10.0
really awful- Crashes / Fires:
- 1 / 1
- Injuries / Deaths:
- 0 / 0
- Average Mileage:
- 91,390 miles
About These NHTSA Complaints:
The NHTSA is the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints can be spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem. See the Back button — blue bar at the very top of the page — to explore more.
« Read the previous 20 complaints
Vsc trac light and trac off lights on. Also service engine light on. Won't shut off. Brake light also comes on and then off for no reason. I see on complaint list this is issue for many years but Toyota refuses to recall vehicles. Maybe not enough injuries or deaths or law suits yet. Not a good way Toyota treats customers. Toyota should recall and fix vehicles that have built in - designed in defects. Very disappointing. Also a couple years ago the front ball joint broke...luckily driving slowly and not on the highway.
- Milford, MI, USA
Date and mileage above are approximate. While accelerating on an up inclined entrance ramp to the ben franklin bridge in philadelphia, the engine lost speed and the vehicle quickly slowed. No one was behind me so there was minimal danger. The behavior was similar to snow/ice skid control whereby the engine decouples and the accelerator pedal becomes useless. After about 5 seconds power returned. On 6/24/2014 (mileage 165,400) my brake light came on. I coincidentally had an 5,000 mile service appointment today (6/24/2014) and the diagnosis was a code C1247 - ABS ECU (computer) is failing. The mechanic explained that the ECU had failing circuits, or failing solder connections. A little internet research suggested that the unit might simply have logic problems. The mechanic advised that when the brake light is on, all skid control and ABS functionality is gone. As the light was on for a short period of time, and is now off I am going to see how the vehicle performs and if safety is effected.
- Belle Mead, NJ, USA
Vsc, traction control light, and check engine light activated and is now staying illuminated. Slight loss of power and hesitation during acceleration.
- Fort Worth , TX, USA
Recently the traction control lights have come on and I am told the ECU needs replacing. Also at the same time the check engine light came on. I am being told by dealer that ECU will need to be replaced that it is a common problem with the vehicle and he repaired many.
- Boca Raton, FL, USA
We purchased our Sequoia in July of 2004. On Dec. 20, 2006 the vsc off and vsc trac lights came on. We took the car in to our Toyota dealer on Jan. 3, 2007 (48,127 mi) to have them take a look at it. We were told the lights were on because of a charcoal canister that needed replacing. We replaced the canister on Aug. 8, 2007 (58,184 mi.) at a cost of approx. $425. We believe this cost should have been covered under the emission system's warranty but the dealer said 'no' and we reluctantly paid it. On a trip to ca, the oil pressure gauge quit working. We went to a Toyota dealer in victorville, ca on Dec.3, 2007 (66,587 mi.) we were told the oil pressure was fine but the 'combo meter' needed replacing at an estimated cost of $900. We declined the service. At some point after that, the vsc off and vsc trac lights came back on. On April 1, 2009 (87,456 mi.) we took the car in to the Toyota dealer to have them check on the lights. We were told the 'skid control ECU' needed replacing at an estimated cost of $1400. We declined the service. The lights are still on to this day at 165,977 miles. In Dec. 2011, after a snowy day, we were traveling about 25 mph when the car broke traction and sent us spinning 180* out-of-control. If it wasn't for a snow berm we would have rolled down a hill into a pond. This vehicle is unsafe!! I'm sure we have paid dearly for the stability control feature in this car but it has been inoperable for most of time we've owned it. This is definitely a manufacturer's defect that should be recalled and made right. We don't believe we should have to bear the cost of fixing this problem ourselves.
- Ozark, MO, USA
This appears to be exceptionally common. The vsc trac, vsc off and ABS and parking brake lights come on, the brakes are degraded and the front end vibrates as the brakes appear to be pulsing. This has happened at least 10 times over the years. At first we thought it was the emergency brake and we had the tightened, since it seemed that there might be something loose and it was engaging as we drove. That wasn't it, obviously and it continues to occur. With such a heavy, large car, we have nearly rear-ended others, but got lucky. Each time the car pulls to one side sharply and you have to stop and restart the car to get all the lights to turn off and come back to normal. I have had the brakes done and redone several times and this still occurs.. on each occasion we could get out of it, but its only a matter of time before someone gets hurt. Toyota has obviously ignored this..I have download the complaints and there are >500 on this very topic. As I read through all these, the similarity between them is beyond coincidence and it appears that nothing actually fixes this. As of right now, I cannot let my family drive this car. I am bringing it into to the dealer (with copies of all these complaints) and see what comes of it. My hopes are not high. The recall in 2003 seems like they tried to address this (not clear if it was same issue). My concern really is that someone has to get killed. The issue with that logic is that dead people don't fill out complaints and if there was a death, it appears that the error/diagnostic codes do not register and get saved for retrieval (from reading all these complaints). Serious crashes would be investigated, codes would be looked at and nothing would come up. Case closed. What would happen, Toyota, if all accidents got re-investigated" how much would that cost" ask the GM CEO how much their investigation is costing.
- San Diego, CA, USA
The skid control light flashes at randomly at low speeds causing the vehicle not to accelerate; and at times during a left turn;took vehicle to Toyota dealer I was informed that skid computer was identifying a skidding condition during wet conditions, but the surface was dry. This defect can cause an accident from the rear or oncoming traffic. Other 2004 models have reported similar problems with ESC, trac control and ABS.
- Bowie, MD, USA
The vehicle skid control light would flash and the vehicle would not accelerate sometimes during left turns and in slow traffic, pausing a few seconds before accelerating again. This action seems to be hazardous possibly causing an accident. Reported this problem to Toyota dealer. Their response was the vehicle skid control computer sensed wet conditions therefore adjusting for skidding. As I told the dealer, this problem happen mostly on dry pavement and at slow speeds.
- Bowie, MD, USA
2004 Toyota Sequoia SR5 with 4WD with about 113,000 miles. We started out on our first road trip Saturday and were having no issues until we stopped to get gas an hour and a half into the trip. After getting gas we got back on the highway. Once we sped up to about 70mph the vcs light started blinking and the vehicle started slowing down on its own from 70 to about 45. We would try to accelerate the car with the gas peddle while this was happening, but it didn't help. Once the speed dropped to about 45 the gas peddle would respond and we could speed back up to about 70 or 80. Then the cycle would start all over again. Over the course of a 13 hour road trip this happened off and on about half of the trip. While the car slows down on its own, pressing the gas peddle either doesn't do anything or at times it just revs the RPM's without increasing speed. We tried several different things to get this problem to stop. We disconnected the battery to try to reset the computer but that did not work. We also tried to put it into 4WD and take it out and it seemed that sometimes helped and at other times it didn't. sometimes the light will flicker and doesn't seem to really affect the acceleration as much. Other times it will really act up and we have to put on the hazard lights and finally get off the highway to try something out of desperation. All of this happens on dry, smooth highways. It has happened multiple days in a row. It only seems to act up when we are going above 55 or 60 mph.
- Duncan, OK, USA
Vsc off, vsc trac lights go on and off all the time. Along with the check engine lights.
- Port St Lucie, FL, USA
While decelerating towards an intersection that I had to stop at vsc dash indicator light, brake light, & trac light all came on. Then, as I pressed the brake pedal I heard deep crunching noises from the braking system (sounded like front end). There was also loud "clanking" noises, as if something was banging around the inside of the rim or brake rotor. All the noises were also physically felt on my braking foot at the same time they sounded. My foot was being dropped and pushed noticeably by the brake pedal. I almost rear-ended the car in front of me because the braking power from fluctuating independently from strong to almost none within a matter of a few seconds. The same dash warning lights have been continuing to turn on for the last 5 or 6 weeks (sometimes all of them, sometimes one at a time), but the physical braking issue happened to me again today 9-11-13. I was on a back street so I tried to video it with my phone but couldn't get the camera set to video in time; and it stopped after occurring at three different braking attempts. The car fluctuated its way to a stop with the same crunching noises (no clanking) this time. The pressure fully changed on the brake pedal as the issue took place and I had little control of exactly when braking would happen. Have you seen the amount of times this is happening" are you reading these threads" I'm concerned to take my kids in the car. I'm concerned in letting my less experienced 18 year old drive it as usual. I went to the dealer and they were clueless and said that was part if the way the car kept me safe on wet roads. Neither incident occur on wet roads. I've been driving for 25 years; I did not have control of the braking in my vehicle two times in last 6 weeks due to a vehicle system going haywire! driving this vehicle is a hazard! please do something before someone gets hurt or killed because of this!
- Miami, FL, USA
Driving to a stop when vsc lights, ABS, check engine light, trac off dashboard indicator lights turned on. When brakes were applied, experienced a jumping. Already had brakes replaced, tires rotated and alignment done. Contacted auto service technician and was told after a diagnostic was performed that issue is due to a faulty computer system with the ABS system how the computer reads the car performance. Was told that only a Toyota dealer would have to replace the entire computer system which is costly. The warning lights go on and off randomly as if the computer system is malfunctioning.
- Essex, CT, USA
The problem with my SUV, is the vsc trac and brake light come on and goes away and I can smell something on the two back brakes burning. I lost a previous truck before. It flipped over can't say if this caused it to flip. I hope Toyota can recall these SUV's and fix it. My local shop can't get a code on this fault.
- Ny, NY, USA
Cornering at about 65 or so on highway. Sensors went off, terrible grinding noise, shaky steering.
- Phoenix, AZ, USA
Vsc, vsc trac off, and brake light indicators come on and off at will. Toyota service center said that there is a skid control ECU malfunction. Fixing costs~$1100. Just noticed that this issue has been reported a lot on online forums and on this website.
- Edison, NJ, USA
1.when slowly turning out of the driveway the vsc light came on and there was a grinding noise from front wheel 2. at highway speed the vsc light came on & the vehicle lost power.
- Charlotte, NC, USA
My vsc, vsc trac off, and brake light indicators are staying on and won't turn off.
- Dothan, AL, USA
Vsc trac, vsc off, ABS lights have been coming on and off since I purchased the vehicle new in 2004. Dealer could not find any problems over the years. Last week lights came on and stayed on full time. ABS system severely shook when brakes were depressed. Dealership replaced master cylinder and brake booster system. Cost was $1,200. Warning lights still were present, and they were reluctant to let me leave the dealership with the problem still present. They decided that the booster was an "after-market" product and not properly communicating with the computer. Dealership wants another $600 to swap the brake booster, but still no assurances that the warning lights will not come back on. This has been problematic since the day I purchased the vehicle. It appears that this is not an isolated issue with the Sequoias and Tundra.
- Ada, MI, USA
My Toyota Sequoia SR5 is showing some lights in dashboard. First it was the vsc solid light coming on then off on it own, after some months, the airbag light came on then off then solid on, I went to the Toyota dealer to get it check out, and they couldn`T find what is making the airbags light to come on. More recently, I started having a cruise control problem as well. The cruise control will sometimes work and also some other time refuse to work unless you turn the steering wheel over and over again and then it will sometimes kick -in. I have also noticed that the car will loose power while simply driving it, when it does so, the system will still be running but simply will get weak no matter how much gas you`re giving to the pedal. I hope to have this issues investigated since Toyota doesn't really address them when I call them. Warm regards,
- Columbus, OH, USA
- Upland, CA, USA