1999 Toyota Sienna XLE from North America - Comments

The power door once wouldn't operate but the dealer took care of that by cleaning the electric contacts and greasing the runner at about 30,000 miles.

An idiot light on the dash tells me that I need to check my tire pressure even though all tires have correct pressure. This light has been lying to me since about the year 2001 but it doens't worry me enought to fix it.

There is a slight rattling sound, very faint, coming from behind the instrument panel. Something is vibrating in there against something else.

I bought this minivan with all the bells and whistles (air cond., cd player, sunroof, leather, alloy wheels, etc. The engine is a good performer and has plenty of passing power. The power seats, the engine, none of that stuff has failed.

I am the original owner and have only been to the dealership a few times to fix the problems that I have mentioned. However, the idiot light came back as a problem, after the warranty period. Nothing about this vehicle warrants serious concern.

All in all, this has been a trouble-free vehicle. I have changed the oil about every 4,000 miles. It doesn't leak or burn oil. It has always gotten me safely to my destination. I was motivated to write this review after reading a bad review of a Sienna. If I wanted to replace this minivan, I certainly would do so with either another Toyota, and I would consider a Honda too because their seats can be removed a little easier.

I bought the Sienna for its 5 star rating in crash tests and for the Toyota reputation for reliability. I never crashed it so I can't speak to that, but as far as reliability I'd guess I made the right choice. Besides oil changes and tires, I really haven't spent a penny on it and have stayed out of the dealership fairly well.

I have a 2002 Sienna and have the exact same issues with my van in regards to the tire pressure warning light. My problem appeared within warranty and I took the vehicle in and was told that it was because I have mismatched tires. (One of my original tires was replaced due to damage with a tire of the same exact size). I was told that when the tread wore down it would stop. It didn't and because of the frequent activation of the light, it came on recently and I ignored it. I actually had a flat and did not realize it and ruined a tire.

I have had the same problem with the tire pressure light I bought the vehicle in October 2004 after totaling my previous Suzuki Grand Vitara. I recenltly had to change all 4 tires due to wear and they are the same size except that the original was low profile. Does that have some thing to do with the light? The light has only come on once since then. The warranty is long gone.

We had the same problem with the tire pressure light. I think it means that it noticed a change in tire pressure (not necessarily that the tire pressure is low).

We put air into the tires and the light went on, and went on and off randomly over the next few weeks. I think there might be a reset button somewhere, look in the manual (I haven't yet.)

P.S. Anybody have problems with the rear hatch not opening correctly (often not opening at all)?? We fixed it by hand and it worked for a bit, but then stopped opening after a bit. The local Toyota dealer wants $800 (yes, eight hundred dollars) to fix it.

The air pres. lts can come on with a rise in temp and or going fast on an exit turn when the centrifugal force can affect tire pressure momentarily...esp. if you re carrying cargo.

The rear lift gate handle is a very poorly designed mechanism, very common problem. A new one is between 60 and 80 bucks at the dealer, but they want from 400 to 800 to replace it - a real ripoff, we bought a replacement on line for 50 dollars and replaced it in about an hour. Detailed instructions are on the web.

The tire pressure light is a pain, but as long as you check your tire pressure regularly, its not a big deal, just another poor design. It actually is a set of sensors that tell the computer that the car is level, has nothing to do with tire pressure at all. If you load the car unevenly, it will come on. When you unload the car, it won't go off until you reset it - the directions are in the owners manual- the reset button is to the left of the steering wheel, easy to find. Hold it down, turn on the ignition and wait for it to blink 3 times. If the light comes back on, its probably because a monkey that replaced or rotated your tires knocked a sensor off the frame. Not worth fixing, just check your tire pressure regularly.

130,000 miles and despite both of these problems and bad rear power window motors, ours is still going strong and we love it.

You say your Toyota dealer wants $800 for fixing the hatch? Try stopping by an independent mechanic in your area to see if they charge less. We always take our cars to one when the warranty runs out.

I too have a 2002 Sienna. Got ripped off at the dealer for a 60K miles checkup. They wanted $1190 for all sorts of stuff which they didn't do. I have since maintained my own car. I change oil and filter every 3k - 3500 miles. I change drive belts and iridium spark plugs every 60k miles. air filter every 10 k. all parts bought factory spec and on-line for about 1/3rd the price. I wrote a long blog on how to change the back 3 spark plugs on a Toyota transverse mount V6 (i.e. sienna). I've now done it twice. First time took me 1 hr 15 minutes. The second time, took me just 45 minutes. Folks may want to Google "changing spark plugs sienna" and it's like the first or second link.

Wife broke the back latch also at 105K miles. You can go on-line and find out how to -repair- the latch. I used a thin, long screw, some epoxy and repaired it. Toyota dealers with old databases can actually have a bad part number for the manual latch and want $80 for the part. It's actually $37 in the San Francisco Bay Area and I can't remember the part number, but I found some experts that knew about the glitch in the database and had the part in stock. Two other dealers gave me the run around.

Took me 30 minutes to install the latch with basic tools. Process basically involves working from the inside back of the vehicle and pulling off the center panel screws, carefully pulling off the edges of the big rear cover panel (careful not to break to tear pop rivets), and then removing about half a dozen bolts that hold the latch and locking mechanism in place. Not sure why I removed the license plate, but I did, and then I replaced the latch, put bolts back on, tested the door, and then put the back panel back on. Just had to remember to slip the panel corners under the plastic trim on the left and right side of the windows for original fit. They wanted around $500 to repair at the dealer and "overnight." What phonies! Personally, Toyota should have spec'd a cast metal piece as many cars are having that problem.

As for the tire pressure light, I constantly have to reset since I wear tires like crazy due to lots of road trips. With car stopped, insert key into ignition, and turn on engine but not all the way so it doesn't engage the starter. Hold down reset tire button (left side of dash below steering column) for several seconds until the pressure light blinks a few times, and that means you reset the light. When you start the van again, the light should stay off until you need to check the tires again for wear or pressure.

With exception of getting ripped off at the dealer the first time, and one other time to get my timing belt replaced at 90K miles, I've done everything else. The Sienna works like a champ. And yes, lubing the rails on the power door and cleaning contacts are good suggestions.

I have a 1999 Toyota Sienna, and my problem is the PWR DOOR light keeps coming on, even though all doors are closed.

Once in a while we can clean the sensors on the side doors and close tight, and light will go out.

Last week I noticed the battery getting weak, so I bought a new battery after a tech ran a diagnostic test and there was dead cell. 1 week later, PWR DOOR light comes on and then the battery light, and the new battery was completely dead. Tech put in new battery and ran a new diagnostic, and it said power draining and or alternator problem. How can you tell if it is the alternator or if the PWR DOOR is draining battery? Test was not specific and I do not have money for the dealership to work on it. Any help would be greatly appreciated. I even thought about removing fuse to PWR DOOR, but I don't want to mess up something else. Thanks!

I have a 2000 Sienna with 110,000 miles.

The low tire light has been most of the time.

The van still runs great, even though the only thing I have done to it is oil changes.

It eats tires and has since the day I bought it. It will eat the front tires off in 10,000 miles. I took it to the dealer and they said tire pressure being 6 pounds under caused it. I guess they think everyone is an idiot. I have had the front end aligned at least 4 times and it still eats tires.

It is such a good van other than the tire issue, I just keep driving it and might keep another ten years... I just will never buy another car from that dealer...

Randy.