Consumer Reports reports on the Toyota Sienna

Here is a letter I sent to the editors of Consumer Reports magazine regarding their April 2005 car buyer's issue and its coverage of the Toyota Sienna.

1. In the article on electtronic stability control (ESC) titled "A little-known safety feature that could save your life" on pages 8-9, Consumer Reports writes "If ESC is available on vehicles you're considering, order it." On that same page (page 9), in a sidebar titled "Best Vehicles for $25,000 or Less" the text suggests buyers consider the Toyota Sienna CE for $24,260. This seems ironic because the CE doesn't come with ESC (which Toyota refers to as Vehicle Stability Control). I recently purchased the LE model with "LE Package #6" (the so-called "Saftety and Convenience" package, which includes "stability control with traction control"), for which I paid $26,372. Granted, this is over $25,000 but the difference in price was worth it to me (the package also included additional airbags, etc.). (In the 2004 model, this package was known as "package #7". In 2005, the same features also come in "package #5", with package #6 adding an adjustable power seat.)

I can't tell from the "New Car Price Report for 2005 Toyota Sienna" (a separate $12 purchase from Consumer Reports) whether the traction/stability control offered in the LE is truly ESC or something lesser. Page 8 of that report says the LE offers "stability control" and "traction control" but mentions "Electronic traction control via ABS & engine management" separately, and says it is available only on the XLE limited trim line. At a minimum, the magazine should clarify whether vendors are selling "lesser" traction/stability control systems that aren't true "ESC" (Toyota calls it Vehicle Stability Control (VSC)).

2. On page 29, in the table detailing safety features and scores, Consumer Reports states that side airbags are not available in the rear seat of the Toyota Sienna. The aforementioned LE Package #6 (also known as the "BZ" package) includes "curtain shield airbags (3 rows), drive and front pass side impact airbags" according to my car dealer. What, if anything, is the difference between "side airbags" and "curtain shield airbags"? Again, guidance from the magazine in this regard would be welcome. It sounds like the curtain shield airbags are what Consumer Reports refer to as "Head protection". It would be worth pointing out to consumers not to be misled, as the dealers often promote these as "side curtain airbags".

3. In regard to the Consumer Reports "New Car Price Report" (which I ordered for both 2004 and 2005 Siennas), the 2004 model received 5 stars for driver protection but the 2005 model received only 4 stars. I don't think the car changed much from year to year. Why the difference in the rating? (Did the testing standard change?)

4. On page 37 of the April 2005 issue, in the overall car ratings table, Consumer Reports chose to rate the XLE model. I'd suggest you should have listed the much more popular LE trimline (also considerably cheaper). In that same table, you list one drawback as the "Confusing option packages." While the package options are confusing in the abstract, in practice, it is less so. If you configure a Sienna on the Toyota web site, it gives you a choice of three simple packages. Also, the vast majority of cars shipped to the dealers come in only a few option packages. We had no trouble finding a car with "package #6" as described above. (The dealer even included the floor mats.) The dealer was very helpful and accomodating, although admittedly some try to sell you what is on the lot. Regardless, my brother custom-ordered an XLE limited ($38,700, fully loaded with AWD) with exactly the options he wanted (although it might be a two month wait for delivery).

5. On page 76, in the vehicle profiles section for the Toyota Sienna, Consumer Reports states "Some desirable options, such as power seats, are only available on the upscale XLE model." While it is true that some features, such as sun roof and leather seats, are available only on the XLE, the LE offers an 8-way power adjustable driver seat in package #6 (discussed above). I know because I have one. :-)

6. On page 17, in the sidebar "Hop on a New Design? Not so fast" Consumer Reports writes that "It's usually best to wait before buying a redesigned model...The first year of a new design can spell a much higher problem rate." However on page 87 in the table on Reliability Scores, Consumer Reports rates the largely redesigned 2005 Odyssey as likely to have better than average reliability (and also makes it a Top Pick for 2005). Furthermore the Odyssey is not listed as "Redesigned for 2005" as would be my assumption based on the key on page 82. On page 93, later in the same table, the Totoya Sienna is also predicted to perform "better than average" for 2005 (same as Odyssey) despite being in the second year of production and despite Toyota having a slightly better track record as indicated in "2005 New-Car Reliability" table on page 18 of the same issue. (The Sienna was redesigned in 2004 and had a "much better than average" record for 2004 accoring to the table on page 93.) Therefore, I'd expect 2005 Toyota Sienna's to have fewer problems than 2005 Honda Odyssey's. It would be very interesting to see how next year's results match up to this year's predictions.

posted on Wed, 09 Mar 2005 at 14:53 | path: /cars | perma link