Toyota Sienna Years to Avoid and the Best Years

Years to avoid: 2011 At least twice the 52.5 complaints of a typical Sienna year. Most described: door lock problems.
Best years: 2018 and 2019 Under three quarters of the 52.5 complaints of a typical Sienna year since 2016, with no open NHTSA investigation or do-not-drive or park-outside recall. The 2020 drew few complaints too, but its first three years fell in the pandemic, when people drove less.

Based on owner complaints filed with NHTSA in each model year's first three years, not adjusted for sales. The 2024 to 2026 models are too new to judge. See every year ranked

Data: US EPA and NHTSAUpdated Nov 11, 2026

Every model year since 2010 in one place: EPA fuel economy, NHTSA recalls, owner complaints and crash test ratings. The best fuel economy rating, 36 mpg combined, arrived in 2021 and has held since. Every Sienna from 2021 is a hybrid.

Sienna problems by year, ranked by owner complaints

How the years are ranked

Model years ranked by owner complaints filed with NHTSA in their first three years (model year Y: filed by the end of Y+2), so every year is measured over the same time on the road. Years without three full years of data, and launch or final years with very few sold, are left out. Counts are not adjusted for how many were sold.

A typical Sienna year drew 52.5 complaints in its first three years: the median of its years since 2016, higher than the median of all its ranked years (49.5). Years to avoid drew at least twice that, and at least 50. Best years are up to three years since 2016 with the fewest complaints, each under three quarters of a typical year since 2016 (52.5), with no open NHTSA investigation and no do-not-drive or park-outside recall that covers all versions; the 2020 is never picked, as its first three years fell in the pandemic. How the verdict works.

Model year	First 3 years	All complaints	Recalls
2011 Sienna Avoid Most described: door lock or latch problems	136	615	14
2015 Sienna Most described: door lock or latch problems	103	233	6
2021 Sienna Most described: unintended acceleration or surging	97	210	4
2022 Sienna Most described: jerking, lurching or harsh shifting	94	141	5
2017 Sienna Most described: transmission failure or replacement	64	160	10
2016 Sienna Most reported: body structure	53	76	5
2023 Sienna Most described: unintended acceleration or surging	52	71	3
2010 Sienna Most described: door lock or latch problems	47	172	8
2012 Sienna Most described: door lock or latch problems	39	247	9
2018 Sienna Best Most described: hesitation or slow acceleration	35	73	7
2013 Sienna Most described: door lock or latch problems	34	183	6
2014 Sienna Most described: door lock or latch problems	31	164	6
2019 Sienna Best Most described: hesitation or slow acceleration and transmission failure or replacement	21	47	7
2020 Sienna Most reported: powertrain	17	39	2

Compare other models' worst years in the worst model years guide.

Check your Sienna for open recalls

Opens NHTSA's lookup in a new tab; your VIN goes to NHTSA, not to us. The VIN is on the driver's side dashboard, the door jamb and your registration. Safety recall repairs are free at Toyota dealers for vehicles up to 15 years old from first sale.

How to check a car for recalls, step by step

Get a vehicle history report from EpicVIN (opens in a new tab): a paid report with the car's title, odometer and salvage records, from an approved NMVTIS data provider. Affiliate link: we earn a commission if you buy. If you typed a full VIN above, the link sends it to EpicVIN and opens its checkout page for that VIN. Check the price before you pay: EpicVIN's $1 trial lasts 3 days, then becomes a monthly subscription until you cancel ($49.99 to $99.99 a month on its pages as of Oct 2, 2026). Disclosure

Year by year

Model year	Best rating	Recalls	Complaints	Crash test
2026 MPG · Recalls and problems	36 mpg Hybrid	1	21
2025 MPG · Recalls and problems	36 mpg Hybrid	6	271
2024 MPG · Recalls and problems	36 mpg Hybrid	4	72
2023 MPG · Recalls and problems	36 mpg Hybrid	3	71
2022 MPG · Recalls and problems	36 mpg Hybrid	5	141
2021 MPG · Recalls and problems	36 mpg Hybrid	4	210
2020 MPG · Recalls and problems	21 mpg Gas	2	39
2019 MPG · Recalls and problems	22 mpg Gas	7	47
2018 MPG · Recalls and problems	22 mpg Gas	7	73
2017 MPG · Recalls and problems	22 mpg Gas	10	160
2016 MPG · Recalls and problems	21 mpg Gas	5	76
2015 MPG · Recalls and problems	21 mpg Gas	6	233
2014 MPG · Recalls and problems	21 mpg Gas	6	164
2013 MPG · Recalls and problems	21 mpg Gas	6	183
2012 MPG · Recalls and problems	21 mpg Gas	9	247
2011 MPG · Recalls and problems	21 mpg Gas	14	615
2010 MPG · Recalls and problems	19 mpg Gas	8	172	Not rated

Owner complaints by model year

All complaints filed so far. Counts rise with sales volume and with time on the road, so recent years look better than they may turn out. The highlighted bar is the model year with the most complaints in its first three years.

2011: 615 complaints

Show as a table

Owner complaints by model year, Toyota Sienna
Model year	Complaints
2010	172
2011	615
2012	247
2013	183
2014	164
2015	233
2016	76
2017	160
2018	73
2019	47
2020	39
2021	210
2022	141
2023	71
2024	72
2025	271
2026	21

Best combined rating by model year

The best-rated version in each model year. Gas: 19 to 22 mpg (2010 to 2020); highest in 2017. Hybrid: 36 mpg (2021 to 2026).

Best gas version
Best hybrid version

2026: gas not offered · hybrid 36 mpg

Show as a table

Toyota Sienna best combined mpg by model year
Model year	Best gas version	Best hybrid version
2010	19	–
2011	21	–
2012	21	–
2013	21	–
2014	21	–
2015	21	–
2016	21	–
2017	22	–
2018	22	–
2019	22	–
2020	21	–
2021	–	36
2022	–	36
2023	–	36
2024	–	36
2025	–	36
2026	–	36

Every Sienna year's ratings in one table

Comparisons

Questions

Which Toyota Sienna years should you avoid?

The 2011 Sienna is the year to avoid: it drew at least twice the 52.5 owner complaints of a typical Sienna year in its first three years. Owners of the 2011 most often describe door lock problems. Complaints can't tell you whether a particular car is sound, so whatever the year, check its open recalls by VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls before you buy. Safety recall repairs are free at Toyota dealers for vehicles up to 15 years old from first sale.

What are the best Toyota Sienna years?

The 2018 and 2019 Sienna are the best years: they drew 35 and 21 owner complaints in their first three years, each under three quarters of the 52.5 complaints of a typical Sienna year since 2016, and none has an open NHTSA investigation or recall telling owners not to drive or to park outside. The 2020 drew few complaints too, but its first three years fell in the pandemic, when people drove less. Only years since 2016 are considered, since owners filed fewer complaints in the early 2010s. The 2024, 2025, and 2026 are not ranked yet: they have had fewer than three full years on the road.

Which Toyota Sienna years have the most problems?

Counting owner complaints filed with NHTSA in each model year's first three years, the 2011 (136) drew the most, then the 2015 (103). Owners of the 2011 most often describe door lock or latch problems.

Which Toyota Sienna years have the most recalls?

The 2011 has the most safety recalls in NHTSA's file (14), then the 2017 (10). A recall can cover a problem that affects only a few cars, so open a year's page to see what each one covers. No recall for 2010 to 2026 models tells owners not to drive the car or to park it outside.

What are the most common Toyota Sienna problems?

In the 2,795 owner complaints NHTSA lists for 2010 to 2026 models, owners most often describe door lock or latch problems (107 complaints); unintended acceleration or surging (99 complaints); and jerking, lurching or harsh shifting (95 complaints, most of them for the 2017, 2021, and 2022). One complaint can describe several problems. Each year's recalls and problems page lists what owners describe for that year.

Which Toyota Sienna year has the best MPG?

The best EPA fuel economy is 36 mpg combined, first reached by the 2021 hybrid version and matched by every year since.

Sources and method

US EPA fuel economy data (fueleconomy.gov), file dated Nov 4, 2026.
NHTSA recall file dated Nov 12, 2026 and owner complaint file dated Nov 11, 2026; NHTSA 5-Star Safety Ratings.

Complaint counts are unverified owner reports and are not adjusted for sales volume. How we build these pages. Spotted an error? Tell us.