KnownCarProblems2005 Toyota Sienna Problems and Recalls
Owners filed 1,130 complaints with NHTSA about the 2005 Toyota Sienna, most often about the body and structure (44% of complaints, typically around 65,000 miles). It is the 2nd most complained-about Sienna model year since 2000 and has 12 recalls.
Most common 2005 Toyota Sienna problems
Body and structure
499 complaints · 44%Half of these problems showed up before 65,000 miles. Parts named most often: body, frame and members.
Complete failure of right rear hatch shock. The shock completely and suddenly lost all pressure causing the rear hatch to fall. Defective part was replaced. Toyota covered only half of the cost. Part was left at Toyota of greenville.
2005 Toyota Sienna with grinding noise in the drivers side door customer states that he feels like he should not absorb any of the cost** the mechanic stated the door assembly needed to be replaced. The dealer amended the consumer's price to $400 for repairs.
Doors and locks
135 complaints · 12%Half of these problems showed up before 59,500 miles. Parts named most often: doors, hatchback/liftgate.
2005 Toyota Sienna rh sliding door component has failed and door can not be opened. The latch and locking assembly has a plastic sliding button that prevents the door from being opened while locked, but allows door to open if unlocked. This tiny inexpensive part has broken. Toyota does not have a replacement part. For…
Tl contact owns a 2005 Toyota Sienna. The sliding doors would not open. Report # [phone] was filed with the manufacturer and a representative advised him to take the vehicle to the dealer for inspection. The manufacturer also stated that they would not assume any responsibility for the repair or the fee. The failure…
Seat belts
83 complaints · 7%Half of these problems showed up before 65,500 miles. Parts named most often: rear/other, front.
After 2 visits to an atlanta-area Toyota dealer in response to NHTSA campaign 05v-327(50l), the dealer was unable to correct the problem. The middle row passenger seat belt continues to bind in the new bezel, and any passenger using the seat belt is not properly restrained. After speaking with Toyota corporate about…
Our passenger-side sliding rear door has frozen in place and will not open. It is a 2005 Toyota Sienna c model. We have had other issues as well, such as the rear hatchback supports failed within 3 years, our drivers-side front door makes a popping sound when opened, we have replaced the front brakes three times…
Wheels and tires
82 complaints · 7%Half of these problems showed up before 20,500 miles. Parts named most often: pressure monitoring and regulating systems, tread/belt, temporary/emergency spare tire, sidewall.
In reference to my 2005 Toyota Sienna le AWD minivan, equipped with dunlop run flat tires. I am scheduled to replace all four of my tires tomorrow as a few weeks ago I was told by the dealership when I brought it in that the tires showed excessive wear and needed replacing. I believe the tires should be investigated…
I own a Toyota Sienna minivan and have experienced the paint on all four rims bubbling and peeling. It is a 2005 Sienna xle AWD. Toyota's resolution was to offer me two rims for "free" if I bought two at over $900. I was still well within warranty. If you go to…
Steering
79 complaints · 7%Half of these problems showed up before 89,000 miles. Parts named most often: column.
The contact owns a 2005 Toyota Sienna. The contact stated that while driving in reverse, the steering column began making a squeaking noise. She also experienced difficulty when turning the steering column. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and the steering yolk was replaced. The current and failure mileages were…
The contact owns a 2005 Toyota Sienna. The contact stated that the outside rear driver side door handle would not open the door. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and a technician replaced the release mechanism. The current and failure mileages were 90000. Updated 10/28/09. Shortly after purchasing the vehicle, the…
Brakes
67 complaints · 6%Half of these problems showed up before 88,000 miles. Parts named most often: foundation components, antilock/traction control/electronic limited slip, controls, pedals and linkages.
The contact owns a 2005 Toyota Sienna. During cold weather, the rear brakes failed to engage. The contact had the rear brakes replaced, but the failure recurred. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 88,000.
2005 Toyota Sienna brake failures. This seems to be an intermittent problem - step on brake pedal - car does not stop. Brakes have been changed and reinspected. A search on the web shows that this is a known problem and many complaints have been filed regarding this issue.
Electrical
65 complaints · 6%Half of these problems showed up before 83,000 miles. Parts named most often: instrument cluster/panel, 12v/24v/48v battery, wiring.
Abs, vsc, trac off, and tire pressure indicator came on while driving. I checked the tire pressure, gas cap everything was fine. Driving conditions were normal. The lights did not turn on when starting the next morning (not normal). The following day the lights came on during starting (normal) and then went off.
The driver rear power sliding door is stuck in closed position and does not open either in automatic power mode or manually. The door got stuck after the power cable was ripped, due to rust, and the door was manually shut. It is now stuck closed and can't be opened using either automatic or manual way.
Speed control
62 complaints · 6%Half of these problems showed up before 71,000 miles. Parts named most often: accelerator pedal, cruise control.
July 2008 I was driving my 2005 Toyota Sienna I was on the ramp to enter the highway doing 35mph when my car suddenly jumped to 75mph without me touching the gas pedal. I stayed calm because my kids were in the car with and I didn't want to scare them. Thank god I jumped in the next lane where were not to many cars…
During the turning of the steering wheel to the left at 5-10 MPH, in making a left turn, clicks and clunking noise could be heard and felt through the steering wheel. At one point, I had to apply bigger turning force to the left as if I was overcoming some unusual resistance in the steering column, making the turn…
Complaints are owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects. One complaint can name several components, so shares add up to more than 100%.
2005 Toyota Sienna recalls
Transmission: automatic transmission
Risk: If the shift lever can be moved from the "park" position without depressing the brake pedal and the parking brake is not applied, the vehicle may roll, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will replace the shift lock solenoid and reapply the grease, free of charge. Owners may contact toyota customer service at 1-800-331-4331. Toyota's number for this recall is h0v. Vehicles that were previously recalled under campaign 13v-429 are not affected by this recall.
Full defect summary
Toyota motor engineering & manufacturing (toyota) is recalling certain 2005-2007 and 2009-2010 toyota sienna vehicles. In the affected vehicles, due to a problem within the shift lock assembly, the shift lever may be moved out of the 'park' position without depressing the brake pedal.
Seats: seat heater/cooler
Risk: If damaged, the copper strand heating element may short circuit, increasing the risk of a fire.
Fix: Set will notify owners, and dealers will disconnect the seat heaters, free of charge, and refund the purchase price of the seat heater accessory. The recall began on july 14, 2016. Owners may contact set customer service at 1-866-405-4226. Set number for this recall is set16b.
Full defect summary
Southeast toyota distributors, llc (set) is recalling certain 2005-2011 4runner, highlander, sequoia, and sienna, 2005-2010 avalon and tundra, 2006-2008 camry solara, 2006-2010 highlander hybrid, 2006-2011 rav4 and tacoma, 2007-2010 fj cruiser, 2007-2011 camry hybrid, 2009-2010 venza, 2010-2012 prius, 1988-1990 and 2005-2010 camry, and 1989 and 2009-2010 corolla vehicles equipped with aftermarket accessory seat heaters with a copper strand heating element. The electrical wiring in the seat heaters may be damaged when the seat cushion is compressed.
Seats: seat heater/cooler
Risk: Damage to the seat heater wiring could cause the wires to short, increasing the risk of the seat burning and causing personal injury to the occupant.
Fix: Set will notify owners, and dealers will disconnect the heaters with copper strand heating elements and refund the purchase price of the seat heater accessory, free of charge. The recall is expected to began in january 2015. Owners may contact set customer service at 1-866-405-4226.
Full defect summary
Southeast toyota distributors, llc (set) is recalling certain model year 2010-2011 prius and corolla, 2009-2011 venza, 2006-2010 avalon, 2007-2010 fj cruiser, 2005-2011 sienna and sequoia, 2006-2011 tacoma 4x2 and 4x4, camry, highlander, tundra 4x2 and 4x4, and 2007-2011 rav4 and 4runner. The affected vehicles may experience compression of the seat cushion which may damage the seat heater wiring.
Wheels and tires: temporary/emergency spare tire
Risk: If the carrier cable is corroded due to road salt, the spare tire may separate from the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Toyota sent owners in august 2014 an interim notification to advise owners of the recall and that dealers will perform an interim remedy to remove the spare tire and relocate it to the luggage compartment, free of charge. Owners are being mailed a second letter as parts become available and dealers will replace the spare tire carrier assembly with an improved one, free of charge. The remedy campaign is being performed in phases. The first phase of the recall began july 7, 2015. Owners may contact toyota customer service at 1-800-331-4331. Note: 2004-2010 siennas subject to this recall were sub
Full defect summary
Toyota motor engineering & manufacturing (toyota) is recalling certain model year 2004-2011 sienna vehicles originally sold in, or currently registered in, connecticut, delaware, illinois, indiana, kentucky, maine, maryland, massachusetts, michigan, minnesota, new hampshire, new jersey, new york, ohio, pennsylvania, rhode island, vermont, virginia, west virginia, wisconsin and the district of columbia. The affected vehicles have a spare tire carrier assembly mounted under the vehicle whose attachment cable may corrode due to high concentrations of road salt splashing onto the spare tire carrier.
Transmission: automatic transmission
Risk: If the shift lever is moved out of the park position without the brake applied, the transmission will either engage a drive gear or neutral, increasing the risk of a backover or roll away crash.
Fix: Toyota will mail interim notifications to owners beginning in late october 2013. When parts are available, owners will be sent a second notice and dealers will replace the shift lock solenoid, free of charge. Owners may contact toyota at 1-800-331-4331.
Full defect summary
Toyota is recalling certain model year 2004-2005 sienna vehicles manufactured january 10, 2003, through august 10, 2005; and model year 2007-2009 sienna vehicles manufactured february 20, 2007, through december 12, 2008. In the affected vehicles, due to a problem within the shift lock solenoid, there is a possibility that the shift lever could be moved out of park position without depressing the brake pedal.
Engine: engine and engine cooling
Risk: In some cases, the belt for the power steering pump may become detached from the pulley which could result in a loss of power steering and a sudden increase in steering effort, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will check the crankshaft pulley to identify whether it was produced by the u.s. Supplier. If so, the dealer will replace the pulley with a new one at no charge. The safety recall is expected to begin during early january 2012. Owners may contact toyota at 1-800-331-4331.
Full defect summary
Toyota is recalling certain model year 2004 avalon vehicles; 2004 and 2005 camry, camry solara, highlander, and sienna vehicles, 2006 highlander hybrid; 2004 and 2005 lexus es330 and rx330; and 2006 lexus rx400h vehicles manufactured from june 1, 2004 through march 31, 2005, equipped with the 1mz-fe or 3mz-fe engine. The amount of adhesive agent applied between the outer ring and the torsional rubber damper (inner ring) in the crankshaft pulley may be inadequate. If the adhesive is insufficient, there is a possibility that the outer ring may become misaligned and it may not properly rotate with the inner ring, causing noise and/or illumination of the battery discharge indicator light.
Body and structure: structure
Risk: The cable may break due to excessive corrosion and the spare tire may separate from the vehicle, possibly resulting in a vehicle crash.
Fix: Toyota will notify owners with an interim letter initially instructing them to bring their vehicle to authorized dealers to inspect for corrosion. A second notice will be sent when the permanent remedy is available. For more information, please see toyota's amended recall report of july 19, 2010. The safety recall is expected to begin on october 12, 2010. Owners may contact toyota at 1-800-331-4331.
Full defect summary
Toyota is recalling certain model year 1998 through 2010 sienna passenger vehicles manufactured between august 7, 1997 and january 4, 2010, currently registered in or originally sold in connecticut, delaware, illinois, indiana, kentucky, maine, maryland, massachusetts, michigan, minnesota, new hampshire, new jersey, new york, ohio, pennsylvania, rhode island, vermont, washington district of columbia, virginia, west virginia, and wisconsin. The subject vehicles are equipped with the spare tire stowed under the vehicle. If the vehicle is operated in the cold climate regions of the united states where road salt is frequently used, water splashed backwards with high concentrations of road salt can reach the spare tire carrier and corrode the spare tire carrier assembly cable.
Equipment: labels
Risk: This does not meet the standard requirements.
Fix: Dealers will mail to consumers the corrected label or the customer will have the option for dealers to install the label free of charge. Dealers will also correct the owner's manual. The safety recall began on may 27, 2010. Owners may contact gulf states toyota at 713-580-3300.
Full defect summary
Gulf states toyota is recalling certain model year 2005-2010 vehicles for failing to comply with the requirements of federal motor vehicle safety standard no. 110, "tire selection and rims." these vehicles were sold between september 1, 2005 and june 2, 2008 without the requisite load carrying capacity modification labels.
Equipment: labels
Risk: A driver may overload a vehicle which may increase the risk of a crash.
Fix: Dealers will mail to consumers the corrected label or the customer will have the option for dealers to install the label free of charge. The safety recall began on may 27, 2010. Owners may contact southeast toyota at 1-800-301-6859.
Full defect summary
Southeast toyota is recalling certain model year 2005-2011 passenger vehicles for failing to comply with the requirements of federal motor vehicle safety standard no. 110, "tire selection and rims." these vehicles were sold without the requisite load carrying capacity modification labels.
Equipment: labels
Risk: The gvwr is insufficient for the load carrying capacity of the vehicles.
Fix: Toyota will notify owners instructing them to return their vehicle to a toyota or lexus dealer for an exchange of the certification label and the tire and loading information label, an installation of the load carrying capacity modification label, if necessary, and a correction to the owner's manual. This remedy will be performed free of charge. The safety recall began on december 10, 2009. Owners may contact toyota at 1-888-270-9371.
Full defect summary
Toyota is recalling certain model year 2006 through 2009 sienna and 2009 lexus gx passenger vehicles. The vehicle capacity weight on the tire and loading information label and the gvwr on the certification label is insufficient for certain vehicles. Some vehicles were accessorized through vehicle processing centers and had accessories installed that caused the vehicle to exceed the gvwr value. These vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of federal motor vehicle safety standard no 110, "tire selection and rims," and 49 cfr part 567.
Body and structure: hatchback/liftgate
Risk: If not repaired, the gas struts may not be able to support the weight of the liftgate when it is open eventually, the gas struts could deteriorate to the point that the liftgate will fall about ten inches after it reaches the fully open position, at which point the power motor will engage and power the liftgate to the fully closed position. This condition may cause injury to a person who is struck by the liftgate when it falls or when it is closing.
Fix: Dealers will replace the gas struts with newly designed gas struts that have a longer service life. The campaign began on august 8, 2008, and will be mailed in three phases ending in late december 2008. Owners may contact toyota at 1-888-270-9371.
Full defect summary
Toyota is conducting a safety improvement campaign involving 196,222 my 2004-2006 toyota sienna vehicles equipped with power rear liftgate struts. The gas struts used to help lift and support the rear power liftgate could wear out sooner than expected. As the gas struts deteriorate, the performance of the liftgate will begin to degrade and the power rear liftgate will operate more slowly than when the gas struts were new.
Seat belts
Risk: If the seat belt binds in the bezel, that extra webbing may exist in the seat belt which could result in an improperly fitted seat belt on a passenger. In the event of a crash, a seat occupant may not be properly restrained increasing the risk of personal injury.
Fix: Dealers will replace the seat belt bezel and clip. The recall began august 5, 2005. Owners may contact toyota at 1-800-331-4331.
Full defect summary
On certain mini vans, in the middle row seating position, the shoulder portion of the seat belt may bind in the bezel trim piece. The affected seat belt bezel is located on the shoulder portion of the seat in the right side seat of the seven passenger models and the center seating position in the eight passenger models.
Recall repairs are free at any franchised dealer. Enter your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see which recalls are still open on your car.
NHTSA defect investigations
Stabilus rear liftgate struts failing
Summary
Please see the attached closing resume summary.it has been attached to this document as a pdf.
Steering intermediate shaft binding
Summary
Odi's analysis of warranty data shows that the alleged defect has occurred in just 0.2 percent of the subject vehicle population.when the analysis is limited to salt-belt states, the rate is still well below one percent of the population (0.4 percent).in addition, tests conducted by odi and toyota have shown that the alleged defect has a minimal affect on steering efforts.odi interviews of owners who experienced the alleged defect indicated that in most cases the problem was preceded by months or years of noise or a gradual increase in steering efforts in the initial steering maneuvers after first starting a cold vehicle.the subject vehicles have been in service for 4 to 5 years with no cras
Unexpected closing of power liftgate
Summary
On may 30, 2008, toyota initiated a safety recall to replace the liftgate struts in approximately 196,000 model year 2004-2006 toyota sienna vehicles equipped with power liftgates (recall 08v-244).the recall will provide the opportunity for vehicle owners to obtain new struts that are more robust.based on these actions, the agency has decided to close the investigation.while toyota has not made a decision that the recalled vehicles contain a safety-related defect, in view of the recall, further use of the agency's resources does not appear to be warranted.the closing of this investigation does not constitute any finding by NHTSA.the agency reserves the right to take further action if warrant
Unexpected liftgate closing
Summary
The liftgate gas struts for the subject vehicles may have damaged gas seals that allow the liftgate to drop unexpectedly.the rates for complaints, alleged injuries and warranty claims are higher for vehicles with the power liftgate option.the power liftgate may automatically power-close at the completion of a power-open command without input from the operator.some owners are caught unaware of the power-close operation while under the rear liftgate door.odi has upgraded the investigation to an engineering analysis (ea06-020) and modified the scope to include only the subject vehicles with the power liftgate option.
Tire pressure warning system failure
Summary
Odi opened pe06-010 based on 12 reports of alleged tire pressure warning system (tpws) failure on the subject vehicles.all reports alleged that the tpws warning light did not illuminate on the driver information panel when the tire pressure was low or the tire was flat.in some incidents, the consumer reported that tpws light did not illuminate when the tire pressure in 1 tire was at 15-20 psi and the other tires were at or near the recommended tire pressure.during pe06-010, additional failure data was identified as noted in the failure report summary above.as of july 25, 2006, odi was not aware of any allegations where the alleged defect resulted in a crash, an injury, or a fatality in the s
Seatbelt malfunction
Summary
The shoulder portion of the middle-row seatbelt webbing feeds through an opening in the seatbelt bezel located at the top of the seat.the bezel also contains a clip that covers a narrow slot in the bezel.the clip may become dislodged from use and allow the seat belt to become stuck in the narrow slot exposed by the dislodged clip. In addition to odi's 10 consumer complaints, toyota's letter response to the agency identifies 40 other consumer and field reports and 3,089 warranty repairs that required the replacement of the seatbelt bezel and/or clip.a stuck or jammed seatbelt does not offer proper occupant protection in the event of a vehicle crash.toyota has notified the agency by letter dat
Questions about the 2005 Toyota Sienna
- What are the most common problems with the 2005 Toyota Sienna?
- By NHTSA owner complaints: body and structure (499 complaints, typically around 65,000 miles); doors and locks (135 complaints, typically around 59,500 miles); seat belts (83 complaints, typically around 65,500 miles).
- How many recalls does the 2005 Toyota Sienna have?
- 12 recalls listed by NHTSA, the latest from October 18, 2017 (transmission). Check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see which ones are still open on your car.
- Is the 2005 a bad year for the Toyota Sienna?
- It is the 2nd most complained-about Sienna model year since 2000, with 1,130 complaints. Complaint counts are not adjusted for how many cars were sold, so popular years collect more of them, and the newest years have had less time to.