2000 Toyota Tundra SR5 Access Cab 5.7L from North America

Summary:

Reliability of this vehicle is terrible.

Faults:

At 21,000 miles, the power steering pump went out, but was covered by warranty.

At 37,000 miles, I noticed that both plastic rear window locks were broken. One snapped off and the other side was cracked. Both were seldom used.

At 41,000 miles, the Bank 1, Sensor #1 O2 sensor went out. Exactly three weeks later, the Bank 2, Sensor #1, O2 sensor went out. That's two out of four sensors in three weeks.

General Comments:

I bought a Toyota for it's reputation of quality and reliability. Never again. Toyota Customer Service says the O2 sensor issue is not a recall issue and will do nothing to help although the problem keeps popping up on owner forums. Each sensor repair is a $333.00 fix by Toyota.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No

Review Date: 24th January, 2004

5th Feb 2004, 20:17

There is a special warranty covering "emissions" items that is good for 50K which should have covered those sensors. I'm not sure if it is only here in California or nation wide. Check it out. You may get your money back. It's buried in my owner's manual.

17th Jun 2004, 14:06

I've had similar problems with my 2000 SR5 Tundra (currently has 59,000 miles). All the brakes have been replaced at least once, and I still get vibrations when I apply the brake pedal.

My exhaust manifold developed a crack and cost $1000 to replace. One week later the O2 sensor on that manifold went bad. Would Toyota consider the possibility that possibly their mechanic had contaminated the O2 sensor when he replaced the manifold?? Heck no...that'll be $300, please.

The right rear door creaks like an old rocker. I took it into the dealer over 6 times and they never could fix it. Stupid me... the service dept manager said "let's just not write up work orders on this problem anymore" and like an idiot I went along with him because I'm such a nice guy/schmuck. I think Toyota pressures their service managers to falsify documents on recurring/unsolvable problems. He seemed real nervous about what information goes to Toyota America.

Also, I have a tapping sound in my engine when it's under load. I've also taken it in to the dealer 5 or 6 times before the 36,000 mile point (same thing, the service manager convinced me to not document after the second trip). They never could find the problem. It sounds like a maladjusted tappet (I don't even know if they have them on the V-8) or a noisy fuel injector, or something like that. It's getting louder each month. I get the feeling that the dealership was just stalling me to get past the 36,000 mile point so they could ignore me. What with work and normal time pressures I couldn't make it my life's mission to get some kind of fair treatment out of Toyota, so I'm stuck.

Also, the battery went dead at 36,300 miles, less than a week after I'd had it in the Toyota dealer for their "complete oil change and service inspection" (ha, what a laugh, they checked off that they'd looked at the battery, but it was obvious they had not). Would Toyota consider giving me a new battery as a good will gesture? Go pound sand. (By the way, my girl friend has a 2002 Camry, and the same thing happened to the battery, but luckily it was at 15,000 miles, so Toyota couldn't weasel out of replacing it. What's with these cheap Toyota components?? They really seem to be going for the low bidder.)

I won't go into depth on the cheap Toyota paint. Bird poop acts like hydrochloric acid and bubbles up the paint. The slightest impact in a parking lot chips off a little piece of paint. This paint is much more tender than any other car I've owned.

This is my first new Toyota. I've bought used ones before and have always been impressed, but I am sorely disappointed with the Tundra, Toyota America and the Toyota dealer system. I'm going to have to look elsewhere for my next new vehicle.

26th Jul 2004, 11:17

I have a 2001 Limited at 38k. The check engine light came on last week. The dealership (not same place as I bought) said it was the O2 sensors and replaced them free of charge because of a service bulletin.

2000 Toyota Tundra SR5 TRD 4.7 Liter from North America

Summary:

The Best Truck I've Ever Owned!

Faults:

None, other than the usual maintenance recommended by the dealer, I changed timing belt because it was due. That's it.

General Comments:

This is my work Truck and it's worth every penny I've paid for. When I bought got it, it had 30,000 miles. Since then I've put a total 92,000 plus miles on it. I've abused it, took it hunting, long distance travel, and nothing has gone wrong. It is a great truck to own. Just came back from Oregon two weeks ago which was about 1600 miles round trip. I've also just finished my wife's raised garden and hauled a total of 10 tons of dirt from the local nursery into our back yards. Each haul consists of 1 ton even though my truck is only a half ton. So far, nothing has gone wrong and with 92,000 miles on it the quality speaks for itself. This truck is a keeper-until a newer and more powerful version comes out.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 22nd January, 2004

11th May 2004, 14:02

Okay, I'm the same guy who wrote the article. Recently, at 98K miles, the check engine light came on. A quick check with a Generic Code reader for OBDII made by "Creader" cost $39.00 bought at a local Harbor Freights Tools shop showed that it had a faulty code: 0155 which means O2 Sensor Heator Circuit Malfunction (bank 2 sensor 1). A call to Toyota and $130 dollars later, I fixed the problem myself replacing the old 02 sensors. Total cost was approx. $180 after tax. Not bad for a fix after 98k miles. Regarding other people's comment on their brake rotor problem, I have not experienced anything like theirs. Very unfortunate that other people are having problems with their trucks. I love mine.