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Toyota Sienna Uncontrolled Acceleration

244 messages,  Last post on Feb 20, 2013 at 8:54 PM

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Messages Page 23 of 25

#214 of 244 Re: Feeling validated [kellermallen] by sekots

Jul 16, 2010 (1:53 pm)

Replying to: kellermallen (Feb 02, 2010 3:01 pm)
Did you ever get any resolutions for this issue? I had a similar experience today while parking my 2006 Sienna (purchased pre-owned about a year ago) in my church parking lot. I was especially cautious driving into the lot, because it was full of children. I slowly made a sharp left turn into a parking space on an incline, accelerated slightly to drive the car into the uphill space, removed my foot from the accelerator, and the car then lurched violently forward. I had not even had a chance to apply the brakes. In fact, the car jumped the curb, went about 5 feet up a steep grassy hill, and stopped against a neighborhood fence. I applied the brakes, recovered for a moment, and then put the car into neutral and let it 'roll' back into the parking space.
 
This past week, I have been noticing a delayed response in acceleration when I stop at a neighborhood stop sign. The car jerks forward with such force that I must apply the brakes. I'm assuming this was the issue today.
 
Terrified of driving it, I had the car towed to a dealership and am awaiting their prognosis of the problem. However, they seemed dubious of my explanation. After reading these posts, I'm not very confident of the outcome...

#215 of 244 Re: Feeling validated [sekots] by snevets23

Jul 16, 2010 (4:10 pm)

Replying to: sekots (Jul 16, 2010 1:53 pm)
Dear Sekots (or Stokes):
 
Read with great interest your experience today with your Sienna. Been there, done that! You have reason for concern of the dealership's probable explanation and/or action. They will sympathetically "go through the motions"; however, the outcome will be that their diagnostic testing is unable to pinpoint the cause of the sudden uncontrolled acceleration since the problem is apparently intermittent. They will inform you that they are unable to duplicate "on the spot" the exact phenomenon that you experienced; so, they have no way to determine its cause. If you continue to demand further action, they will contact their "team of experts" who will (in my case) fly from California to examine your car and reach the same conclusion as the dealership's "team of experts". You will proceed to document your experience with the NHTSA who, after receiving an acknowledgment of receipt of your complaint, will never be heard from again. From this day forward, you will FEAR getting behind the wheel of your beloved car again and, eventually, dispose of it rather than risk your life or other innocent lives whose path you may cross. You are fortunate! You, thankfully, did not injure or kill anyone today,and you were not even involved in a property accident in which the insurance company would have surely raised your rates because they would have determined that YOU, Sekots, was at fault.
 
Not a pretty prediction, I know, but you did ask what to expect from the dealership from today's harrowing experience. In my case, it was a Lexus. Weather was clear, no mat involved, shoes were flat, did not mistaken the accelerator for the brake, first accident in decades of driving, etc. It WAS the car, not me! Hopefully, the truth about the REAL cause of these problems will be revealed someday. Good Luck!

#216 of 244 Re: Feeling validated [snevets23] by vamaja123

Jul 20, 2010 (9:36 am)

Replying to: snevets23 (Jul 16, 2010 4:10 pm)
To whom it may concern:
  
  
My name is Diana Motsenbocker and I would like to share my story. On June 30th 2010 I had a very scary thing happen to me. The accelerator on my van was stuck. No matter how hard I tried, the van wouldn't stop, until it plowed into our garage and house. I have contacted Toyota and they have informed me that there is no recall on any of the 2007 Toyota Siennas. This really upsets me to think that there are many families that are driving these vehicles whose very life could be in great danger. This problem came on suddenly and without any warning. Please review my story so that no other family has to go through this terrible trauma. I do have pictures of the damage and the vehicle is still crammed into the house and garage. Please contact me if you have any questions or would like to come out and take a look at all the damage the van did to our house. I am not looking for any publicity for myself or my family. I just want other family’s to be aware of the situation.
  
  
Thank you,
  
Diana Motsenbocker

#217 of 244 Re: Feeling validated [vamaja123] by bertha06

Jul 22, 2010 (8:47 am)

Replying to: vamaja123 (Jul 20, 2010 9:36 am)
Hi Diana
I know the feeling. My 2006 Sienna wound up crashing me into a concrete wall, totaled the van, and I feel lucky to be alive. I have posted the entire story on this site already, about a year ago, so I won't go over it all again, but I also contacted Toyota, they said nothing was wrong with my vehicle when their inspector looked at it. The really scary thing is, a lot of people purchase these vans because they have families, small children, and that is the market they aim for in their advertising. I also reported it right away to the National Traffic Safety, can't remember all the proper initials right now, but I can't imagine why the Sienna didn't get on the recall list. I'm sure other people also reported similar incidents. Good luck with getting something done about it. Be sure and report it to, I think it's NTSA. Maybe if enough people report it, it will finally make the recall list as it should have a long time ago.

#218 of 244 Re: Feeling validated [bertha06] by vamaja123

Jul 22, 2010 (9:05 am)

Replying to: bertha06 (Jul 22, 2010 8:47 am)
Bertha06,
 
Did Toyota take any responsability for this? I have made a report to NHTSA. I am really scared to drive the van again if it is not totaled and Toyota keeps saying that there is no recall on my van. I am just very frustrated at this point.

#219 of 244 Re: Feeling validated [vamaja123] by meetoo

Jul 26, 2010 (6:20 am)

Replying to: vamaja123 (Jul 22, 2010 9:05 am)
Toyota looked at my van also and sent me a form letter saying there was nothing wrong with the van.

#220 of 244 Re: 2010 sienna [davidsgirl64] by billwh87

Oct 01, 2010 (5:54 am)

Replying to: davidsgirl64 (Mar 25, 2010 11:49 am)
Even though the odds are small, are your three kids worth the risk if something does happen? Get rid of it, even if you have to take a large loss. Toyota is not going to voluntarily help you in this situation, unless it is a trade-in for another one of their vehicles.

#221 of 244 Re: It just happened to me [meetoo] by billwh87

Oct 01, 2010 (5:56 am)

Replying to: meetoo (May 12, 2010 8:20 am)
Had your Sienna been recalled and had the mats replaced and the foot pedal repaired before this accident?

#222 of 244 Re: Feeling validated [sekots] by julietteh

Oct 22, 2010 (8:50 am)

Replying to: sekots (Jul 16, 2010 1:53 pm)
I can't believe I am reading all of this. I have a 2009 Toyota Sienna, and yesterday, 10/21/10, I was driving very slowly through a parking lot after having dropped off my daughter's soccer carpool. I made a hard left turn into a parking space and angled it pretty hard because I was ultimately almost making a U-turn to go in the opposite direction that I had come from. I was not touching the gas pedal, but had my foot on the brake gently while turning. As I stepped on the brake to stop and put the van into reverse so that I could back out and finish the complete turn around, I noticed my van still rolling toward the car ahead of me- but slowly. I stepped on the brake harder and my van lunged forward and slammed into the car. I am very confused because I am positive that I applied the brakes and not the gas but it makes not sense to me. I assumed that I was wrong because logic states that I must be wrong, but I was so upset because I knew I had stepped on the brakes. I refused to drive the van home. I got into the van this morning to get a feel of where the gas pedal is compared to the brake, and this has further assured me that I pressed on the brakes! They are not that close and you would have to have your foot fairly far to the right which feels completely different. I am not sure what to do. Is there any new news on this?

#223 of 244 Re: It just happened to me [meetoo] by julietteh

Oct 22, 2010 (9:05 am)

Replying to: meetoo (May 12, 2010 8:20 am)
Did you ever get this resolved? I am not sure what to do, and I don't want to drive my van anymore. I have 3 children and I feel so certain that I pressed on the brake when my van surged that I just want to find out the truth! Are the new Toyotas safe? I tend to think "no" since Toyota does not seem to be taking responsibility for any of these.

Messages Page 23 of 25

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