NHTSA Complaint #10123969 — 2004 TOYOTA SIENNA

01/11/05: VEHICLE STALLED WHILE IN MOTION. TOWED TO LOCAL FACILITY. LATER VEHICLE SUCCESSFULLY STARTED AND INDICATED NO PROBLEMS UPON TEST DRIVE. 01/30/05: DRIVING KIDS TO SNOWBOARDING WHEN VEHICLE STALLED IN MOTION. RESTARTED. DROVE ON SIDE OF ROAD - STALLED AGAIN - RESTATED. CHECK ENGINE LIGHT (ALONG WITH SEVERAL OTHERS) NOW ACTIVATED. DROVE ON SIDE OF ROAD AS VEHICLE WOULD NOT ACCELERATE ABOVE 10MPH AND WOULD STALL REPEATEDLY. 01/31/05: I CONTACTED SERVICE DEPARTMENT AT HANDY DODGE TOYOTA (HDT), TO REPORT BREAKDOWN AND ARRANGED FOR SERVICE. 02/04/05: HDT PERFORMED AIR-INTAKE VALVE REPLACEMENT AND SEVERAL OTHER SERVICE CAMPAIGNS. 02/24/05: VEHICLE STALLED WHILE IN MOTION. VEHICLE RESTARTED, BUT WOULD NOT ACCELERATE OVER 10MPH. VEHICLE CONTINUED TO STALL WHILE IN MOTION AND CHECK ENGINE LIGHT ACTIVATED. STALLED WHILE ON A BLIND HILL/CORNER ON ROUTE 104. I COULD NOT PULL OFF TO SIDE OF ROAD AS THERE WAS NO SHOULDER AND GUARD-RAILS HUGGED IMMEDIATE SIDE OF ROAD. I WAS IN THE ROAD FOR ABOUT 10 MINUTES WITH MY EMERGENCY LIGHTS FLASHING WHILE CONTINUOUSLY ATTEMPTING TO RESTART VEHICLE. VEHICLE RESTARTED AND I WAS ABLE TO DRIVE TO A PARKING AREA FOR A TOW. HDT CONTACTED ME TO INFORM THAT FAILURE WAS SAME AS BEFORE AND THROUGH FURTHER RESEARCH AT THE NATIONAL LEVEL THAT THEY LEARNED THAT STALLING IS OCCURRING IN TOYOTA SIENNA AND 4RUNNERS IN THE COLD WEATHER STATES DUE TO A DEFECT IN THE GAS TANK DESIGN AND THAT THERE IS CURRENTLY NO REPAIR AVAILABLE. RECOMMEND RUNNING VEHICLE WITH NO LESS THAN HALF A TANK OF GAS (AT ALL TIMES) AND WERE VERBALLY OPTIMISTIC THAT THE COLD WEATHER WOULD BE ENDING IN THE NEXT WEEK OR TWO. I INFORMED HDT THAT I DRIVE AN HOUR (EACH WAY) TO AND FROM WORK EVERY DAY (HIGHWAY AND BACK ROADS) AND TO BE EXPECTED TO DO THAT EACH DAY IN A DEFECTIVE VEHICLE (THAT HAS A HISTORY OF STALLING) IS UNSAFE AND UNACCEPTABLE. I HAVE SINCE FILED LEMON LAW DEMAND FOR ARBITRATION WHICH CASE IS IN PROGRESS.