the rear differential which might cost $2500 to $3000 the same problem do exist on RAV4 and it's under recalls, while many people have the same problem for the same year like mine 2011 Toyota sienna AWD and other years to 2018. This issue is the manufacture responsibility not the owner of the car as wear and tear items " my van has about 126,000 miles on it. Please a recall should be issued it is across for many people
Loud Noise from the rear end, diagnosed to be a viscous coupler bearing malfunction by my mechanic. Total cost of repair is 2428 Dollars. In doing my research into this matter, this is a very common issue with my model Sienna. It is also common with same year Rav4 which a TSB was issued and covered by Toyota T-SB-0080-13. To cite a transmission mechanics who have experiences with the Rav4/Sienna rear differential issues. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r1vg2sbYL68 I hope you can help, this is a very large cost which is almost the price of the car in total. My family needs this car as we do not live in a city with very little public transportation available to us for utilize. The price of the repair will be a hardship on our family. I hope you can convince Toyota to step up and stand behind their product, to a very well known issue. Thank you for all you do.
I was driving from toronto to Virginia on 23 Dec 2020 and refilled gas in springfield NY walmart gas station to refill the gas. When I entered bedford pa turnpike, the car sounded with different sounds from engine on the ramp when entering the 70/76 freeway. When entered to Virginia from Maryland border after potomac river crossing on highway 15, the car suddenly stopped while driving at 30 mph and pulled the car to the side of the road slowly and when I restarted the car, it started normal and drove till chantilly Virginia without any stopping. But the engine gave me different noises.
When accelerating vehicle makes loud humming noise. Stops when you take your foot off the gas. I was told it is the rear differential. I have read many complaints about this faulty part. Why is this not being investigated? $2000 repair.
Electromagnetic coupler on AWD Sienna, it seems like a super common problem that costs ~$2,500 us to fix and starts around the 100,000 mile odometer reading.
Began hearing a loud whirring sound from rear of car when car is in motion. Got louder over time. Our regular mechanic could not diagnose the noise. Toyota dealership finally diagnosed as a failed electromagnetic rear coupler. Suggested we not use 'cheap tires.' We never have. We actually went through three sets of the recommended 'run flat' tires in under 75,000 miles. As you know, these are not cheap tires to replace. Cost to replace coupler is incredibly high - should be covered under warranty, as a google search and discussions on Toyota chat sites tell me this is a common problem.
Whirring noise from the rear differential while the vehicle is in motion. The pitch of the whir gets higher as the vehicle accelerates. Cause is a faulty bearing in the electromagnetic coupler assembly.
This vehicle has all wheel drive and uses an electromechanical coupler on the rear differential. It is very similar configuration to the Toyota rav4 that uses a viscous coupler in the same location. My coupler has failed due to the front bearing failing. The vehicle is 8 years old and has about 95000 miles on it. Toyota has issued a technical service bulletin and provided extended warranty coverage for the bearing failure problem on the rav4. So far, they have refused to provide similar coverage for repairs on the AWD Sienna, even though the failure mode is identical. We first noticed the problem when the vehicle started making loud grinding noise from the rear axle while driving. It wasn't clear what the source of noise was, but after finding the service bulletin for the problem on the rav4, it became clear this same bearing failure was happening on the AWD Sienna's, so it was repaired. It was repaired before it failed catastrophically. It is hard to know what would have happened if the sound was ignored. Would the drive shaft sieze up" engine stall? transmission fail" Toyota does not sell this bearing for the Sienna, they require the entire coupling to be replaced, with a list price over $1700, plus labor. This defective part should be subject of a recall and the repair performed on all AWD Sienna with the defective bearing configuration.
The contact owns a 2011 Toyota Sienna. When the engine was started with the gear in park and the passenger side sliding door open, the vehicle suddenly drove forward and crashed into a concrete pillar. While attempting to stop the vehicle, the contact became trapped between the vehicle and the concrete pillar. The contact sustained injuries to the head, left hip, legs, torso, and both arms. Medical attention was not received. The cause of the failure was not determined. The local dealer and manufacturer were not notified of the failure. The cause of the failure was not determined. The failure mileage was 150,000.
The contact owns a 2011 Toyota Sienna. While driving approximately 60 mph, the vehicle started to decelerate. There was no warning indicator illuminated. The vehicle decelerated and stalled. The vehicle was towed to Toyota of orange (located at 1400 N tustin St, orange, ca 92867, (714) 639-6750) where it was diagnosed that the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The approximate failure mileage was 200,000.
At appx 50-60K miles, my rear differential began making a loud whirring sound. No specific 'time' of failure..just a gradual buzzing noise. Diagnosed as a bearing failure in a coupler from the local Toyota service dept. $2500 fix. Research shows the rav 4 to have had same faulty problem, but there was a recall for rav 4 owners. Why not a recall for Siennas? one would think Toyota would assume Siennas were bought for large families, packed with children, etc, and would place a recall first and foremost. Many people have posted online on forums and youtube about this problem. I have been corresponding to multiple groups in order to bring more attention and action to promote this fault and get proper compensation to get this fixed. The vehicle is very loud, expecially on the highway. Very unsafe.
I was driving the vehicle down the interstate and it started to slow down. The engine was still running. However, the transmission was slipping and I could not maintain the posted speed limit. The only way to keep the vehicle moving was to rev the engine up to between 5,000 and 6,000 RPM. Fortunately, I was able to get to an exit and get the vehicle to a parking lot. At that point, the vehicle would not move under it's own power. The engine would run, but there was no power to the drive wheels. This concerns me as I was lucky to get the vehicle off the interstate and off the road without incident. Otherwise, given the traffic and posted speed limit, I was concerned that someone would run into me.
There is a safety recall B0H issued by Toyota that only impacts certain 2011 model year Siennas. This is where the right hand front drive shaft assembly is impacted. The vehicle of my 2011 Toyota Sienna does not match those vehicle identification number(s) that are impacted by this recall. My vehicle is exhibiting the exact same issue that other 2011 Toyota Siennas are running into but my vehicle VIN number is not included in the safety recall. My vehicle has 75656 miles on it and Toyota dealership will not fix this safety recall without me paying for it. I called Toyota about this issue (case 1710022954) but they are refusing to send me any documentation through email on this and refusing to completely fix the safety recall issue on my 2011 Toyota Sienna.
The contact owns a 2011 Toyota Sienna. The contact heard a whining noise from the rear of the vehicle whenever the vehicle was being driven over 10 mph. The contact took the vehicle to the stevenson Toyota East dealer (444 havana St, Aurora, co 80012; 303-340-2170) where it was diagnosed that the rear defrensioner coupling failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and informed the contact that, despite the repair calling for the same part as a previous recall (NHTSA campaign number unknown), they would not be able to assist with the repair. The model of the vehicle was different and the vehicle was no longer covered under warranty. The approximate failure mileage was 86,000.
The contact owns a 2011 Toyota Sienna. While driving approximately 30 mph, a loud noise was heard underneath the front end of the vehicle without warning. The vehicle was towed to sonoco auto shop, lexington ark, md, where it was diagnosed that the front right drive shaft was fractured. Also, the front driver side drive shaft was faulty. The technician recommended that both parts needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure was not repaired. Also, the contact received notification of NHTSA campaign numbers: 16V858000 (structure), 14V273000 (tires), and 11V560000 (equipment). The failure mileage was 100,000. VIN tool confirms parts not available. Parts distribution disconnect.
I'm owner of Toyota Sienna 2011 5 years 2-nd owner 79K miles and experience whirring noise in rear differential after visiting Toyota dealers without any success accept price tag for replacement rear differential coupler. After that do some research and find the other owners experience that same issue find that tsb #tsb-0080-13 NHTSA id #10052631 with model rav4 use this same differential coupler have extra extended warranty because of that issue. How safety right now is car to drive I don't know in my case with 3 kids aboard I will replace that differential coupler on my cost right now, and do some investigation later. Please see upload file with some research I do thank you [xxx] information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).
I pulled into a relative's gravel driveway which has a very large parking area to the side. I pulled up to about two feet from their grassy area, got into position to back up into a parking space, stopped, and put my 2011 Sienna into reverse, and as soon as I gently touched the excelerator to begin backing up the van sped forward at a high rate of speed crashing into and over an 8 inch railroad tie that had a steelbeam on top that separated the driveway from their yard. I had to slam both feet onto the brake to get it to stop which it finally did. I thought I had not put it in reverse but I looked at the gearshift and it was indeed in reverse. I jiggled the gearshift to make sure it was secured in the slot and it was. I then put it in park and sat there for a minute or two trying to gain composure trying to figure out what just happened, I was in shock as nothing like this has ever happened to me before. After that minute or two I decided I couldn't let the vehicle sit there and needed to move it. Scared, but I put it in reverse again, ready to pounce on the brakes with both feet and barely touching the excelerator I started moving in reverse. It was working fine then. I then got out to check for damage and the bumper on the driver's side was damaged from the impact. The airbag did not deploy, I was not hurt however had any of my relatives been in that area at that moment it could've resulted in an injury or fatality. I reported what happened to the local dealership where I bought it and then to Toyota usa as instructed in the handbook. Now I'm reporting it here. Am awaiting contact supposedly within the next day or so to see what Toyota intends to do with the Sienna. I will not drive again it until the reason for this defect is found and fixed and damages repaired. The outcome will decide whether I will ever be a Toyota customer again.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Richfield, WI, USA