Engine is quiet

Shifting. Seats are heavy and BTW when you travel and need the room taking the seats out, when you get where you are going, you will have only two seats - front ones. SUV's and the Honda will leave you with seats plus the room when needed. The front seats are uncomfortable. The radio is no good. The van does not drive solid at higher speeds, 70mph.

So far the van as driven well especially in the city. The engine has been quiet and smooth. I notice a lot of shifting on hills, but will do well if I take it out of high. I don't like the weight of the seats to move or take out. The second row is especially hard to remove. For a $30.000 plus car the divers seat is only 6 way moveable. Needed is the seat bottom tilt as the seat is very uncomfortable, no back support. The radio is extremely bad. The bass is way to booming low and hums as well, the higher notes are not on tone. I've heard the CD changer goes bad in them too. I suppose if you like loud booming radios this would be the one to have.

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This is the first van for us, we had a Camray before which we loved everything about it. However at this point I won't buy another Toyota product and would suggest that you get an SUV if you need the

smooth ride, lots of room and reliability except with the transmission!

TRANSMISSION!!!!!

We had this sienna for about two years as of now and until recently it was a great, problem-free van. About three days ago while driving, this van started to act funny. It seemed as if the engine was running rough by excessive vibration. I suspected the engine was starting to sludge up at only 40,000 miles. So I took it to the dealer and come to find out that then engine was sludge free, although the transmission was shot and needed replacement. The trans was then replaced at a cost of $350.00. By the way I always have maintence performed at Toyota dealerships every 5,000 miles. I'm relieved that I don't have sludge in my engine and therefore don't need a new engine, but at the same time I'm disappointed that the transmission failed on a Toyota!

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Ford windstar, 1995

Certainly not reliabilty.

Engine

We've had our van for 2 1/2 years and never had a problem up until now at 74,000 miles......2 fuel injectors are bad and I'm taking our van in this morning to have them replaced. We feel "fortunate" that up until this point, our van ran fine. We've made sure the dealership has performed all maintenance and oil changes have been every 3,000 miles. This is our first Toyota after researching all the other vans out there. It will be our last. As I told them at the dealership, "We should have stayed with Honda", and meant it. Now we have the thought of the remaining fuel injectors going bad. Has anyone gone up against Toyota and won this? In all good conscience, we could never recommend this vehicle to anyone.

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1990 Honda Accord......over 200,000 miles and still going without any problem.

Who cares... Bad engine = Bad vehicle!

Toyota

If I had known!!! My Sienna, one month out of warranty (37 months old & 29,000 miles) began to run very rough, engine seemed to have a miss. I took my car in to Toyota for diagnosis and it seems all six fuel injectors need to be replaced. Now I read the 1999 Toyota Sienna’s engine has a sludge problem created by the engines combustion chamber burning too hot due to the poor air flow design of the cylinder head on the 6-Cyl Sienna. Now I’m fighting over a $1600.00 repair bill for replacement of parts that never should have failed in this manner. Word to the wise. DO NOT PURCHASE any 1997 through 2002 Toyota and Lexus vehicle with 3.0-liter, V-6, or 2.2-liter four-cylinder engines.

NONE

Sludge build up in engine Sliding door latches malfuction

To my disappointment the 1999 V6 Toyota Sienna I purchased has been nothing but one problem after another. 1.Push button on both doors gets stuck and door will not hold in a secure position. 2.Consist rattle in the sliding doors. 3.Sludge Build up in engine due the pick up screen being to small caused engine to overheat. Damage and build up was so severe that the engine had to be replaced. When problems first occured the Kingsport Toyota Dealership where the vehicle was purchase was contacted. They were of no help and I was treated poorly. They told me that this would be the fourth Sienna that the engine had to be overhaled(estimated cost $3000.00 or more). I could not afford this at the time. After 4 months of searching for a used motor an independent repair shop installed a used motor that had to be shipped to us from Japan. We do have service records to prove scheduled oil changes were made and a letter from the auto repair shop stating that the engine failer was due to "the pick up screen on this engine was very small about the size of a quarter".

Quietness and smooth ride. The reliability I''ve had has been excellent. The flexibility in seating. I can take out 1/2 the back seat for more cargo space while leaving the other half for someone to sit in. Can''t do this in the Odyssey or Chrysler minivans and I do this a lot.

I haven''t found any as of yet.

I had a squeaky passenger sliding door at about 5000 miles that Toyota fixed under warranty and have had no other problems in 4+ years and 62000+ miles. I change my oil at about 4000 mile intervals (at a dealership and on my own) and do not have a sludge problem. My family loves it.

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Dodge Grand Caravan

Large Cargo area, you can store your extra engine here!

The are a few more, but bad quality control is the worst.

When We first purchased this van new we liked it very much. But this Van has developed many problems that Toyota refuses to fix. 1. Bad Alignment - tires worn incorrectly 2. ABS - Brake failure, the ABS light stays on, thus ABS not in operation. 3. Sliding Doors stick. 4. Outside molding does not fit properly. 5. Stitching on seats looks terrible, was manufactured incorrectly. 6. The removable seats are not secured properly. 7. A/C not cooling properly. 8. Engine makes loud noises - Sludge buildup 9. Fuel injection vapor lock when car is warm. 10. Power outlet in rear of car does not have proper protection for small children. 11. Car is very hard to control during hard braking. 12. Car is hard to control when driving over 65 Mph. The list goes on...if this is not a lemon what is. I called Toyota many times; they insist all problems are normal. Toyota even suggested some of the problems are due to neglect. In my opinion I would not recommend this car to anyone. As consumers we should all band together until Toyota admits fault. BTW, just because your engine does not fail does not mean you do not have problems. The sludge buildup is due to a design flaw and under certain conditions causes engine failure. My van has so much sludge in the engine it’s hard to imagine how much longer it will keep running. It has 40,000 miles, but is running like the engine is very worn out. Of course I have the receipts for oil changes. I now change the oil every 1,000 to 2,500 miles just for extra protection and to limp it along. I have owned old cars before but never one with this many problems. Even my used 1971 Ford Pinto with over 150,000 miles never ran this poorly. Toyota is finished!

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Toyota Corolla, Honda Civic, Honda Accord and many years ago a 1971 Ford Pinto.

defrost doesn''t work well on side windows

I was shocked to hear people having problems with their Toyota Sienna. I have 82,000 miles on my 1999 which I purchased new and am changing the oil every 7500 miles. I''ve had absolutely no problems with it. I haven''t even changed the brakes or the battery. Maybe the problem is with Siennas built in later years but my 1999 is a dream van to own.

Just a question for the Sludge Driving Sienna owners. I feel badly for you, and believe it is a manufacturing defect. It is shameful that Toyota is continuing to deny a problem with this vehicle. But more astounding is the idea that all of these people have this problem despite changing the oil at or before the recommended intervals, but from what I read, it looks like nobody has the maintenance records to back it up. Because that is what it would really take- a few owners with maintenance records for the recommended oil changes done at certified dealorships within the recommended intervals. This would open the door for everyone with or without receipts for their maintenance. I believe Toyota and Honda both have been on a downhill slope in their build quality for a few years now, and am exteremely interested to hear how this turns out. Good luck to all of you!!

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Purchased a Mazda based on the window sticker stating: 98% Japanese parts, Engine, Transmission, and final car assembly in Japan. Really thankful now.

Reliability,power,ride,handling,fuel economy.

Not enough cargo space in rear

I have owned two Sienna Vans. A 1998 and A 2000. I found both vehicles to be excellent vehicles. They performed well on long trips with luggage and family. It was roomy and comfortable as well. The V6 engine had plenty of power, the transmission shift was very smooth. I would not be afraid to recommend this vehicle to friends or family.

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