I have posted recently on the TS forum that I am thinkinkg of trading in my '00Tundra on an '03 4Runner and now find myself looking at Sequoias. I found an '03 Limited 4X4 with 13k miles, Toyota Certified with an original MSRP of $47,000.
It is a lease return. The dealer said he would take my '00 Access Cab Limited (with 60K miles) and $20,000 out the door, which I think is a good deal. He is giving me $17,500 for my Tundra and asking $34,800 for the Sequoia. I tried to get new tires (Michelin Cross Terrains) since the outside tread on all 4 of the Sequoias OEM's look like they may last only 10k more, but he would not go for it.
I have been searching owner's reviews not only on this forum but elsewhere and am a little apprehesive about the long term reliability of the Sequoia. The problems I am reading about appear to be the same on all these forums: transmission, brakes, differential, wheel alignment, tire wear and the VSC lights and accompaning problems.
Is it the opinion of most of you Sequoia owners that these problems are to be expected with the Sequoia? I have 60K on my Tundra and have changed the oil every 5k and put a set of Michelin Cross Terrains @ 45K and that is it! This truck has been extremely reliable and as much as I am leaning towards the Sequoia over the 4Runner, I don't want a vehicle that lives part time at the dealership, even though it has a 6yr./100K warranty and would cost me nothing to repair.
I would like to hear from Sequoia owners who have owned theirs for quite a while and have put at least 30K to 50K miles on them as to what kind, if any problems they have experienced.
I don't own a Sequioa but I have a Tundra. The Tundra and Sequioa share almost all parts and are built at the same plant. I am sure the Sequioa is just as reliable as your Tundra.
'02 Sequoia, 20K miles, coming up on 2 years ownership. I've had one minor maintenance problem -- right hand side mirror remote control stopped working. Had to manually adjust it. Fixed under warranty.
Other than that.... nothing, except scheduled maintenance.
I don't own a Sequioa but I have a Tundra. The Tundra and Sequioa share almost all parts and are built at the same plant. I am sure the Sequioa is just as reliable as your Tundra.
I have a 2001 Sequoia which I purchased in Nov. 2000 - within weeks of when the Sequia was initially available. The original tires were replaced at less than 30,000 miles. Front brake pads lasted about 40,000 miles. I had the ticking noise from the engine that many have discussed - a Toyota field rep fixed it in less than an hour. The original "deluxe" stereo system is disappointing but my wife doesn't care. The parking brake needs frequent adjustment but it is easy to do. To summarize, the vehicle has not been perfect but I have spent ZERO on repairs other than normal wear items and I'm sure that the vehicle has been improved since it was first introduced. I would have no problem recommending the vehicle to family or friend. My biggest gripes are power and fuel consumption and I feel both of these issues could be adressed with a BIGGER ENGINE but that's a different subject. By the way, I have over 70,000 miles on the vehicle now.
I had the ticking noise from the engine that many have discussed - a Toyota field rep fixed it in less than an hour.
Hey doctormdds - Curious as to how the field rep fixed the ticking sound??
Dano100 -
My '01 Sequoia now has 64K miles.
Here's a list of what I've had to have fixed/repaired:
1) New brakes at ~40K miles.
2) New tires at ~40K miles
3) Dashboard squeak (apparently a common problem, fixed 90% of it using some "tricks" I picked up from this forum on where to insulate)
My engine does have the ticking sound (supposedly piston slap) which I've never been able to get rid of.... but it doesn't use a drop of oil between changes and runs like a top. Over time I have switched all the fluids over to Amsoil Synthetic and recently changed the sparkplugs (~60K miles), although the original ones still looked pretty good with very little deposits.
My only pet peeve with this vehicle is that the vehicle skid control (VSC) is set way too sensative which can force the engine to cut out going over what I would consider moderate bumps such as a series of railroad tracks. Other than that, our family loves it, especially for summer vacations.
Only major thing, other than what's been mentioned already, is make sure the A/C compressor has been updated according to a TSB which was issued a year and a half ago (?). Mine failed just outside warranty but I hollered enough to get Toyota to cover it after the fact. There's some issue with the inline filters in the A/C system which can cause the compressor to ingest metal shavings and eat itself alive.
My wife and I bought a loaded 2002 SR5 2WD with 28k miles on it for $27,500 two weeks ago. It's been in the shop 6 days so far.
This is what has been done to the truck since we bought it: Brakes (pads, rotors, calipers, etc per vibration TSB), A/C (tube, compressor, etc per TSB), stereo amps (per TSB), front end alignment and two new Dunlop AT20 front tires, steering wheel realigned, hood bolts were loose, front suspension bolts were loose, rear window wiper rest replaced (was falling off), rear hatch pull was broken and replaced per TSB. Still to come are extensive paint touchups, and hopefully leather seat TSB because they look like the truck has 100+k miles on it. The TRAC and VSC lights were also on continuosly. The dealer reset them, and blamed it on the misaligned front wheels. We'll see.
Granted, much of this stuff was done free of charge at the Toyota dealer under TSB, but only because of the wisdom of other people on these boards, and my own research. They could have easily just aligned the front wheels and sold it to someone who didn't know any better and would get stuck paying about $5000 for these repairs (my rough guesstimate) after 36,000 miles.
Aside from the mechanical problems, my butt is really frosted by the poor quality of the leather seats and interior materials. I didn't buy a $40k SUV to have to baby the inside like a delicate piece of fine art, but even light use results in unsightly scratches, etc. The exterior paint is extremely brittle and easily chipped, and the truck suffers from the nasty rotten egg smell from the exhaust. I don't buy the "cheap gas" excuse, as I've never had the smell come from any other car I have owned, regardless of where I bought gas. Other auto maker TSBs seem to direct the replacement of the CC for the problem. Toyota blames it on cheap gas.
My wife and I love the truck itself, but I'm not too impressed with the "Toyota reliability" reputation on this truck, despite trading in our old 4Runner with 120k trouble free miles.
Your post is the one I was afraid of getting. Although others in the forum have had minor problems, ones that I could certainly live with, the problems that you are seeing with yours makes me very apprehensive. And I have read other owner's reviews similar to yours.
I too loved the Sequoia after driving it and hope if I make this purchase that what has happened to yours is the exception rather than the rule with mine.
Before I buy I am going to ask the dealer for the complete service history, a CarFax Report and a copy of all service bulletins for this vehicle.
Do you know if there is a way to access Toyota's Service Bulletins on the internet?
By the way, I have owned many Toyotas over the years and one thing that is common is the poor quality of the materials they use on the interiors of their vehicle. I guess it is a trade off for their great mechanical durability. If you want a durable interior you have to step up to a Lexus. It is the main difference between my wife's ES300 and a V6 Camry. They are pretty much the same car except for that, and a few bells and whistles you can't get on a Camry. I will say though that the new Solara has a great looking interior and could pass for a Lexus.
Also read any Audi forum about how their leather seats shine up within a few months of ownership, looking old before the new car smell is gone.
Every car make has it's problems. It's just a matter of how many repairs and even the rating system for reliability is based on occurances per 100 cars. Overall you just cann't beat Toyota for the long haul. If you really want to have some fun, go and join a Ford or GM board and see just what those poor souls are going through. Ever owned an Expedition or Tahoe?
Mile for mile my moneys on Toyota (literally)! Good luck.
Every car make has it's problems. It's just a matter of how many repairs and even the rating system for reliability is based on occurances per 100 cars. Overall you just cann't beat Toyota for the long haul. If you really want to have some fun, go and join a Ford or GM board and see just what those poor souls are going through. Ever owned an Expedition or Tahoe?
Mile for mile my moneys on Toyota (literally)! Good luck.
I agree with you. I had a GMC 4x4 that was new in 1996 and I had it repaired at least 30 times in the 7 year life of the truck. It did go 300,000 kilometers but need to be fixed quite a bit.
Toyota's still might need to be repaired someday but the chances are that the frequency of those repairs will be much less than Ford, GM or Dodge.
Toyota trucks are not bulletproof but they come pretty close.
About the Service Bulletins, pay to become a member here and you will have access to the garage and ALL the TSB's for your vehicle. This is extremely nice, especially if your truck has <36k miles, so Toyota will do them for free.
As for Groobash, sounds like you got hold of a lemon or the previous owner beat the heck out of that truck. I bought my Seq. for the wife, I have a Tundra. Other than both having brake vibes(got the Seq. upgraded for free and now the brakes are great) and the O2 sensors on my truck, I've had no problems. Tundra has 72k miles, Seq. has 40k miles. I fully expect both vehicles to go 200k miles. Do most maintenance myself and use all synth. oils, so far so good. My biggest gripe is the brakes and the brittle paint, I wish now I had gotten the 3m protectant on the Seq.(too late for the Tundra).
/Mike
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2001 2WD Silver Tundra: 4x4 TRD springs, Daystar 1", Carson AAL, red/blue Bilsteins, 265/75 Revo's, IS kit(minus bumper) and rims(hand polished), RF851X amp, Alpine HU, JL 6.5"XR comps, Qlogic with JL 8W3V2 subs. 185k miles and counting......
2005 Silver Sienna LE with 12" Overhead DVD
I want to thank everyone who responded to my questions on the reliability of the Sequoia. But as of this Thursday I will be the proud owner of an '04 Tundra Dbl. Cab Limited:Imperial Jade Mica with oak leather, 4X4, 6 disc JBL, etc. My wife talked me into it, reminding me of how much I love my present Tundra and how trouble free it has been. Plus I was able to buy it for $150 over invoice which was less than the price of the used '03 Sequoia Ltd. I was dealing on, and this dealer gave me a lot more $$$ on the Tundra I traded-in than what the other dealer was giving me.
Again, thanks for the info. I am sure I will be posting on the Tundra page in the near future.
I have both an '00 Tundra Access Cab and an '01 Sequoia. I think the new Double Cab is simply a Sequoia with a big, open trunk and a longer wheelbase. Can't beat it.
We've had our 2001 Sequoia for 8 1/2 years (bought it before dealers had the first ones in stock and took delivery off a transport truck in Jan 2001). We now have 225K miles on it.
It's been a very solid vehicle. We've never had a problem with the engine or tranny and it runs and drives fantastic. The build quality of these Gen 1 Toyotas is better than the 2007-2009 Gen 2 models (I own and work on both). Here are some larger "points" from our ownership experience:
Replace exhaust manifold around 125K miles due to ticking sound
Replaced all 4 O2 sensors and spark plugs at around 140K miles due to check engine light and poor economy. New sensors cured all.
Have done the brakes 3 times. Upgraded our rotors to heavy-duty slotted/drilled type for longevity.
There's something about the windshield angle on these things that makes them rock magnets. We've been through 3 windshields so far. Glass guy says he does a lot of Gen1 Tundras and Sequoias. Haven't seen this behavior in my Gen2 Tundra with it's more sloped windshield or any of our other makes of cars.
The fuel guage has suffered from the documented stick fuel sender problem for over 100K miles. Doesn't bother us as we still have the DTE read-out on the fuel computer. I don't fee like dropping the fuel tank to replace a sender (we're long out of warranty).
We've had the notorious stuck rear hatch thing happen twice. I took apart the whole hatch and mechanisms and cleaned up all parts and coated them with Slipplate dry lube paint. Soaked new hatch latch cable in Kroil and so far so good.
The above items I would not classify as "major" deals. Compared my other vehicles the Sequoia has been virtually maintenance free.
Aside from those here are some other tidbits:
At 100K we added a trailer brake controller and 7-Pin plug to tow a 16' tandem-axle enclosed trailer with a total weight of around 7,000 lbs using an Equilizer hitch to transfer weight forward. We still haul this trailer back and forth 600 miles each way about 3 times a year. No problems as long as you take it easy.
The Gen1 4.7L Toyotas are some of cleanest and easiest oil changes I've ever done.
By contrast the Gen 2 5.7L Toytoas are the messiest and worst oil changes I've ever done.
A mentioned before the Gen1 Sequoia and Tundras are built better than Gen2's in many areas. The devil is in the details. I own a '07 Tundra and can see the difference when working on the vehicles. From sheetmetal, systems, interior quality and soundness the Gen 1s win hands down. They're still both better than my GM or Ford products (I own 14 cars between personal and business).
When the Gen2 Sequoias hit last year the wife and I were enthused at the news. We test drove some and they are very nice impressive vehicles. However based on the reliability of our old Sequoia and the experiences I have had with my '07 Tundra (which I love dearly) we decided to fix up the old Sequoia and drive it for a little while longer. There was probably a lot of sentimentality in there too.
I just replaced the stock SR5 6-disc/cassette radio head unit with a Kenwood DNX-6140 DVD/Nav unit. There wasn't a durn thing wrong with the factory head unit or speakers but I wanted to put a rearview camera on the rear hatch and the wifey was jealous of my factory Nav unit in my Tundra. Just ordered some new headlight lenses and put in a new windshield. We are considering a paint job.
Here's looking to another 9 years with the old gal (Sequoia I'm talking about here ).
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