NHTSA Complaint #10283454 — 2001 TOYOTA SEQUOIA

MY 2001 SEQUOIA IS EXPERIENCING FALSE SKID INDICATIONS, RESULTING IN SUDDEN, SEVERE APPLICATIONS OF THE RIGHT FRONT WHEEL BRAKE, WITH NO WARNING. AFTER PURCHASING MY USED SEQUOIA (WITH APPROXIMATELY 121,000 MILES), WE DROVE IT APPROXIMATELY 70 MILES WITHOUT INCIDENT. WE HAD JUST LEFT A PARKING LOT AND DRIVEN LESS THAN ONE-HALF MILE WHEN THE RIGHT FRONT WHEEL BRAKE SUDDENLY DID A STRONG APPLY, PULLING THE VEHICLE TOWARD THE RIGHT, OFF THE ROAD, WHILE MAKING A GRINDING SOUND. THE BRAKE APPLY AND THE NOISE LASTED APPROXIMATELY (3) SECONDS, AND THEN THE BRAKE RELEASED AND THE VEHICLE MADE A SERIES OF BEEPS. NO INDICATOR LIGHTS WERE ILLUMINATED ON THE INSTRUMENT PANEL BEFORE, DURING OR AFTER THE INCIDENT. WE WERE TRAVELING IN A STRAIGHT LINE ON A DRY, SMOOTH ROAD, AT A SPEED OF (25) TO (30) MPH; THE OUTSIDE TEMPERATURE WAS APPROXIMATELY 80F. THE INCIDENT OCCURRED A SECOND TIME SEVERAL HOURS LATER ON THE SAME DAY. ALL FACTORS WERE IDENTICAL, EXCEPT WE HAD DRIVEN ABOUT (5) MILES AFTER STARTING THE VEHICLE. IN EACH CASE, THE VEHICLE WAS PULLED TOWARD THE RIGHT, OFF THE ROAD, AND COULD HAVE RESULTED IN AN ACCIDENT HAD THERE BEEN AN OBSTACLE THERE (ANOTHER CAR, PEDESTRIAN, ETC). IT WAS A HOLIDAY WEEKEND AND THE DEALERSHIP SERVICE DEPARTMENTS IN THE AREA WERE CLOSED. WE DROVE THE VEHICLE HOME AND SEARCHED THE INTERNET FOR INFORMATION ON THIS INCIDENT, AND WERE AMAZED TO FIND MANY SIMILAR PROBLEMS WITH MODEL YEARS RANGING FROM 2001 TO 2006, AND WITH NO KNOWN FIX. THE LOCAL DEALERSHIP LATER CONFIRMED THAT THEY HAD NO KNOWLEDGE OF ANY INCIDENT LIKE THIS. THE VEHICLE HAS NOT BEEN REPAIRED. THIS IS THE MOST DANGEROUS VEHICLE CONDITION I HAVE EVER SEEN. I AM JUSTIFIABLY AFRAID TO DRIVE THE VEHICLE AGAIN, OR TO DRIVE IN THE VICINITY OF ANY OTHER SEQUOIAS OR TUNDRAS THAT I SEE ON THE ROAD. *TR