Toyota Sienna Sliding Doors | Why This Door Cost $1800+ To Repair? Everything You Need to Know 

We have an 06 Sienna and the door release actuator broke. We just turned the door off and use it as a manual door. Easy fix 😅

AMD you rock. I just bought a used 2012 Sienna. Your video on the ridiculously complicated video on changing the back three spark plugs in the 3.5L should have won an award (if there was such a thing.) I sent you $10. I have to admit that when I picked up my 2012 i was not thrilled that it had power sliding doors. After watching this video on how freaking complicated and expensive a sliding door repair would be if either side crapped out I wondered if there was a way around spending all this time a money for a repair. I just went through the 779 page Toyata manual and found that there is a inconspicuous dashboard button at around 4 o'clock from the steering column which says "power door off." I just switched it off and found that both my doors operate by hand. If my door ever go south I will just flip the switch and pretend it is 1984 (or whatever year it was before the advent of monumentally Stupid and PointlessTechnology.) Cheers and keep it up!

I do like the shop updates at the end of the video. It gives us all your a little better appreciation of what you and your team are doing to make these videos so insightful and informative. Thank you

I just performed this same repair on my 2008 Odyssey but on both sides. I have a small fleet of cars thanks to having five kids and three of them are driving now. So, four of our vehicles are Honda and I have a Toyota Tundra. The one that has been the best vehicle so far is our 2008 Honda Odyssey EXL. 204,200 miles trouble free, and somehow survived three kiddos learning to drive on it. My current 16 year old has the honor of driving it to school everyday, and just like this van the sliding door motor went out. Fortunately, my brother helped me take the motor out and repair it on our own, but it still cost me almost $1000 in parts since I decided to just replace both sides due to the age of the van. I have two more kids that need to learn to drive on that van, but living here in Texas with zero rust I am confident she will survive the elements...the kids driving....who knows! Great video.

My family has had 3 Siennas. They have been great vehicles for us. But on every one of them, the power doors stopped working at some point around 200,000 to 250,000 miles. We just turned off the power door using the switch near the steering wheel, and used the doors manually after that, and for the most part they have worked fine. I always figured it would be too expensive to fix it, and this video confirms that!

Taking me back to my day's at the dealership. Must of done 50 of these. I do not miss those day's but for some reason I enjoy watching someone else do the work.

I have a similar Sienna: 2006 Sienna Limited AWD. It has just a little over 89,000miles (all highway miles) and still in mint condition. Every time it visits the local Toyota dealership (to have services done before needed), the advisors always walk around it and admire it. The last advisor said, "This Sienna is hardly used. It still has the plastic covering on the outside cables for the side sliding doors." The rear brakes are still the original brakes that came the factory. The dealership said there is a lot of pad left on the rear brakes and only replaced the front. The Sienna spends most of its time in a heated garage under a tarp, and only goes out for family vacation trips (I do drive it once a month just to start it). I enjoy watching your Toyota videos.

I love the end summary of what is going on in the shop! Those updates are great to know. Keep up the amazing work AMD!

I have a 2008 Camry 4 cylinder with 170K that has been experiencing rough idle problems for about six months. Initially it started by idling at about 600 rpm with a definite vibration which I felt it just needed to relearn the idle speed (which I did). As the temps in Tx increased, I noticed the AC was having a very difficult time keeping up with the 100 degree plus temps especially at stops. With the AC on, the idle was noticeably worse. I did replace the air and cabin filters but the idle did not improve nor did the ac cooling. In June, I took it to my then trusted mechanic and they replaced the plugs, and performed a chemical fuel injector clean with little help to the idle. I then took it back to the same shop in Sept and found the guy who went to school with my wife had retired. During that span I monitored the gas mileage closely. I had been getting 24-26 MPG but noticed it had dropped to just over 20 MPG. The shop said the motor mounts were bad as were the ac compressor, alternator and belt tensioner. It did not make sense to me that the mileage would drop that much if the mounts, compressor, alternator and tensioner were bad but gave the OK to replace the mounts, alternator and tensioner (they wanted $2300 to replace the compressor, evaporator and other parts in the AC system). After so called repair, the shop guy tried to convince me it was better but the car was cold and idling at about 1.2K RPM. I took it home I found the rough idle felt MUCH worse than ever as the car warmed and idle dropped to 600 rpm as before. I then found your throttle body clean video. Before the throttle body I sprayed down the MAF sensor with Mass Air Flow Sensor cleaner with no help. I then carefully performed your throttle body clean as instructed with Mass Flow Sensor cleaner. I did notice that when my wife pressed the gas pedal down the butterfly valve did not open smoothly. Just as it opened at about 1/4" and before it fully closed at the same spot I noticed the butterfly look like it was sticking a little as it moved. It did fully open and close but just was not a smooth movement. After the TB clean, the idle was markedly better but still rough and a little more so when the AC is turned on. It is now idling warm at about 750 to 800 rpm instead of 600 as before. It may be a little sluggish from a stop but I can not really notice any difference in the way it drives. It is one of those oil burner engines from the era even though I am a religious 5K oil changer. I'm also the original owner. We're in the middle of a home sale and purchase and need to keep this car running for another year. No codes have ever popped up for this issue and I maintain the car pretty well.

Wow, I never put much thought into how complex sliding doors are on minivans. Awesome video

I've replaced the cables on both sides of my '08 Sienna w. ~198,000 miles on it. Neither cable broke but both began delaminating. I found it easer to remove both second row seats for better access. Did both sides at the same time and it was quite a workout. Used OEM parts as well and purchased the service kit.

I would say this job is a 6 out of 10 if your diy guy depending on what it actually is because this door can have a number of problems. My cable was fine, but the plastic pulley on the bottom next to the motor was stripped. And so I skipped the the dealership and went to the junkyard found exactly what I was looking for and works fine now. The whole problem with this door is weight it’s too heavy. I actually work for Denso this is probably one of the biggest markup price on a part.

I did this job this past summer and didn't cost anywhere near $1800. I used aftermarket parts but it is still working great! I think the part cost less than $200 and the job took me about 3 hours.

I enjoy seeing what’s going on in the shop hearing some of the issues people encounter with the ever day use is quite informative

AMD is a great mechanic. It is obvious though having watched a lot of his videos that modern Toyotas have a lot of inherent problems. Anyone can now see that the past “famed” Toyota quality is no more.

Great job and, yes, those prices are ridiculous!! My daughter had an 08 Honda Odyssey and those sliding doors were always giving me issues. She got t-boned so it was totaled and I told that door “you had it coming!!”

I hope more mechanics have the same work ethics as you do. Some mechanics can fix cars but does not care if they break something else along the process, or lost some small components or smudge the areas they are working in the vehicle. Most car owners noticed these things. So I hope mechanics are taking notes if these things because a happy costumer always come back to you if they are satisfied with your work.

As someone who can barely change a flat tire, it always amazes me how automobile mechanics can seamlessly jump between so many makes and models and problems. Electrical, hydraulics, mechanical, structural engineering all wrapped in one. Wonder what iphones-on-wheels, aka EVs, going to do to this profession.

Yes we do love the shop updates. So much work is your fault, you guys are too good.

I had a 2004 Sienna CE which did not have this feature. I kept it until 2010. It had 120,000+ miles when I traded it in with no issues. The mechanics were always congratulating me for not getting the LE with the power sliding doors. Now I see why.

Everyone keeps asking: YES you can hit one single button under the drivers left knee and the auto door becomes a manual door. No issue.

I guess I lucked out with my 2008 Sienna with almost 300k on it. Cables never broke. That van owed me nothing! And yes, keep us up to date at the end of your vids. Thank you!

I appreciate the level of personalized care (and discussion) you provide for each car in the shop!

Good work CCN!! Good to see your progress!! I hope u start passing your valuable knowledge to next generation

Love the updates always! 🙂

I don’t know how you stay so calm and collected while working. Thank you

It's nice of you to explain how these things work and would appreciate more info on the automatic doors of this generation and what else can go wrong. I've seen that door close all the way until it touches the front latch and then opens again, although it opens without issue and will pull the back of the door in when the front is manually latched. Your effort in putting out valuable, professional content is very much appreciated.

Absolutely love the shop tour at the end of each video. Thanks. God bless the Car Care Nut Family.

Love the shop addition, please keep doing that 👍

The update on the shop is great. It's a nice touch at the end. And wow the floor is holding up nicely.

Yes, love the tours at the end😊

Nicely done. I like the step by step videos and also the updates at the end.

I do like knowing what's going on on the shop, please continue doing it, keep us posted. Thanks!!

I had a base trim 2020 sienna with manual doors for uber. Thousands of opening and closing and mainly, to avoid this repair. I had no idea it cost so much.

You took your time and filmed it all, thank you!!! I've already watched this video while not logged in.

I think it's a great addition to your videos to add on the other stuff you're working on in your shop. Great stuff!

I love the “what’s in the shop” quick re-cap at the end and the hint that popped up for an upcoming video.. great addition. Always a pleasure watching your videos! Gonna need a bigger shop soon! lol. God Bless.

I LOVE THE UPDATES AT THE END!!! Thank you so much!!!!

Thanks CCC for making awesome Toyota videos! This will be very useful for my 16 sienna in the near future!

Great job on that door Amd, and yes I do enjoy the shop tour of current work in progress! You're a busy guy! I have an immaculate 2011 Camry SE.... and I do all my own routine maintenance down here in a suburb of Indy... if anything major comes up I'll be taking it to YOU ! 👍🏼

I love the updates at the end. Please keep doing them. It's only about2-3 minutes extra

AMD-love the shop review you have introduced at the end-creative and well done !

Great video! Love to watch you work!

Thanks for all your videos. You are showing people why car repairs are so expensive. Keep up all the great work you do. 👍

I love the updates at the end of the video. Please keep doing them! Thank you

Love the walk arounds. Very interesting to see what you are working on.

Great video! I have replaced 3 cable assemblies on 2 different 2nd Gen Siennas (06 and 09). I found it very useful to remove the 2nd-row seat nearest the door you are working on. It makes the mechanic's yoga so much easier. 😊

I love the shop tour at the end of the video. Well done once again AMD and Crew!!!

Maaaaan ! It is so rewarding to watch your videos !!!!! You are the best !!!!! Hope you can keep on doing videos to enspire and encourage the rest of us DIYers !!!! Great thanks !

I've been dying to know what problems the other cars in your shop have, and I'm happy to see you take us through the details. I will call that an update. This also gives us a bird's view of how hard your work is and how quick you take to finish it

I have never seen Sienna before, but I still get joy from watching this. Thank you!

You have an extraordinary amount of patience! I would have lost my mind dealing with that.

You make me better! Great techniques and practices shared. I haven’t seen a video showing the different connectors and how to manipulate the locks. I’ve seen some videos that show how to do the locks but not on others. Like the VSV wiring you repaired the old connector. I ordered a pigtail replacement so when I get it I’ll know how to get the old one off.

Love the updates on cars in your shop that are getting worked on at the end of video. Another great video AMD.

Perfect, I just got a 2006 sienna with a broken cable on the passenger slider and a semi functioning door on the side because somehow the rear support bracket that slides along has been bent down words in it drags just enough to fool the door into not closing. Looks like a fun job.

Love the shop updates, wish my car was in there. Boy o boy, sure would not want to attempt this door cable repair for the first time... Yipes!

Thanks. The shop tours are great!

Congratulations, both. You guys are like a family. It's lovely to see your family grow over the years. God Bless you all

thanks AMD for another great video, and yes, please continue to include a quick tour at the end of the video.

I also like the shop updates at the end of the video. Your shop has an amazing amount of work under way. The scheduler in the office is certainly busy.

Great and instructive to see what else is happening at the shop.

I enjoy seeing what all you have going on. You are blessed with too much work!

AMD love your videos. You are an absolute professional and have such integrity for your profession and yourself. Thanks, brother !

Thank you for the videos Good to see them

Keep the last sections coming- great!!

I like the fact that you don't rush things. I really enjoy watching you it's satisfying

For what the door is setup to do, it is very complex. This is another video I'm going to keep even though I don't know anyone with a Sienna van and I don't own one. This video is for the "just in case" I meet someone with this cable problem. Very good video complete with all the tech tips I appreciate coming from someone that's performed the job many times. Very Good AMD! Thank you. One more item. I like your work tour showing us all the vehicles that need repair. My Dad's shop used to be like that back in the late 1950's through 1976. As I got older I would help him on Saturdays.😊

Another GREAT VIDEO !! Thanks, Car Care Nut ! Pity cars are getting more and more DIY unfriendly, Mechanics like you are the ones to come to for help !

Def like the overview of whats in the shop at the end. Thank you.

As a long time fan of your channel, I am so happy for you and the new Lexus. God bless you, your family, and the Lexus.

Great video. Learned a bunch.

Keep us updated on what's going on in the shop every video.. I love your channel . I'm a big Toyota fan. And next time you do a rear main seal on a 2013 or 2014 rav4 2ar , do a video.

Yes!! Show us at the end of each video what is in the shop!

Loved the tour and working on the older cars.

Good golly, I just watched a nearly hour long video on how to repair a sliding door for a vehicle that I do not own. I always enjoy these repair deep-dives.

the end of the video is a very nice touch i really enjoyed it

Love those beautiful LS430s! Thanks for a great video.

Great video

Nice too see something else. Something useful, that a home mechanic can do with a spare Sunday. I had a similar problem with a car of ours, the cable broke, but the minivan has manual sliding doors and everything was way easier. Thanks 👍

I do like the ending. Keep up all the good work. I don't own a Toyota or a Lexus. But I enjoy your videos. Their great!! 🤘

Amazing explanation ... car care nut style definitely... also loved the last section of the video!

Keep the updates at the end! It great to get an idea of what's going on!

Keep us updated AMD! We love knowing what's going on at the shop. I don't even watch TV anymore; it's all CCN on RU-vid.

27:25 Props to Toyota for realizing this was a problem, doing a campaign for the old design to lower the price and for re designing it and making it cheaper and easier to fix on subsequent update!

Thank you for posting this excellent video. I learned from you.

Love the end of the video either way updates!!

I do love how professional you are AND how clean your shop is ! That's refreshing and Unusual.. Kudos! I don't do cars but Electronic repairs, I can't work in a messy, dirty ,Cluttered area ! I would bring my car to you any time! Just don't have any toyotas though...

I have an 2004 and 2020 Sienna, both with manual doors. Never had a problem.

Simply amazing !!!

I love all your videos, and yes please keep up the end of video explanations of all car repairs 💙

👍👍Yes! Glad to see the status of the other vehicles in your shop.👍👍

Yes, love seeing what's keeping you busy

Thank you for your informative videos, yes I also like the round up at the end of other vehicles in.

Another awesome video and love the shop updates. Got any videos on the replacement of the center bracket assembly on the sliding doors?

Great video thank you for your knowledge.

Wow. What a job! I like hearing about other jobs in progress in the shop.

Great Job, indeed i also enjoyed the end

I like the shop walk-around at the end 👍

i love this guy makes my day

I like the feature of you showing us the vehicles in the shop and what is needing to be fixed.