10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
5 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
2 / 0
Average Mileage:
33,935 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.

So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.

2006 Toyota Sienna brakes problems

brakes problem

Find something helpful? Spread the word.
Get notified about new defects, investigations, recalls & lawsuits for the 2006 Toyota Sienna:

Unsubscribe any time. We don't sell/share your email.

2006 Toyota Sienna Owner Comments

problem #15

Aug 242011

Sienna

  • 72,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

I was driving approximate 25-30 mph on a dry, level street. A car stopped in front of me to make a left hand turn. I applied the brakes and nothing happened. I released and reapplied the brakes again and again no response. I was able to swerve to the right into an empty parking lot to avoid hitting the car or another collision. After swerving and reapplying the brakes a 3rd or 4th time I was able to come to a stop. My kids and I were severely shaken, but not injured. We decided this problem was due to the master cylinder. We replaced it and have had 3 more incidents since replacing the master cylinder. 1 was in reverse leaving my drive way. I wound up hitting and embankment across the street to stop me. This was a slight down hill roll in reverse. I went from parked to out of control. I never touched the accelerator and hit the brake multiple times and even tried shifting back into park (knowing that's bad for the transmission), nothing worked. After getting stopped and pulling forward everything seemed normal again. My husband was driving in traffic and we were approaching a turn and had to merge in to perpendicular traffic. Approx speed 25-35 mph. The brakes again completely failed and we had to swerve through a traffic light in to a free lane of traffic to avoid a rear end collision with the cars infront of us. We ordered another master cylinder and were preparing to install it. Today the brakes failed again at a stop sign (approx speed 5-10 mph) I had been stopped and started to ease in to the main road when I saw a car coming from the left.

- Arkadelphia, AR, USA

problem #14

Feb 012011

Sienna 6-cyl

  • 50,000 miles
As I was proceeding downhill towards a 4-way stop intersection at the bottom of the hill; I depressed the brake pedal and nothing happen. I could not stop the car. A car was stopped in front of me at the intersection, so I went to the left of the car to avoid rear ending him. I continued across the intersection toward the car across the street hoping to be able to fit between him and a telephone pole without hitting either to land in a snow bank. I managed to hit his front end on the passenger side of his car missing the telephone pole and landing in the snow above the curb. Nobody was injured, but his car and mine were damaged.

- Petoskey, MI, USA

problem #13

May 072010

Sienna

  • 127,358 miles
I was driving on a straight, level dry road with cruise control set at 58mph. Suddenly car began to downshift. Assuming transmission problem I disengaged cruise control and car almost came to a stop. I pushed gas pedal and drove in low gear to nearest pull-off. Discovered left front brake was smoking. After things cooled off I drove car in low gear about 6 miles to local service station. Mechanic found all brakes locked and removed all wheels. He inspected all rotors, calipers brake lines, etc and found no problems. (I had new brakes installed at dealership about 4 months earlier.) when mechanic manipulated left front caliper all brakes disengaged. Mechanic found brake fluid level was normal. I've driven car about 500 miles since problem occurred with no problems. I don't use cruise control often - and haven't used it since problem occurred. I'm wondering if problem is with cruise control rather than brakes?? this could have been a disaster if it happened on a freeway at higher speeds!

- Dryden, NY, USA

problem #12

Mar 132010

Sienna

  • 26,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The contact owns 2006 Toyota Sienna. The contact stated that while driving at speeds of 50 mph down an off ramp, the brake warning light illuminated on the instrument panel. The brakes then engaged without driver intent, rapidly decreasing the vehicle speed from 50 mph to 20 mph. The dealer advised there were no failures within the vehicle. There were no repairs made to the vehicle. The failure mileage was 26,000 and the current mileage was 27,000.

- Yakima, WA, USA

problem #11

Apr 062010

Sienna

  • 59,363 miles
The contact owns a 2006 Toyota Sienna. While driving at approximately 50 mph, the contact applied the brakes but the vehicle did not slow down which resulted in a crash. The vehicle had not been inspected at the time of the complaint. The contact also stated that she noticed problems with the steering mechanism as the vehicle always steered to the right. The air bag service light also illuminated intermittently; the vehicle was repaired for the air bag light failure several times but the problem continued to occur. The current and failure mileages were 59,363.

- Dorchester, MA, USA

problem #10

Sep 202009

Sienna

  • miles
2006 Toyota Sienna. Consumer states oscillation problems with vehicle. The consumer stated he was driving down from the top of a mountain and he applied the brakes to limit his speed. The right front wheel went into a violent oscillation and he was barely able to control the vehicle. He stopped braking and shifted into a lower gear. He applied the brakes again and the oscillation returned. When he reached the bottom of the hill, the oscillation went away. The consumer took the vehicle to the dealer for an inspection. Upon, inspection the dealer stated there may have been a problem with the ABS, but they could not verify it. On December 11, 2009 the problem occurred again. The consumer was driving North down a grapevine incline, when the right front wheel started to oscillate. The consumer immediately down shifted as he was much more prepared. The problem occurred again on February 13, 2010 while driving on a flat section of a highway. He applied the brakes and both wheels started to oscillate.

- Manhattan Beach, CA, USA

problem #9

Nov 152009

Sienna

  • 68,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

I have braking failure in my 2006 Toyota Sienna limited AWD vehicle. I have taken the vehicle to my mechanics who has been unable to properly diagnose the problem. There are many reports of this problem on the internet and Toyota will not disclose the resolution to this commonly reported problem without charging a $89.99 diagnostics charge. The repair is reportedly $1,200 to $2,000 tofix this problem. I believe this is a safety issue that should be recalled.

- Harrisburg, PA, USA

problem #8

Sep 122008

Sienna

  • 30,000 miles
Toyota Sienna 2006 braking problem caused self collision. On dry weather. Vehicle lost braking and I hit near by hilly land on turn. Vehicle showed braking problem on wet weather, rain and snow and vehicle looses the braking and related ABS and vsc failure. Brake pedal goes down and clicks and brake stops working. My wife no longer trust this van and everybody is afraid to drive with me in it.

- Hummelstown, PA, USA

problem #7

Dec 172009

Sienna

  • 3,000 miles
Couple things happened- right after we both Sienna, about 1 month later the brake light went on. It was late Sunday night, so the dealership was closed. We went there the following week. They couldn't find a problem, cause the light went off. When I left the dealer, the light went back on so I left my car thereand told them I'm not going to drive until they find a problem. I have 2 small kids and their safety is first. They fix it and said that some sensor unfortunately was damaged during the delivery and they replace it. Then I got problem with my power side door- will still be closing even if you try to stop it. Solution from the dealer- lubricate and that's it- it still happen from time to time. Next- front passenger and second row seat belts- lock during the trip. Dealer solution- they don't see the problem. Now about 2 months ago my accelerator got suck while driving for about 15 seconds. I did not made a big deal out of it, because I was sure it suppose to happen, but nw after hearing what going on with other Toyota models, I'm just not sure. The gas pedal did not got stuck to the carpet for sure- I would see it, it was like it got stuck at 70mph... I love my Sienna and husband drives corolla too and we both love Toyota. I just think now it's not about love for the engine, it's about safety of our children. If necessary I have documents regarding the brake sensor replacement, seat belts complains, etc. I spoke with the dealer about the gas pedal and said to me that my model its not in the recall and it could be something else, but did not offer to check what could it be...

- Bidgeport, CT, USA

problem #6

Apr 112009

Sienna

  • 23,000 miles
I was driving down a street approaching a 4 way stop. There was a car a good distance ahead of me. When I applied the brakes to stop, nothing happened.. I picked my foot up and pushed on the brake pedal again, still going faster. Now I am getting pretty close to the other car which is stopping for the stop sign. I pushed hard as I could on the brake (I'm sure it was the brake, I picked my foot up and put it back on the brake pedal at least 2 or 3 times) so I swerved to the left to avoid the car. By now I am going pretty fast. There were cars coming the other way, so I tried to turn the corner to avoid hitting them, was going too fast to make the corner, so wound up hitting a concrete wall. I am very sore, chest, right hand, left knee. Lots of bruises, luckily no broken bones that I know of. I am not sure about the air bag. The police asked me if it deployed, I looked down at the steering column and saw it there, deflated and with a rip in it, but I don't remember being actually hit with it, however I don't remember hitting my hand or knee either, but obviously I did. I heard one of the policemen say I mistakenly hit the gas instead of the brake, but that is just not true. I know I was on the brake. The car is totaled, so no repairs.

- Oakdale, CA, USA

problem #5

Jan 012007

Sienna

  • 200 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Re: safety problem with 2006 Toyota Sienna xle, our Sienna is not safe. On numerous occasions the wheels were spinning when we tried to drive after stopping at the stop sign, at traffic lights, or in the middle of the intersection. It is a very dangerous malfunction, because it prevents the driver from merging into or escaping from heavy traffic of northern Virginia. It happened in all kinds of weather and road surface conditions. I am a very careful driver; I spend a lot of time driving my three young children. I never had an accident and I never had a problem with the spinning tires on any other car I have driven. We contacted our dealership and Toyota company. Their first response was that it is not their problem. After our intervention the dealership agreed to drive test our car. The test was performed by one of the employees (not clear if he had any car safety inspection training). He took our car for a short drive around the neighborhood, alone, in the perfect weather, reporting back that he did not notice any problem. The test drive was a complete waste of time. We have problems with the car usually when there is more than one person in the car, during the rain etc; in other words, in average driving conditions. Since the test we had the same problem again, many times. I believe we are not the only owners of Sienna, who have the same problem. I observed it several times on the street, with other Siennas. Also, my informal poll among our friends gave the same results.

- Arlington, VA, USA

problem #4

Jul 152008

Sienna

  • 15,000 miles
Premature wearing of both front brakes and tires (both needed to be replaced by 15,000 miles).

- Cincinnati, OH, USA

problem #3

Jun 022008

Sienna

  • 17,000 miles
Brakes wear out extremely quick. Replaced the brakes at 1 year with 17,000 miles and now again today at 2 years and 30,000 miles. I drive mostly on the freeway without any quick or abrupt stops. There seems to be a problem with the brake system.

- El Dorado Hills, CA, USA

problem #2

Jul 122007

Sienna 6-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 8,000 miles
The contact owns a 2006 Toyota Sienna. While driving 60 mph, the contact depressed the brake pedal, but the vehicle failed to stop. The undercarriage of the vehicle dragged on the ground, which caused the vehicle to stop. The driver sustained injuries to his knee, left ankle, neck, and back. The vehicle was destroyed and has not been inspected. The VIN and engine size were unavailable. The current and failure mileages were 8,000.

- Shreveport, LA, USA

problem #1

Jan 242007

Sienna 6-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 10,100 miles
Brakes: Since I bought my car in March of 2006 not even a year old yet, I have had to take my 2006 Toyota Sienna in every 7-8 thousand miles because the brakes have worn down. The first time it went in at 9900 miles and they replaced my brakes and put new rotors on. The second time they put new brakes on and machined my rotors this was done at 18,100 miles and now its at 27,100 miles and my brakes are shot again and the dealer knowing that this is my third time in for same problem told me now all of a sudden that its my fault and the way I drive the van, and they wanted me to pay this time for the repairs. They made their diagnosis only by taking off the tires, they never took off the front brakes to inspect them and yet they had nerve to notate that all pads were wearing evenly, . so I drove home and a licensed tech changed my brakes for lesser price and this tech noted that all pads on front wore unevenly and that my rotors were fine where as the dealer wanted me to buy new rotors because they said they were ruined. The tech that fixed my car kept the same rotors and just put new brakes on for half the cost the dealer wanted me to pay. Yet this dealer in hemet California at gosch auto group would not replace my brakes the ones they put on last time 7 thousand miles before this time unless I paid for them. There is obviously something wrong with the brake line system which is causing them to go out every 7-8 thousand miles. This is a safety issue and me and my 4 kids could get seriously injured should this brake problem continue maybe I might not be so lucky and my brakes will fail. These brakes suck and so does this car as my husband said I should have gone with a Chevy.

- San Jacinto, CA, USA

Not what you are looking for?