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  • Report:  #1163031

Complaint Review: Toyota USA

Toyota USA Brakes Failed Due To Defective Frame and Family was in Crash and could have been killed. Torrence Nationwide

  • Reported By:
    Carolyn K — New York
  • Submitted:
    Fri, July 18, 2014
  • Updated:
    Fri, July 18, 2014
For over 14 years I have been a loyal Toyota customer and have purchased 5 top of the line vehicles from them. I today am so upset to be a Toyota customer. Their corporate level customer service is the worst. My husband has been for months trying to get someone to help with his Toyota Tacoma that has one of the faulty frames that rusted and developed big holes in the frame which made the otherwise good truck unable to pass inspection and undrivable. On Top of that the corrosion from the frame cause a total brake line failure while he and our two small children were in the truck. 
 
The failure caused him to have to go through a red light and maneuver into the dealership without hitting anything until he crashed into a ditch in the back of the woods of the dealership. This was days before the limited service campaign was announced that would replace these faulty frames in 2005 and older Tacomas. My husband and children were traumatized and they just put them in a rental and got them out of the dealership. My husband had to stop as his legs were shaking so bad and that is how they sent him out. We then spent days on the line with corporate who said they would cover the rental etc. Then we got a call from the dealership if we did not pay for the brake line repair on the truck we would be charged storage fees and we had to pay for the rental. 
 
Since the repairs would be covered in the frame replacement we paid and paid for the rental as corporate assured us we would be reimbursed. We also found out that prior to the service campaign they have been replacing these frames to squeaky wheels and even paying for the rental cars for those customers. Tuesday night we were told that since the program was in phases even though our state was on the list we would have to wait months. 
 
The woman said to see if the dealership would cover a rental and if not call back. the dealership will not cover the rental and so I called back and I escalated things speaking to a Steve Gardner who took all of the information. He just called back and in the most callous way without one ounce of human compassion or kindness stated that, "Sorry there is nothing we can do for you. You will have to wait and you are responsible for a rental and all the fees incurred. When the phase goes through in your state we will review it and let you know if we will cover any of the cost." When I asked how they helped other customers out prior to the campaign he sidestepped it and double spoke to try and lie his way out. I told him I was so sad, disgusted and ashamed that I have been a customer for 14 years and this is how I am treated. He was like a robot, not one ounce of sympathy or customer care. I asked to appeal to someone and he told me he was the highest and that corporate had authorized him to handle this. 
 
So we have a truck that is undrivable, a rental we need to pay hundreds of dollars for and find a vehicle for my husband to drive while we wait months for the campaign to begin in our state and we are not even given any help. I feel like taking my Sienna AWD Limited and driving it there and leaving it. I am so ashamed to own Toyotas. Shame on them for treating people like this and my family could have been killed and they have not one ounce of compassion. What an eye opener.
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