2001 Toyota Sequoia

WHILE DRIVING AT 60 MPH THE VEHICLE PULLED SHARPLY TO THE RIGHT AND ITS TRAC/VCS CONTROL LIGHTS BEGAN TO BLINK AND THE WARNING SOUND CAME ON AS WELL. THE VEHICLE MADE A GRINDING SOUND AND I PULLED OVER TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD. I SHUT THE CAR OFF AND WAITED A FEW MINUTES. I TURNED ON THE VEHICLE AND THE INDICATOR LIGHTS WERE OFF AND IT DROVE NORMAL. THIS SAME INCIDENT CONTINUES TO HAPPEN EVEN AFTER I TOOK IT IN TO GET DIAGNOSED. I WAS TOLD BY A TOYOTA TECHNICIAN THAT HE COULD NOT FIND THE PROBLEM. *TR

TOYOTA SENT ME A LETTER ASKING ME TO BRING MY 2001 TOYOTA SEQUOIA TRUCK TO A DEALER NEAR ME TO HAVE MY RUSTED FRAME REPLACED AT NO COST TO ME BECAUSE THEY WERE HAVING A SERVICE CAMPAIGN FOR TRUCKS LIKE MINE. AFTER TAKING THE TRUCK THERE I GOT A CALL FROM THE DEALERSHIP TELLING ME I HAD TO PAY ALMOST $2300 FOR PARTS.I CALLED TOYOTA TO COMPLAIN BUT WITH NO POSITIVE RESULTS. THE DEALER SAID IT IS NOT SAFE TO DRIVE THE VEHICLE AND YET TOYOTA WILL NOT KEEP TO THEIR WORD OF DOING THE REPAIRS AT NO COST.I FEEL TOYOTA NEEDS TO OWN UP AND FIX A PROBLEM THAT WAS THEIR FAULT TO BEGIN WITH. *JS

2002 - VSC TRAC LIGHT CAME ON, VEHICLE UNEXPECTEDLY PULLS TO RIGHT, CALLED DEALER SAID OKAY TO DRIVE HOME . TOOK TO DEALER DIDN'T FIND ANYTHING WRONG. VSC TRAC HAS CONTINUED TO MALFUNCTION THROUGH THE YEARS, EACH TIME DEALER REPORTED NOTHING WRONG. 2012- PROBLEM HAS WORSEN, TRAC LIGHT COMES ON EVERYDAY. VEHICLE EITHER UNEXPECTEDLY PULLS TOO HARD TO RIGHT OR SHAKES BADLY AS THOUGH FRONTEND IS FALLING OUT FROM UNDER THE VEHICLE. *JS

I WAS JUST LIKE TO ISSUE A COMPLAINT ABOUT THE EXCESSIVE RUST ON THE FRAME OF MY 2001 TOYOTA SEQUOIA. IT IS ALMOST TO THE POINT WHERE I WILL NO LONGER BE ABLE TO DRIVE THE VEHICLE. I WAS CHECKING BREAK WEAR WHEN I NOTICED THAT THE SWAY BAR ON THE LEFT FRONT OF MY VEHICLE WERE RUSTED IN TWO. I HAVE ORDERED NEW SWAY BARS. MY SEQUIOA WAS EQUIPED WITH THE TOW PACKAGE BUT AM AFRAID TO PULL MY BASS BOAT WITH IT IN FEAR THE HITCH WILL BE PULLED LOOSE FROM THE FRAME BECAUSE OF ALL THE RUST. I HAVE NOTICED RECALLS ON THE TUNDRA FOR RUSTY FRAMES AND WHY I WOULD LIKE KNOW WHY THE SEQUOIA ISN'T BEING RECALLED SINCE THIS SEEMS TO BE A COMMON THEME AMONGST OWNERS OF 2001 & 2002 SEQUOIA OWNERS.

I WAS DRIVING ABOUT 50MPH WHEN ALL OVER A SUDDEN MY CAR LOST POWER AND I HEARD A GRINDING NOISE AND WAS SHAKING. THEN IMMEDIATELY THE SEQUOIA VSC & TRAC SENSOR LIGHTS TURNED ON. THIS HAS HAPPENED TWICE NOW IN THE PAST ONE WEEK. IT'S LIKE I ALMOST LOST CONTROL OF THE CAR. IT WOULD HAVE BEEN DEFINITELY WORSE IF I WAS ON HIGHWAY. I CALLED TOYOTA CORP CUSTOMER RELATION AND FILED A COMPLAINT BUT THEY WOULD NOT ADMIT TO HAVE THIS RECALLED DESPITE THE FACT THAT THEY HAVE HAD MANY SAFETY ISSUE COMPLAINTS ABOUT THIS PROBLEM. THEY ADMITTED THE PROBLEM BEING REPORTED ON OTHER MODELS LIKE 2003 AND UP BUT WOULD NOT OFFER TO RECALL MINE AND HAVE IT FIXED BECAUSE ITS A 2001.

COMPONENT: STRUCTURE, FRAME. TOOK OUR CAR TO A LOCAL TOYOTA DEALER FOR ANNUAL INSPECTION. WE WERE TOTALLY UNPREPARED FOR THIS SHOCKING NEWS: IT WOULD NEVER PASS INSPECTION BECAUSE THE FRAME UNDERNEATH IS RUSTED AND HAS A HOLE THE SIZE OF A BASEBALL IN THE REAR PORTION NEAR THE SPARE TIRE. NOT ONLY DO WE SUDDENLY NOT HAVE A CAR TO DRIVE, IT'S WORTH HAS TOTALLY DROPPED TO ZERO. SHOULD THIS BE UNDER TOYOTA'S RECALL FOR TACOMAS WITH THIS SIMILAR PROBLEM? WE JUST RETURNED FROM A 1500 MILE TRIP AND I SHUDDER TO THINK OF WHAT MAY HAVE OCCURRED .

MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 27TH, 2004 I BROUGHT IN MY SEQUOIA FOR SERVICE. I HAD COMPLAINED THAT WHEN THE VEHICLE IS STOPPED (WITH MY FOOT ON THE BRAKE) AND THE AIR CONDITIONING ENGAGES THE CAR ROLLS FORWARD. THE LAST TIME THAT THIS HAD HAPPENED, SEVERAL DAYS BEFORE, HAD RESULTED IN AN ACCIDENT WITH ANOTHER VEHICLE. THE SERVICE TECH INFORMED ME THAT THEY HAD BEEN ABLE TO DUPLICATE THE PROBLEM AND THAT TOYOTAS REGIONAL FACTORY TECHNICIAN NEEDED TO VERIFY THEIR OWN ASSESSMENT AND APPROVE THE WARRANTY WORK TO CORRECT THE PROBLEM HE ALSO STATED VERY SPECIFICALLY THAT THEY HAD NEVER SEEN THIS PROBLEM BEFORE. FRIDAY, OCTOBER 8TH, 2004 GLENN KASHIMA, SERVICE DIRECTOR FROM TUSTIN TOYOTA CALLED ME. HE INFORMED ME THAT THE FACTORY TECHNICIAN HAD BEEN OUT TO LOOK AT THE CAR. HE HAD NOT BEEN ABLE TO DUPLICATE THE PROBLEM, AND DETERMINED THAT THE CAR WAS OPERATING WITHIN SPECIFICATIONS. HE TOLD ME THAT I COULD PICK THE CAR UP. I MADE IT CLEAR THAT THIS WAS UNACCEPTABLE. FIRST THEY TELL ME THAT THE HAVE IDENTIFIED A PROBLEM, HAVE NEVER SEEN THIS PROBLEM BEFORE, AND IT WILL BE COVERED BY MY WARRANTY. THEN THEY TELL ME THAT THERE IS NOTHING WRONG. WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 13TH, 2004 I WENT TO TOYOTA DEALERSHIP. I SPOKE WITH GLENN KASHIMA. HE AGAIN REITERATED THAT THE CAR WAS OPERATING WITHIN SPECS. THIS IN SPITE OF HIS ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF THE FACT THAT HIS OWN TECHNICIAN HAD DUPLICATED THE PROBLEM, ETC. HE TOLD ME THAT HE HAD ASKED HIS TECHNICIAN IF HIS FOOT HAD BEEN PUSHING STRONGLY ON THE BRAKE WHEN HE HAD DUPLICATED THE PROBLEM, OR ONLY LIGHTLY ON THE BRAKE. GLENN TOLD ME THAT HE HAD BEEN ASKED THIS BY THE TOYOTA FACTORY GUY. HE DESCRIBED THAT HIS OWN TOYOTA TRUCK DOES THAT..THAT IF YOUR FOOT IS NOT PRESSED HARD ON THE BRAKE THAT WILL HAPPEN. I ASKED, ARE YOU TELLING ME THAT IF THE CAR IS STOPPED, WITH MY FOOT ON THE BRAKE SUFFICIENTLY TO HAVE THE VEHICLE STOPPED, THAT THE VEHICLE WILL LURCH FORWARD WHEN THE A/C ENGAGES? HE NODDED HIS HEAD AND SAID,"YES."*AK

PROBLEMS BEGAN AT 14,647 MILES ON BRAND NEW VEHICLE. EXTREME PULL TO THE RIGHT, SHIMMIE, VIBRATION WHILE DRIVING AND BRAKING, LOSS OF VSC ABILITIES. REPEATEDLY HAVE HAD TO REPLACE TIRES AND BRAKES BECAUSE OF MALFUNCTION. TIRES ARE WEARING TO THE METAL IN UNCONVENTIONAL MANNER. TOYOTA REPEATEDLY DISREGARDED AND DISMISSED MY CONCERNS, TELLING ME "THE ROADS IN AZ SLANT TO THE RIGHT, HENCE YOUR VEHICLE WILL PULL TO THE RIGHT". AFTER TWO YEARS OF FIGHTING WITH THEM REGARDING THIS, THEY NOW ADMIT TO CALIPER/DRUM PROBLEM BUT MAINTAIN I HAVE TO PAY TO CORRECT IT BECAUSE NOW I AM OUT OF WARRANTY. EVEN THOUGH PROBLEMS BEGAN AT 14K MILES, THEY CONTEND THIS IS MY PROBLEM AND NOT THEIRS. THESE ARE ONLY A FEW OF THE PROBLEMS I HAVE HAD WITH THIS VEHICLE. THIS FORM REQUESTS A # OF FAILURES; I DO NOT HAVE A NUMBER TO GIVE YOU, AS THIS HAS BEEN A CONSTANT, CHRONIC PROBLEM THAT HAS NOT CEASED. I HAVE HAD 4 SETS OF TIRES AND REPLACED THE BRAKES 4 TIMES.*AK

SINCE OWNING THE VEHICLE, VSC INITIALIZES ON DRY STRAIGHT PAVEMENT, AT LOW SPEEDS. RETURNED TO LOCAL CT DEALER MULTIPLE TIMES. NO PROBLEM FOUND. ON A RECENT TRIP, DRIVING ON AN INTERSTATE HIGHWAY, STRAIGHT ROAD, 70MPH, ALL OF A SUDDEN IT FELT LIKE THE FRONT OF THE VEHICLE WAS COMING APART. THE NEXT THING I KNEW I WENT FROM THE RIGHT TO LEFT LANE AND INTO THE MEDIAN. LUCKILY NO OTHER VEHICLES WERE INVOLVED AND NO ROLLOVER OCCURRED. I WAS ABLE TO GAIN CONTROL. THE VSC WAS THE CAUSE. THIS TIME THE VSC WOULD NOT RESET. TOOK IT TO A TOYOTA DEALER IN JONESBORO, AR. THEY REPLACED THE STEERING ANGLE SENSOR AND STATED THIS WAS A FREQUENT PROBLEM WITH THE VSC. *NLM