2000 Toyota Sienna LX from North America - Comments

I thought I was unlucky that I bought a lemon. It's a surprise that there are so many owners that have the same problems I had on my 2000 sienna. Looks like Toyota has some design and quality control issues.

The new car came with chattering problem, I had the dealer checked 3 times, they just re-balanced the wheels, but didn't correct the problem. Then they told me they can't find what's wrong. I finally had a shop looked at it. They corrected it with alignment. But the tires are badly worn already.

On February 2002, the Check Engine warning light came on. The dealership said the mechanics found metal debris in it and decided to replaced the transmission. I have to wait 2 weeks for them to get the new transmission ship from west coast. Yes, I have a loaner car, that's the good part. 3 days after the vehicle was fixed, the warning light came on again. This time, they found it's just a loose wire. Thanks god (but I really doubt that if this is the real problem the first time the light came on, since metal debris in transmission is normal, that's what the magnets inside the transmission oil pan for). A new problem appeared right after they fix the transmission, noise came out from the engine room. Every time the engine is at 2200 rpm, I hear a deep throat roaring sound. Yep, if you cruise at 65, that's the engine's rpm. Pretty annoying. The dealership said there is nothing they can do since it's "normal engine noise", but I really don't think it's the engine since there is no noise if it's not driving and just push the padel to put the engine at 2200 rpm.

And, (yes it's not over yet), I found it's leaking some kind of oil recently. I had the dealer checked the vehicle, this time it's the power steering high pressure hose. It's not under warranty any more. Even I have Toyota Gold extended warranty, it's not covered.

That's it, it's the worst vehicle ownership experience I ever had. Me and my wife are considering trade it in for some other vehicle, like Odyssey, should be more reliable.

No engine sludge yet? Boy, are you lucky! :-)

Maybe the reason they have no sludge is because they are smart owners that actually do their maintenance on time and at the right places, instead of going to Jiffy Lube "when they remember to" and expect the manufacturer to buy a $5000 engine as a result of their ignorance. I assume luck had nothing to do with it.

From what I have read, there are some reports here where the owners have properly maintained their engines and still got sludge. It doesn't appear to be maintenance related at all, which leaves some sort of mechanical failure as the cause or some operating condition that wears out the oil extremely fast.

No, I can guarantee nearly every vehicle with sludge IS a lack of maintenance. I have seen 6 cases of sludge personally, and on average, they have excessive mileage and very little proof of service. Or, when they do service, they take it to Wal-Mart or some other completely unqualified place that does not even replace the oil filter every time. Which, by the way, is very harmful to a vehicles engine. When old oil that has not been changed (either by lack of maintenance or being recirculated throughout the block from a contaminated oil filter that was not changed even when the oil was) it can build up and eventually cause the block to seize. Many owners are stating that dealers are not helping them out at all. However, Toyota has paid for every dime of each repair that I have seen, including complimentary rental cars, even when the owner probably did not deserve to be taken care of. The letter which should have made its way to owners states that every legitimate oil sludging concern will be taken care of 8 years and unlimited miles from the date of first use, regardless of who the first owner was. There is no disclaimer other than that people need to provide some maintenance records, but even then they have been lenient. It is really irritating to hear that owners have not been more careful about their purchases, but even worse to hear that dealers have been denying claims. Be persistent in you pursuit, but please also take care of your vehicles; Oil changes every 3750 miles, not much more. This is probably what your mechanic will tell you. Don't go by the book, trust a mechanic that sees these cars all day and knows what they are talking about. And please, visit the dealer at least every other time you service the vehicle, no matter what brand you drive. Factory trained mechanics with access to information independents aren't is truly an incomparable advantage. Thank you.

I am the owner of a sludged Sienna that WAS well maintained. Toyota came out with a policy to help owners of Siennas, Avalons, Camrys, Solaras, Highlanders, Celicas and some other models because there is a serious problem of low mileage sludge in these vehicles beginning in 1997 and until 2002. In April 2002, Toyota changed the design on the engine to help prevent sludge. The design change involved the PCV system and the engine head. Some engine failures due to sludge in Toyotas could be due to lack of maintenance. The percentage of poorly maintained Toyotas getting sludge should mirror the percentage seen in the industry. But Toyotas seems to have above average problems with sludge. Do a web seach (google.com is a good search engine for this) for key words "Toyota Engine Sludge". Compare what you get to when you do a search for "Honda Engine Sludge".

There does indeed seem to be a mechanical problem in these vehicles. Toyota is not fixing the PCV or engine head until AFTER you get sludge, so remember to take extraordinary care of your Toyota and watch for signs of sludge - MIL illuminating, smoke in exhaust, signs of sludge on dipstick, heavy consumption of oil at very low miles.

Toyota is telling owners to be sure to check the oil frequently (at least every time you stop for gas) so you can watch for these signs.

Re:

"22nd Jun 2003, 12:59 Maybe the reason they have no sludge is because they are smart owners that actually do their maintenance on time and at the right places, instead of going to Jiffy Lube "when they remember to" and expect the manufacturer to buy a $5000 engine as a result of their ignorance. I assume luck had nothing to do with it. "

WOW 3.3 million dumb owners... interesting!

Toyota says that they mailed letters to all 3.3 million owners of the Sienna, Celica, Solara, Camry, Highalander, Avalon, RX300, ES300 to tell them about the 8 year unlimited mileage policy on sludge,

Yes, you're absolutely right, Toyota did mail a letter out to all owners of the vehicles you listed with the involved engines. Perhaps Toyota, being the smart company that they are, would like to make the public aware of a potential problem instead of keeping some corporate secret that everybody at the company is "in on," yet none of the public are privy to. Toyota is the number one money making auto manufacturer, and I'm sure they would like to stay that way. Even if that means buying an engine that they should not have to now and then. By taking care of customers that have either not taken care of their vehicles or been extremely unfortunate, they obviously look more dedicated to their product than if they were to completely deny that the circumstance could not exist at all. My 1997 Camry with 180,000 miles on it runs extremely well and has not even come close to exhibiting the symptoms people have been describing; nor has my aunt's Sienna, my grandmother's Camry, or my friend's Highlander, among the dozens of people with "involved" vehicles. And as long as they continue to maintain them, they probably never will.

There is significant evidence by the way of reports on the internet that Toyota did not make this information about its sludge policy available to the owners of the subject models. Many people, some original owners at their original address, are only aware of the problem AFTER they have experienced it themselves and AFTER doing a search on the internet. Try doing a search for Toyota Engine Sludge using http://www.google.com for more information.

Other good resources are listed below.

http://www.yotarepair.com (even has a "Sludge Zone")

http://autos.msn.com (see Ratings and Reviews for models covered under sludge policy)

http://www.autosafety.org (this site has info on the sludge policy, a copy of the letter that owners SHOULD have received, and also has compiled complaints of owners)

http://www.thecomplaintstation.com (go to "T" for Toyota or "L" for Lexus).

http://www.edmunds.com (go to Town Hall and do search for "Sludge" to find reports about engine sludge)

http://www.nhtsa.gov (see reports filed by owners that have been made to this government agency in charge of mandating recalls)

I know of instances where car owners (Chevy Caprice and Dodge Van) did not change their oil in over 100,000 miles, and the engine never developed sludge. Both of those vehicles went on to go over 200,000 with the same treatment.

I know it sounds unbelievable, and I even have a difficult time believing it myself, but I witnessed both these instances in horror myself. For some reason I cannot comprehend, the owners simply did not believe in changing the oil. This is not the way to treat a vehicle, but these engines somehow managed to last.

I myself too hastily bought a car ('93 Ford Festiva) without giving it a good enough looking over that had 25,000 miles on it, and when I changed the oil, discovered the engine had the original oil filter and presumably the original oil. The oil looked hideous when I changed it and hydraulic valve lash adjuster failed at 30,000 miles (I'm sure as a result of the oil not being changed), but there was never any sludge.

My point is that it is not normal for an engine to develop sludge in the short amount of time Toyota engines do, even if the oil has not been changed.

I have a 2000 Toyota Sienna with 115,000 miles on it and recently had to have the transmission rebuilt. Does anyone else own this model and had transmission problems with it. I purchased a Toyota because of their reputation in being a dependable vehicle for at least 200,000 miles or more. We regularly maintained this vehicle and feel that transmission breakdown should not have been an issue even at 115,000 miles with regular maintenance. My husband drives a Honda accord with 188,000 miles on it and has never had to replace the transmission. What's up with that? Makes me think Honda is the way to go next time we're in the market for a new vehicle. Any remarks would be helpful.