Problems with 2004 Toyota Sienna STRUCTURE

Our 2004 toyota sienna has had yet another issue with the power doors. the cable on our drivers side door broke last year around 60000 miles. it would have been 1200. to fix; luckily toyota obviously knowing it's a problem fixed it for us. when that occurred the cable snapped and slammed shut, thank god my daughter was in her car seat yet. now at 65000 miles the passenger side door cable snapped and the door actually popped off the track and would not close. glad it happened at home and not away while we were out especially with two young kids and 20 degree weather. toyota said that they are not going to fix it this time even the many services managers admitted it's a major problem. this is extremely unsafe and hopefully it does not take some one like a child being serious hurt or even killed for toyota to own up to it. they even released a tsb on the issue. *tr

Toyota dealership told me (today) that my power sliding door motor needs replacing. i took my sienna 2004 xle limited van in for diagnosis because the passenger side slider door was operating slowly and it keeps getting worse and sometimes won't even close if i'm parked on an incline unless i give it a push. i had both doors sliding lock release motors replaced in 12/ 2008, 2 yrs. ago. *tr

I have a toyota sienna 2004 le model. 2 weeks back my back door (hatch back) started closing down without any resistance. the back door struts have stopped working. the back door pretty much fell on my child's back. i called toyota but they wouldn't do anything about it. my toyota reference number is [xxx]. information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6). *tr

The automatic sliding passenger door on a 2004 toyota sienna le became stuck in the open position which did not allow the vehicle to be driven properly. it had to be forcibly closed by four adults so that we could drive the car home. the malfunction is a known defect in toyota sienna vehicles. the failure would occur anytime the door was opened and in fact the door would not open properly. this has created a severe safety hazard with people entering and exiting the vehicle. if there was an emergency and you had to open the door, the malfunctioning cable would prevent you from exiting the vehicle in a timely manner. the repair cost of this defect was $2,000. you have to repair this as its unsafe to drive any car with a non-functioning door. how can you drive a car with a door that will not close or one that requires several adults to close it? toyota is well aware of this issue and has done nothing to recall this defect. *tr

The automatic door failed and almost crushed my 21 month old. it opened and as she was getting out it started closing. it did not detect her and i had to forcefully push it open before it closed her in it. then again the same thing happened with my 10 year old luckily she thought to get out of the way. *tr

My family owned a toyota sienna 2004. just lately, we notice that the cable snapped without any warning. this problem almost hit the fingers of my daughter when she tried to close, because it is so hard and was suddenly released to the other end. this problem is very common to this kind of van either old and new, especially in the freezing season. i filed this complaint because i believed that this problem is very detrimental to my 3 children, ages 3, 9 and 11 or other passenger. i hope this complain will taken cared of before it can do a physical harm to the public. thank you. *tr

One rear sliding door comes open after latching (once when the sienna had started moving) and can only be securely closed by an adult standing outside of the door, pushing when it latches and quickly hitting the power locks. the opposite rear sliding door: after it fully opens, it "bounces back" and begins to close again. a child cannot stop it; an adult must stand there and use full force to stop it from closing. there has been more than one incident where a child was nearly caught by the closing door and only missed injury when his mother simultaneously pushed him back into the vehicle and put herself between the moving door and the body of the sienna. originally this was happening intermittently but is now nearly constant. originally toyota denied knowledge of an issue, and then sent a "toyota cares" warranty enhancement notice for 04-07 siennas with this issue. broadway toyota required that we pay for an hour of labor ($95) to check out the problem, and says that it isn't covered on one side because it is a different part than what is covered (although the problem is the same) and on the other unless we have cosmetic damage repaired first, and then perhaps not the other side either. so they made money and did nothing and we still have a dangerous vehicle. *tr updated 03/12/13

2004 toyota sienna van drivers side sliding door rear latch has become detatched and the door won't close. not only is this a safety hazard while driving but the locks will not engage with an open door. *tr

Toyota sienna xle automatic sliding door jampep, and caused the door can't be closed when i had a car full of children and dogs, how can i drive home without the door close, this is a big safety issue for myself and my children. *tr

Dashboard has sustained multiple significant cracks. not involved in any accident, nor was dashboard cut in any way. dash material is still soft. many similar complaints noted online. very concerned about function of airbags should accident occur. toyota has been unresponsive to complaints. *tr

Toyota sienna 2004, rear liftgate struts are giving our again. we have had this auto since the factory sent it to the dealership. once replacing the struts due to recall. now whenever you lift the gate via manually pressing the button on the back of the van, the lift gate only opens halfway. this leaves the operator with the only option of pressing further up on the lift gate. i expect that this issue will now get worse and not stay open at all. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2004 toyota sienna. the contact stated that the dashboard was fractured near the air bag and the contact was concerned that the failure would result in the air bag not deploying in the event of a crash. the dealer advised the contact to replace the entire dashboard. the manufacturer had not been notified of the failure. no repairs were performed. the current mileage was 90,400 and the failure mileage was 80,000.

The driver side door hinge is failing. the door makes a clicking sound when opened and closed. contacted toyota and they would only repair if vehicle has less that 100,000 miles. do not feel this is a fair policy. toyota obviously knows this is a defect. have seen many complaints on the internet for the same problem. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2004 toyota sienna. the contact stated that the driver's side door check failed due to defective welding. the vehicle was not taken to the dealer for inspection. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer advised the warranty enhancement door check had expired. the approximate failure mileage was 84,000 and the current mileage was failure 105,000.

Toyota sienna xlt 2004 power door cable snaps due to exposure to weather. cable then jams in door, causing door to malfunction as daughter was exiting the van. *tr

A few months ago a cable snapped on the passenger side sliding side doors. without the cable the door will not open properly. recently, the same cable snapped on the driver's side sliding side door. now that door will not open. i have been told that an entire new cable assembly must be placed in each door. without the sliding side doors opening the only means of ingress and egress from the vehicle is through either the rear hatch or the front doors. it is both a safety concern as well as very inconvenient to not be able to use those doors. the side sliding doors, back when they still worked, were also prone to freezing shut whenever it got cold outside and the doors would not open unless they thawed. again, this made the passenger compartment difficult to access and dangerous in case of an emergency. *tr

We have had issues with our sliding doors on our 2004 toyota sienna le awd since we purchased it. both doors stick whenever the temp drops below freezing. the only way to open them at times is to climb inside and throw my 6'0" 240lb body into it. even then i've had them not open. due to the continued stress placed on the outer handles the driver's side rear finally broke off. that was not due to me being overly physical with it either. that one was pulled off by my wife, 5'0" 120lbs.also, the passenger rear sliding door was equipped with an automatic door. the cable snapped on that a couple of months ago. that door won't even open now. i understand normal wear and tear but i believe this goes beyond that. heaven forbid if we're in an accident because one door can't open and the other side will only open from the inside. *tr

Power sliding door failure 2004 sienna the power sliding door on my 2004 sienna has failed 3 times. the first 2 were covered under warranty, but the 3rd time is not. this is a very costly repair as the whole door needs to be taken apart and is estimated @ $1,400. it is also a safety issue as children cannot get out by themselves if they need to in a crash. i have contacted toyota corporate to no avail. my case # [xxx]. nothing in a vehicle should need to be repaired three times!! there are 1000s of complaints and once again toyota will not do something until someone dies in a crash as a result of this! information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6).*tr

The driver door makes a load clicking noise when you open or close the door. the door does not open or close properly. i have not repaired it yet but have been told it is a spot weld that has failed. i also read online that this is a very common problem on the 2004 sienna. *tr

The passenger side power sliding door (on my 2004 le awd sienna) was jammed (couldn't close or open) after my wife dropped off my daughter to school this morning. when my wife was trying to close the door manually, the left side of the door felt apart and it made a big dent and scratches on the body all over. fortunately, my wife and my daughter didn't get hurt because of this (but very close.) i had scheduled to bring it to the toyota dealer tomorrow morning to find out what went wrong and what it will cost to have it fixed. although it's only 12 miles from my home to the dealer, but it's not going to be a easy trip as i am only using ropes to have the broken door barely tided together. *tr

Tl*the contact owns a 2004 toyota sienna. the contact noticed that the passenger side sliding door cable was covered with rust causing the door to become inoperable. the dealer was notified and advised the contact that there were no recalls. the manufacturer was informed and the contact was waiting for a response. the vehicle was not repaired. the current mileage was 186,000. the failure mileage was approximately 185,950.

We have a 2004 toyota sienna, which we bought used in september. it is now early december and this is the third day in a row that we've had both rear sliding doors frozen shut. it's obviously winter here and we've had some snow, but i've never had a problem with a vehicle where doors are frozen shut on a consistent basis over several days. if we attempt to open one of the doors, the motor opens it a fraction of an inch and then won't close again completely so that we have to drive with the door not entirely closed. i don't feel that i can have my child in the back safely with this situation, not to mention the inconvenience of having to climb over seats to get in and out. i will not take it on the highway with any passengers for fear the door will suddenly open on the highway without warning. this appears to be a problem with many 2004 sienna vans and it should be a safety recall. *tr

Driver door developed the "popping noise" described in toyota's warranty enhancement in december, 2010 (also described in technical service bulletin nv003-07 revised). there are approx. 600,000 vehicles affected by this defect. i just paid $2,141.24 to my toyota dealer to get it repaired, since i couldn't sell the vehicle in an unrepaired state. we bought the vehicle early in 2004, and the extended warranty would have expired in 2009. 2004 owners just now experiencing the problem will have to pay for repairs for a problem that toyota has acknowledged. *tr

My 2004 toyota sienna has a defective driver's side door (the check strap inside the door broke off the wield); this causes the door to make loud popping and cracking noises when opened or shut, the door can freeze in certain positions and/or quickly open at end of sequence. toyota knew of hundreds of such complaints, but did not do a recall. instead they allegedly extended the warranty to 50,000 miles. i never received any information from toyota regarding the potential problem and it doesn't appear that toyota sent any owners such info. regardless, the problem didn't surface in my vehicle until about 55,000 miles and or after 5 years from purchase. toyota shops claim they have to replace the entire door at a cost of $2,500, and toyota will not cover the repair/replacement. given the countless complaints from toyota sienna owners regarding the exact same problem, it is clear that this is a manufacturer's defect. i did nothing that would have caused the damage to the wield, and there was nothing i could have or should have done to prevent the wield from breaking. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2004 toyota sienna. the contact stated that the driver side door hinge was fractured yet she was still able to exit the vehicle. the vehicle was inspected by the dealer who informed the contact that she would need to replace the entire door or have it re-welded to correct the failure. the vehicle was not repaired. the failure mileage was approximately 61,000. updated 02/07/11 *bf the cosumer stated she opened the drivers side door and it made it noise and then the door would no longer open or close properly. the dealer informed the consumer the hinge was broken. the hinge was welded back together. updated 03/17/11

Sienna rear lift gate opens up about 95%, sits there for a moment and then closes. this is no big deal if you are just watching it, but if you start to load or unload during the process the door will hit you in the head. this has happened to me several times in the last few weeks. i understand the lift gate struts were recalled on my vehicle, service records indicate they were replaced in december 2008 (i did not own the vehicle at the time. the safety issue is partly the week struts, seems to fail due to cold temperatures. the real safety issue is that there is no warning sound that the door is deciding to close itself. *tr

My wife parked our 2004 toyota sienna minivan and opened the rear liftgate from the console above the rearview mirror. she exited the vehicle and walked to the rear of the vehicle. as she turned to the open rear area the liftgate descended and struck her, causing her to fall to the ground and opening a gash in her scalp that bled profusely and required three staples to close. our vehicle had been recalled to address this issue in 2008, but we have experienced similar intermittent and unpredictable instances since. although a 2008 recall notice calls for the replacement of the struts that support the liftgate, and although our records show that our vehicle was serviced under that notice, our local toyota dealer declined to take any action, stating that their service department was unable to replicate the event and further stating that had they been able to replicate the event their next step would have been to try to determine the cause. these responses are inconsistent with the clear directions of the 2008 recall. assuming that the servicing was carried out in 2008 under the 2008 notice, we do not know whether it was incorrectly performed, or whether the deterioration of the struts that led to the notice has continued with the replacement struts. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2004 toyota sienna. the contact stated that the rear driver's side sliding door could not be opened. the failure recurred numerous times. the vehicle was taken to a dealer for diagnosis and the contact was informed that the sliding door cable assembly would need to be replaced. the manufacturer was notified but offered no assistance due to the mileage of the vehicle. the vehicle was not repaired. the failure mileage was 140,000 and the current mileage was 180,000.

Both sliding door cables snapped and broke in our 2004 toyota sienna xle. because of this we are unable to open either of the rear doors at all to our mini van this is a safety issue as our children have to climb over the front driver side seat in order to get in and out of the vehicle. the dealership states it will cost $1,500 per door to fix this problem and enable us to use our rear doors....money we unfortunately do not have to fix this! they quoted $500 per door to disconnect the faulty units and make our power doors manual. i also contacted a non-toyota repairman and inquire about this...he contacted many sources and was unable to locate any used parts that can be used to fix this. so here we are with our toyota and because of an obvious faulty sliding door set up we are unable to open and use either of our rear doors!!! we see this as a major safety issue and concern that needs to be addressed! following this thread it really seems to be a major defect and safety problem with the 2004 toyota siennas http://www.tundrasolutions.com/forums/sienna/103978-2004-sienna-power-sliding-door-cable/. *tr

I have a 2004 toyota sienna xle. the rear lift gate sometime does not provide enough support and fall down and bump into people's head cause head injury. toyota has issued a recall and did a replacement but the new part is sub-standard and failed just after a year. they need to issue another recall and provide a better/longer term solution. *tr

The right power sliding door no longer operational. the cannot be opened manually. *tr

The rear, automatic sliding door to my 2004 toyota sienna is inoperable. the cable snapped. i've read numerous reports on-line of this type of incident related to this model. the repair estimates average about $1500. obviously, this is a consumer issue as well as a safety issue that should be addressed. *tr

2004 toyota sienna xle van door cable/motor broke. door stuck open and were not able to close manually. can't drive because door is stuck open. only way to fix is cut cable or pay $2000 to toyota to fix the door motor. *tr

Driver side sliding rear door on 2004 sienna (toyota) cable snapped? *tr

2004 toyota sienna passenger side (power) door refuses to close; broken door cable. also, the driver's side door (manual) has been broken for over 3 yrs; toyota fixed this 3 times while still under warranty but refuses to fix it again despite the fact that it is a design defect since it keeps happening. *tr

I have a 2004 sienna. it began making a strange noise when i opened the driver's side rear sliding power door. that night, the van was parked on a downward sloping hill. as my daughter's friend was getting out, suddenly the door slammed shut. i put up my arm to stop the door and luckily she jumped back in time, but she would have been really hurt had she been in the doorway. i had a bruise on my arm that may have been a broken bone on the child. looking closer, i realized that the cable connected to the door had snapped and was hanging outside the van. i had never heard of this problem before, and am surprised given that the van is only four years old and has low mileage. *tr

2004 toyota sienna power sliding door cable snapped. *tr

We recently had an issue with the pass. side vent window on our 2004 sienna. while driving the window was opened the glue failed and the window swung down the side of the van only being held on by the motorized arm. it appears as if the track that the window is attached to has been painted prior to the glue being applied. so instead of glass, glue, metal it was glass, glue, paint, metal. this seems to be a growing issue based on a quick search online. if the glass had broken free of the arm, it would have gone flying into traffic. the dealer and toyota were contacted and both dismissed the issue. *tr

The cable operating the automatic door on my 2004 toyota sienna frayed and jammed causing the door to freeze in an open position. the only way to correct the problem was to cut the cable and operate the door manually. this defect seems to be extremely poor quality. *tr

Sienna 2004 xle power door cable snapped and sliding door wont work. though car had been serviced by toyota dealer all the time. *tr

Cracks in the dashboard noted over area where airbags are located. *tr

Driver side sliding door cable frayed and snapped. *tr

In fall 2010 the passenger side rear sliding door in my 2004 toyota sienna, which is automatic, began not opening and not closing when the "automatic" button was pushed or when the handle was pulled which automatically triggers the motor to start. i figured it was the motor going bad so i turned it off and began using it manually. i took it into a toyota dealership in january 2011. i was told it would cost $80 for a diagnostic test which i couldn't afford at the time. he said depending on what they found a new motor and cable could run anywhere between $500 and $1800. he then told me that sometimes dirt gets built up in the track of the door which can make it hard for the motor to open/close and he showed me how to wash it out. i did but it didn't help. i continued to use it manually. in the spring of 2011 the door got jammed part way open. i could not get it to open or close. after looking at the door myself i noticed a bolt on the back of the door where the cable runs looked loose and when i finally got the door to shut, i watched the cable and saw that it was not working as it should. i took it to a mechanic who replaced the bolt, this mechanic said that the motor was working fine. it was a cable issue. i decided to stop using the door completely because i was worried the cable would break or it would ruin the motor. on march 13, 2012 while we were in another city a friend unknowingly opened the door and it got stuck open again. it was stuck open about 6 inches. we were stuck in another city with no way to get home. i have since found countless reports online about this issue in 2004-2007 toyota siennas. why isn't there a recall? clearly this is a safety issue. what if there was a car accident/fire and we could not escape because that door would not open -- i have 3 kids in carseats still. or a child accidentally opens the door while its moving and it gets stuck. *tr

The doors on our 2004 sienna frequently "freeze" shut and we are unable to open them automatically or manually. this happens routinely when the temperatures are at or below freezing and are not resolved with turning off the power, doors, lubricating the tracks or warming up the car. the doors spontaneously unlock when we have been driving the car for 15min-1hour. the unlocking occurs while driving and bells sound, dash lights come on. we've taken it to the dealer, but they are not able to replicate the problem, because the issue is intermittent and temperature and time dependent. this is a tremendous inconvenience as we have a newborn, toddler and two school children and a serious safety issue. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2004 toyota sienna. while the vehicle was parked the contact noticed the dashboard on the passenger side was cracked. the contact was concerned that the air bag would not deploy if a crash occurred. the vehicle was taken to the dealer for diagnostic testing. the technician stated the dashboard had to be replaced. the vehicle was not repaired. the approximate failure mileage was 45,000. the consumer stated the dashboard was cracked in several places and there was a visible yellow material in several places as well. updated evoq 11/15/11

The dash has developed several long cracks and the material is deteriorating, the vehicle has been kept garaged. i am concerned about the air bags or other dash components being effected. ## vin passed ## toyota sienna le 2004 ##. *tr

We took our '04 toyota sienna to the riverview dealership (mesa, az) to have spot welds repaired on front driver's side door (cost $260) and to have front passenger door replaced because the spot welds failed and door frame was damaged beyond repair (toyota good-willed new door under "warranty enhancement" at approximate cost of $2000). when the service tech was nearing completion of the repairs on 9/30/10, he opened the power slide door on passenger side. the center hinge pin failed. the motor on the power sliding door did not stop when it encountered resistance from the failed center hinge pin. it continued to force the door open causing the center hinge pin to pop out of the track. in the course of the center hinge pin coming out of its track, the track was forced upward into the rear side window causing the window to buckle, shatter and explode glass fragments outward all over. toyota would not cover the repair expenses. they said it was going to happen sooner or later, and it is our expense. we had paid to have the center hinge pin replaced 14 months prior to this incident on 7/9/09. toyota would not good will the repair even though the part had failed just 2 months outside of the 1yr part warranty. estimate for full repair is $2500 for power motor with cables, center hinge pin, window and repair of paint job on rear quarter panel. this goes beyond a mere part failure to a safety issue of exploding glass. next time it may explode inward into the vehicle showering the occupants in glass shrapnel. another toyota sienna (year unknown) was at the collision center at the same time as our van for the same reason -- failed center hinge pin and blown out rear side window. to avoid another such incident in the future, we did not repair the power motor in the door. it is now a manual door. cost of repairing window, center hinge pin and making the door manual was $828.04. our confidence in toyota' customer care and concern for safety is as shattered as the window. *tr

Rear passenger side power sliding door stops working once in a while. it won't open or close when the power door button is pressed. *tr

The rear passenger power sliding door failed. the cable that opens and closes the door snapped and then bound up jamming the door open about 3 inches. my children could not exit the vehicle on that side if there was an accident and i had to dissasemble the door just to close it. *tr

2004 toyota sienna's automatic sliding door mechanism jammed preventing door closure. the door could not be closed automatically or manually. circumstances forced passengers, including 4 small children, to travel several highway miles with that door open. in april 2004 toyota modified that door mechanism for new product and issued technical service bulletin el004-04 "power sliding door inoperative" to correct existing product. sienna's early 2004 sliding door is a defective product. the sienna product is a minivan marketed to families and children. as such it is designed to be a closed vehicle. the defective door should be considered a child restraint failure because closed doors are, in fact, the primary protective restraint in a family vehicle. corrective action we elected is to cut the automatic door's tractor cable. that frees the door to close and permanently disengages the defective door mechanism. *tr