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What 75 owners told NHTSA about the 2016 Toyota Sienna

These are the actual owner complaints behind this car’s reliability verdict, filed with the federal government, unedited. They’re unverified reports, not confirmed defects: read them as leads for your pre-purchase inspection, not a diagnosis.

All (75)Crash / fire / injury (10)Body & structure (26)Electrical system (9)Seat belts (6)Airbags (5)Wheels (5)Engine (4)Latches & locks (4)Lights (4)Steering (4)Transmission & drivetrain (3)

3 of 75 complaints match · Transmission & drivetrain · clear filters

Feb 11, 2024Transmission & drivetrain

After 80,000 miles have a loud whirling sound coming from rear, after inspection and online investigation found many many others with same issue, the dust cover and or o-ring doesn’t properly protect the rear bearing in the coupler. So while the fix is to remove the rear differential coupler, and replace the bearing with an improved version, seems Toyota has stopped supporting this, and no longer offers the improved bearing as a replacement part, but only supports replacing the entire rear differential coupling at $2000 for the part plus labor. While many have replaced the bearing without issues despite toyota not allowing it as a fix. So first it should be a recall as this is an obvious defect effecting thousands, but then to gouge owners for thousands when the fix doesn’t require a complete replacement of the rear differential coupling assembly.

NHTSA ODI 11571331

Nov 17, 2017Transmission & drivetrain

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2016 TOYOTA SIENNA. THE CONTACT RECEIVED A NOTIFICATION OF NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 16V585000 (POWER TRAIN); HOWEVER, THE PART TO DO THE REPAIR WAS UNAVAILABLE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE MANUFACTURER EXCEEDED A REASONABLE AMOUNT OF TIME FOR THE RECALL REPAIR. THE CONTACT CALLED AUTONATION TOYOTA ARAPAHOE AT 303-578-6111 AND WAS INFORMED THAT SHE WOULD RECEIVE A CALL BACK WHEN THE PARTS ARRIVE. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED AND INFORMED THE CONTACT TO CALL THE DEALER. THE CONTACT MENTIONED THAT THE DRIVER'S DOOR FAILED TO OPEN COMPLETELY. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS UNKNOWN. VIN TOOL CONFIRMS PARTS DISTRIBUTION. *TT CONSUMER STATED DRIVER'S SIDE SLIDING. POWER DOORS HAD BEEN TURNED OFF WHEN RECALL RECEIVED IN OCT OR NOV 2016. UPDATED 8/13/18*JB

NHTSA ODI 11046959

Jan 3, 2017Transmission & drivetrainSpeed controlEngine

IN COLD TEMPERATURES, THIS VEHICLE MODEL (ACCORDING TO THE DEALER) DOES NOT SHIFT INTO OVERDRIVE RIGHT AWAY WHEN DRIVING FROM A COLD-START. THIS CAUSING A MOMENTARY ACCELERATION WHEN BRAKING AND PRESENTS AN UNEXPECTED SAFETY ISSUE. I HAVE FOUND THIS ISSUE POSTED ON SEVERAL CAR FORUMS AND IT APPEARS TO AFFECT MORE THAN JUST THE 2016 MODEL SIENNA, BUT DOES NOT TRIGGER A FAULT OF ANY KIND. *TR

NHTSA ODI 10939478

Working with the data? Download all 75 complaints as CSV · fetched from NHTSA July 19, 2026

How to use these: a complaint is one owner’s report, filed voluntarily and published unverified. Patterns matter more than any single story. If several owners describe the same failure at similar mileage, put that system at the top of your pre-purchase inspection list. Back to the full 2016 Toyota Sienna verdict →