Toyota, owners spar over sludge problem

[prontospyder]

<< In September 1999, Maggie Alemany, a 47-year-old medical transcriptionist, drove off the lot of Kendall Toyota in Miami with a new 2000 Toyota Sienna minivan equipped with a 3.0-liter V-6.

Having leased two Previas previously, Alemany says she felt comfortable with Toyota and confident of its quality. But just over a year and 29,000 miles later, she took the Sienna back to Kendall for service because the oil indicator light stayed illuminated.

That's when Alemany got yanked out of her Toyota comfort zone.

"When I got there," she recalled in a telephone interview last week, "they told me I needed a new engine and that they wouldn't pay for it." Kendall Toyota quoted the repair at $8,000.
>>



3000 other Toyota owners have this problem.

http://www.autonews.com/article.cms?articleId=38302

Is this the case of bad design on Toyota's part? Or owners just not maintaining their vehicles properly?

 

[iamwiz82]

IIRC, that engine was in the old MR2's, avalons, a ton of lexus models, and i dont recall them having this problem.

 

[punkrawket]

it could be either....

sure... it could be a fault in design on toyotas part... but i know... when somebody buys a vehicle.. (almost all the time) they do not read their owners manual to find out how to properly take care of their vehicle.... causing problems

 

[Psylence]

<<

Is this the case of bad design on Toyota's part? Or owners just not maintaining their vehicles properly? >>



Both

 

[guyver01]

<< But because the problem can be caused from failure to change the oil regularly, Toyota steadfastly has refused to cover it under its five-year/60,000-mile powertrain warranty. >>




Easiest way for her to prove its not an oil change problem, would be to use her documentation that she changes it regularly. If she does it at Toyota, they'd have to replace the engine... what? she didnt? oh well..



<< "But they wouldn't accept my Jiffy Lube receipts." >>



LMAO! I wouldn't either... jiffy lube isn't an oil change... its an oil add.



<< Toyota models equipped with 3.3 million 1MZ V-6 and 5SFE inline 4 engines produced between July 1996 and July 2001 >>



<< Avalon, July 1996 to May 2001 >>



My father has the Avalon from January 2001... no engine problems... changes the oil every 3K miles as recommended.

I would think we're not getting the full picture from the Car Owner here..

 

[Zenmervolt]

<<But just over a year and 29,000 miles later, she took the Sienna back to Kendall for service because the oil indicator light stayed illuminated.>>

Just how STUPID do you have do be to drive a car with the oil light on? It's not a low pressure light people, it's a NO PRESSURE light. Sheesh. Everyone should know that if the oil light comes on you stop immediately. RTFM. I hate it when people abuse machinery like that.

ZV

EDIT: Also, 29,000 miles in one year? That's a lot of driving. I'm also curious as to how an oil change place would fail to notice that the oil coming out may as well be tar. If I change oil and the old stuff is thick, then I step up the change interval by 1,000 miles.

 

[guyver01]

<< <<But just over a year and 29,000 miles later, she took the Sienna back to Kendall for service because the oil indicator light stayed illuminated.>> >>



a year and 30K miles?? that's ALOT of driving... by her own admission she changed the oil around 6,000 miles.... that's just wrong!.

 

[punkrawket]

<< <<But just over a year and 29,000 miles later, she took the Sienna back to Kendall for service because the oil indicator light stayed illuminated.>>

Just how STUPID do you have do be to drive a car with the oil light on? It's not a low pressure light people, it's a NO PRESSURE light. Sheesh. Everyone should know that if the oil light comes on you stop immediately. RTFM. I hate it when people abuse machinery like that.

ZV >>

but see the problem with that is... the average car owner (*cough*woman*cough*) doesn't know that.... once that light comes on they think "oh...need to take it in for an oil change" or "need to add a little oil when i get home" it's ignorance... and it's sad

my roommate brought home a car over break that hadn't been driven in months.. just sat in a garage... he said the oil light was on the whole trip to school (bout 3 hrs)... he said he stopped every now and then and added oil to the car... he said "it's not like it's losing oil... it was full already most of the time"

 

[Sestar]

ooooh changes it every 6000 miles! You realize that the owners manual should say to change your oil every 5000 miles, and cars can easily go 10,000 on one oil change.
Diffrent engines, better oil, etc etc, changing the oil every 6000 miles is not the problem.

 

[Cerebus451]

<< Easiest way for her to prove its not an oil change problem, would be to use her documentation that she changes it regularly. If she does it at Toyota, they'd have to replace the engine... what? she didnt? oh well.. >>


Except that Congress passed a law making it illegal for car manufacturers to deny warranty service because the owner did not return to the dealer for regularly scheduled maintenance. So long as you have the receipts (and she did have them), and the receipts are from a shop with trained technicians (and believe it or not, they are trained technicians even at a Jiffy Lube), the manufacturer has to accept that as valid maintenance.

 

[Zenmervolt]

<< Except that Congress passed a law making it illegal for car manufacturers to deny warranty service because the owner did not return to the dealer for regularly scheduled maintenance. So long as you have the receipts (and she did have them), and the receipts are from a shop with trained technicians (and believe it or not, they are trained technicians even at a Jiffy Lube), the manufacturer has to accept that as valid maintenance. >>

Actually, if Toyota offers the service for free, then they can make the warranty contingent upon the service being performed by Toyota. But if Toyota charges anything for the service, then yes, you are correct.

ZV

 

[bunker]

<< << "But they wouldn't accept my Jiffy Lube receipts." >>

LMAO! I wouldn't either... jiffy lube isn't an oil change... its an oil add. >>


Actually Jiffy Lube is an oil changing facility.