Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (wheels, lug nuts, original-equipment tires, TPMS).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2008 Toyota Sienna owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
The contact owns a 2008 Toyota Sienna. The contact stated while driving approximately 15 MPH, the spare tire hatch control cable snapped and dropped the spare tire onto the roadway. The vehicle rode over the spare tire on the passenger's side rear wheel causing a jolt to the vehicle. The contact pulled off the road safely and determined that the vehicle was drivable. The contact had not taken the vehicle to a dealer or independent mechanic to be diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer had been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 195,000.
Received safety recall #a9e a couple yr.s ago and had the recommended repair done on the spare tire carrier cable. Then received another notification in 10/15 that "the original remedy procedure May not have been adequate." informed that the new safety recall #e0s now supersedes a9e. Took van to dealer for this repair on 10/19/15. After mechanic began work he came to writer and asked where the spare tire was. Much to my surprise there was no longer a spare tire under the van-we have never had a need to use the spare and have no idea when it fell off. I was told that the cable was broken and that a new wheel and tire would have to be ordered and that I would have to pay for this. …
Tl* the contact owns a 2008 Toyota Sienna. While driving approximately 5 MPH, the spare tire on the rear of the vehicle detached from the vehicle. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign number: 14V273000 (tires); however, the part was unavailable to perform the repairs. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall remedy. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 130,000. Updated 2/4/16 updated 02/16/16.
Tl* the contact owns a 2008 Toyota Sienna equipped with bf goodrich tire, tire line: all terrain k02, tire size: 215/65/r16, dot number: bfaeat11. The contact stated that while driving at 55 MPH, the passenger's side front tire experienced a blowout. The vehicle was not taken to be inspected or repaired. Neither the tire manufacturer nor the vehicle manufacturer were contacted or notified of the failure. The vehicle failure mileage was 134,920; tire mileage failure was unknown.
Tl* the contact owns a 2008 Toyota Sienna equipped with cooper cs5 grand touring (na)tires, size: 215/65r16 (na). After parking the vehicle, the front driver side tire suddenly exploded. The tire was taken to the tire dealer who indicated that the failure was due to an internal manufacturing defect. The tires were purchased on 12/5/2015 and the failure occurred on 4/19/2016. The manufacturer was notified. The VIN was unknown. The vehicle and tire failure mileage was 54,000.
My lug nuts are swollen. This is apparently a common problem with Toyota because they use a two part lug nut design. Water gets between the two parts, swells and I cannot remove my tire. Thank goodness I was near a mechanic and not 60 miles nowhere. I could not get the wheel off the car with my car based tools.
While backing the car in my driveway it suddenly accelerated and could not be stopped by braking before it struck stone wall, blowing the right rear tire, damaging the underbody and damaging the stone wall. Very scary!
My wife was making a low speed right turn from leeland road (rt lane) onto deacon rd (left lane) in stafford county virginia when she simultaneously heard an "explosion" and felt a jolt coming from the driver's side front wheel. There is no curb or other obstructions in the intersection but after the "explosion" she was startled and lost control slightly grazing the curb on deacon road before regaining control. She managed to pull off into a safe area; my two children (ages 9 & 7) were also in the vehicle. Upon visual inspection of the tire, it appears that a side wall failure occurred. The vehicle my wife was driving is a new 2008 Toyota Sienna that has Michelin energy lx4 tires on it, approximate miles on the vehicle/tires was approximately 10,200. My wife contacted Michelin that evening and reported the incident; she was instructed to take the tire to ntb who is an authorized dealer. …
Run flat tire commercial. It is true that you can travel on a run flat tire for over 100 miles with a nail punctured tire. This commercial does not tell you the prones of it and I experienced this problem. I have a 2008 Toyota Sienna all-wheel drive and it has the electronic indicator of low air pressure. It came on once in a while and just added some air. But lately it came on more frequently and I took the van to the Toyota dealer in la crescenta ca., where I bought the van, for inspection. They told me there is a nail in the left front tire and this type of the ran flat tire can not be repaired. So I had to buy a new tire. Lucky enough they could order it right away and got the tire mounted the next day. The dealer could not mount the tire on the rim and had to send it to a special tire place, because this are special rims, I have been told. …
Received letter,7/24/14, advising that my 2008 Toyota Sienna had a potential problem with the cable, holding the spare tire underneath the vehicle, which needed to be replaced. On 8/26/14, my spare tire was relocated to the luggage compartment of my van which rendered the area unusable for folding the rear seats down to use that area for transporting larger items, etc! I checked several times with my local dealer regarding a permanent solution/repair and was told they had not yet received notice of and/or repair parts for the identified problem.on 11/20/14, I contacted the Toyota customer experience center and spoke, at length, with a representative who stated that they had been receiving numerous calls regarding this issue and that she was aware of several meetings regarding the issue but no resolution as yet and no idea when a resolution will occur. …
Related recalls
Tires › Temporary/emergency spare tire
Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain model year 2004-2011 Sienna vehicles originally sold in, or currently registered in, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode…
Remedy: 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…
Wheel & Tire complaints in other Sienna years
Frequently asked questions
How common are wheel & tire problems on the 2008 Toyota Sienna?
NHTSA has 29 complaints about the wheels & tires of the 2008 Toyota Sienna, 7% of the model year's 429 complaints. The component named most often is temporary/emergency spare tire (3 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2008 Toyota Sienna wheel & tire problems?
Yes — NHTSA recall 14V-273 (temporary/emergency spare tire, May 22, 2014). Recall repairs are free at authorized dealers.
At what mileage do 2008 Toyota Sienna wheel & tire problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 54,000 miles, and 25% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 1 crash, 0 fires and 0 injuries to wheels & tires 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.