I pulled into a relative's gravel driveway which has a very large parking area to the side. I pulled up to about two feet from their grassy area, got into position to back up into a parking space, stopped, and put my 2011 sienna into reverse, and as soon as I gently touched the excelerator to begin backing up the van sped forward at a high rate of speed crashing into and over an 8 inch railroad tie that had a steelbeam on top that separated the driveway from their yard. I had to slam both feet onto the brake to get it to stop which it finally did. I thought I had not put it in reverse but I looked at the gearshift and it was indeed in reverse. I jiggled the gearshift to make sure it was secured in the slot and it was. I then put it in park and sat there for a minute or two trying to gain composure trying to figure out what just happened, I was in shock as nothing like this has ever happened to me before. After that minute or two I decided I couldn't let the vehicle sit there and needed to move it. Scared, but I put it in reverse again, ready to pounce on the brakes with both feet and barely touching the excelerator I started moving in reverse. It was working fine then. I then got out to check for damage and the bumper on the driver's side was damaged from the impact. The airbag did not deploy, I was not hurt however had any of my relatives been in that area at that moment it could've resulted in an injury or fatality. I reported what happened to the local dealership where I bought it and then to toyota USA as instructed in the handbook. Now I'm reporting it here. Am awaiting contact supposedly within the next day or so to see what toyota intends to do with the sienna. I will not drive again it until the reason for this defect is found and fixed and damages repaired. The outcome will decide whether I will ever be a toyota customer again.
2011 Toyota Sienna brakes complaints
Page 2 of 2: complaints 11 to 32 of 32, newest first, as owners wrote them.
Tl*the contact owns a 2011 toyota sienna. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 10 MPH, the brake pedal was applied and the vehicle hesitated to stop. The failure recurred numerous times. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The contact also stated that the windows failed to operate and the sliding doors failed to stop automatically. The failure recurred multiple times. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where the windows were repaired but the sliding doors were not. The specifics of the repairs were unknown. The contact also stated that the vehicle failed to start and required to be jump started. The failure occurred intermittently. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where the battery was replaced but the failure recurred. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 100.
Tl* the contact owns a 2011 toyota sienna. While driving approximately 35 MPH, the brake pedal failed to respond when it was depressed. As a result, the contact crashed into a curb. The air bags failed to deploy. The contact sustained a neck injury that did not require medical attention. A police report was not filed. The vehicle was towed to a dealer where it was diagnosed that the brake pin needed to be tightened. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 80,361.
Hello, I own a 2011 sienna le v6. In cold weather, it has a problem when braking where the vehicle lurches forward as it comes to a stop. The dealer drove the car and noted no issues. However, as you can see on this internet thread, many other owners have the same issue. Http://www.siennachat.com/forum/193-problems-maintenance-repair/158410-engine-revving-up-just-before-stop.html this issue is not just annoying, I believe it is a safety issue, particularly on slippery surfaces such as snow and ice which are likely to occur in the colder weather that precipitates this issue. I believe either the engine or transmission programming needs to be modified to address this issue as soon as possible. This occurs when the engine is at high speed idle after a cold stop, which can last for many miles after you start driving.
I was parking the car and needed to move the vehicle backward in a parking lot with a slight slope. When I attempted to move the shift lever to reverse the lever locked up and the vehicle started to roll backward. I applied the brakes to no avail and the engine died. The steering was locked. The ignition switch also locked. The vehicle stopped . I called the toyota dealer and the service manager said to apply the brakes vigorously, at the same time pump the accelerator and turn the ignition. I did and the functions all started working. No damage, no injuries. This occurred in fredericks burg, tx this appears to be the same incident in complaint # 10585286, dated 3-17-2014.
Started to notice this back in nov 2013 when going downhill or 65 MPH. My van steering wheel started to shake and rattle. Brought over to dealership and they didn't find anything except to charge me $125 for diagnostics. Says more likely rotor need resurface. My van still under btob warranty but we're told not covered under warranty. That's ridiculous. Time past 4 months later, still rattling. Brought over to dealership to get it brake/rotor replaced and resurface 3/27/14. Still rattling......very disappointed with toyota knowing they know the workmanship defects and not accepting it.
When I hit the brakes around 60 MPH I felt that the front wheels was shaken, vibrates and felt rough at the steering wheel and brake pedal. I took it to the dealer and they said that the rotors were rusty and warp because the heat. They cut the rotors. No charge. Now, I had the same problem with 23000 miles. Same excuse. The rotors were rusty and warp and they said they have to be cut and to replace the pads. Also, they said that the brake fluid needed to be change. $559.00 was the charge. I had no choice. My life depends on the brake. My complaint is that there is a factory defect with these rotors and the brakes. I had so many cars in my life and I never had this problem of rotors been warp because overheating. Millions of cars runs every day at 65 MPH and I don't hear that every 5,000 miles they have to cut the rotors because overheating. I believe this is a factory defects and that they should replace the rotors at no cost to me. Please, I need to know where I can file a formal complaint to toyota, since the dealer is trying to rip me off.
My second complaint to the federal safety agency - previous the federal safety agency # 10470305 this is the 3rd time in 2 years I have had issues with the brakes when I apply brakes, the pedal goes all the way to the floor and vehicle doesn't stop. I have requested my money back or replaced my current sienna with a new one as I have previously asked for when it happened in may of 2011 after driving 600 miles on a brand new vehicle and at around 20000 miles in 2012 when it happened again. I fear for the safety of my kids, my family, myself and others around me when I am driving. Toyota knows they are at fault yet they want me to take responsibility.toyota refuses to help, they want to be given chances to fix it as they've tried twice already see previous complaint - I bought a brand new 2011 toyota sienna xle in may of 2011 from jay wolfe toyota in kansas city mo. After 1000 miles within less than a month, started having brake problems. When I press the brake, it was gliding, taking the paddle to the floor in order to stop the vehicle even at slow speeds. I was enroute to omaha for the weekend with my family and kids when I started having the brake problem. I took the vehicle back to the dealership and they took 4 days to check and determine it was air in the brake system. I am sure there was more to it but that is all they said and fixed. One person from corporate was there and told us and guaranteed that we should never see this problem again. Now less than a year after at 26000 miles started having same issues with brake. Now the dealership says there may be a leak in the brake system that may not have been look at before. I advised them due to safety of my family and my kids and others on the road, I am not taking this vehicle back and I requested to be replaced with another new vehicle since they are at fault by selling me a vehicle with a brake problem and by not fixing it right in the first place.
Tl* the contact owns a 2011 toyota sienna. The contact stated that while sitting at a stop light with the brake pedal depressed, the brake pedal proceeded to decline and became stuck to the floorboard. The vehicle began to roll forward and crashed into the rear bumper of a semi-truck. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer. The contact did not sustain any injuries. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure and current mileage was 24,000.
On dec.5, 2012 we were picking up a grandchild at an elementary school. We were in a line of cars to exit the parking lot. A car was pulling into the line ahead of us. We tried to stop to let her in, but there were no brakes. There was plenty of space and time to stop. We stopped by hitting her car. Our van had minimal damage, but she had a fender and passenger door damage. (we were thankful no children were injured as there were many around.) we had the car towed to j pauley toyota in fort smith, as we were afraid to drive it. They pronounced it safe to drive. We called toyota (800‑331‑4331) to have the black box checked as suggested. Still afraid to drive it we left it there and traded for a new van (honda). (see accident report for 2009 toyota sienna van VIN# [xxx]. First time we thought it was probably a fluke. Second time a problem with the siennas.) information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6).
I bought a brand new 2011 toyota sienna xle in may of 2011 from jay wolfe toyota in kansas city mo. After 1000 miles within less than a month, started having brake problems. When I press the brake, it was gliding, taking the paddle to the floor in order to stop the vehicle even at slow speeds. I was enroute to omaha for the weekend with my family and kids when I started having the brake problem. I took the vehicle back to the dealership and they took 4 days to check and determine it was air in the brake system. I am sure there was more to it but that is all they said and fixed. One person from corporate was there and told us and guaranteed that we should never see this problem again. Now less than a year after at 26000 miles started having same issues with brake. Now the dealership says there may be a leak in the brake system that may not have been look at before. I advised them due to safety of my family and my kids and others on the road, I am not taking this vehicle back and I requested to be replaced with another new vehicle since they are at fault by selling me a vehicle with a brake problem and by not fixing it right in the first place. Noting that toyota have had problems with many cars with brake failure in the past. Please advise me what I would need to do in order to get my vehicle replaced for the safety of my family and kids since I no longer feel safe being in the current vehicle. Thank you,
Tl* the contact owns a 2011 toyota sienna with 18,600 miles. The contact had the vehicles steering modified because of a handicap. The contact received the recall notice 10v620000, service brakes, hydraulic:pedals and linkages. When the contact took the vehicle to the dealer to have the recall performed, he was told that they could not do the work due to the previous modification to the vehicle. The manufacturer was contacted, but they had not offered any assistance. Updated 03/14/12
While driving 35 MPH on a city street, I lost brake function. I was able to coast to a complete stop, thankfully avoiding other traffic and obstacles. Once I was stopped, I found that there was a long bolt on the floorboard underneath the gas pedal. When the towtruck driver arrived, he reached in and pulled the gas pedal completely off - there was nothing fastening it to the car. He was able to reinstall the bolt, but said there was "a piece" missing, and towed it to the toyota dealership. The dealer found that two pedal pivot bolts were missing, and the one that was present (which had ended up on the floor), was not secured by a nut. They said that they were not sure why this happened - that it could have happened in the factory - but said that they replaced the three bolts and torqued them properly, and that it was safe to drive. We asked to speak with a manager for better explanation, and the manager avoided all of our attempts to contact for several days.
After pulling out of the driveway and driving forward less than 100 yds, the vehicle began to pull left and right as if vehicle stability control were taking over. Very shortly after, the vehicle came to an abrupt stop with brakes seemingly applied on their own (power brake assist?). The screen lit up with the following warnings, "check ABS," "check vsc," and "check brake system," followed by "have your vehicle checked by dealer." the ABS, vsc, emergency brake, and check engine lights on the dash came on as well. Upon taking a look under the hood, we also discovered what appeared to be an oil leak at the head gasket. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and a toyota engineer was flown in to help diagnose the problem. The result was they cleared the codes, wiped up the oil, and said there was nothing wrong with the car. About a day and a half later, the exact same thing happened again with the vehicle pulling, warning lights, etc. This time, the dealership said that they found "hard" codes and that the floor wire harness needed to be replaced. The vehicle has now been out of service for 16 days. We shall see whether the wire harness fixes the problem. The dealer said they put dye in the engine oil to try to detect a leak. Not sure why they didn't investigate the problem while the oil was sitting there. It was very obvious where the leak was.
Tl* the contact owns a 2011 toyota sienna. The contact stated that while driving approximately 25 MPH, she applied the brakes and the pedal depressed to the floor. The vehicle would not stop until crashing into another vehicle. A police report was filed, but no injuries were reported. The vehicle was towed to an independent repair shop where the contact was awaiting diagnosis of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure and current mileages were 4,800. Updated 08/10/11*lj updated 08/12/11.
Tl* the contact owns a 2011 toyota sienna. The contact stated that while driving 3 MPH in reverse. The brakes were engaged and depressed into the floorboard abnormally and the vehicle did not respond. The contact was unable to stop the vehicle and was involved in a crash. There were no injuries and a police report was filed. The manufacturer sent an investigator to inspect the vehicle for the failure, however, they were unable to duplicate the failure. The current mileage was 3,500 and the failure mileage was 850.
Tl*the contact owns a 2011 toyota sienna. While driving approximately 10 MPH and coming to a stop, the contact heard a loud banging noise in the rear of the vehicle. The contact stated the failure occurred at different speeds and more frequently when driving on the highway. While driving at highway speeds the vehicle began to shake violently. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the technicians were unable to determine the failure. The technicians suggested the rear brakes, rotors, and calipers be replaced. After the repairs were performed the rear passenger side tire locked twice. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer where the technicians stated the vehicle showed extensive wear and over heating of the parking brake due to driving while the parking brake was engaged. The contact stated the parking brake was not engaged while driving and the overheating only occurred to the rear passenger side brakes. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 10,000.
October 2010 I purchased a toyota sienna 2011. 3 months later I drove back from work and I have my 4 children with me in the car where the car brakes failed to respond as well the emergency brake!!!! Was the worst day in my life!!!! I crashed into a truck and we were all in shocked to this day!!!!...after the crash I had received a recall in the toyota sienna 2011 for the brakes? I am without car responsible for the damages for the other cars, in pain, my kids suffer small injuries and for a auto loan in toyota crashed. I had made calls but unfortunately no one will give me a answer or stand and face their responsibilities... I wondered why no other make ( bmw, mercedes,honda,gmc etc,,,,,) have so many recalls defections with their vehicle just toyota............ It is appear suspicious to me ...I could be wrong but the search I have done and the worst experience I have with my first toyota .......never in my life I will buy a car or advise one of my friends to purchase toyota..... To many recall and unsafte cars...I don't know how the insurance company will insure a car like this?? I have so many questions and I need answers......... It is time for those answer to all worldwide people who drive or thinking to buy a toyota!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1111 please learn from my experience!!! I don't wish to my enemy!!!!!
Tl*the contact owns a 2011 toyota sienna. While the contact placed the vehicle in reverse, the vehicle would not move. The contact did not have the brakes engaged but the rear brake lights illuminated. The vehicle was towed to an authorized dealer where the contact was informed that there was an issue with the sensor. The vehicle was repaired. The VIN was unavailable. The failure mileage was approximately 2,600.
Had to push brake pedal to the floor in order to stop 2011 toyota sienna xle. Gateway toyota replaced the master cylinder on friday november 19th. Driving vehicle on monday november 22nd pedal went to the floor again, difficult to stop. Toyota scheduled to replace master cylinder again on november 23rd. Vehicle only has 5,300 miles on it.
Tl*the contact was driving a 2011 toyota sienna. While driving 20 MPH attempting to apply the brake pedal, it extended to the floor; however, the vehicle did not stop. He continued to apply the brakes and eventually they started working properly. Two days later while driving the vehicle and depressing the brakes the warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who stated that there were fifteen error codes informing them to contact the manufacturers engineering department. The dealer informed her that there was a metal bracket that covered the brake sensor and when the brakes were depressed the sensor informed the computer to turn on the hydraulic brakes in order for the brakes to function normally. The metal bracket on the vehicle was damaged; therefore, the computer did not work properly. The manufacturer was contacted and advised the contact to take the vehicle back to the dealer since they were responsible for the repairs. The vehicle was returned to the dealer who exchanged back her old vehicle to her. The failure mileage was 3,900.
My brake lights remained on when I parked my 2011 toyota sienna. I continued to drive the vehicle about 2 miles, the brake lights remained on, and the more I drove it felt as if an anchor was holding my van back until finally the van would not go forward or reverse when I pressed on the accelerator. I had the van towed to the dealership and was told that the brake pedal was stuck because I bent the metal bar that the brake pedal was attached to. They are planning to replace the metal bar with another made of a stronger metal. The van was only 2 weeks old when this happened with about 600 miles on it. It has only happened once.
VIN decoder
See the problems and recalls for an exact car
Buying a used 2011 Toyota Sienna?
Check the exact car before you pay: accidents, salvage or flood titles, odometer readings and previous owners.
Check its history