2002 Toyota Sequoia: doors won't lock, open or latch

Filed Apr 23, 2013 · Body · 80,000 miles · VA

Tl* the contact owns a 2002 toyota sequoia. The contact stated that the rear plastic door handle failed. The vehicle was taken to the dealer several times for the failure and the latch was replaced each time, but the failure always recurred. The vehicle was not further repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 80,000 and the current mileage was 174,941.

Filed Jan 24, 2012 · Body, Brakes · 40,000 miles · MI

Headlight relay goes out causing headlights to shutoff while driving. For the 2nd time in a year. Part was replaced with a new part. Rear door will not latch and rattles. Rear latch assembly was replaced. It does not shut or seal so carbon monoxide enters the cabin. This has happened 3 times. Brake calipers seize up front driver and passenger side, rear driver side.

Filed Jan 4, 2012 · Locks · FL

I went to exit my car one night and the drivers door handle snapped off in my hand leaving me to find another way to exit my vehicle other than the one that all people use to exit their vehicle the drivers door. Should I have been in an accident at the time I would have been trapped in my vehicle. Prior to that my rear lid handle stopped working. Toyota refused to fix it because the warranty is up and they feel this is not a safety issue. In contacting my local dealer I was told this happens all the time and was just laughed at I was told what do you expect it is only plastic.

Filed Nov 8, 2011 · Body · MI

5th/rear door flew open sometime between coming to a normal stop at 40 MPH emptying all the contents of the rear. The door would not open for two days or so prior to the incident, (for the second time in about a month).

Filed Nov 24, 2010 · Body, Locks · 100,000 miles · TX

Interior door handle failure - only method of exiting vehicle. Failed for a third time under normal use before reporting to the federal safety agency. If vehicle is in a crash, on fire, or under water, a person will panic and exert greater force than normal on the handle, snapping it, leading to potential death. Dealer told me they have "hundreds" of these come through. Ask toyota how many they have replaced to get actual scope. They have no incentive to correct failure since dealer makes $250.00 to correct the failure. No egress in a burning car is equivalent to no fire exit doors in a burning building.

Filed Mar 18, 2010 · Body, Transmission · 80,000 miles · GA

While traveling any where I would lose power and my vsc trac warning lights and skid trac lights will come on and I will have to wait for the lights to go off in order to get my power back. And also I had to replace two of my door handles. And before my SUV was 3yrs I had to replace the transmission.

Filed Feb 16, 2010 · Body · SC

I have a 2002 toyota sequoia that has had 3 door handles replace in the last year. All three broke from inside, making it necessary to roll down the window to exit the vehicle. The rear cargo door handle broke this year and I have had the rear window motor replaced. The rear window constantly goes off track and has to be fixed for it to open again. I am highly disappointed with this toyota. I had gas pedal and brake issues the first year I bought the vehicle. It is the exact issues the company is recalling for other models. I was told by the dealership that I am a woman who didn't know how to handle this large of a vehicle. Still no recall on the vehicle and yet I've read many complaints about the same issues!

Filed Jan 22, 2010 · Electrical, Locks · 119,000 miles · MA

In july of last year, my 2002 toyota sequoia experienced car trouble. The vehicle experienced 3 major problems. First, the rear window on the back of the vehicle would suddenly open all by itself. This self opening would occur at numerous times. The window would open when the vehicle was being driven, when it was stationary or even while it was unoccupied. The scariest however, was when the vehicle was being driven. Fortunately for me and my family no one was injured. The second major problem occurred with the door locks. The locks would lock and unlock themselves repeatedly without anyone touching them. This locking/unlocking would again take place when the vehicle was being driven, stationary or even unoccupied. The last complaint is that the gas gauge will drop to empty without any reason so there are many times that I do not know how much gasoline I have left in the tank. This too is occurring on a random basis. It's like the vehicle is haunted.

Filed May 2, 2009 · Locks · 51,000 miles · HI

To date, the rear door hatch, inside driver passenger door handle and now the rear passenger side door handle have cracked. All component have broken off completely, making opening the doors impossible. This creates a danger for driver and passengers because they cannot readily exit vehicle.

Filed Feb 6, 2009 · Locks · 72,000 miles · CA

The back door handle/latch malfunctions and I can no longer open the back door. In 2007 I went to open the back door as usual and the handle snapped. I tried to close the liftgate and it didn't latch. Had to tie the door shut. The next day I took it to the dealer and they replaced the latch and handle for appx 280.00. A few weeks ago the handle snapped again, and now the door does not open. The dealer said I can have them replace it again. Why should I have to fork out more money. In my opinion this is a safety issue. All doors in a vehicle should work. Heaven forbid there was a crash and the only exit is the back door. Dealer is no help at all.

Filed Oct 22, 2008 · Locks · 78,000 miles · TX

The rear lift door on our 2002 toyota sequoia refused to open. As I attempted to open the door, it finally occurred to me that, if something happened to disable the battery and a fire were to start in the front half of the vehicle, the is no way to remove occupants from the rear of the vehicle or for the occupants to open the rear door from the inside. There is no physical mechanism for unlocking and opening the rear door without electricity being available to the door and the electrical part of the door latch mechanism working properly. Why have manufacturers of suvs been allowed to design automobiles that do not allow for an escape mechanism from the inside going out the rear door? This is a disaster waiting to happen (it probably already has happened during a wreck).

Filed Jun 8, 2007 · Locks · HI

Drive interior door handle cracked making it impossible to open door from the inside of the vehicle. I called motor imports in honolulu, hawaii and they informed me that they would not cover the defective part. About one year earlier, the handle for the latch tailgate snapped. I had to go to a repair shop to replace both these parts because the dealer refused to replace for free. I am seriously concerned about safety. The tailgate may be the only escape route for rear passengers and there is no interior latch to open the tailgate. If the rear exterior latch breaks off, there is no way to open the tailgate. When my driver interior door handle snapped, I realize how dangerous this vehicle can be in an accident especially where exiting the vehicle is important such as a fire or in the water.