Edmunds dealer partner, Bayway Leasing, is now offering transparent lease deals via these forums. Click here to see May lease deals!
Options
Popular New Cars
Popular Used Sedans
Popular Used SUVs
Popular Used Pickup Trucks
Popular Used Hatchbacks
Popular Used Minivans
Popular Used Coupes
Popular Used Wagons
Comments
Now that I've finally resolved my rattle issues (and I had several)I'm getting to like my '01 XLE very much. I've had it 9 months with no mechanical problems. Sludge? I've read everything this site has to offer. Who knows but my conclusion based on reading lots of posts....change the oil religiously every 3-4k. I do that anyway so the only change I've made is I let the dealer do it....just in case. My dealer has a quick-oil change on site so it's no bother to me. Toyota has an outstanding reputation for reliability, and if they've dropped the ball on their new engines, it will surprise me (not to mention the rest of the world).
For me, the weakest point of a Sienna is lack of personality. What that really means is everything about it is EASY....a very nonconfrontational driving experience. Everything is simple and so straight-forward, it comes off kinda plain and dull. In the long run that may also be it's best characteristic.
2001 Toyota Sienna LE - all major options sans leather.
Problems:
1) Power Sliding door is dangerous! It opens and closes several times when you push the button, sounding the buzzer the whole time. Sometimes it decides to close completely, mostly when you catch it mid-way and force it closed. We don't use the power door anymore. I'm worried it will cut off my kids hand.
2) Front driver and passenger doors are very difficult to open. Sometimes you practically have to yank the door handles off to get them to open. Then it finally opens with a loud pop. Door makes popping noises as you open it, and it looks like the black plastic retainer in the door jamb is loose.
3) In reverse at low speed, all of a sudden you hear and feel a very loud "thunk" like you just ran over something... or backed into something. The first time this happened, my pregnant wife was backing out of the driveway and almost went into premature labor, thinking she just ran over a kid or something. I jumped out of the car and quickly looked to find... nothing. Van does this frequently, now. If we ever do back over a kid on a bike, we probably wont even know it. Thanks Toyota. Seriously, I never get used to it. It happens nearly every time you back up and it really feels and sounds like you struck something with the van. VERY BAD!!!
4) Windshield is wavy and distorted in places and causes bad headaches. (Who built this van again? Chrysler?)
5) Rearview Compass mirror has already been tightened once by the dealer. Vibrates uncontrollably. Gives you a headache if you look into it.
6) (My wife thinks this one is funny) Don't ever drive with the sun visors unlatched in my van because they literally swing around and smack you in the head when you turn a corner. (I swear I'm going to rip them off one of these days!)
7) Gearshift gets stuck in park. Sometimes you just cant yank it out of park without putting all your force into it. Something is seriously wrong here! Also, anyone notice that the gearshift lever just dangles there? Wiggle it once and see. Toyota couldn't invest in a $.02 bushing?
There are other problems, but I can't remember all of them right now.
Other annoyances:
Tires: These Firestone tires are terrible! You feel every bump and hear lots of road noise especially at highway speeds. I noticed the XLE comes with a slightly larger and higher quality tire. Thanks, Toyota. $29k isn't enough cash to get me a set of tires worth more than $150?
Ok... So I've had this car about two months and I have less than two thousand miles on it. My "repair list" keeps growing every day along with my total disgust for this lemon of a van. I have written Toyota a letter requesting a replacement vehicle for this obvious mistake.
Has anyone successfully gotten Toyota to replace their Lemon?
My wife is so mad about this situation, she's trying to get me to just trade the darn thing in on a Honda and get rid of it. I'm going to give Toyota the opportunity to make us happy with this situation. I'm hopeful that they'll help me out. I don't want to be a former Toyota customer. I really like their products. ....But this van is simply ridiculous.
Please e-mail me with comments if you wish:
guitarzan.geo@yahoo.com
Have you read your owners manual yet? The slider alarm only goes off if you have the van in gear when you are trying to open/close the doors! Ever since the Audi (non)unintended acceleration debacle have we had shift-out-of-park interlock with the brake pedal. My '96 Chrysler van didn't have this, as it's only mandated in cars (minivans are still considered trucks). It is in our Toyota, though.
If you think Hondas are so great, check out their trouble page on this site. If your still convinced to go that way, I'm sure you'll find a lot of willing buyers for your Sienna!
1. Power door--It sounds as if there is something wrong with your power door. Our door only "buzzes" if the vehicle is not in PARK when opening and closing the door. The door reverses immediately when it contacts an "immovable" object. I have let the door close on my hand and my arm. It results in slight discomfort, but no injury. Have the dealer reset/replace the door "computer" and adjust the door as needed as others have done.
2. Have the dealer adjust the doors as necessary. Ours open and close with ease.
3. The "thunk" noise when reversing has been discussed here before and as far as I know all Siennas have it (including mine). The source of the noise is the front brake pads. There is nothing functionally wrong with them. The pads "float" in their holders (as most disc brake pads do). Their (pad) normal position is forward/down which is why there is no noise when applying the brakes going forward. But in reverse when applying the brakes the pads move to the back/upper portion of the holder causing the "thunk" noise. I do not know why it is as loud as it is (my maxima just clicks and can only be heard outside of the car), but that is the source.
4. Have the dealer replace the windshield. The windshield should be virtually distortion free. There will always be some distortion near the corners.
5. This vibration issue with the mirror may be related to the tire problem. We do not have the Firestones. What you are describing sounds like overinflated tires and/ or a tire that is not balanced properly.
6. Can't help you on the visor issue...have not experienced this one.
7. Gearshift....Make sure you are depressing the brake pedal before attempting to shift out of park. There is a brake/park shift interlock on this vehicle. If you are still having this problem, have the dealer fix this. The "wimpy" shift lever...I agree. By the way, I found the Honda's shift lever to be even worse if that is possible.
If the above comments sound patronizing, that is not my attempt. What I am trying to say is visit your local dealer. All of the individual problems appear to be minor, but all the problems combined have obviously made you very unhappy (would make me quite upset also) List your problems and ask them to correct them (all under warranty of course). It would be dealer's inability to correct the problems or lack of cooperation that would really make me upset and have me searching for a different vehicle.
I would be suprised if they couldnt fix all those problems. As far as backing up and the noise, dont back up.Just kidding, I have a feeling backing up is noisey normally for these new type of cars with abs.
The compass problem is kinda funny my acura has been doing that for 8 years, I never even thought about getting it fixed. It's funny I've seen a few of these problems mentioned on other brand vans as well.
INKY
Honda - I don't want one and I'm going to fight my wife on this one tooth and nail. But ultimately she drives this vehicle every day and if Toyota wont make her happy with this van, we might have to go to brand "H". (Though I think I might rather like to try the Volkswagen EuroVan instead.)
Power Door - Definitely something wrong here. We've stopped using it because if you try to use it, it just opens and closes a bunch of times until it finally decides that it's closed or it's just tired and gives up in the open position. Then you have to manually force it closed. Yes, the buzzer goes off while it's doing that for some reason - even with the car in Park. It is very strange.
Shift Lever - I know about the shift lock, as does my wife. Definitely have tried taking my foot off the brake, putting it back on, shifting again - it's still very stiff sometimes. Perhaps the shift lock isn't releasing properly... Or, perhaps some moron test drove my van before I bought it and broke it or damaged it somehow...?
Brakes - the thunk is very loud and seems to be coming from the rear. I've heard the clamping noise from the front brakes and I don't think they're related. My 1996 Avalon used to have those clamping noises. They weren't any big deal.
Tires - They seem balanced. There is no vibration on the highway or anything - just lots of noise from them. The rearview mirror vibrates even at idle. The only time it doesn't vibrates is when the van is off. :-)
Windshield - the distortion starts about 10 inches from the edge of the window. Definitely not normal, and I'm not nit picking here. There are wavy spots along both sides of the windshield.
I'm making an appointment next week to take the vehicle to the dealer and talk to the Service Manager. But frankly, I'm not too happy about needing a bunch of stuff like the windshield, possibly the power door mechanism, gearshift mechanism, door handles, brake components, etc. replaced on my brand new van. I'd rather have another new van and start owner. I might entertain the idea of seeing what it will cost to upgrade to the XLE - getting a whole new van. It will probably be cost prohibitive, but at least I could ask.
Thanks again for all the helpful comments and support. You guys are great!
Another problem.... The sliding door buttons get stuck when opening from the inside. I never noticed the problem before because I have young children and the door is always opened from the outside. One day while carrying adults both doors got stuck. Dealer said defective part and ordered new ones. Now that the parts are in they want to charge us $250 to replace them.... I think I have my own version of Child locks and refuse to pay for it until the kids are old enough to open the door themselves.
One last thing, I bought a 2001 Camry CE a month ago and have not gotten my customer satisfaction survey (the salesman was a real jerk and I can't wait to fill it out), is there anyway I can get one online?
Thanks for your time.
Does anyone know if the answer from the Toyota representative is correct that the oxygen sensor is not covered after 3yr/36K. It will cost $100+ for the part.
Many thanks in advance.
Jon
I took the van to 2 different Toyota dealers and they both concluded that the ABS Actuator and Pump needs to be replaced. The cost of the repair will be almost $2000 and the warranty on this part expired at 36,000 miles.
Has anyone heard of any widespread problems with this part in other Sienna vans? If so, please advise. Thanks
Scott
under invoice. But every time I get the quote its 500-1200 over invoice. I'm even including that
damn ad fee of 413 bucks. What the hell is wrong with toyota that they cant seem to get the
right numbers. When you confront them with their quote and ask them to show me their
numbers all they say is that its right and dont send me any info.. With this kinda additude why
should I buy a Toyota. Honda is willing to sell me one no hassle. They will lose a customer
playing these games.
Find a different Toyota dealer, in 2000 when I bought my XLE the numbers from Edmunds, CarPoint and KBB all matched the dealer.
Good Luck!
Scott
If you had this done (at Toyota or have the receipts/invoice to show that it was done somewhere else), I would guess you're 100% covered. If not, you may be on the hook.
Good Luck!
Scott
Pretty sure it was the tire pressure light but that was almost 3 years ago.
Before, I was only pissed at Toyota for building a poor quality van. Now I'm pissed at the dealer, too, for their apathy and rudeness. Now, my vehicle is in worse shape than it was before. Not only do most of the problems still exist, but my new widshield is worse than the old one, there's an annoying rattle coming from the power door, and there's grease stains on my floor mats. Thanks a lot!!!
Toyota customer relations seems like they could care less. They're supposed to have someone call me. We'll see. At this point, I'm seriously re-considering my "Toyota customer" status. I'm am just so turned off of Toyota by this situation. And to think that I paid thousands more for this van than their competitors, just because I expected reliability. HA! Jokes on me I guess.
Did they put in Toyota glass? We picked up a rock and had the glass replaced in our Sienna and the first chunk of non-Toyota glass that our glass replacement place used was complete crap.
I had them take it out and had a different place put in the Toyota glass and it's great!
Scott
I thought the dealer had fixed this problem, but it turns out, they didn't. It's exactly the same as it was before. Sometimes it's fine, most of the time it's very very hard to open the door.
Dealer claims they tried the power door 100 times and couldn't get it to fail. I got to work and tried the power door once and it failed - not closing properly and opening and re-closing several times. Finally it closed... Or so I thought. When I went to drive home, I tried the door again. I couldn't open or close the door, even manually. Then I had to drive halfway home with the door buzzer going off. I stopped at a different Toyota dealership and showed it to the service advisor. He realized the lock was sticking and that it was trying to open or close the door not realizing it's locked. Obviously it's not closing right because the buzzer went off. If you pressed the door open button, you'd hear what sounded like a cable moving around in the door panel but nothing would happen. Normal? Such is my life with my Sienna. They should have painted it bright yellow.
Enough of my whining. Toyota is going to have a specialist look at it next Monday.
Regarding our tranny problem, the service manager called yesterday and said that my wife's 2000 Sienna van will be getting a brand new transmission. They also gave her a new 2001 Sienna to drive while her van is in the shop since she needed something for a trip to Seattle this week. So far, I can only praise the dealership and the service . . . Dave Holt Toyota in Bend, Oregon.
Great news huh?
I was one of the lucky ones that had the torque converter problem with my 2000 Sienna and I must say that Burnsville, MN Toyota treated me well and took care of everything is a efficient manner.
Sounds like you're getting the same, decent treatment from your dealer so I guess all isn't doom and gloom in Toyotaland.
Scott
Toyota says they will not cover the cost. Besides going to a lawyer is there anything we can do?
Anyway says in my toyota info packet that you only have to change oil every 7500 unless you tow or you are in dusty condition. Since its in the manual like that I would like to see the dealership wessle out of this. It does say if you dont change it every 7500 miles you may get sludge however. So keep good records.
I guess I will trade this thing in for something else, since QUALITY was why I bought this van in the first place.
Jon
I have a 2001 Sienna LE with 1,500 miles and are planning to do my own oil change with Synthetic motor oil and premium oil filter.
Any suggestions or commons are welcome. Thanks
Sure it's possible - in 1000 oranges there's always a lemon or two.
Still, nice hearing from you again Charlene.
But being performance-obsessed I'll be switching to Mobil 1 Synthetic next change - both the Toyota dealers I service through have no problem with me supplying the oil (note - performance obessed AND LAZY).
But why the Mobil filter instead of the Toyota filter - is that a requirement for using Mobil 1 syth oil? Please educate me on this if you know.
For the person with the $6000 flush bill, just remove your drain plug and oil cap. Then get the garden hose and stick it in, turn it up to full and let it go for 30 minutes. Everything should be fine after that.
Gosh, I guess I should have bought another Dodge!
Steve
Host
Vans, SUVs and Aftermarket & Accessories Message Boards
Everything not downstream of the runoff....
Actually, the only way to remove fantasy sludge is with explosives. I suggest filling it halfway with white (camping) gas and light a match. Everything will be fine after that,depending on how fast you can run.
HiC
cliffy1 "Engine Sludge?" Jul 27, 2001 2:47pm
Steve
Host
Vans, SUVs and Aftermarket & Accessories Message Boards
Sludge is not a problem with a Sienna that is given normal maintence (ie., regular oil changes).
The only good thing about this "sludge" rumour is that I was able to get a 2001 Sienna for about 2K cheaper than would have been the case otherwise.