NHTSA Complaint #11713421 — 2015 TOYOTA SIENNA

In August 2025, AutoNation Toyota on Sahara, checked the VIN of my Toyota Sienna and contacted Toyota while I was present. Toyota confirmed a broken fuel-door hinge was covered under a Customer Support Program. Instead, AutoNation attempted to repair, rather than replace, the hinge. This caused the metal fuel cap door to end up bent, paint to be gouged out from the bottom of the fuel door area, misalignment of the fuel door, and therefore issues with the door’s sensor reading correctly. I took the van back until they received shipment of a new fuel cap door. After the attempted repair, since the fuel door no longer aligned, the safety sensors repeatedly activated which strained the sliding-door ECU. The passenger sliding door began freezing intermittently, forcing my children to exit through the trunk several times. Finally, the door opened on its own as I was driving down the street. These issues did not exist prior to dealership service and presented a clear safety concern. Between October and December, I received conflicting explanations from Gerald, James, Ivan, and Rudy at AutoNation Toyota regarding whether the issue involved the fuel door, ECU, motor, or general wear and tear. AutoNation repeatedly failed to return my calls or respond to the emails I sent them. Toyota Corporate also informed me the dealership was also not responding to their outreach attempts after I contacted them due to not being able to get ahold of AutoNation Toyota. I emailed four managers on October 15 with detailed documentation and received no response. My vehicle remains unsafe, unrepaired, and in the possession of AutoNation Toyota. I approve allowing it to be inspected. While at AutoNation, the vehicle driver could not open the passenger sliding door after AutoNation's attempted repair. They have had my van for 4 months now so no one else has looked at or inspected it. There were no warning lamps, messages or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure.