2002 TOYOTA SEQUOIA Complaints

I OWN A 2002 TOYOTA SEQUOIA 4X2. THE VSC/TRAC LIGHTS CAME ON AFTER I HAD THE BATTERY REPLACED ON DEC. 20, 2006. MY TOYOTA SPECIALIST COULD NOT FIGURE OUT WHAT THE PROBLEM WAS BUT SAID THAT THE SEQUOIA'S SEEM TO HAVE MULTIPLE PROBLEMS RELATING TO BRAKES AND COMPUTERS. I TOOK IT TO THE DEALER ON JAN. 8, 2007 AND THEY SAID IT HAS BEEN A COMMON/ONGOING PROBLEM. TOYOTA HAS NOT RECALLED THIS PROBLEM THOUGH. THEY COULD FIX THE ECC (ELECTRICAL COMPUTER COMPONENT) AT THE COST OF $1,600. I SAID NO THANKS. *JB

VSC DASH LIGHT ("IDIOT LIGHT") HAS BEEN CONSISTENTLY ON NOW FOR THE LAST 10,000 MILES (CURRENT ODOMETER = 51,000 +/-). THE LIGHT WAS ON INTERMITTENTLY STARTING BEFORE THE VEHICLE WAS 1-1/2 YEARS OLD (<25,000 MILES.) *JB IN ADDITION TO THE VSC LIGHT, THE 'BRAKE' LIGHT STAYS ON (ORIGINALLY ILLUMINATED ONLY WHEN THE PARKING BRAKE WAS ENGAGED.), PLUS THE ABS LIGHT IS CONSISTENTLY LIT. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO TOYOTA MORE THAN ONCE WITH THE VSC/ABS/BRAKE LIGHTS COMPLAINT, BUT TOYOTA WAS UNABLE TO DIAGNOSE ANY PROBLEM UNTIL A SERVICE PERFORMED AFTER THE 36,000 MI WARRANTY EXPIRED, AT WHICH POINT THE DEALER THOUGHT AN ABS COMPUTER REPLACEMENT MIGHT SOLVE THE PROBLEM. THE DEALER DID NOT ACKNOWLEDGE ANY PROBLEM UNTIL AFTER THIS 36,000 MILE POINT DESPITE INTERMITTENT EVENTS OCCURRING VERY EARLY ON.

"VSC/TRAC" WARNING LIGHTS COME ON AND STAY ON, AND CAR TRIES TO GO BACK/FORWARD AT THE SAME TIME. I BOUGHT THIS CAR USED WITH 66,000 MILES ON IT, AND PROBLEM IS CHRONIC. DEALER SAYS THEY CAN'T RECREATE THE PROBLEM. I LOOKED ONLINE AND THERE ARE LOTS OF PROBLEMS WITH THIS IN TOYOTA SEQUOIAS. DATE OF MOST RECENT INCIDENT IS RECORDED BELOW. *NM

I OWN A '02 TOYOTA SEQUOIA WITH 71,000 MILES THAT IS NOW OFF FACTORY WARRANTY. MY VSC/ABS/SKID LIGHTS CAME ON AND STAY ON. AFTER TAKING IT TO THE DEALER THEY ADVISED THAT THE SKID CONTROL COMPUTER AND POSSIBLY THE ENGINE CONTROL COMPUTER (ECC) REQUIRED REPLACING. THE VSC ALONE IS $2200.00. THE ABS AND VSC SYSTEMS DO NOT FUNCTION NOW AND I LIVE IN DENVER, COLORADO, WHERE THERE ARE FREQUENT SNOWS. MY WIFE AND THREE CHILDREN USE THIS VEHICLE EVERYDAY AND I FEAR FOR THEIR SAFETY AS SHE HAS SLID THROUGH TWO STOP SIGNS ALREADY. I HAVE READ THAT THIS IS A COMMON PROBLEM WITH THIS YEAR OF SEQUOIA. *JB

DOOR HANDLE BREAKING: 2002 TOYOTA SEQUOIA (1) EVENTS LEADING UP TO THE FAILURE NOTHING ABNORMAL. HOUSEWIFE EXITING VEHICLE AFTER DROPPING KIDS OFF AT SCHOOL. (2) FAILURE AND ITS CONSEQUENCES THE DOOR HANDLE SNAPPED IN HALF, RENDERING NO EXIT FROM VEHICLE IMPOSSIBLE, OTHER THAN ROLLING DOWN ELECTRIC WINDOW, AND REACHING OUTSIDE, OPENING WITH EXTERIOR HANDLE. ALTHOUGH THE IMMEDIATE CONSEQUENCES IN THIS CASE WERE MINIMAL, IF THE PLASTIC DOOR HANDLE WERE FLAWED ON A LARGE SCALE, IT IS PROBABLE THAT THE DOOR HANDLE WILL BREAK REPEATEDLY, (ALSO CONFIRMED WITH TECHNICIAN, "WE REPLACE THESE ALL THE TIME".) THE DEADLY COMBINATION OF AN ACCIDENT, AND SUBSEQUENT HIGH-STRESS CONDITIONS, POTENTIALLY CREATING A LIFE-THREATENING CIRCUMSTANCE OF AN EMERGENCY EXIT, RESULT IN A SIGNIFICANTLY GREATER AMOUNT OF FORCE TO BE USED THAN NORMAL, I.E. YANKING THE HANDLE TO GET OUT. BOTTOM LINE, IF A KINDERGARTEN TEACHER CASUALLY EXITING A VEHICLE WILL SNAP IT IN HALF, WHAT HAPPENS WHEN A PERSON IS INHALING SMOKE SURROUNDED BY FLAMES, TRYING TO GET THEIR KIDS OUT? THEY WILL EXERT A TREMENDOUS AMOUNT OF FORCE ON THE HANDLE TO GET OUT, SNAPPING IT IN HALF, THE WINDOW METHOD WILL NOT WORK, OR NOT COME TO MIND. ISSUE A RECALL, OR AT A MINIMUM, OBTAIN FROM TOYOTA THE NUMBER OF DOOR HANDLES REPLACED IN AFTER-MARKET PARTS. UNFORTUNATELY, TOYOTA POSTURES ITSELF THAT THIS IS A WARRANTY ITEM. IT IS NOT. HUMAN LIFE IS NOT A WARRANTY ITEM. THIS IS A MATTER FOR THE NHTSA TO DECIDE. *NM

I BOUGHT A "TOYOTA CERTIFIED" 2002 TOYOTA SEQUOIA IN LATE '04. ROUGHLY 6 MONTHS INTO OWNERSHIP - MY VSC (TRACTION CONTROL) SYSTEM BEGAN HAVING INTERMITTENT ISSUES - 2 FULL-DAY TRIPS TO THE DEALERSHIP MADE NO RESULTS - THE DEALERSHIP WAS UNABLE TO RECREATE THE PROBLEM. ANOTHER 4-6 MONTHS LATER, THE VSC FAILED COMPLETELY, AND AFTER INVESTIGATION, I FIND THE ISSUE IS VERY COMMON AND VERY EXPENSIVE TO FIX. THE FAILURE LEAVES ME WITHOUT ABS AND WITHOUT VSC (TWO OF THE REASONS I BOUGHT THE CAR I DID) AND AT AN INCREASED RISK OF HAVING AN ACCIDENT, AS WITHOUT FUNCTIONAL ABS THE BRAKES LOCK QUITE EASILY. CALLS TO MY DEALERSHIP HAVE LEFT ME WITH THE IMPRESSION THE FIX WILL BE IN THE $2000 NEIGHBORHOOD, AND I HAVEN'T YET COME UP WITH THAT. THE INCIDENT DATE IS APPROXIMATE TO THE START OF THE ISSUES. *JB

I OWN A 2002 TOYOTA SEQUOIA AND HAVE HAD THREE INSTANCES OF THE BACK HATCH LATCH ASSEMBLY BREAKING AND BECOMING UNLATCHED WHILE THE VEHICLE WAS IN OPERATION. THE LATCH ASSEMBLY BECAME UNLATCHED AFTER THE REAR WINDOW WAS ROLLED DOWN. IN EACH CASE THE REAR HATCH WOULD NOT RELATCH AND TO BE TIED SHUT. THE LATCH ASSEMBLY HAD TO BE REPLACED BY A DEALER IN ORDER TO RESTORE THE HATCH TO OPERATION IN EACH CASE. DURING THE THIRD REPLACEMENT OF THE REAR HATCH LATCH ASSEMBLY THE DEALER TECHNICIAN NOTICED THAT THE LATCH OPERATING CABLE HARNESS WAS ROUTED INCORRECTLY INSIDE THE REAR HATCH WHICH IS WHY THE REAR WINDOW WAS PUTTING STRESS ON IT AND DAMAGING THE LATCH ASSEMBLY. THE LATCH BROKE TWICE IN 08/2002, AND AGAIN IN 06/2005. *NM

INSIDE PASSENGER DOOR HANDLE BROKE. CAN NOT EXIT VEHICLE ON PASSENGER SIDE. *NM

1)TOOK MY 2002 TOYOTA SEQUOIA TO THE DEALER TO PERFORM 50,000 MILE SERVICE. THEY PERFORMED THE SERVICE AND REPLACED THE BATTERY. WHEN PICKING UP THE CAR I NOTICED VEHICLE SKID CONTROL (VSC) AND ABS LIGHTS WERE OFF. *JB 2) I ASKED THE DEALER TO CHECK THIS PROBLEM AND THEY SAID THAT THE ECU (COMPUTER) THAT CONTROLS THESE SAFETY SYSTEMS HAD FAILED ITSELF AND DISABLED THE ABOVE MENTIONED SAFETY FEATURES. 3) THE DEALER WANTS $2300 FROM ME TO FIX THIS PROBLEM. *JB

BRIDGESTONE DUELER H/L ALENZA SUV TIRE FAILURE WITH ABOUT 3000 MILES ON THE TIRE. COMPLETE 360 DEGREE TREAD SEPARATION FROM SIDEWALL ON OUTSIDE OF TIRE--INSIDE WALL MOSTLY INTACT. TOYOTA SEQUOIA GOING 65 MPH ON I-90 OUT OF SEATTLE NOTICED VIBRATION. VIEW IN MIRROR SAW SMOKE. LEFT REAR TIRE DAMAGED. GOODSAM ROADSIDE HELP WAS CALLED. TOW TRUCK CAME AND PUT ON OUR SPARE FOR US. *NM