Any opinions on 2004 Toyota Sienna?

winterlights08

New member
I'm sure some of you know about the Ford Windstar recall debacle. I have (had) a '99 that has been sitting at the dealer since October waiting for a new axle (haha) and was just inspected for the newest recall which I believe involved rusting of the undercarriage. Our van is unfixable and Ford is buying our van back and we'll be getting the check Monday. We've been using a Chrysler T & C rental since October and love it :love: but it's time to give it back....

My husband and I weren't really in the position to buy a new car so soon (hence the reason for driving the Windstar) and we're limited on cash, even with the money from Ford and our tax refund. We were trying to avoid applying for financing because of my husband's past credit problems. But today we found an '04 Toyota Sienna XLE Limited and it looks like they are willing to work with us with financing since we're putting down a good down payment and we have a good income. I would have loved an Odyssey or Sienna but we didn't think we'd able to get financing. The car is beautiful....and rode like an absolute dream, has low miles, and just seems wonderful all around...we put a deposit down to hold it until Ford's check clears Monday or Tuesday. And we're getting it checked out by our mechanic on Monday, and the Carfax came back clean.

I really thought Sienna's had an awesome reputation all around (even with all the Toyota recalls) and was thrilled that we're able to get this car. Then I read reviews on some websites after googling "What is the worst year for Toyota Sienna?" Of course it seems to be the 2004 :( Lots of problems with the doors and other things which I didn't read too deeply into.

Most likely we're still getting this one. We don't have a lot of time to shop around, and the alternative to this is a basic Kia Sedona (which I'm really iffy on) and we're not sure how willing other dealers will be to work with us. This dealer is actually a Subaru dealer, and they don't have a large inventory of 7 passenger vehicles. So tell me, is a 2004 okay? Can I be excited? Will it still be a bazillion times better than my Windstar which is gradually cracking in half? I really, really love that Sienna :eek:.

eta: I wanted to add that it was because of the poster here who's Ford Windstar "burnt to the ground" that prompted us to take our van in to get checked for the recall issues. They fixed the ABS problem on my van but kept it at the dealer after finding that the rear axle was so badly cracked that it was unsafe to drive. So thank you to the poster here for sharing her story! To think of what could have happened....
 
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sirrahn

Active member
I have an '04 and we've had zero major problems with it. It's had nothing but oil, brakes and tires at almost 90K.

The one annoying first model year thing that we have experienced with it is the dead battery problem. Basically if a rear light gets left on, the interior lights don't turn off as they're supposed to and the battery can run down. We have finally trained our kids and it hasn't happened in at least a couple of years now, but it was an annoyance. Thank goodness for AAA!

Otherwise though, I personally have no complaints. GL!
 

luckyclov

New member
A 2004 vehicle is still...a 7 year old vehicle. Even a holy Honda will have likely issues.

That said, my friend has a 2004 Sienna. I believe they bought it used, at a year old. It has well over 100,000 miles on it and it's not particularly babied, either. It's got bumps and bruises galore. The only issues that they've had (aside from replacing brakes, battery, and tires - which, really, shouldn't count as an "issue") were something to do with the CD player and one of the sliders. And recently, the key wouldn't turn in the ignition (I can't remember the name of the part/problem, though).
 

mylittlet

Senior Community Member
Our friends had a ford windstar and there axel broke in october. They only got a compact car for a loaner. Ford paid off their loan, but they didn't get any money luckily her parents have an extra car to give them for the time being.

Also, on the credit front. Get an account at a credit union. They are more likely to give you a loan then a bank.

Stefanie, cpst in iowa - mom to 4 great kids
 

Chila88

New member
I drive an '04 Sienna XLE AWD and its been nothing but great! The one thing that annoys me in the winter (it gets REALLY cold here though) is when it is like -30C the back hatch likes to close on its own occationally....and it comes down on your head pretty quickly...thank goodness it beeps while doing it though, so you know to get out of the way. But that's really it....and really that's not that big of a deal.

I say go for it....we :love: our Sienna!
 

mamaofthree

New member
I have an 04 Sienna, and overall it's been ok but I have a lot of complaints about it. Not sure whether my issues are exclusive to the year, or whether I would have had these issues regardless. I'm pretty sure that 04 was the first year of a newly designed model, so I blame it on that. We've had probs with 4 of the doors, and the brakes. Other than that it has been safe and reliable. I'm so tired of it, but it runs great and still has less than 60,000 miles so I'm stuck with it for a few more years unfortunately.
 

winterlights08

New member
I just wanted to update...we got the Sienna :love:. We picked it up on Monday after cleaning out the Windstar and saying our final farewells :D. It was very creepy seeing all the Windstars in the back lots of the dealer. One there had it's axle cracked clean in half and the halves were on the ground and the tires were angled inwards.

We had the Sienna checked by our mechanic and he says the tires are new, brakes are new, and the engine was meticulously maintained. It was originally either a lease or a rental, so it only has 64K miles on it. I hope we made the right decision and it serves us well. The payments are a bummer after not having a payment for so long, but its nice having a functional vehicle that has lots of extras.
 

winterlights08

New member
Our friends had a ford windstar and there axel broke in october. They only got a compact car for a loaner. Ford paid off their loan, but they didn't get any money luckily her parents have an extra car to give them for the time being.

Also, on the credit front. Get an account at a credit union. They are more likely to give you a loan then a bank.

Stefanie, cpst in iowa - mom to 4 great kids

Thank you for the advice regarding the credit union. I think we're going to look into it in the future for when we buy a house (we rent right now).
 

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