2004 Toyota Sienna LE

Summary:

Don't get a Sienna, unless you have money to burn

Faults:

After taking ownership of our van, we noticed a loud squealing sound from one of the belts. I took it to the Toyota dealership and was charged $160, just to look under the hood. The mechanic said that it was the air conditioner belt and that it needed to be changed. I had the belt changed and still had the same noise problem persist.

I took it back and was told that they sprayed it with a lubricant to take noise away. Of course the noise came back, and I then again went back and was not helped at all in quieting the noise. I gave up on having a quiet car.

Then I had the ultimate problem happen... my engine had sludged. My car had only 37000 miles on it and was still under the 50,000 warranty. I contacted the warranty department and was told that my warranty was not going to be honored, due to me not having the oil changed at their "Toyota" facility. I had receipts for timely oil changes at Jiffy Lube, but they would not honor it because I did not take it to them. I was truly disappointed with Toyota and the warranty company. I had no choice but to have them clean the sludge and to charge me $3,000 for it.

Now my air conditioner is not working and was told that it is the compressor. What's next?

General Comments:

I am currently looking for a Honda.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No

Review Date: 8th December, 2008

8th Jul 2011, 22:33

Our A/C compressor also went out on our 2004 Toyota Sienna at 50k miles. $1500 to repair. Dealer recommended replacing the entire A/C system for $6000, which I declined. Irony; I paid more for the "Toyota" name for false reliability.

10th Jul 2011, 12:13

Sadly many people are still deceived by what probably was never a true view of imports. Billions in ad hype has created an urban myth in the U.S. that anything made by foreign industry is better. My experience with older imports was all bad, and I refuse to waste my money on newer, even more poorly built ones.

I was very happy this week to see that in comparisons, a leading automotive magazine known for being blatantly biased against domestic vehicles, rated the Ford Focus above the Honda Civic, and recommended it above all import competition. In another comparison, the Chevy Volt was recommended over the Lexus Corolla-based hybrid, in spite of the fact that the Lexus was 10 grand cheaper.

Americans are waking up to the fact that newer domestics are more sophisticated, more reliable, safer and have better build quality than Japanese brands. I've known this all along. None of my domestics has ever required a single repair before 100,000 miles.

2004 Toyota Sienna LE FWD 3.3L V6

Summary:

Hunk of Junk, buy a Mazda!

Faults:

The A.C. stopped working.

Power sliding door motor had to be replaced twice.

The engine check light comes on randomly.

Cylinders began misfire problems shortly after I bought it.

The tires can't hold air.

Spark plug had to be replaced.

For some reason the driver door would not latch unless slammed as hard as possible, causing my battery to die several times.

Premature brake wear.

General Comments:

It was a waste of my money.

It was an unreliable piece of dog poo that is under performing, sloppy and ugly.

I'll probably smash it with a mallet when I am done with it.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No

Review Date: 27th August, 2008

17th Oct 2008, 11:39

So true.

I sold my Mazda MPV last year and bought a new Sienna.

The biggest mistake of my life.

2004 Toyota Sienna LE 3.3L V6

Summary:

A good choice for a family vehicle

Faults:

Passenger side power sliding door malfunctioned.

Sprung an oil leak at 66,000 kilometers.

General Comments:

Handles well and does not feel as big as it really is.

Acceleration is average.

The second row seats however are uncomfortable due to poorly located child seat mounts.

The third row head restraints are stiff and difficult to adjust.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 2nd July, 2008