2003 Toyota Sienna Body & Structure Problems

Both rear doors on your 2003 Toyota Sienna won't open from either the inside or outside. In an emergency, passengers would need to climb over the front seats to exit the vehicle. This issue likely involves the door latch mechanism and may require inspection and repair of the locking or latching hardware.

Your driver and front passenger doors started making loud clicking sounds when opening and closing about a year ago. Two months later, your front passenger door wouldn't close fully and could only open a few inches. When you inspected it, you discovered the door weld had snapped and broken where it attaches to the door frame. Fixing this will likely require welding repair or door replacement to restore the hinge mechanism.

The handle on your liftgate broke off in your hand, leaving the gate stuck and unable to open. This prevents you from accessing the rear cargo area. The repair will likely require replacing the liftgate handle assembly and checking the locking mechanism.

While driving your 2003 Toyota Sienna at around 45 mph, you heard an abnormal squeaking sound coming from the rear of the vehicle that happened on and off. A dealer diagnosed that the spare tire carrier assembly cable had corroded. There was a recall issued for this issue, but the replacement part wasn't available, and the repair took longer than expected. The fix will involve replacing the corroded spare tire carrier cable with a new one.

Your driver side door makes a popping noise that has gotten worse over time. Your automatic passenger sliding door no longer operates smoothly and has stopped working completely. The fix will likely involve inspecting and repairing the door mechanisms, hinges, and the automatic sliding door motor or latch system.

Your rear driver-side sliding door won't open. You've also had a recurring problem in the past where both rear doors had difficulty locking. The issue first occurred at 140,000 miles. The repair will likely involve inspecting and fixing the door latch mechanism or sliding door hardware.

BROKEN CABLE FOR SLIDING DOOR OF MY 2003 TOYOTA SIENNA. *TR

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 TOYOTA SIENNA XE. THE CONTACT STATED HE RECEIVED A RECALL NOTIFICATION UNDER THE NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID NUMBER 10V160000 (STRUCTURE). THE AUTHORIZED DEALER WAS NOTIFIED TO SCHEDULE AN APPOINTMENT FOR THE REMEDY REPAIR; HOWEVER, THE TIME FRAME PROVIDED FOR THE REPAIR WAS NOT COMPATIBLE WITH THE CONTACT'S WORK HOURS. ALSO, THE CONTACT STATED THE DEALER SHOULD PROVIDE A FREE RENTAL VEHICLE DURING THE TIME OF THE RECALL REPAIR. THERE WAS NO FAILURE RELATED TO THE RECALL DEFECT. THE VEHICLE HAD NOT BEEN REPAIRED AT THE TIME OF THE COMPLAINT.

OPENED TAIL GATE ON 03 TOYOTA SIENNA VAN. REACHED IN TO GET SOMETHING AND GATE SUDDENLY CAME DOWN STRIKING ME ON THE TOP OF MY HEAD CAUSING A CONCUSSION. GAS STRUTS WERE REPLACED AT A COST OF OVER $300. OLD PARTS NOT AVAILABLE. *TR

I OWN TOYOTA SIENNA 2003 CE. I AM NOT ABLE TO OPEN PASSENGER SLIDING DOOR FROM INSIDE. THIS IS BEEN PROBLEM FOR A WHILE. IT IS VERY INCONVENIENT THAT EVERY TIME SOME ONE HAS TO STEP OUT TO OPEN THE DOOR FROM OUTSIDE. THIS CAN BE SOME TIME SAFETY ISSUE IF DRIVER HAS TO STEP OUT TO OPEN PASSENGER DOOR, RISKING DRIVER OPEN TO INCOMING VEHICLE. *TR

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 TOYOTA SIENNA. THE CONTACT STATED THAT BOTH SLIDING DOORS WOULD NOT OPEN INTERMITTENTLY. ALSO, THE SLIDING DOOR LIGHT WOULD ILLUMINATE ON THE INSTRUMENT PANEL UNTIL THE VEHICLE WAS TURNED OFF. THE VEHICLE HAD NOT BEEN TAKEN TO AN AUTHORIZED DEALERSHIP AT THE TIME OF THE COMPLAINT. THE VIN WAS NOT AVAILABLE. THE CURRENT AND FAILURE MILEAGES WERE APPROXIMATELY 17,000.

2003 TOYOTA SIENNA MINIVAN, BOTH SLIDING DOORS DO NOT OPERATE PROPERLY. THE DRIVER SIDE STAYS SHUT ALWAYS AND WILL NOT OPEN FROM THE INSIDE OR THE OUTSIDE. THE PASSENGER SLIDER WILL OPEN FROM THE OUTSIDE IF YOU PLACE THE CHILDPROOF LOCK ON. THIS HAPPENED ON AND OFF AND GOT TO BE CONSTANT AFTER THE 3 YEAR WARRANTY IS UP. THIS IS NOT FROM WEAR AND TEAR. IT IS A KNOWN 'SIENNA PROBLEM FORUM' ISSUE AND EVERY TIME SOMEONE GOES TO TOYOTA, THEY DENY THAT A PROBLEM EXISTS. DOES THAT SOUND FAMILIAR? IS IT SAFE WHEN YOU CANNOT GET OUT OF YOUR DOOR? *TR

AUTOMATIC SLIDING DOOR ON 2003 TOYOTA SIENNA FAILURE (PASSENGER SIDE). THE DOOR STARTED TO HAVE PROBLEMS CLOSING COMPLETELY. THE DOOR WOULD SENSE RESISTANCE AND OPEN, WHEN NO RESISTANCE WAS PRESENT DURING THE CLOSURE PROCESS. WITHIN 30 DAYS THE DOOR NO LONGER MOVES AND IS PROVING A HAZARD TO ATTEMPT CLOSURE. THERE IS NO TRUE MANUAL OVERRIDE TO OPENING OR CLOSING THE DOOR AS THE SENSORS KICK-IN. WHEN THE DOOR IS EVENTUALLY CLOSED THE DOOR RATTLES WHILE DRIVING AND WE ARE NOT SURE IF THE DOOR IS REALLY SAFE. TOYOTA OFFERS TO REPLACE ALL THE PARTS AND THE DOOR MOTOR FOR OVER $1800.00. *TR

MY MINIVAN PASSENGER DOORS INTERMITTENTLY EITHER FAIL TO OPEN OR CLOSE PROPERLY. MOST OFTEN THE DOORS WON'T OPEN AND PASSENGERS CANNOT EXIT WITHOUT CRAWLING THROUGH TO THE OTHER SIDE OR FRONT. OCCASIONALLY THE DOORS WILL NOT CATCH WHEN CLOSED, FORCING ME TO DRIVE SLOWLY WITH HAZARDS UNTIL IT GETS "UNSTUCK". I'VE HAD THESE PROBLEMS INTERMITTENTLY SINCE THE VAN WAS LESS THE 1 YEAR. THE DEALER HAS TENDED TO BLAME ME OR MAKE A REPAIR WHICH HASN'T LASTED. MOST RECENTLY THEY REPLACED A DOOR HANDLE AND SUPPOSEDLY ADJUSTED A CABLE AND TOLD ME THE PROBLEM WAS FIXED AND GUARANTEED FOR 6 MONTHS AND THEN WANTED TO CHARGE FOR ADDITIONAL PARTS AND SERVICE WHEN BROUGHT BACK IN 5 WEEKS LATER WITH ONGOING PROBLEMS. IN REVIEWING YOUR WEBSITE THIS IS A PROBLEM WHICH HAS BEEN REPORTED BY OTHERS. SOMETIMES THE THUMB PIECE STICKS, OTHER TIMES THE HANDLE FAILS TO OPEN THE DOOR. A THIS POINT BOTH DOOR HANDLES HAVE BEEN REPLACED AND YET PROBLEMS STILL OCCUR, ESPECIALLY WHEN IT IS HOT AND HUMID OR VERY COLD. DATE GIVEN IS WHEN PROBLEM FIRST STARTED, STILL OCCURS IN 2008. *TR

BACK HATCH UNLOCKED AND FLEW OPEN ON HIGHWAY WHILE I HAD CUSTOMERS IN MY 4 RUNNER. PULLED OVER AND TRIED TO SHUT...WOULD NOT SHUT. HAVING TO DRIVE NOW WITH BACK TAILGATE TIED SHUT. EXHAUST COMES IN THROUGH BACK OF VEHICLE. HAVING REPAIRED ON 10/24 FOR A COST OF OVER $400! *TR

2003 TOYOTA SIENNA CE 5-DOOR V6 W 59K MILES. OUTSIDE DOOR HANDLE ON DRIVER'S SIDE SLIDING DOOR BROKE. DOOR CANNOT BE OPEND FROM OUTSIDE AFTER THE BREAK.*AK

DT*: THE CONTACT STATED IN HOT, HUMID WEATHER, THE REAR DOORS WERE CLOSED AND WOULD NOT OPEN. IF THE OPENED, THEY WOULD NOT CLOSE. THIS PROBLEM OCCURRED INTERMITTENTLY. THE DEALER HAS REPLACED THE DRIVER SIDE OPENER WITH NO SUCCESS. THE DEALER CAN NOT DUPLICATE THE PROBLEM.