Faults:

First off, I never wanted a van. My wife's Acura got totaled just when my Dad lost his license, so we bought his Sienna. It was a low mileage van, fully loaded, and in the right place at the right time I guess.

Since we've owned it, I had to replace a steering rack and an exhaust pipe. I just did the brakes after 80 000km. Great reliability.

This van is incredible. It takes us on our yearly 5000 km family vacation with no troubles. Lots of room (once you take out the 3rd row seat). Very comfortable.

The Sienna is an amazing family vehicle.

My only complaint is that the stereo system is a little under powered. There's a lot of room to fill up in a van, and I sometimes think the sounds gets a little lost / muffled. I guess I just need to bite the bullet, and buy an amp and sub woofer.

Overall GREAT VAN... BUY ONE.

Faults:

Recently had brakes replaced in our 2000 Toyota Sienna with 167.000 miles and no major repairs to date. The upstate New York repair shop charged $1200 and I have no idea if this is fair. Should I ask him for a list of what he did and what parts are replaced?

General Comments:

This car is incredibly comfortable and reliable.

Faults:

Radio display went out at 36,050 miles. Later it fixed it's self.

Transmission leaking. Dealer replaced o-ring at torque converter. No more problems.

Check engine light came on at about 90,000 miles. Just a coolant temp sensor. Changed myself. No more problems.

Power door sometimes not working properly.

General Comments:

All in all we have had real good luck with the van. We are buying a new one today just because we like it so much and keeping the old one as a spare.

Faults:

Driver's side window/lock switch.

Hatch door handle.

Leaking coolant.

Poor gas mileage.

General Comments:

We previously had a Toyota Rav4 and upgraded to a Sienna once we had kids. I've generally had good luck with Toyota and thought I would have minimal problems. Overall the vehicle is OK, but it's not built as well as previous Toyotas I've had. Little things like the Driver's side door switch broke (leaving the passenger window permanently open). This part costs over $250 from the dealer and is a common failure on this model. Hard to find the switch in junk yards as they get scooped up quickly. The other common failure is the back hatch door handle which has an internal release part that is made of thin plastic and breaks easily, another common failure on this model. There is even a web site devoted to fixing it on the cheap with a nut and bolt (only worked temporarily in my case). I was very disappointed in the gas mileage. I usually get between 15 and 17 miles/gallon in town and I'm lucky if I get 20 on the highway. I know it's a heavy vehicle, but my Dad's Ford F150 with a small V8 gets better gas mileage. I also had a coolant leak that was traced to a gasket on the lower part of the engine (had it fixed at a local garage for $200).

After buying the van I found out about the oil sludge problem that can occur with this model so I keep an eye on the oil and try to change it regularly. So far it seems to be OK. The previous owner of my van took good care of it and did proper maintenance. I've been told that the oil sludge problem is usually due to poor maintenance so if you buy a pre-2003 Sienna try to make sure that you see some service records.

The van rides well and has reasonable power. It's also comfortable on long trips (I drove it across country). The space in the back is pretty good. All of the back seats come out with some effort (they're all a bit heavy and cumbersome). We plan on keeping the van until it dies. I think with diligent oil changes and regular maintenance it might last a while. However, Toyota has the reputation of making tough vehicles with low maintenance needs. Maybe this model is just the exception.