general problems of the 2004 Toyota Sienna - part 1

When opening the rear hatch, it will not stay open and slams down if you let it go. Incredibly dangerous. I turned of the power doors and it still happens. I'm planning to take it to the dealership tomorrow.

Driving on dry roads at speed not exceeding 35 mph, the traction control system activates. It has happened on slight curves to the right. The traction control symbol lights up, a beeping sound occurs and it feels like the vehicle is braking. It has happened now on several occasions.

The 2004 Toyota Sienna van vsc trac warning light and alarm come on when making turns on highway ramp under normal speed at around 35 mph.

Manual sliding driver side door has stopped latching in the fully open position.

Issue with traction (maybe called a vsc system-stability), when going up and down hills with slight curves, the wheels lock up and the vehicle slows down. Even when exiting a freeway ramp that is at a slight decline and curve. This started happening about 3 1/2 years ago, just once in a great blue moon. It started happening more frequently in the past year. Neither carson or south bay Toyota dealership could tell us why and could not find anything wrong after they inspected it. We took it to an independent service location and they could not find out why either. We looked it up online and apparently many Toyota Sienna owners are happing the same issue and no resolution. The vsc trac light comes on when it happens and they goes away. It does not happen all the time. Safety issue for us, we can not really control the van when the wheels lock up and safety issues for all (us and others around us) is the fact that the van slows down and wheels lock up, which could cause someone to hit us.

I arrived at my destination and went to put it in park and it wouldn't go. It wouldn't reverse either. My husband checked it out and saw the transmission shift cable bushing was hanging. We looked it up and there was a recall for the 2006 Sienna.

In sept-oct of 2019 took van into bobhoward and told them about a leak that would puddle in passenger right front seat. Bobhoward said its aftermarket nothing we can do. A couple days ago the moon roof would not close compelety. Driving down the highway my moon roof flew out of my car. Now there is no ceiling.

Sliding doors don't properly latched like they are suppose to when attempting to close door causing a safety issue for passengers . It happens when vehicle is parked or motion on road way or in parking space .

Unintended acceleration problem. Two episodes, months apart, both at very low speed. Was stopped behind two cars. Two cars in front started up to go through intersection. I took my foot off the brake and moved it to the gas pedal. Car started up normally. Then a child pushed to crosswalk signal which started to flash. I moved my foot to the brake pedal, and the car started slowing down normally, but then the car suddenly lurched forward. Both I and the passenger thought we had been rear-ended (but there was no car behind). It was a similar feeling to when the cruise control kicks in to accelerate, but no cruise control had been activated. I took my foot off the brake and slammed it back on the brake, and the car stopped. The previous episode had a similar series of events.

1) seatbelt twists and gets jammed in the guide near the retractor. Seat belt pulls out, but then will not retract as it is wedged in the guide. This has happened numerous times, but now it is quite wedged. And unusable at the moment. 2) cable that pulls the side door open and closed has rusted and broken. This was subject to a Toyota voluntary service campaign, but my problem started after the expiration of the service campaign.

Toyota issued a nation-wide extended warranty coverage in 2015 for its melting dashboards caused by manufacturing defect, 2004-2010 Sienna, 2007-2011 camry, 2004-2008 solara, 2005-2010 avalon, 2003-2005 4runner, total of 3. 42 million vehicles affected. The extended warranty lasted for two years until 2017 and some cars have developed the symptoms slower than others particularly for those with less mileage and/or less exposure to sun. Now the melting dashboards are creating serious driving hazard when driving into sun because the reflection is blocking the driver's view. Therefore, it calls for a recall since driving hazards do not have expiration dates.

While my vehicle is in motion on city streets and highways at speeds between 35 and 55 mph, on a straightaway and curve, the stability control light/and alarm comes on randomly. Sometimes it's just the alarm that sounds, and sometimes the alarm sounds and the brakes activate and the minivan swerves. Was the most frightening and dangerous experience ever with my young grandchildren riding with me. I actually had to pull over to the side of the road to calm myself. This has now happened on several occasions with today (7-24-19) being the latest experience.

Traction control all of a sudden started turning on at every turn automatically making the car lock its brakes I'm pretty sure this is not the first you guys have heard of this.

While driving on a highway, there was no sign of a falling/kicked up object, there was a sudden loud pop. Almost as if a boulder hit the car. The sunroof was shattered in a million pieces, with no depression in the glass, indicating an explosion from the inside out. The only vehicle near, was a minimum of four car lengths in front of my car. Fortunately, the sunroof was closed and no glass fell inside the car. However, after stopping and driving again, the glass broke apart and flew into the road.

Fyi: I am a NHTSA employee; I'm the lead engineer for fuel economy. I sit at w43-448. The driver side door panel pops out and gets stuck on the jamb on the floor and then you cannot open the door from inside. The main problem is in the way the handle is secured to the door steel. . It is a plastic piece inside and when it wears from pulling on it, it slips out. That puts tension on the plastic door clips around the edges that are supposed to hold the panel on. When the central anchor in the door handle goes, it causes the door to flex and the peripheral clips can't hold on so they pop out. When this happens, the door cannot open because the floor has a rise at the leading edge, and the panel has dropped below it, trapping the door. This happened with the original door, which was repair due to a deer running into the vehicle. It eventually had to spend over $1000 to get a new panel from Toyota and now, less than a year after being installed, this panel has also failed. Toyota knows that there is an issue with these panels, but is clueless about how to employ a lasting fix. It's a poor design, especially with the main screw being located under the armrest/door pull, a location with experiences the most stress. . Read more...

The rear door latch was recalled and replaced, it failed again, the rear door opens but then drops, it is a safety issue, I reported to Toyota but they refuse to fix it again. Serious safety issue stationary.

After multiple lawsuits filed, Toyota issued an extended dashboard warranty to replace it until may 31, 2017. Therefore, NHTSA was never involved with this case. Since it was not a recall, there are still many affected Toyota vehicle owners who were either not notified properly or learned about it too late. The problem occurred about 6 or 7 years later once they start driving; however, it was much later for those who do not drive their cars frequently or keeps the car in the garage or indoor parking facility as it has to do with the length of time exposed to the direct sunlight. Not only is it a cosmetic and/or functional problem but also a driving hazard. As you can see from the uploaded picture, the shiny dashboard reflection is blocking the driver's view significantly when facing the sun direction. The problem exists in almost all Toyota, Lexus models produced between 2004 and 2011. I strongly urge that it should be a recall.

The driver side rear sliding door cable snapped and will no longer allow for the door to open.

The front driver side door pops every time it opens and closes.

My rear hatch wont open with button up front or remote.

Cable on automatic door have snapped. Can not use the door.

I am currently having a problem with getting a repair on a recall you all investigated Jun 03, 2008 campaign number 08v244000. After contacting a dealership for the repairs I was informed there was no recall and that they could only repair the recalls listed on their website. The corporate office was contacted next where I was told that the above mentioned recall wasn't a "recall" at all but a "customer safety protocol", and even though it had been issued in the past it was no longer available to me due to the original drive date being over 9-10 years ago by the original owner. There are service records indicating that the repair was made in 2009 under warranty. One of the documents listed on your site states that some of the repairs made under warranty may still need to be replaced. When I raise the rear hatch electronically the hatch will raise, pause, and then drop down part way and close the rest of the way without pushing the button to close it. If you are standing under it the door will drop down and hit you in the head.

I was driving from a major city highway onto a freeway. I was going 50mph and accelerating to the appropriate freeway speed of 60mph. At that time, I realized my rear wing windows were open (it opens at the rear of the car at an angle of about 1 inch) and I pressed the automatic closure button. I heard a loud ¿pop¿ on the passenger side. I looked back and the window was gone. I pulled over to the side of the highway immediately. A car/Jeep with a family in it pulled up behind me. They were hit by the window coming off of my vehicle. Thank god no one was hurt, but it did cause damage to their vehicle. It shook both them and myself up. A window flying from a car on a highway could have seriously caused damage and injuries. We were very lucky. I called 911 to report that there was window debris on the highway, and told them where it was. That way I would not cause an accident. Prior to this happening, there had never been any problems with our wing windows. At the time of the incident it was just past 9pm, I was going home from work and it was dark. I was accelerating from 50 to 60 on a highway. We live in the greater seattle area so the road conditions are always wet but it was not raining. It was about 55 degrees f outside. My theory about what happened to the window (coming from an engineering student) is that the plastic ball joint separated from its shoulder. The window caught the wind from the acceleration and the hinges were pulled off of their anchor. However, obviously this is only speculation. I have contacted my insurance company and got a quote from the Toyota dealership. Unfortunately, when I contacted Toyota headquarters they were not interested and could not give me an explanation. I decided to contact you because I think there is a safety hazard with this window that should be looked into. Parts shouldn¿t just detach from a vehicle.

Traction control sensor problem, 2004 Toyota Sienna xle, approx 128,000-133,000 miles. Safety issue: while driving within the posted speed limits of 35-45 mph the van has seized up (slows down on it's own without warning) as an internal alarm simultaneously sounds (the first time it happened I didn¿t know the van had an internal alarm). This has happened four times, (sept. And October 2015, and twice this week 1/18/16 and 1/22/16). Each time the vehicle was traveling on dry streets with the exception of the last episode. After the first episode I took the van to our mechanic on the day of occurrence; we took a 10 minute test drive where he ran diagnostic test however no problems were detected. The second time it happened our mechanic did some research and found out it was a traction control sensor fail. After today¿s episode I will have the sensor disengaged as we have had the van 12 + years and have not had a need for the traction control to take over. This is not only dangerous but very scary for the driver and passengers. Please Toyota, get this problem fixed.

When I am driving my 2004 Sienna, its shaking so badly I feel like wheels going to roll out. Also brake make worse, and engine mounts and transmission mount are very bad condition. I don't know why its bad breaking in rain.

Bought 4 new goodyear viva 2 tires in 2014 at walmart in haines city, florida just had my 2nd blowout due to sidewall separation at 55 mph. Balanced tires and check pressures always. Faulty product - walmart not willing to warranty said it's a manufacturers problem. Please investigate this tire.

The cable snapped and the door will not close.

2004 Toyota Sienna drivers side door broken. Internal door asymbly broke inside door. Door hinges also broke. Dealer said it would cost $2000 to fix. Auto body shop repaired for $300. This was a safety issue and Toyota should recall.

My van was parked on the drive way. Suddenly I saw gasoline flowing from below of the van. There were not much gasoline left. Somehow I could manage to take to the nearest Toyota dealer. He said that it must be water drainage from ac system. After driving 200 meters it stops completely. I brought gasoline in a jar and car started but saw that the gasoline is dripping from below. Again gave back to Toyota dealer to take a look.

Right passenger door stuck shut. Cables are fine. Left power sliding door will not shut all the way draining battery every day cause the open door light stays on. 130,000 mi. Other then that van runs great in mint condition. Will never buy another Toyota Sienna after the problems with these doors.

After opening the rear driver slider, the door would not latch closed. . . . Can not get the door to stay closed. . Brought it immediately to a dealership, they got it to latch, but driving home the slider completely opened. Thankfully one of my children were not in the vechicle.

I'm merely documenting that from the moment my rear door struts were replaced in 2012 due to a recall, they have not worked well. They continue to get worse. Now in cold weather, they are unable to keep the door up at all. Apparently there is no recall to fix the botched initial recall.

The dashboard of my Sienna 2004, craking all over (horizontal and vertical). Following the same lines of the design. My minivan has not been in any accident. -this can provoque the air bags inside the dash ican bee loose in any moment and cause an accident. -all the electric wire can be in danger because the dashboard is broken and now is not 1 piece so is not hold to the car 100%.

Toyota Sienna door check spot weld failure - driver's side front door was making loud noise, so I had it repaired at a repair shop around Jan 15, 2015 at 98985 mileage and paid $224. 56. Same problem came back after little less than 1 year at 102,000 mileage. . Read more...

Drivers door shell ripped from the door check mount when opening. The drivers side front door previously made loud snap noise, found problem, check mount was replaced in Apr 2012 at 43500mi. Mid Dec 2014 same noise returned, only this time, the door shell ripped and swung very wide open from a light gust of wind. The door sheet metal is nearly torn completely away, and the door check mount is just barely hanging on. If any one had been standing there it would have knocked them down, or worse. Sorry for the rant. Now, I've learned that Toyota has known about this specific problem with this vehicle year and model, but they refused to take adequate action, only informing some, and calling it a minor problem. Its going to cost over $2000 to replace the door. Minor? and that won't fix the design problem. It'll likely happen again in another 20k+ miles. Thank you for your concern.