Comments: 1-15, 16-19
Here is my story. I bought my brand new Sienna XLE Limited last August. I drive from CA to WY a couple times a year and wanted a safe, smooth ride for my family. I chose the Sienna and spent the first winter very happy - we live in WY Jan, Feb and Mar. April we returned to CA, and by the end of April had our first FLAT. I was alone with my daughter, 12:30 AM, on a Saturday night, when my ride felt rough and after about 5 miles the tire indicator came on. I pulled off the freeway, I80 in Sacramento, CA, to the nearest gas station and called Triple A. While waiting I began to look for my spare tire - EVERYWHERE. Pulled out the manual, read about my run flats and realized I did not have a spare. This was news to me as when purchasing the vehicle nothing was said to me. Triple A came and to make a long story short I decided to risk the 80 miles home. We made it - scary going 40miles an hour on I80 - by 3:30 AM.
First thing Monday morning I called my
Toyota dealer and expressed my dissatisfaction with this tire design. They were unsympathetic and sent me to Bridgestone as they do not warranty my tires in any way. Bridgestone of San Francisco, did not have a tire. The closest one was in Chicago they said and soonest I could get it would be Friday. I was without my car all week. Fri AM I called to be sure the tire had arrived and it had not. Tracking it showed it would be there by Monday. I called Toyota again, expressing my disbelief that they could sell such a "new" product without making sure it was in stock. They put me on hold, had me talk to several supervisors, managers, all who said they could do nothing - the tires were under Bridgestone warranty.
Monday I get my new tire and have it put on at the mere price of $345.
I am not happy, but think for that price these must be very good tires.
Three weeks later I get my second flat. This time I am in Monterey for my goddaughter's college graduation, when indicator light goes on I have great disbelief that this could really be happening again. Soon I determined it was indeed happening again. I call my Toyota dealer and tell them I can't believe this, but I have another flat. He says go to the nearest Monterey Tire Store, I found Sullivan's Tires, and let them know to patch my Run Flat as I am only traveling 10 miles this time and it is reparable, but make sure not to plug it, but to patch it, and it can be repaired. Again to make a long story short, Sullivan's tells me they do not carry run flats, they cannot repair a run flat, and there is no other tire made the same size as my runflat to put on. The closest run flat is in San Jose CA and I will have to wait a day to get it. I needed to return that night as my children were with a sitter and I had an early morning appointment. Again to make the story short about the hours of research, phone calling, arguing, and thinking - I ended up going to the Monterey Toyota Dealer, talking them into selling me a regular Bridgestone tire that is the right size for my car for $135 and taking it to Sullivan's who agreed to put in on for me. Toyota would not as they would not be liable for my driving a car with a regular tire on it without a spare.
Sullivan's said if they were me they would get rid of this car as they see on average one a week in there with a flat - one week a lady came in three times.
I decide Toyota will now surely help me out. I go back to them. It soon became clear they were not going to help me. Meanwhile it is time for my 20,000 mile maintenance. I bring my car into a Toyota repair garage as I am too angry with my Toyota Dealer to continue using them for my servicing. When I pick up my car they show me my tires. My RunFlats need to be replaced as they have worn unevenly and where they have worn they are bald! I cannot believe as this shows even the tires that did not go flat now need to be replaced at $345 each. NO THANK YOU! and they will last no longer than 20,000 miles. Why pay so much for such a lousy product?
It is suggested I have not kept the air pressure or alignment. Upon inspection it is agreed my alignment is fine, my tires have been properly, and on time, rotated AND, being that my husband, is a PILOT - He and I check the tire air pressure, always, as though it were an airplane ready for take off.
I have been speaking with the Toyota 1 800 customer service line and Bridgestone 1800 and to date have received no sympathy or help. Toyota each is trying to find blame with me and my maintenance of the tire. How can a tire which costs over $300, no matter how poorly maintained need to be replaced at 20,000 miles.
I have to make the drive to WY on July 25th and if nothing else is offered I have already decided I will be putting three more of the Bridgstone Teranza's tires on my Sienna. I am trying to purchase a spare tire as the jack etc. are already on board, but have not found a dealer who has one. I am disappointed in Toyota and Bridgestone and open to advise as to what to do next. After reading all the online complaints I think a recall or some assistance from Toyota is in order. They have always promoted themselves as a company who cares about their product.
I imagine you would void your warranty by doing so (correct me if I am wrong), but perhaps it would be wisest to simply purchase non-run flats for your Sienna. You probably have considered that option already, though, so my other recommendation is to simply trade it in and forget about it! Toyota makes a great number of good vehicles, it just happens that this tire problem is fairly common in their Sienna model. Perhaps a Rav4 would serve you better.
While visiting the Toyota website recently, I went to the FAQ section. Under the Run Flat Tires topic, I noticed that "Toyota is pleased to announce a spare tire option" for the Sienna AWD vehicles! Under this topic, they also advise that you can retrofit the van with non run flat tires. I am planning on doing this, as it seems obvious that the RFT's are JUNK, and not meant for this vehicle. That was a comment from a Bridgestone dealer!
"Run-flat" tires are indeed a con, and a very expensive one.
Better to have conventional wheels and tires, a full-size spare and a cannister sealant/inflator to deal with minor leaks.
A similar system was tried in Britain many years ago, Dunlop Denovo, I think it was called, back in the seventies, and it was unpopular with owners when they realized a set of new tires would cost 2-3 times that of conventional tires.
$345 a tire? Wow... and they won't help you out?
I purchased a Toyota Sienna in June, searched all over for the spare tire and could not locate, the manual clearly shows that a spare tire is in the rear of the vehicle. I went back to the dealer the next day and was told there was no spare, as I travel long distance on lonely roads at night I purchased a wheel and tire from the same dealer for $757.The run flat tires are very heavy and per the manual are OK for up to 100 miles unless it is hot. Toyota step up to the plate and furnish a spare wheel and tire to all, there reason for not including one is that there was no place to store it.
$757 for a wheel and tire from a dealer is outrageous.
4 normal wheels and 4 normal tyres should not be much more expensive than that.
Ditch the run-flats, buy 5 normals and that will minimize your future expenditure.
I'm too am not a happy camper about purchasing a fairly expensive vehicle without a spare. I'm sure run flat technology is safer if you have a blow out, but in the end who wants to drive on a sidewall? Then what about those folks who drive to trail heads and do a lot of back country hikes etc. Maybe they should have purchased an Xterra. I pissed and moaned about this for a while and came up with the following solution. I know this won't work for everyone, but it will for me. First I'm purchasing a Thule soft cargo pack that can be attached to my roof rack. It's 13 cubic feet and will easily fit a tire on a rim. (based on my measurements anyway). Next I will purchase a jack (however probably not from Toyota as the jack and handle assembly is nearly $150.00). Finally I will purchase an inexpensive rim and mount a proper size non run flat tire to carry in my soft cargo pack and wait for my run flats to wear out, at which time I will purchase regular tires. The folks at Toyota obviously didn't do any market studies because everyone I've spoken with is unhappy with this option. Now I understand the Honda Odyssey is going the same route so who knows maybe all those soccer moms really like the option since they're always close to home.
To the original reviewer,
Do your market research before you buy a vehicle. Also check the demo unit in the showroom carefully. Don't just look at the pretty interior. You are responsible for making sure that you are not robbed and that you are completely satisfied in a business transaction. This will save a lot of hassle in the long run. Run flat tires are included as part of the design to save space as there is no spare. If enough people complain, Toyota may re-think this move. Toyota builds some of the most reliable vehicles in the world. They did not make the tires. Was Ford responsible for the lives lost due to faulty Firestone tires a few years ago? No, neither is Toyota at fault here. They could have been a bit more helpful judging from what you said in your review.
Toyota *IS* at fault for designing a van without means for a spare, even a "donut" spare. The original reviewer is blatantly at fault for not looking into what he/she was buying. There was a time when Toyota sold an AWD minivan in the US with a full size spare, the Previa (which is still sold in other countries). Too bad it is not still offered here. It used a fold-up to the sides third seat, so it had room underneath for a full size spare. Great design!
Also, I think 90% of the people buying AWD don't actually need it. Unless you live in the lake effect snow belt, have to drive on unplowed roads, or live on a mountain in ski country, FWD with good all season tires and ABS is going to be fine.
Things that have gone wrong:
As the other comments indicated, I long ago replaced my RF tires with regular tires, although it took discussing this at great length with Toyota itself before I was given the correct sizes. The run flat tires were terrible and yes, I keep a full size spare in the car where the 3rd row closes down, so there is no excuse for Toyota oushing these tires.
I rattle everywhere, but live with it. But now, at less than 3 years, my power steering is failing.
No more Toyotas for me!
I am interested in this vehicle for work purposes. I am a sales rep and need to haul lots of product. I live in the mountains and wonder how the AWD model handles in the snow. Any problems anyone has encountered?
We are on our 4th Toyota product, the 2004 Sienna XLE. The cable for the automatic sliding door on the passenger side just snapped one day. As usual it is not Toyota's fault and of course we just passed the warranty. Any advice on how to get this problem solved because we are devoted Toyota customers, but I found the customer sevice man at Toyota head office Very Rude.
The #1 mistake of any vehicle owner is thinking that Toyota (or any other manufacturer) actually gives a crap how you feel after the sale. They have your money and they're going to keep it. They are a big corporation that is out to make money, not make friends or coddle people who feel "betrayed" by a corporate giant. There will always be people coming in the showroom as long as the vaunted image of "Toyota reliability" is out there.
Gee, Consumer Reports just removed Toyota vehicles from their automatic "recommended" status. Not that an automatic recommendation isn't bogus to begin with, but that should say something about Toyota's reputation for quality. The way to topple a company like Toyota is to tarnish their reputation, and it looks like enough people have encountered experiences that their reputation is starting to look a little dirty.
Listen, Toyota is the best auto manufacturer out there. Yes, they have a couple of models now not being recommended. So what??!! They're the best, but still, they're just building machines; they're bound to have some problems once in a while, and they practically never do.
If you think you'll find another make that is better, think again because you won't. There isn't one. Think of GM, where if they get a couple of cars that actually ARE recommended, they should be thrilled.
Toyota knows how good their reputation is, and they'll properly correct the issues they're having with a couple of models right now. All of their previous models are still near perfect. The Corolla is the best selling car in history; ever seen one broken down? I haven't. Ever seen a Tacoma broken down? Me neither. This holds true for almost everything they make, and up until recently, for EVERYTHING they've made.
I'm on my third Toyota in 17 years, with a combined total of probably 400,000 miles or more and I've never had a single problem. Try that with a Chevy or a Ford. It won't happen.
I work with an older man still driving an '83 Toyota truck with over 400,000 miles on it and the only money he has spent on it is regular maintenance. Try that with an s-10 or a ranger.
"I work with an older man still driving an '83 Toyota truck with over 400,000 miles on it and the only money he has spent on it is regular maintenance. Try that with an s-10 or a ranger."
My brother drives a ranger with over 400,000 miles on it every day (1988, 2.9L V6). The only thing he has done with it is Routine maintenance, a water pump, and now JUST recently (as in last month) the U-joint gave out and needed to be replaced.
Have I ever seen a Tacoma break down? Yes. A co-worker just recently had to replace the head on his.
Have I ever seen a Corolla break down? Yes. My girlfriend cannot get the check engine light to stay off in hers no matter what Toyota tries with it. Her car cannot pass inspection as a result.
You assert your opinions as if they are facts (Toyota's supposedly never breakdown, all domestic cars supposedly are junk...), but they are really just misconceptions based on your own personal bias. I can think of many other examples to prove you wrong, but facts do not seem to mean much to Toyota fans. I am sure you will say the examples I pointed out are just a fluke. That is another Toyota fan tactic too.