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#BS-2003-TOYSEQ-6BC72003 Toyota Sequoia
Based on reports from 875 owners and 7 recalls for this exact model.
Preliminary Verdict
Red Flag
Based on 875 complaints, 27 crashes, 2 fires, and 7 recalls. Complaint rate is 2.6x the class average.
Top reported problems
vsc trac lights are on
21 complaints β’ Severity 7/10
rear hatch handle stopped working
6 complaints β’ Severity 7.3/10
rear window quit working
3 complaints β’ Severity 6/10
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Mechanic Inspection Checklist
158 owners reported stability control issues β failures commonly reported around 85K miles.
Failure Timeline by Mileage
Peak failure range: 60β90K miles (169 reports) β’ Median: 85K miles
30,000-Mile Cost Projection
Best Case
Most Likely
Worst Case
Top cost driver: Stability Control (158 reports).
Also in your report
Owner Intelligence
AI-synthesized themes from real complaints
Buyer Lot Checklist
Questions, test drive checks, walk-away triggers
Negotiation Talking Points
Data-backed dollar deductions
Buy / Skip Verdict
Final recommendation with conditions
Where the complaints fall
2003 Toyota Sequoia: Known Issues & Problem Areas
Stability Control Issues
Stability Control complaints account for 18% of all reports filed for the 2003 Toyota Sequoia, with 158 owners filing complaints with NHTSA. The median mileage at time of complaint is 85,000 miles, suggesting issues tend to surface around the 85K-mile mark.
Brakes Issues
Brakes complaints account for 11% of all reports filed for the 2003 Toyota Sequoia, with 99 owners filing complaints with NHTSA. Owners should pay attention to brakes-related symptoms during test drives and pre-purchase inspections.
Speed Control Issues
Speed Control complaints account for 10% of all reports filed for the 2003 Toyota Sequoia, with 86 owners filing complaints with NHTSA. Owners should pay attention to speed control-related symptoms during test drives and pre-purchase inspections.
Structure:body Issues
Structure:body complaints account for 7% of all reports filed for the 2003 Toyota Sequoia, with 57 owners filing complaints with NHTSA. Owners should pay attention to structure:body-related symptoms during test drives and pre-purchase inspections.
Data sourced from NHTSA owner complaints and community reports. The full report analyzes severity, repair costs, and failure patterns for each category.
Complaint trend by year
Complaints filed with NHTSA by year for the 2003 Toyota Sequoia. Recent trend: increasing.



Don't negotiate blind β know what this car costs to own
Repair costs β’ Negotiation scripts β’ Mechanic checklist β’ Buy/skip verdict
Recall History (7 recalls)
SUSPENSION:FRONT:CONTROL ARM:LOWER BALL JOINT
ON CERTAIN SPORT UTILITY VEHICLES, DUE TO A MANUFACTURING ISSUE IN THE FRONT SUSPENSION LOWER BALL JOINT, THERE IS A POSSIBILITY THAT THE SURFACE OF THE BALL OF THE JOINT MAY HAVE BEEN SCRATCHED. THE BALL JOINT MAY EVENTUALLY EXPERIENCE EXCESSIVE WEAR AND LOOSENESS, RESULTING IN INCREASED STEERING EFFORT.
EXTERIOR LIGHTING
CERTAIN CK MOTORSPORTS COMBINATION HEADLIGHTS, CLEAR CORNER, BUMPER, AND SIDE MARKER LIGHTS SOLD AS REPLACEMENT LAMPS FOR USE ON THE PASSENGER VEHICLES LISTED ABOVE. SOME COMBINATION LAMPS THAT ARE NOT EQUIPPED WITH AMBER SIDE REFLECTORS FAIL TO CONFORM TO FEDERAL MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY STANDARD NO. 108, LAMPS, REFLECTIVE DEVICES, AND ASSOCIATED EQUIPMENT.
TRACTION CONTROL SYSTEM
TOYOTA IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2003 SEQUOIA PASSENGER VEHICLES MANUFACTURED FROM APRIL 1, 2002 THROUGH APRIL 17, 2003. THE CENTER POSITION OF THE STEERING ANGLE SENSOR (SAS) MAY NOT BE STORED CORRECTLY DUE TO IMPROPER LOGIC OF THE SKID CONTROL ECU PROGRAMMING. THE VEHICLE STABILITY CONTROL (VSC) SYSTEM COULD ACTIVATE AT LOW SPEED FOR A FEW SECONDS DURING ACCELERATION FROM A STOPPED POSITION.
AIR BAGS
Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) notified the agency on May 13, 2015 that they are recalling certain model year 2004 Sequoia vehicles manufactured August 18, 2003, to August 19, 2004, and 2003-2004 Tundra vehicles manufactured March 18, 2003, to August 25, 2004. On June 16, 2015, Toyota expanded the recall to include an additional 1,270,468 vehicles, including model year 2002-2003 and 2005-2007 Sequoia, 2005-2006 Tundra, 2003-2007 Corolla, 2003-2007 Corolla Matrix, 2003-2007 Pontiac Vibe and 2002-2007 Lexus SC vehicles. This is to address a safety defect in the passenger side frontal air bag inflator which may produce excessive internal pressure causing the inflator to rupture upon deployment of the air bag. This recall addresses both the passenger side frontal air bags that were originally installed in the vehicles, as well as replacement air bags that may have been installed as replacement service parts. A replacement air bag may have been installed, as one example, if a vehicle had been in a crash necessitating the replacement of the passenger side frontal air bag.
AIR BAGS
Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) notified the agency on May 13, 2015, that they are recalling 2005-2007 Lexus SC, Toyota Corolla, Corolla Matrix, Sequoia, and Pontiac Vibe, and 2005-2006 Toyota Tundra vehicles that were originally sold, or ever registered, in Florida, along the Gulf Coast, Puerto Rico, Hawaii, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, Saipan and American Samoa. On June 16, 2015 Toyota expanded the recall to cover an additional 769,055 vehicles, including certain model year 2002-2004 Lexus SC, Toyota Sequoia, 2003-2004 Toyota Corolla Matrix, Toyota Corolla, Pontiac Vibe, and Toyota Tundra vehicles, as well the vehicles covered by the May 13, 2015 notification in the portions of Georgia, Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas that were not previously included. The inflators in the front passenger air bags are susceptible to rupture in the event of a crash necessitating the deployment of the front passenger air bag.
+ 2 more recalls in the full report
Recall severity analysis & seller scripts
The full report rates each recall's severity and gives you scripts for asking the seller about recall completion.
The worst model year for the Toyota Sequoia is the 2002 β worth knowing if you're cross-shopping years. The biggest problem area is brakes.
2003 Toyota Sequoia vs. Class Average (Sport Utility Vehicle - 2WD)
This vehicle
875
Class avg
343
2.6x the class average β significantly more complaints than typical sport utility vehicle - 2wd vehicles.
Complaint counts correlate with sales volume β popular vehicles naturally generate more reports. The full report normalizes for this.
About this data
NHTSA Complaints
Federal database of owner-filed safety complaints. 875 records for this vehicle.
NHTSA Recalls
Manufacturer-issued safety recalls. 7 recalls found for this vehicle.
Repair Cost Data
Real-world repair costs from owner reports and independent databases.
Other Toyota Sequoia Model Years
View all Toyota Sequoia years β2003 Toyota Sequoia: Frequently Asked Questions
What is the most common problem with the 2003 Toyota Sequoia?
Is the 2003 Toyota Sequoia reliable?
How much does it cost to fix 2003 Toyota Sequoia problems?
Does the 2003 Toyota Sequoia have any recalls?
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How is this different from free NHTSA data?
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10 sections of AI analysis based on 875 owner reports. Know before you buy.