1) Local dealer. They covered out of warranty problems on 1996 Corolla without my asking.

2) Competent well executed design. Visilbilty, handling, and ride much better than 95 Winstar.

3) Teenage kids love captains seats, rear controls, rear heat, etc.

4) No problems after 20k miles.

1) It handles like a van
2) It looks like a van.
3)It is a van.

Too bad my wife needs one.

These days there are Toyotas, Hondas, and American junk for the masses. Pick the Toyota or Honda based on your local dealer and overall preference.

If you really want an American Van, get a used program vehicle. Shop around, those cars have a huge dealer markup. Availablility is best in the fall when rent-a-car companies ramp down the summer fleet.

Similar Products Used:

1995 Ford Winstar - bought a bad car at a great price, Ford and dealer does not stand behind product. Poor dealer service.

Interior space and design
Size of the vehicle
Look of the vehicle

Persistent pulling problem
Power steering problems
Rear brake drum problems
Premature tire wear and replacement
Poor ABS performance
Poor transmission performance

Extreme disaapoint summarizes are Sienna experience to date. We owned a Celebrity wagon for 14 years. We replaced it with a lemon Dodge Caravan. We replaced the Caravan with a fairly reliable Honda Odyssey (except for failed ABS system which will cost $1,400).

Thinking we would have many years with a reliable and safe van, we looked forward to owning the Sienna. We are appalled that some of the same quality problems exist in it that existed in the Caravan. Some owners are having the build up of sludge at an early mileage. The warranty for those owners isn't being honored and costly engines are being replaced within the warranty period.

Right now, our van's power steering is making loud noises. The van pulls to the left at highway speeds. Yesterday, I was braking during low-speed travel with a dusting of snow (NO ice) on the ground and slid right through a four-way stop!! The ABS made a horrible grinding sound (not the normal cycling sounds). Also, since the van has stalled out a few times, I have smelled gasoline under the vehicle. It is a bit scary, to say the least.

I cannot with a good conscience recommend this van to an family. I really love the minivan concept and the van suits our space needs; but the unreliable and unsafe nature of this minivan experience has me greatly concerned. Crash safety is NOT the only important aspect. The automaker needs to understand that the quality promised should be delivered. Many Sienna owners who are similarly-affected feel this way, too.

Previous Windstar and Caravan/Voyager/Town & Country owners should be cautioned about jumping out of the frying pan and into the fire. Do LOTS of research about other owner experiences before doing so.

Good luck in your choice. Maybe an automaker will actually make a decent minivan one day.....I don't see this in the current choices, however.

Charlene Blake
cblake@erols.com

Similar Products Used:

Dodge Caravan ('92) and Honda Odyssey ('95)
Chevrolet Celebrity Station Wagon ('84)

Comfortable, even having to put a quart of oil in it every 400 miles, our 15 and 16 year old teenagers made it from Atlanta to New Orleans to Houston to Denver to Atlanta with few complaints.

A lemon from day one. Service department problems from 2 dealerships. Within the first week, the brakes started a high pitched squeal. Marietta Toyota said it was normal for disc brakes. Atlanta Toyota changed the brakes on the second visit and the problem went away and hasn't returned. It now has 58,000 miles on it. The tire pressure monitoring system came on within the first 30 days and after 8 times in the shop, we have just gotten accustomed to it being on all the time. Marietta Toyota said the tire pressure was low. Before we got home, 20 miles away, it was back on again. The tires were starting to wear unevenly, so we decided to take it to Atlanta Toyota, who corrected the brake problem. The said that we hadn't rotated the tires at the proper intervals. I explained that the wear was on the inside and outside of the tires. They then said that we weren't keeping the air pressure even. I explained that we only had the car for a little over a year and had checked the pressure every time the light came on. They balanced the tires, rotated the tires, changed the oil for $120.00 and the light went out for a month and came back on again. I don't know how this system works, but every time we get the front end aligned, about every 3 months, the light goes out. I finally had to replace the Firestone tires with Goodyear because they wore out at 22,000 miles. The Goodyears have been on there now for 36,000 miles without rotating them, and the only difference is that the front ones are worn more than the rear ones. So much for their theory that the rotation caused the excessive wear. The front end alignment seems to be the problem. The last time I took it to Atlanta Toyota, was because they failed to put oil back in the engine after the 36,000 mile oil change. It started smoking excessively after a week, and I checked the oil. I had to put in 6 quarts of oil before it was full. The car was parked in the driveway for the whole week it took to smoke excessively, so I know the plug wasn't left off, or that it leaked out. I took it to Atlanta Toyota and they said no way could they have done that and that we needed a new engine for $7500.00. I contacted both Toyota, Japan and Toyota, USA. Toyota, USA sent their rep up from Jacksonville, FL, asked me to bring the car in to check it out. They called me 2 hours later and when I got there, the rep and the dealer had decided that not changing the oil exactly at the recommended intervals had nulified the warranty and it was my fault the I had excessive sludge in the motor. They showed me the valve cover and the oil pan to prove it. Having been a mechanic all my life and being 48 years old, all I saw was motor oil additives that had accumulated on the cover and the oil pan. We decided to sell it last month and found out that everyone we took it to was only willing to give us 4 to 5 thousand dollars less than we owed on it. We decided to look on the internet and see if others had experienced the same problems we had. From the previous writeups and talking to numerous mechanics, this car is a true lemon with maybe only a few exceptions. Toyota has reached the American automobile manufacturers all time low of the 60's and adopted the philosophy of "Take the money and run!" My advice- BEWARE OF TOYOTA UNTIL THE CUSTOMER COMES FIRST AGAIN IN THE MINDS. Their dealerships are the pits also. The Sienna reputation for safety probably came from most of them being in the shop the majority of the time.

Toyota and their dealerships greed have tarnished a good reputation to the point that this individual will never purchase another product of theirs. From the complaints similar to mine contained herein, Toyota knew the problems existed and chose not to correct them, BAD MISTAKE. I do not recommend Toyota to anyone and beware of anything you take to have serviced at their dealerships!

Similar Products Used:

'92 Chrysler Voyager (great van-272,000 miles), '86 Nissan Minivan (great van- 245,000 miles), '90 Dodge Conversion van (also a good van)

Smooth engine and transmission. Impressive highway performance. Rock solid body and trims.

Both the wheel covers or the alloy wheels looks blend.

I would buy this minivan again if I have to do it all over. The Odyssey is also good, but I have a personal preference towards toyota. I think toyota vehicles have a more subtle character when compare to American cars or Hondas. If you want good look go buy a late model chrysler. If you want substance, quality, nothing beats a Toyota.

I think this minivan is almost perfect except with it's mediocre gas mileage. I get an average of 20mpg. I am switching to syn oil. See if it helps.

Similar Products Used:

None

An excellent vehicle overall; quiet ride and comfortable seats; a van with carlike qualities; adequate power and adequate storage

Gas cap - attach it with a mini-chain. Sound system is only fair.

Van is an excellent value and hopefully will have excellent resale value.
The fact that we have two Siennas tells the story !

Similar Products Used:

We have a 1998 Toyota Sienna AND a 2000 Toyota Sienna

Unbeliebably smooth ride, very quiet engine. It is very powerful with the V6 3.0 liter 194hp engine. Very roomy, great to drive. It has a quick but smooth pick up and remains smooth even after 80 mph. It has exellent gas mileage. Plenty of storage compartments. Dual air bags. Great breaking, handling and performance.

Poorly designed interior console. Very confusing features. Poor speaker quality. Not many luxuries or anything to brag over.

It cost about $27,000. I would definitely say it is the best minivan out there. It is a Toyota so you know it won't break. I would recommend it to anyone. Especially if you have a lot of kids or a large family.

Similar Products Used:

More reliable and cheaper than the Ford Winstar and Dodge Caravan.

Very smooth and quiet ride, almost too comfortable captain's chair seating, above average mini-van power, Toyota craftsmanship, not as common a vehicle as GM/Ford/Chrysler.

Little bland on the exterior

The Sienna and the Honda Odyssey are simply a notch above everyone else. The Odyssey is so hot that you're simply not going to pay near invoice, so the Sienna is cheaper (and CD player is standard w/ LE). The Sienna ranks near the top in every category - power, performance, reliability, comfort. The other nice thing about Sienna and Odyssey is the fact that they aren't fleet cars. Don't you get tired of seeing the same car as yours all over the place? Toyota only makes 160,000 Siennas a YEAR, while Ford makes Windstars than that a month...

Similar Products Used:

Chrysler Voyager, Dodge Caravan, Ford Windstar

Size, seats, toyota quality and dealer

Light colored upholstry shows dirt.
Poor cornering (but the other car is a bimmer)
A few rattles,
Road noise from OEM tires increases after 30k miles.

For a van it is close to perfect. But, it is a van.
Steering wheel controls are confusing and worthless.
Tire sensor went off once for no reason, but I have not experienced any of the problems listed on this board in the first 35k miles.
Flexible seating. My wife is an antique dealer and hauls lots of furniture.

Similar Products Used:

Winstar - typical Ford S-- box. Major dealer, tranny and engine problems.

Solid build quality, quiet, comfortable seats, good power, excellent transmission. Third row seats are most comfortable in class.

Poor gas mileage, poor rear view vision, tire pressure sensor useless

So far so good at 21,000 miles. Very concerned seeing the oil sludge problem in these reviews. I have been pleased with the overall quality and reliability to this point. Looked at Ford, Mercury, Mazda and Honda products. Only Honda was comparable to Sienna, but lots more money. Two problems handled under warranty--hose leaking coolant and rear seatbelt tensioner broke. Will watch closely for oil sludge from now on.

Similar Products Used:

None

Has the look of an SUV from the rear. Comfortable seats. Handles well. Feels like driving a car. Tons of compliments on the appearance of the van from both friends and people we don't even know.

Annoying squeak coming from third row seats. Drinks rattle when they are in cup holders (could be the air pressur in tires not correct) Very difficult to get to third row seats because the captain chairs in middle row do not tilt forward. One has to go around the captain seat to the middle of the van before going to the back. It is very difficult for adults trying to get to the rear seats in a crouching position.

Overall, we like it, except for the weaknesses listed above

Similar Products Used:

Have never owned a van, but I wish that the tv was standard in it just as it is in other minivans