Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (doors, hood, frame, rust, paint and trim).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2002 Toyota Sienna owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
Passenger side power door jammed, would not open after slow speed crash which knocked off the outside door handle. Toyota of santa barbara, ca took a week and charged $2500 to fix just the power electrical door, no body work (that was extra). Door has never worked properly ever since. Many incidences of door not shutting or opening when using control buttons inside car. After 19 months, power door jammed while open and could not close it by power or manually, attempted to drive to service station while in the jammed open position and while moving, the door slammed closed on its own, popping the wire cable, which is now dangling. Door now works part of the time manually, not at all with power, no motor sound at all. Door opening mechanism on inside of door frequently jams in the pushed in position and then door is completely inoperable. This is severe safety issue. …
When I attempted to open driver side sliding door it would not open electrically or manually. After several failed attempts to open I cut the cable and was able to then open the door. At this point in time both sliding doors will not open electronically but will open manually.
We are currently having problems with the locking system of our 2002 Toyota Sienna xle (currently 47,710 miles); specifically the passenger side door and the right sliding door. The passenger side door malfunctioned sometime back in early March 2009, whereby the doors will not function via remote or electronic means. The passenger side door is only functional by manually locking or unlocking the door. Also, about a month later, the sliding door started acting up. In fact, we had an incident where one of our passenger's finger was trapped by the right side sliding door. The sliding door closed as the passenger was getting in her seat. My wife had to force the door open from the outside to free the passenger's fingers. Thankfully, there were no serious injuries. As for the right sliding door, it failed to function completely on August 10, 2009. …
Ever since novmber, 2008, my 2002 Toyota Sienna passenger side power door, has intermittently failed to open either by activating the button on the inside of the door column, by pulling the door handle outside, or the instrument panel door button, or worse, after opening, will not close. The dealer had to reinitialize the ECU in November, 2008, and have had intermittent problems since. Now, since at least December, 2012, the sliding door will not open at all by any of the 3 methods and cannot be reinitialized. Also, at times the manual drivers side passenger door, in the past ~ 1 1/2 years will not open either from inside door button release or outside door handle and passengers have to climb over from the front seats to enter or climb over the front seat & console to exit the vehicle. …
Tl contact owns a 2002 Toyota Sienna. At 34,006 miles, the brakes began to make squeaking noises and the brake warning light illuminated. The failure occurred while driving 45 MPH. At 36,000, 46,000, and 49,000 miles, the dealer replaced the front and rear brakes, the rear and front rotors, and also resurfaced the front and rear drums. The repairs were performed under warranty. Nevertheless, the brakes continued to squeak and the brake pedal must be depressed very hard in order for the vehicle to stop. The dealer stated that the noise was due to the brake buster and it needed to be replaced at the cost of $1,000 since the vehicle was out of warranty. The manufacturer stated that they could not be of assistance since the warranty expired. They provided the contact with reference number 2007-0220392. The current mileage was 78,000 and failure mileage was 34,006. …
The sliding passenger door on my minivan does not open from the outside. This started when the van was less than one year old and under warranty. Toyota lubed and adjusted it and said it was OK. Over the next 7 years it would work for a while and then start again. Toyota continued to lube and adjust and at one point said their engineers had realized that the spring wasn't strong enough so they put a heavier spring in it. It is still not working. Now Toyota says it won't do anything else because the warranty is long gone. I told them they lubed and adjusted me out of my warranty and they never fixed it. So now I have a door that cannot be opened from the outside.
Passenger side power sliding door on Toyota Sienna le (2002) is bad. Went to the dealer and they slapped me with a 1400 estimate. Left to deal with safety issues for my children with mechanical malfunctions and if power door button is accidentally engaged. I feel l am left with no option. This repair is much to expensive and does not fall under any warranties. How can buyer beware of such traps. I am only mid way through payments and I already have a major repair cost that hardly makes the initial purchase worth it. The dealer offered no alternative than to push the power button off. This is not an acceptable option with children at risk!
About 3 years ago, the driver's side sliding door stopped functioning properly. It would not open the majority of time. Now, it doesn't open at all. When the handle is pulled from either the inside or outside, the door appears to lock and will not open. Toyota wanted about $100 to attempt to diagnose the problem. About a month ago, the cable on the power sliding passenger side door snapped. The door still works manually, thankfully. Toyota wants over $1,000 dollars to fix this. I read in forums that this is a wide spread problem, yet Toyota refuses to acknowledge a defect. Now it has happened to me.
Sliding doors on 2002 Toyota Sienna fail to open. 7-17-06: 73,316 miles, both sliding doors will not open due to product defect, repair at dealership. 9-22-06: 76,829 miles, sliding door will open but not close, repair at dealership. 11-16-07: 92,730 miles, sliding doors not working, repair at dealership. 3-13-08: 97,991 miles, passenger sliding door not working, repair at dealership. 8-10-2009: 113, 814, passenger sliding door will not open. This vehicle has been in no accidents and well maintained. These doors continually fail.
Have had the sliding door looked out & "re-set" 4 times. If we pull the door a little, it will close, but will not open or close with any button (front panel, key fob or side panel). Today it started to close on my child & she couldn't get it to stop, her backpack strap was caught on the seat. Pretty scary. Right now the kids are climbing in through the front passenger door. Also, about 1/2 the time even with manually closing the door, it remains open & will beep when I put it in gear, so I have to jump out & go push it closed. *
Related recalls
Structure
Toyota is recalling certain model year 1998 through 2010 sienna passenger vehicles manufactured between August 7, 1997 and January 4, 2010, currently registered in or originally sold in connecticut, delaware, illinois, indiana, kentucky, maine, maryland, massachusetts, michigan, minnesota, new hampshire, new jersey, new york,…
Remedy: Toyota will notify owners with an interim letter initially instructing them to bring their vehicle to authorized dealers to inspect for corrosion. A second notice will be sent when the permanent remedy is available.
Body complaints in other Sienna years
Frequently asked questions
How common are body problems on the 2002 Toyota Sienna?
NHTSA has 42 complaints about the body & structure of the 2002 Toyota Sienna, 23% of the model year's 181 complaints. The component named most often is body › door (19 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2002 Toyota Sienna body problems?
Yes — NHTSA recall 10V-160 (structure, Apr 20, 2010). Recall repairs are free at authorized dealers.
At what mileage do 2002 Toyota Sienna body problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 75,000 miles, and 12% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 1 crash, 0 fires and 0 injuries to body & structure problems on this model year. If you notice symptoms, have the car checked before driving further.
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.