2003 Toyota Sequoia SR5

No clear pattern

0.6% of complaints about the 2003 Toyota Sequoia SR5 arrived in its first year of service. That is an unusual figure for a 2003 vehicle, but with only 159 complaints on record the sample is too small to call it a pattern — the margin of error covers the range where ordinary vehicles sit. The figures below are reported without a verdict. The most-reported system is electronic stability control (esc) (33 complaints), typically at 7.8 yr or about 101,000 miles.

Complaints: 159
Median age at failure: 8.5 yr
Median mileage: 105,000 n=134
Crash / fire / tow: 5% of reports
Safety recalls: 0

In owners’ own words

Electronic stability control (esc) 88,000 mi 7.3 yr in service

ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL TRACTION CONTROL SYSTEM LIGHTS COME ON WHILE IS RUNNING , ONLY WAY TO TAKE IT OFF IS TURNING THE CAR OFF. *TR

Electronic stability control (esc) 105,000 mi 7.8 yr in service

VEHICLE STABILITY CONTROL SYSTEM FAILURE...VSC, TRAC, AND ABS FAILURE...ALL 2003 TOYOTA SEQUOIA. *TR

Electronic stability control (esc) 96,000 mi 7.8 yr in service

2003 TOYOTA SEQUOIA - THE VSC, TRAC AND BRAKE LIGHT ALL ILLUMINATED WITH A GRINDING SOUND COMING FROM UNDER THE CAR. THE CAR SHUDDERED TO A STOP DURING ACCELERATION. BARELY AVOIDED AN ACCIDENT BY QUICKLY PULLING THE CAR OVER. JUST CHECKED WITH TOYOTA AND MY CAR IS NOT INCLUDED IN THE RECALL FOR THIS IDENTICAL PROBLEM. PLEASE EXPLAIN YOUR REASONING BEHIND NOT INCLUDING ALL SEQUOIA'S WITH THIS DANGEROUS PROBLEM. *TR

Speed control 105,000 mi 7.1 yr in service

THE VSC. TCS WARNING LIGHTS ARE ON IN VEHICLE AND AFTER READING THE ABOUT INCIDENTS OCCURRING IN OTHER 03 SEQUOIAS, I AM NERVOUS TO CONTINUE DRIVING IT. *TR

How to read this

This is what owners reported, not a reliability rating. People file with NHTSA about alarming failures, not routine ones, and complaint volume tracks how many cars were sold.
Failure ages come from the incident date on each complaint, populated on about 83% of records. Mileage is shown where reported — NHTSA’s 2021 system change cut mileage capture to roughly 15%, so it thins out sharply after MY2020.
Every rank compares this vehicle only against others of the same model year. A 2025 car has not had time to accumulate five-year failures, so comparing early-failure share across years is meaningless.
Fourteen make-months distorted by media storms and mass recalls — Toyota in February 2010 ran 11× normal volume across 33 models — are excluded.
Recalls are manufacturer actions and authoritative; complaints are not. A recall listed here may already have been performed on any individual car. Check a specific VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.

2003 Toyota Sequoia SR5

When each system is reported — middle 50% of complaints

In owners’ own words

How to read this