Toyota Sienna Maintenance and Repair (2003 earlier)

Mr_Shiftright · September 2006

I believe I read somewhere that Jeep got a lot of complaints about its commercials where they show Jeeps splashing merrily through mountain streams...well a few owners tried this, and guess what?

You can even seize an engine by just starting it up in the morning---if you have a leaky head gasket, water will drip into the cylinder during the night, and yes, even the force of just your starter motor might bend the rods....or at least lock the motor until all is drained out.

helofanrus · September 2006

Speaking of Jeeps going thru water. I have a friend who has a perfectly good (almost new) Jeep which he just lives to drive through the deepest and dirtiest mudholes,swamps, ponds, rivers, and such that he can find! (The thought of doing that to a nice new vehicle gives me the heebie jeebies!) Strangely, there's a Club of Jeep owners here who all do it on weekends!
He spent a young fortune equipping it with a snorkel air intake and exhaust, huge oversized knobbly tires, a winch with a looong cable, jack-all jacks, chain saws, ropes, etc. He says it's "fun".
Yuk!!

dchargin · September 2006

Your'e right, I was just not getting it yesterday. It suddenly came to me last night after a beer or two. (funny how that happens.) I was thinking that the gas and air were both mixed and injected. I realized that only the gas is injected (duh) at the same time (more or less) as the engine is taking a big gulp of air. Or in my case, a nice swallow of water. Hopefully the insurance company won't try too hard to jack me. I pay a lot for that "other than collision" coverage.

Thanks everyone for replying. I'll try to post after this gets resolved.

David

glucas · September 2006

I have a 2003 sienna van 81000 miles. The problems is car will not start and idle after car is park overnight.Car will crank , but will start and idle if you press the accelator pedal when starting the engine..

penizzle · September 2006

Few things to check. Check the iac motor and the mass airflow sensors as those are common replacements on Siennas. Ceck fuel pressure at the time of hard starting. Buy a haynes manual for your vehicle so that you know all the stuff to do. If you haven't had a tune up lately, now may be a good time for one.

tzesun · September 2006

I have a similar acceleration noise problem with my 2006 Sienna. Could you share what you have found at the dealer with me? Thank you.

endoffile · September 2006

Greetings,
Three days back , while my car was in my garage the alarm went off (factory installed), then I used the remote key and pressed "unlock" to shut the alarms off. Then for the past 2 nights the alarm is going off (for no reason) in the night atleast once. It will stay for 20 seconds to 1/2 minute and shuts off. The garage is closed by the way in the nights. I checked the system and it is working fine . the theft deterrent system light is flashing when the system is on and goes off when the key is introduced and turned to on.

Any reason why the alarm goes off for no reason in the middle of the night and when it is dead calm outside and when it is parked inside the garage ? I need to find an answer soon, as it is making me and my neighbours go "NUTS". Is there a way to disarm this ? Thanks.

My car is
02 Sienna LE,
37 000 miles,

snppmommy · October 2006

I am at my wits end trying to figure out what is wrong with my Sienna. I have the entire staff at Firestone stumped. This is where my story begins. When I bought my minivan from Ebay we were told about a howl that the back brakes were causing. I took the car into Express Lube and told them about it. They gave me non ceramic brakes but did not fix the problem (even thought I told them I thought it was the drum). I came out with 3 noises instead of the only one I went in with. I took it elsewhere and they resurfaced the rotors (I think that is what they resurfaced) and still had the howl (again I told them about the drum issue with Siennas). My husband replaced the back passenger drum and no more howl (YIPPEE). Now I have a vibration in the back of the van. I have had brand new tires put on it and new shocks and still have the problem. I told Firestone that the drum had been replaced and whether it could be a difference in weight or something like that. I was told that it would be a 1 in a million chance that it would be that. My question is does anyone have any suggestions as to what the rear violent shaking is at 45 mph plus is? My 3 little ones are getting tired of being vibrated. LOL. I just don't want to take it somewhere else to have them tell me it could be one thing and spending a bunch of money and not getting it fixed.
PS as you can tell I don't know much about cars.

andrews777 · October 2006

Have you had the tires balanced? Everytime I had such occur on a normal road surface it was because the individual tires were out of balance. They put little weights at different spots around the rims so it spins evenly at high speeds.

Brad

snppmommy · October 2006

Yes I had that done today.

steine13 · October 2006

What are you doing at Firestone???

Either go to the dealer -- I'd rather avoid that, but they should at least know what they're doing.

Or, and this is the best option, ask around and find yourself a really good independent repair shop. Then have everything done there and build up rapport with them. The less you know, the more important it is that you have people you can trust and who know their stuff.

Muffler shops, tire dealers, all those places try to compete on price and can usually not afford to hire truly competent people. Trust me on this: $75 an hour is a bargain, if you really get a professional's full attention, his tools, his experience for that amount of time. You can try to locate a good shop using the "mechan-x files" at the clic&clack website -- i think it's cartalk.com.

Good luck,
-Mathias

snppmommy · October 2006

They guy that has been working on the van at firestone is a guy I met outside of firestone. He is certified but he is young. He has brain stormed with everyone there including the owner but they just don't seem to know what is going on. I am new to the area and really have no one to get recommendations from. There is a place here that only works on Toyota and they are the ones that resurfaced the rotors (or whatever it was) and they didn't fix the howling problem. In fact I had to ask 3 times for them to have someone drive with me so they could hear the howling problem. Then they sent me with the owner and he has hearing problems and could barely hear it. It was very loud because when I would stop at places people would look so it was very loud. I don't trust them completely but I have heard people talk that they really like that place. I hate to go to the dealer and spend alot of money but I guess that may be what I have to do.

user777 · October 2006

listen to steine13. get your vehicle inspected by people that know your vehicle. you could have a bad set of bearings, a wheel grossly out of alignment, a bad tire, a bad wheel/rim, a suspension issue. this cannot be diagnosed over the internet.

i suggest a dealership, but that is just a personal suggestion. another alternate "toyota specialist" shop might be a consideration, but in the end, you could be throwing good money after bad to try to save additional $$$.

my thinking is you have a vehicle that is out of alignment, a rear suspension issue, a tire out of balance, a bad bearing, or even a tire with a bad tread.

snppmommy · October 2006

We have the problem fixed. We bought another new set of drums and shoes and it fixed the problem. I guess the first set that we had gotten were bad or were mishandled in shipping. My husband put it all together last night and I was able to drive it over 45 and without vibration. Thanks for all of the advice.
Patti

carolynk · October 2006

My husband and I bought a 1999 Toyota Sienna two months ago. We felt that we got a super deal on it at $6,800. It was in pristine condition, looked like it had never been used. We have gone on a couple nice trips. No problem, drives like a dream. The people we bought it from had serviced it very regularly and had in fact, just done the extensive tune up that covered everything and cost $1300. Yesterday in the early am I left for an all day shopping trip 180 miles away. The icon of the dripping oil can appeared before I left town. I pulled into a station and checked the oil. It was full so, the attendant suggested that I check it a little further down the road and maybe stop at a jiffy lube place in case that was the problem. I made it 30 miles before it started making a knocking noise which rapidly grew louder and then it died. I coasted down the very steep hill I had just climbed and muscled it into the parking lot of a towing company. The attendant remarked "it's toast". We were towed back to town and find that the engine is a goner. The bill to fix is estimated at $4800. Any suggestions out there or are we "just toasted"
Carolyn K

Claires · October 2006

You may have noticed that we're moving toward smaller, more focused discussions, and a number of those have already been created for this vehicle. Please go to the top level of the board here and look for an existing discussion that fits your question or issue. If you don't see a suitable topic, please feel free to create one by clicking "Add a Discussion". Here's a link: Toyota Sienna

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islandboyle07 · July 2007

I am the second owner of this 2007 Toyota Sienna with 12K miles on it. When I got the Sienna there were no problems evident and the carfax and recalls came out clean, but now I am having a minor or major issue. The seatbelt indicator that usuallys dings to annoy you about your seatbelt is not activating or working. This is only happening on the drivers side. It worked for maybe about a week, anybody else have this problem or a solution to it? I appreciate any help.

ateixeira · July 2007

There is a procedure to change that. You can select whether you want the passenger seatbelt chime on or off.

I think you hold the trip reset button as you turn the ignition on. It has to be on the odometer.

The exact procedure is in the owner's manual.

The reason I turned mine off is that some times we fold the seat flat and the people in the 2nd row rest their legs on the seat. The weight fools the system into thinking there is someone in the chair, when there isn't. So we'd get an annoying reminder to fasten the seatbelt for an empty seat!

islandboyle07 · July 2007

Hey thanks for the quick reply ateixeira, however the problem is not the passenger side, it is the drivers side. You think its something with the weighting mechanism on the seats? if there is such a thing? Thanks again.

ateixeira · July 2007

Hmm, not sure, but I think the driver's seat belt warning would go on all the time, because it can't operate without someone sitting there. :surprise:

Try the disable on the warning chime, it might work for both sides.

islandboyle07 · July 2007

Thanks for the reply, your suggestion worked. Although I had to google "disable warning chime" cause I could not find it in the manual.

thanks again.

ateixeira · July 2007

Glad to have helped.

While we're at it, you can reset the oil maintenance light with a similar procedure, only you do it with the Trip A on the screen.

islandboyle07 · July 2007

hellofromcali · September 2007

I have a 2000 Sienna with almost 80K mi, running great and everything. But there is this sound and that drives me crazy. When I turn the key to ON position (without start), it makes a loud "CATUMMM" noise. it also makes this noise after I start the engine.
I had some else turn on the key while i was at the engine compartment, and I found out that the noise comes from a solenoid/relay mounted on the ABS unit (just right behind the air filter unit). Anyone has any experience with this? is it the this relay/solenoid or something else that causes this to make noise? how much to get it replaced? can it be DYI (I am capable of doing a lot of replacing/reparing car things)?

jjoseph2 · September 2007

i have a 2002 model with same problem. I thought it is normal . please let me know if you find anything about this.Also when i shift the transmission to reverse i could hear a noise from underneeth the van. i suspect it could be some thing with the transmission.If any one experience similar problem please post
joseph

ateixeira · September 2007

Maybe it's priming the pressure for the VSC system?

hellofromcali · September 2007

jjoseph2 · September 2007

I need the service manual for 2004 camry (LE).If you got one please post a message.
Joseph

touaxiong · April 2008

my toyota seinna drive fine but dose not go in reverse, you guys got any idea whats the problems? t hanks

ateixeira · April 2008

Have you checked the ATF fluid level and condition? I would start there.

touaxiong · April 2008

yes i did it was low than i put about one qourt in than i found out that the atf fluid was leaking, but still the reverse dose not work, but it drive fine.?

ateixeira · April 2008

I would trace that leak. The pressurized fluid is what forces the gears into place. It must be related.

Sorry but I doubt this will be a simple fix.

touaxiong · April 2008

atf leak, so it dont give pressure right..
pressures what makes it go in gear?

ateixeira · April 2008

At this point I will defer to someone with more mechanical experience than I have.

touaxiong · April 2008

lgodiva · May 2008

I am having a transmission problem with a used Sienna that is absolutely frustrating. Below is my story (I have sent this letter to Toyota arbitration, to no avail). Please read it in its entirety - there's a lot to say - and if you can help at all, please post a reply. Is there any other form of recourse other than to shell out $2500 to replace a transmission that Toyota is unwilling to stand behind?:

I purchased my 1998 Toyota Sienna minivan from Sloane Toyota in Devon, PA, in the summer of 2003. I also purchased a 3-year extended warranty. Within the timeframe of the warranty, in the winter of 2004-2005, the transmission started making an odd noise and was replaced under warranty by Sloane in June 2005.

Within the one-year warranty on that new transmission, my car started experiencing unusual behavior: on the coldest mornings, it would not automatically shift out of first gear into second gear for one to two miles, or about five to ten minutes, even if I pressed the accelerator down quite far. I contacted Sloanes service department and described the problem in detail to one of the service people. They told me definitively that this behavior was normal and nothing to worry about. I questioned this, but was assured that everything was ok with my car. I even called one more time and received the same reassurance, plus the suggestion that I might check the transmission fluid level (I did, and it was full). They did NOT recommend that I bring the car in to be checked, or that there was any reason for concern, or that I should even check the color of the transmission fluid (I will refer to this later).

Over the next two winters, there were few truly frigid mornings during which this behavior exhibited itself. Thus, trusting the advice of Toyotas service department, I ignored it on the few mornings it occurred. (This only happened in the morning when the car was completely cold, never at the end of the day.) Additionally, the car exhibited no other unusual behavior during this time.

Then this past winter, my car started exhibiting other odd behaviors that seemed to point to the transmission. The gear slippage worsened - it would occasionally be slow in switching between gears, typically from second to third. I started hearing a high-pitched whine that rose in pitch as I accelerated. I finally brought my car into Sloane Toyota to have it checked; they said my transmission was shot, and that it would cost $5000 to replace it. Sloane said they would not cover the replacement because my new transmissions warranty had expired. I pointed out that I had experienced and reported unusual behavior earlier on, and that they never told me to bring it in. I also pointed out that it seemed quite clear that my more recent gear slippage was a worsening of the original problem on cold mornings, and thus an inherent problem in the new transmission they had installed in 2005. I said that this all could have been avoided if they had advised me to bring it in rather than assuring me that the symptoms I had experienced were normal. I pointed out that I did not bring it in because I was not advised to do so by their own service department  I had relied on their advice. I spoke with the service manager, Jim Nagle, on several occasions, trying to convince him of this, and thus that Toyota had some responsibility in the matter due to their poor advice of his own service department, but he remained firm on this position.

I also issued a complaint through Toyota Customer Service and spoke with a regional service manager, Larry Roberts. He indicated that the original problem of not switching from first to second gear on cold mornings was a safety feature to prevent stressing the transmission, and that the new problems I was experiencing were completely separate and unrelated.

For a second expert opinion, I then took my car to a very reputable and highly-recommended local transmission shop near me, who indicated that the transmission was a mess, that whatever was wrong had been building up for several years (i.e., since before the warranty expired). They said they found many chunks of metal in the transmission fluid and that the filter was completely clogged. The fluid was black rather than the usual clear color. They didnt think it would last more than a few months. I explained the entire history of my transmission and my dealings with Toyota. They pointed out that Sienna minivans have a history of bad transmissions from the late 1990s through the early 2000s, and that my initial transmission replacement was one of many that Toyota quietly did under warranty. I described the safety feature concept, and he said it was complete and utter nonsense - that in all his years of transmission repair of Toyotas other cars, there was no such safety feature. Obviously, Mr. Roberts was lying in order to get me off his back, something I seriously resent and am deeply offended by as a Toyota customer. I called Mr. Roberts back to tell him this, and asked him for proof of such a safety feature. He ignored my request and became very gruff, hostile, and non-responsive.

My trans shop replaced my clogged transmission filter and refilled the fluid, to at least give my car some short-term life. Their cost to replace the transmission is *only* $2500 (not surprisingly half of the dealers price).

It surprises and distresses me that Toyota will not stand by their cars in this situation. Certainly, a new transmission should last more than a couple of years, especially on a Toyota!

Here are the points I was hoping would convince Toyota to take responsibility in this matter:
· Pats Transmissions expertly diagnosed how badly my transmission was damaged, compared to how relatively new it was.
· The extent of damage points to the certainty that problems started very early on, related to my original problem of gear shifting on cold mornings. I would even suggest that the new transmission Sloane Toyota installed was a lemon, i.e., faulty right from the start.
· Sloane Toyotas service department gave me poor and erroneous advice that the original symptoms I was experiencing were normal; moreover, they did *not* recommend that I bring my car in to have it checked while it was still under warranty.
· There is a known history of Sienna transmission problems in the timeframe of when my car was manufactured. I have had two bad transmissions in my car over the span of only five years!
· As a manufacturer of high-quality cars, Toyota should be expected to stand behind their products. Transmissions should not fail after such a short time, regardless of the arbitrary one-year warranty.

ateixeira · May 2008

I think you had a stronger case a while back, maybe in 2004. But in 2008? 5 years after you bought it? I wish you luck. The van is 10+ years old now.

lgodiva · May 2008

Yes, that's what Toyota said, but don't you think there's some merit in my points about them giving me bad service advice and the nature of the problem, how it hardly ever happened for a couple of years, but that recent investigation by the local trans shop revealed a much worse problem that certainly started years ago? Considering Toyota's bad track record with Sienna transmissions in that time period, don't you think they should at least accept *some* responsibility and at least discount the trans job? How about the bogus "safety feature" nonsense the district rep gave me? All around, this experience has totally turned me off to Toyota and has left a very bad taste in my mouth.

ateixeira · May 2008

Merit, definitely.

It's just that Toyota is not going to go up against one of its own dealerships. They represent Toyota.

You could fight to get discounts, but if you don't trust them to begin with, that's not really worth it.

Your biggest problem is the timing - you bought the car 5 years ago and it's now 10 years old.

Trade it in for something. Dodge has a lifetime powertrain warranty now, though they're not as reliable historically.

lgodiva · May 2008

I considered trading it in. But the dealer would probably give me virtually nothing, especially after their mechanics inspect the car and immediately notice the trans problem. I really love the car in every other way. It has 95K miles but with a new trans I'd expect it to last a very long time. I'm thinking $2500 is worth it to continue using such a good car, instead of spending much much more on a NEW or newer used car. Of course I could always shop around, but this is my thinking.

ateixeira · May 2008

Yeah, I know what you mean.

The average car payment today is over $400, so it would take only about 6 months to recover your investment in the trans.

It's probably worth it, actually. As long as you have faith in the new mechanic that this will be a long-term solution.

I just had to plop down over $1000 on a 1993 Miata. It was due for timing belt, water pump, and a cooling system service (symptom was overheating).

Still, it's running like a champ now and in a few months I'm sure I'll be glad I fixed it.

lgodiva · May 2008

unicron · June 2010

I am considering purchasing (my first vehicle purchase) a '99 Toyota Sienna with over 200K miles on it. It runs extremely well and has very few issues, except that it has a nasty habit of dying when it idles.

This happens after about 30 minutes of driving and continues until the car cools down for about 2 hours after driving it. The owners are real gear heads (I've known them for a while now) and they seem to think that it is due to a dirty intake manifold.

I'm no car expert but it seems that this would not necessarily be the case. This is a major purchase for me and I just want to make sure I don't buy a car that needs a couple of thousand of dollars in repairs because I can't afford that right now.

Does the dirty intake manifold seem like it is the reason the car dies when it idles?

jproc · June 2010

don't buy the car.I haven't a clue of why it dies when it idles and obviously your "gear head" friends don't either else they would have fixed it.200k is a lot of miles on any car

ateixeira · June 2010

RUN don't walk, a "dirty manifold" sounds like a good way to disguise a slugdy engine. The 1MZ 3.0l V6 was prone to sludge.

Run as fast as you can in the other direction. Do not pass Go, do not collect $200.

goomba1 · June 2010

Any make, any vehicle with that many miles ... you've got to count on $1-2k per year on repairs. If you're lucky maybe $500. I did all the work myself on my 2001 Sienna, and spent over $1,000 on various sensors that failed in the last year at 110-120,000 miles (O2, MAF, Air/fuel ratio). Now it's running fantastic again -- but I know there will be more problems. In your case, a problem only when warm doesn't sound like engine sludge to me. If you like the van, get it checked out by an independent mechanic.

markie3 · June 2011

What is the worst that can hapen if you don't replace struts? What is a fair price? 2000 Sienna.

jproc · June 2011

struts are expensive.I think I paid about 650ish when I replaced them on my 2000 and that was at least 4 years ago.

unicron · June 2011

yatesjo · June 2011

Struts are a critical part of the vehicle handling and are important for keeping the tires in contact with the road. Superficially the ride will be bouncier and the steering sloppy, however you will also see longer braking distances and worse, if you are forced into an evasive maneuver like an emergency lane change worn struts may cause you to lose control of the vehicle.

Struts aren't cheap, but it takes money to keep a vehicle functioning properly on the road. If you try to cheap out then you not only shorten the life of the vehicle but take a risk with your life and the lives of those on the road around you.

Toyota Sienna Maintenance and Repair (2003 earlier)

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