Automatic transmission failed and car could not be moved out of traffic.
2005 Toyota Sienna transmission complaints
Page 3 of 3: complaints 41 to 48 of 48, newest first, as owners wrote them.
As we exited the dealership after purchasing the 2005 toyota sienna van, the transmission seemed to slip as it downshifted into a slow turn. This happened so many times with various drivers that we contacted the dealer. Some five trips and weeks without our vehicle, the dealer couldn't fix it. They also experienced the problem and would contact the toyota rep. More visits and calls and no repair. The dealer said the transmission was getting used to the primary driver. Dealer seemed to doubt our credibility, but has agreed to either fix it or "convince us that this is the way a 2005 sienna van drives." after reading the numerous complaints just like ours, I doubt that toyota can fix this. Computer was reprogrammed and fluid changed--made it worse. We give up. We note that the 2006 sienna has not received any complaints like this.
When accelerating from 5-10 MPH, van hesitates and then jerks forward trying to find correct gear or catch up. This is especially dangerous on snow/ice. Took to local dealer 3 times and was told all of toyota's 5-speed transmissions do this and my sienna wasn't as bad as others. The dealership did reprogram computer and I could tell no difference. I was told there was nothing else they could or /would do. I complained to toyota headquarters and still got nowhere.
On my 2005 sienna xle limited awd, I have noticed at 50+ miles an hour interstate or even downhill) that the car feels like there is excessive rolling resistance, and if I don;t accelerate, very soon it downshifts (have noticed this even on a downhill slope at 45 miles a hour). Service advisor said all toyota cars as designed to downshift as soon as you take your foot from the pedal (something which sounds very strange to me, since I'm driving other makes and models as well). Seems the transmission is not tuned well. On a separate matter, I noticed several times that the car hesitates to accelerate for a few seconds when I push the accelerator a bit harder at very low speeds, such as when I need to merge into heavy traffic from a side road. It also happened when I needed to change the lanes from a very slow moving lane to one where I needed to accelerate rapidly. Again, something feels wrong about the transmission.
Dt*: the contact stated while driving 15mph or less, the automatic transmission shifted into neutral. Although the gearshift was not visibly seen changing gears, the vehicle was physically felt shifting down and loosing momentum. The vehicle was seen by the local dealer. The dealer reprogrammed the computer, but the problem persisted. The dealer was unable to determine how to remedy the problem.
Dt: contact owns a 2005 toyota sienna. The vehicle has severe hesitation, almost impossible to drive the vehicle on a wet road or on a snowy road. Gas pedal and transmission do not seem to connect. No crashes. No police reports. No fires. The vehicle has been to toyota dealer 5 times; the mechanic came back and said they found nothing wrong with vehicle. *ak (11/08/05) the transmission would down shift very harsh on turns and on hills. The service dealer placed an upgraded computer in the vehicle but the problem worsened.
We have recently purchased a 2005 toyota sienna, love the vehicle, but discovered a potential safety problem. The gear shift lever can be accidentally easily knocked from 4th gear( not in overdrive) straight into reverse. My dealers service dept. Checked this out and concluded surprisingly that it can be done but said that all toyota models with similar shifts that they checked were the same way.
Hesitation when accelerating. Particularly when already rolling at less than 5 miles an hour.
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