2011 Toyota Sienna: Recalls, Problems & MPG
Here are the deets on the 2011 Toyota Sienna: 14 recalls, 614 owner complaints and up to 21 mpg combined.
Recalls
14 vehicle recalls from the manufacturer. Repairs are free. Check your VIN to see if one is still open on your car.
Equipment Vehicle recall #10V036000 · 2010 · 153,418 vehicles
What's wrong: 110, "tire selection and rims." these vehicles were sold without the requisite load carrying capacity modification labels.
Why it matters: A driver May overload a vehicle which May increase the risk of a crash.
The fix: Dealers will mail to consumers the corrected label or the customer will have the option for dealers to install the label free of charge. The safety recall began on May 27, 2010.
Brakes (hydraulic) Vehicle recall #10V620000 · 2010 · 94,126 vehicles
What's wrong: The brake stop lamp switch is mounted on a small bracket welded on the left side of the service brake pedal support assembly. Due to its proximity to the parking brake pedal, in limited circumstances the stop lamp switch bracket could be damaged by the operator's foot during parking brake application.
Why it matters: This could result in brake drag with associated brake noise, vibration, and/or illumination of the brake warning light. Braking effectiveness could be reduced increasing the risk of a crash.
The fix: Dealers will replace the bracket assembly free of charge. Toyota plans to mail an interim owner notification in the middle of January 2011, to advise owners of the recall. A second letter will be mailed when parts are available to complete repairs.
Transmission & drivetrain Vehicle recall #11V306000 · 2011 · 50 vehicles
What's wrong: There is a possibility that the front, right, drive shaft May break due to insufficient heat treatment.
Why it matters: Should the drive shaft break during vehicle operation, the vehicle will lose power without prior warning. Loss of motive power without warning May increase the risk of a crash.
The fix: Toyota will notify owners and dealers will inspect the drive shaft, and, if the drive shaft is identified as one that May not have been correctly manufactured, it will be replaced with a new one at no charge. The safety recall began on June 22, 2011.
Body & structure Vehicle recall #11V566000 · 2011 · 518 vehicles
What's wrong: There is a possibility that the front a-pillar trim panel retention clip May have been damaged during the installation of the aftermarket accessory.
Why it matters: A damaged a-pillar trim panel retention clip May allow the trim panel to come loose and injure an occupant in the event of a crash.
The fix: Dealers will inspect the a-pillar trim panel retention clip and replace it if necessary free of charge. The safety recall began on December 30, 2011.
Equipment Vehicle recall #11V560000 · 2011 · 210,000 vehicles
What's wrong: " these vehicles do not meet the requirement for displaying the correct vehicle capacity weight as the rated load for the combination of cargo and occupants.
Why it matters: Incorrect information on the vehicle placard May lead to tire overloading and possibly cause tire failure increasing the risk of a crash.
The fix: Toyota will notify owners, and will provide a remedy when it is available. Toyota will mail out a corrected placard to customers along with revised owner manual information. This service will be performed free of charge. The safety recall began on June 27, 2013.
Seats, Airbags Vehicle recall #13V014000 · 2013 · 3,235 vehicles
What's wrong: During modification by set to include accessories such as leather seat covers, seat heaters or headrest dvd systems, these vehicles May not have had the passenger seat occupant sensing system calibration tested. Without passing the calibration test, the occupant sensing system May not operate as designed.
Why it matters: If the front passenger seat occupant sensing system is out of calibration, the front passenger airbags May not deploy or they May deploy inappropriately for the passenger's size and position. This could increase the risk of personal injury during the event of a vehicle crash necessitating airbag…
The fix: Southeast Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will test the sensitivity of the occupant detection sensors, and recalibrate them as necessary. The recall began on March 21, 2013.
Equipment Vehicle recall #13V123000 · 2013 · 7,525 vehicles
What's wrong: These vehicles were sold with labels that were outside the allowable one percent of accuracy of actual weight added. Thus, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (fmvss) number 110, "tire selection and rims."
Why it matters: An inaccurate label could lead to owners overloading their vehicles and tires. An overloaded vehicle can result in a tire failure which May result in a vehicle crash, personal injury, or property damage.
The fix: Southeast Toyota will notify owners and provide a corrected label with instructions concerning its installation. A small group of the affected vehicles will need additonal remedies which are still being developed. The recall began on May 28, 2013.
Tires Vehicle recall #14V273000 · 2014 · 419,520 vehicles
What's wrong: The affected vehicles have a spare tire carrier assembly mounted under the vehicle whose attachment cable May corrode due to high concentrations of road salt splashing onto the spare tire carrier.
Why it matters: If the carrier cable is corroded due to road salt, the spare tire May separate from the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.
The fix: Toyota sent owners in August 2014 an interim notification to advise owners of the recall and that dealers will perform an interim remedy to remove the spare tire and relocate it to the luggage compartment, free of charge. Owners are being mailed a second letter as parts become available and dealers…
Seats Vehicle recall #14V743000 · 2014 · 3,233 vehicles
What's wrong: The affected vehicles May experience compression of the seat cushion which May damage the seat heater wiring.
Why it matters: Damage to the seat heater wiring could cause the wires to short, increasing the risk of the seat burning and causing personal injury to the occupant.
The fix: Set will notify owners, and dealers will disconnect the heaters with copper strand heating elements and refund the purchase price of the seat heater accessory, free of charge. The recall is expected to began in January 2015.
Airbags Vehicle recall #16V340000 · 2016 · 1,754,517 vehicles
What's wrong: S. Virgin islands, or "zone a." additionally, unless included in "zone a" above, Toyota is recalling certain model year 2008 Scion xb and Lexus is f, 2007-2008 Toyota yaris, 2006-2008 Lexus is250 and Lexus is350 and 2007-2008 Lexus es350 vehicles, originally sold, or ever registered, in arizona, arkansas, delaware, district of columbia, illinois, indiana, kansas, kentucky, maryland, missouri, nebraska, nevada, new…
Why it matters: An inflator rupture May result in metal fragments striking the vehicle occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
The fix: Toyota will notify the Toyota and Lexus owners. General motors will contact the Pontiac owners. Depending on the model, dealers will replace the passenger frontal air bag inflator or the air bag assembly, free of charge. The recall began on December 6, 2016.
Seats Vehicle recall #16V396000 · 2016 · 7,749 vehicles
What's wrong: The electrical wiring in the seat heaters May be damaged when the seat cushion is compressed.
Why it matters: If damaged, the copper strand heating element May short circuit, increasing the risk of a fire.
The fix: Set will notify owners, and dealers will disconnect the seat heaters, free of charge, and refund the purchase price of the seat heater accessory. The recall began on July 14, 2016.
Body & structure Vehicle recall #16V858000 · 2016 · 744,437 vehicles
What's wrong: If the power sliding door is unable to be opened when commanded, such as if the door is frozen shut, the door May subsequently open unexpectedly, possibly while the vehicle is moving.
Why it matters: If door opens while the vehicle is moving, there would be an increased risk of injury to the vehicle occupants.
The fix: Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will replace the junction block, rear sliding door wire harnesses, and install two sub wire harnesses, free of charge. The recall began on July 28, 2017.
Airbags Vehicle recall #19V005000 · 2019 · 1,299,448 vehicles
What's wrong: S. Virgin islands or "zone a." Toyota is also recalling certain 2011-2013 Toyota corolla, corolla matrix, Lexus is250, is350, 2011-2016 4runner, 2011-2015 Scion xb, Lexus is350c, is250c, 2011-2014 Toyota sienna, Lexus is-f, 2011-2017 Lexus gx460, and 2011-2012 Lexus es350 vehicles ever registered in the states of arizona, arkansas, delaware, district of columbia, illinois, indiana, kansas, kentucky, maryland,…
Why it matters: An inflator explosion May result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
The fix: Toyota will notify owners. Depending on the vehicle model, dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator, or replace the air bag assembly. The recall began February 15, 2019.
Airbags, Airbags Vehicle recall #19V741000 · 2019 · 928,220 vehicles
What's wrong: These vehicles had their driver or passenger frontal air bag inflators previously replaced under a prior recall using inflators of the same design. The inflators May explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, temperature and temperature cycling.
Why it matters: An inflator explosion May result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
The fix: Toyota will notify owners. Depending on the vehicle model, dealers will replace the front driver inflator, front passenger airbag inflator, the airbag assembly, or the front passenger airbag sub-assembly and inflator. The recall began November 20, 2019.
Most-reported problems
Owner complaints filed with NHTSA, by component. One complaint can list several components. 7 mention a fire, 36 injuries and 0 deaths were reported.
What owners describe
- Airbags (211): the most common themes are deploys unexpectedly / inflator (11), fails to deploy (9).
- Body & structure (154): the most common themes are door / lock issues (100), rust / corrosion (9), noise or vibration (8).
- Electrical (69): the most common themes are door / lock issues (48), electrical failure (16), warning light on (10).
- Other / unknown (61): no single recurring theme in the descriptions.
The 2011 Toyota Sienna has 614 owner complaints, ranking #4 of 25 Sienna model years for complaints (1.8× the average Sienna year). Complaints peaked in 2017 (178 filed that year). The typical problem showed up when the car was about 5 years old, at a median of 56,000 miles. Neighboring years: 2010 (172 complaints, 8 recalls), 2012 (247 complaints, 9 recalls).
Engines & fuel economy (EPA)
| Engine | Transmission | Drive | City | Hwy | Comb. | Fuel |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2.7 L 4-cyl | Automatic (S6) | Front-Wheel Drive | 19 | 24 | 21 | Regular |
| 3.5 L 6-cyl | Automatic (S6) | Front-Wheel Drive | 18 | 24 | 20 | Regular |
| 3.5 L 6-cyl | Automatic (S6) | All-Wheel Drive | 16 | 22 | 18 | Regular |
Want the full repair deets? Get the factory manual.
Recall and complaint data tells you what goes wrong. A service manual tells you how to fix it: torque specs, wiring diagrams, fluid capacities and step-by-step procedures for the 2011 Toyota Sienna.
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FAQ
Does the 2011 Toyota Sienna have any recalls?
Yes. NHTSA lists 14 vehicle recalls for the 2011 Toyota Sienna. Recall repairs are free at any dealer, no matter how old the car is. Check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
What are the most common 2011 Toyota Sienna problems?
Owners have filed 614 complaints with NHTSA. The most-reported areas are airbags (211), body & structure (154), electrical (69).
What gas mileage does the 2011 Toyota Sienna get?
EPA ratings run up to 21 mpg combined (2.7 L, Automatic (S6)), across 3 engine and transmission combos.
Where can I get a 2011 Toyota Sienna repair manual?
eManualOnline sells downloadable manuals, Mitchell 1 DIY and ALLDATAdiy sell online access to factory repair data, and Haynes sells printed guides and online access. Pick a download if you want to keep it, or a subscription for wiring diagrams and TSBs.