2002 Toyota Sequoia - Feedback ??

[NewGuy]

My wife and I are considering the purchase of a 2002 Toyota Sequoia 4WD from CarMax. She was involved in an accident last week and her 1998 Ford Expedition was totaled. She wasn't seriously hurt, but we need a new car for her to drive. We have 2 small children and my wife tells me that a van is out of the question.

We have actually bought this 2002 Sequoia (77,000 miles), but we have 5 days to take it back. I have been reading a lot of issues on the internet regarding the brakes and rotors on these vehicles. It seems that they chew up brakes and rotors pretty quickly. We bought the extended warranty (3 yrs/ 36K miles), but I am concerned that the Sequoia does not live up to the Toyota reputation of quality.

Does anyone have any feedback or comments on the Sequoia? Is anyone aware of any huge issues that I should take into consideration? Thanks for the advice!!

 

[Market525]

Sequoia and Tundra had brake issues early on -- but I thought by 2002 they were corrected. My Tundra is a 2000, and it did get new larger calipers, new rotors, and several other things, all under warranty. As for engines, I think you'll be hard pressed to find a better engine that the 4.7L V8 in the Seq. Look at some of the oil analysis results here on them.

If you can have some kind of assurance the vehicle was maintained properly, the brake issue would not bother me. Perhaps a dealer could tell you more about if Toyota had a fix for Sequoia as they did for Tundra.
Good luck, Steve

 

[JHZR2]

2 kids? any real need for a truck that large? Was the accident her fault?

How about a ford focus station wagon... high utility... or if 'style' is her thing, why not an audi station wagon.

SUVs as a fashion statement are so out.

SUVs as a bona-fide utility vehicle, for moving large quantities of cargo and pulling a trailer while caring around a number of people are great.

The one person I know that has a sequoia likes it a lot... Good looks, nice to drive, good space. No complaints on brakes, though they have had a number of rattles and a bad window switch and door lock.

JMH

 

[Stooge]

I have a 2002 Sequoia - 120K miles. I got the "bigger" brakes put on at 10K miles. I replace front pads and rotors every 30K. The wife drives it like her BMW Z4. The rotors are cheap ($50 from the TireRack) and easy to replace. I would not let the bad press on the brakes bother you. It was more of a problem on the Tundras with the rear drums.

IMO - The Sequoia is probably the best large SUV - bar none, interms of quality and engineering. Make sure the timing belt and water pump was changed at 90K if the miles are there.

 

[JHZR2]

Quote:

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The wife drives it like her BMW Z4.

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got to watch that, for her safety as well as everyone else on the road... driving an SUV like its a BMW is why SUVs have such a bad name safety wise...

JMH

 

[NewGuy]

Thanks for all of the advice. I believe that we will keep the Sequoia. The engine is very smooth and it looks great. The State Trooper, County Deputy and EMT told my wife that she would probably have been killed in her accident if she had been in a smaller car. An 84 year old lady ran a stop sign and hit her in the driver's door at 45 MPH. The older lady never hit her brakes. She prefers a larger SUV and I will use it to pull a trailer with ATVs in the Fall.

I would never have thought to replace the water pump when the timing belt is replaced. I assume there is an issue with these water pumps failing? It makes sense to change it while the other work is being done. Do you think that any good mechanic shop can do these things or should a dealership do the work?

Thanks again for the advice and comments.

 

[The Critic]

Quote:

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Thanks for all of the advice. I believe that we will keep the Sequoia. The engine is very smooth and it looks great. The State Trooper, County Deputy and EMT told my wife that she would probably have been killed in her accident if she had been in a smaller car. An 84 year old lady ran a stop sign and hit her in the driver's door at 45 MPH. The older lady never hit her brakes. She prefers a larger SUV and I will use it to pull a trailer with ATVs in the Fall.

I would never have thought to replace the water pump when the timing belt is replaced. I assume there is an issue with these water pumps failing? It makes sense to change it while the other work is being done. Do you think that any good mechanic shop can do these things or should a dealership do the work?

Thanks again for the advice and comments.

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I've known and seen many people hit by large vehicles at high speeds survive fine, even though they were driving smaller vehicles. Size is only one factor which will determine an occupant's fare in the event of a major accident, as good engineering and extensive safety equipment will greatly improve the chances of survival. I think Ekpolk can attest to this.

Here, the local dealership charges $330 to do a Timing Belt only on a Toyota V8. The water pump doesn't really need to be replaced at the same time as the timing belt, but use your judgment, based upon the situation.

For instance, if the vehicle was 12 years old and just turned 90,000 miles, the water pump should be replaced as there's a greater chance of failure.

In your case, when you hit 90,000 miles, your water pump will only be 5-6 years old. It's probably still fine. I'd wait until the next timing belt replacement at 180k before replacing it.

 

[brianl703]

I'm not so sure that water pumps fail due to age, especially since they usually fail due to the bearings wearing out (if I'm not mistaken) which is related more to mileage than age.

 

[kkreit01]

A friend purchased a brand new 2wd in 04. Before 30k miles, and brakes and tires were replaced. The rear axle was also replaced under 10K miles (warranty).