Toyota Sienna hatch problems with struts

matterw

The struts on my 2006 Sienna have been replaced once and now I need to have them replaced again. It has 63k miles on it. Between the tires, struts and number of times I have aligned the RFT tires I cannot believe the whole car hasn't been recalled!

Curious to know other's experience with the hatch struts...

ateixeira

My 07 has been fine. No run-flats here, but just oil changes so far...knock on wood.

fibber2

Hatch strut problems seem to be a pretty common issue. I know of others that are on their second set.

Toyota issued a tech service bulletin and limited recall on struts used in association with the power rear liftgate as it has the potential to damage the motor and raise the cost of repair considerably. You could say that doing this was in their own best interest as it saves them bigtime on warranty expenses should you subsequently fry a motor. For those of us without power lift, it is merely an inconvenience and doesn't appear to be on Toyota's radar.

Runflat tire issues are an industry-wide issue of consumer discontent, and not something specific to Toyota. Just talk to any Honda Odyssey owner with PAX tires. Although the construction of the tire is different (PAX requires a special wheel), the end result is the same. Poor ride, short life, high replacement cost, unavailable when you need a replacement.

At least with the Toyota system you can mount conventional tires to the stock rims and just add the spare tire kit behind the 3rd seat. It's an added expense for the hardware kit and you won't be able to drop the left seat, but at least it is an option.

matterw

Update-- I went to Toyota terday and showed them the Toyota recall for the hatch struts (http://www.trucktrend.com/features/news/2008/163_news080722_2004_2006_toyota_si- enna_recall/index.html)... There is also a NHTSA complaint (http://townhall-talk.edmunds.com/direct/view/.f10787b/56) I brought. For some reason they said they weren't aware of these complaints. They replaced the struts no questions asked.

As an aside, when I was waiting in th eservice area, I overheard the service rep talking to another customer about about the RFT tires. The rep said people are getting 15-20k miles from the tires and a lot of customers are changing over to conventional tires. They offer a kit for $1,300 but you cannot put down the 3rd row after installing it. In my opinion, they should offer it for FREE. Sorry, but putting down a $1,000 every 20k is unacceptable!

Hope is helps others...

fibber2

Gee, pretty much as I told you! Nice to hear that they gave you the struts for free.

The basic kit is not that bad (under $400), and still under $800 if you want the fancy trim cover.

Wheel 42611-AE050 $100
Tire (T155/80R17) $200
Carrier Assembly 51900-45010 $15
Clamp Nut 64777-32030 $13
Protector 64778-08010 $12
Optional Spare Tire Cover Deck:
Gray 58410-AE010-B0 / Oak 58410-AE010-E0 $410

There is a Sienna spare wheel & tire listed on eBay right now for $190

ocktober

Could someone send me a copy of the recall from Toyota on this matter?

Thank you

matterw

The links are in my message -- message #4

bondurant

my 2006 sienna only has 35k miles and I now have to have the struts replaced. This is after having both doors replaced and new tires 3 times already due to the unbelievable funky alignment that eats tires. On the way to the parts store to get the struts, the door to the front passenger door storage compartment just fell off! Car is junk! I was trolling the net to find instructions for replacing the struts myself, since the dealer wants $350 and I found the parts at pep boys for $68.

bondurant

the recall only covers the power rear door, not the manual. i just came from the dealer.

fibber2

They should be pretty easy to do. Lift the tailgate all the way up and support it well with a pair of 2x4's cut to size. The little swivel balls attached to the tailgate and the van body are held into holes on the strut ends with little metal retaining clips.

mnrep2

Last September, I brought my 2006 LE back to the dealer because the rear pressure cylinders were weak on my manual opening door. I had gotten a letter that I kept in the glove box from Toyota that authorized replacement of the struts as long as you had less then 100K miles. Unfortunately, I didn't keep that letter after they were replaced. I would try another dealer by phone and see if they won't go to bat for you...

stigsgal

My 2006 Sienna XLE with a rear power door lift struts are failing. We had the struts replaced during the original recall. They fail when the temperature goes below 67. When they fail the power door starts to shut quickly and fail, with the power motor continuing to close the door even if it bumps a person. This is a major safety issue. I took a video of the failure on my phone just in case the dealer "can't recreate the issue".

According to Toyota, the part has already been replaced under the recall so they won't replace it again. In my mind you have a failing part already recalled once. It is failing again and a major safety issue. The door continued to close on my husband who is not a small man and it took quite a bit of strength to push the door back up and off him. If it had been my son who is 9 it would have been a major injury.

I called Toyota and was given a "case number" but no corporate authorization for repair. I was told that it is up to the regional service manager if the part would be replaced. When I pressed what recourse I have as a consumer if the regional manager does not approve the repair, I was told none.

I urge anyone who is having this problem to take the time and report it to the NHSTA. I just did and it took 5minutes. According to the representative, if a recalled part fails again, it is MUCH easier to issue a re-service on the recalled part. Given the nature of the safety issue he urged me to let everyone know to call or go online and report this problem.

I simply can't believe that given the nature of the recall, the safety issues involved and the simple nature and cheap cost of the repair, Toyota is not issuing a service bulletin and simply replacing the failing replaced struts.

The only other car I have ever driven was a Honda, who stood behind a recall re-repair, no problems, no cost. Why I came back to Toyota I will never know.

Please please please report the recall struts failing to the NHSTA!

eperez11

Hi, I have the same probem with my 2005 sienna EXL Limited in Mexico and dealer quoted me around $500 for this repair. I don't want to pay this just for 2 simple struts and some screw driver work. I want to do it by myself. Could you please tell me how you foud them at pep boys? (part number or some clue) I only can do this research by Internet (case I'm from Mexico) and then will try to get them via fedex or something like that. Thanks in advance for your time and help. regards!

jess_z

There's a report over struts, which has something to do with Toyota Sienna recall. The models from 2004 through 2006 are included. Over the past few years, a number of car makers have recalled minivans for rear door struts that fail and can hurt drivers. Numerous have been because of struts made by one company, Stabilus, which is being investigated by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

dlandrews1

All of those strut problems seem to also be an issue on my Sienna, a very early 2010 model. When it was new, the liftgate would close without warning, I got smacked in the back a number of times. I reported the problem to Toyota. Eventually a dealer was able to fix the problem; I'm not sure that I know exactly what the final solution was, because it took a lot of visits. Now, I have another problem, when I close the liftgate manually, with the keyfob or from inside, sometimes it closes part way (less than half) then retracts. Sometimes it is a gentle stop and retract, other times the stop is so violent it shakes the whole van. I've reported this to Toyota also. It's been to the dealer a number of times, but never happened there. The dealer response the last time was that the floor mat in the rear was impeding it. The problem happened before the mat was installed. It never gets low enough for the mat to come into play. Watching it makes me think that something inside that is supposed to slide catches or sticks. I'm no mechanic, but I spent 60 years figuring out why things didn't work, radios, TV's and computer software, and I'm positive the mat isn't an issue. I'm pretty frustrated with what is an otherwise really great van.

kellyjean2011

Apparently, the 2006 Toyota Sienna that I purchased in September 2006 was the last Toyota product that I will ever buy. Although the rear liftgate struts are clearly defective, the "extended" warranty expired in 2012. The dealership where I purchased the van told me that the recall on the 2006 Siennas only applied to those manufactured in "early" 2006 and that mine was produced in later 2006. While I expect to have to replace many parts on my vehicles, I do not expect to have to replace defective rear liftgate struts that Toyota knows do not work. I do not think that it is acceptable to purchase a vehicle that has the capacity of running for over a decade and for several hundred thousand miles when properly maintained that only guarantees you access to the trunk for 6 years. That is just ridiculous. The trunk door weighs a lot. Not only is it a dead lift of that weight, someone has to stand there holding the heavy door in order to access the trunk. We were very happy with the other Toyotas that we purchased over the years, but this 2006 Sienna sucks. Even though I buy good tires and have them regularly rotated, I have had to purchase new tires at least once per year. Even though I do not ride my brakes or drive under extreme conditions, my brakes have had to be replaced numerous times. Although the van is only 8 years old and about 120,000 miles, I am on my 4th or 5th battery. I have never had a vehicle need this much maintenance in the first few years.

Mr_Shiftright

If those are original struts then 120K is pretty much normal life for them. You can order replacements, made in the USA, from Amazon for $38 bucks the pair. Installation is easy. Reviews from users look good.

http://www.amazon.com/Toyota-Sienna-Liftgate-Supports-Struts/dp/B0077HE8PM