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Long story short.... we purchased a brand new 2014 Venza Limited last year with 12 miles on it. Every option available including the panoramic glass roof. At 7k miles, the roof exploded making a turn (literally) so we took it to the dealership to have a new one installed. We were told then that it was defective glass. At 15k miles the roof began making a popping sound when going over train tracks, or taking an off-kilter incline such as a pitched driveway. Took it back to the dealership and was told that the popping was common and not to be concerned.
Fast forward to 25k miles. After a hard rain, we noticed the roof was damp where the a-pillar meets the roofline. Called the service manager who is a friend of ours and he had me bring it in. He said the sunroof drains were an issue on these and had them cleaned out. We again mentioned the popping. He said it was fixed, and if the popping noise wasn't a big deal to try to live with it because all they could do was make it worse. He mentioned they used a thicker and harder sealant on a couple and it would actually buckle the sheetmetal at the roofline if the wrong approach were used to an incline due to the lack of structural support.
As of this morning, the wife called and it is leaking again and the roof is still making the popping noise. We are headed to trade it in this evening as we are within 9k miles of being out of warranty and the dealerships around here all say they cannot fix it. It's sad really... as we love this car.
We're prepared to take a hefty hit to our wallet with trading it but at this point it's worth it to get back into something (not a Toyota) that we don't have these issues with.
So if you're looking for a Venza, AVOID the panoramic roof at all costs if possible. Toyota has acknowledged they cannot fix it, and don't seem too inclined to compensate anyone for the trouble.
Sorry to hear of the troubles! If the problem is not fixable and after so many attempts have been made already to correct it, then why not pursue lemon law on it?
Long story short.... we purchased a brand new 2014 Venza Limited last year with 12 miles on it. Every option available including the panoramic glass roof. At 7k miles, the roof exploded making a turn (literally) so we took it to the dealership to have a new one installed. We were told then that it was defective glass. At 15k miles the roof began making a popping sound when going over train tracks, or taking an off-kilter incline such as a pitched driveway. Took it back to the dealership and was told that the popping was common and not to be concerned.
Fast forward to 25k miles. After a hard rain, we noticed the roof was damp where the a-pillar meets the roofline. Called the service manager who is a friend of ours and he had me bring it in. He said the sunroof drains were an issue on these and had them cleaned out. We again mentioned the popping. He said it was fixed, and if the popping noise wasn't a big deal to try to live with it because all they could do was make it worse. He mentioned they used a thicker and harder sealant on a couple and it would actually buckle the sheetmetal at the roofline if the wrong approach were used to an incline due to the lack of structural support.
As of this morning, the wife called and it is leaking again and the roof is still making the popping noise. We are headed to trade it in this evening as we are within 9k miles of being out of warranty and the dealerships around here all say they cannot fix it. It's sad really... as we love this car.
We're prepared to take a hefty hit to our wallet with trading it but at this point it's worth it to get back into something (not a Toyota) that we don't have these issues with.
So if you're looking for a Venza, AVOID the panoramic roof at all costs if possible. Toyota has acknowledged they cannot fix it, and don't seem too inclined to compensate anyone for the trouble.
See if it happens a third time. Hold onto it till you get about 1K left in mileage on it with full warranty. If it happens a third time, you can pursue lemon law remedies.
It's out of the lemon law jurisdiction unfortunately.... "
LEMON LAW COVERAGE PERIOD
The lemon law establishes a lemon law rights period ending one year after the date of
the vehicle’s original delivery to a consumer or the first 12,000 miles of operation,
whichever occurs first.
"
We kept being pushed off by the service managers to give it some time, so we only took it in physically twice before 24k miles and only once did they notate it was for the roof (when they replaced it). They wrote the last attempt up as a water leak and I believe said it was from clogged sunroof drains.
Toyota has been trying to cover this up for a while. It's tough to find a lot of info on the roofs shattering unless you dig really deep online and know someone at Toyota who will admit to it. They've kept it VERY quiet.
I might elevate it to the regional Toyota dealer rep. Each Region has one. Explain that its the second time you've dealt with it and are worried about the problem persisting after warranty, and want some satisfaction.
From what I can read.... no one has successfully gotten anything out of trying to escalate the situation to Toyota. They've been trying to sweep it under the rug because there haven't been enough issues to warrant a recall. But I'll give it a shot.
I just got off the phone with Toyota Corporate. They are escalating my case to a case manager. She asked what we were looking for in terms of compensation from the event. I told her that all we are asking for is for Toyota to basically "buy back" the Venza at our cost, for an agreement that we would purchase another vehicle of comparable features and price in its place (IE most likely a Highlander).
I'm supposed to hear back from them within 1 business day. I looked at my service records online, and it looks like the dealership in question didn't write up last week's event as a water leak, but instead just wrote down a 27 point inspection. I can't see all the notes, so I told her to review the records to make sure it did indicate it was a roof problem. And if not, to let me know and I'll forward the correspondence between myself and the service manager where I advised of the issue and he told me to bring it in. Also the email saying they fixed it.
Not surprised. You could always sue them for a material breach of your contract. You had every right to expect that you were buying a vehicle that wouldn't leak, and that's not what you got.
If I was you, I'd include all other costs of repairs, along with the initial purchase price and any other costs related, like having to get a rental car, or time taken off work, etc.
If you go ahead and sue them, you could ask for all of the above plus your attorney fees. And they would have a public relations nightmare on their hands. So, go for the gold, in my opinion.
We aren't out any repair costs so far, as it has all been covered under the manufacturer's warranty. Rental cars included. We've also gone after work, so no time lost there either. I don't want to consider a lawsuit just yet, as I believe in giving everyone an opportunity to make it right. I emailed the salesperson we used, and he said they would like an opportunity to make it right and attempting to trade us out of it into a Highlander. He said if we weren't happy with what they could do, then we could explore other avenues.
It's really not the dealer's fault so if they can make it right (they don't want bad publicity with all the Toyota recalls right now) we will go that route. But if it ends up costing us more than we initially paid for the Venza, we're going to hold out and pursue other avenues. I showed him the exact Highlander she wants this morning, which is identical in the color scheme/trim package as our Venza. If he can make that work, we're good. Otherwise, we're moving on up the ladder.
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