Not common.
But many people listen to their vehicles. Your van was crying out to you to oil the hinge. A drop or two of oil and the hinge would not have broken.

 

Sure, I'm replying to a post from 4 years ago, but I had to point out to Lipster that, at least in 2019, there are hundreds if not thousands of chat room complaints about the fuel filler door on the Sienna. I found this out when I searched for information on fuel door failures when we purchased a 2015 Sienna in Fall of 2018 (that we only found out had a bad fuel door after we got it home). There is a spring-loaded push button mounted to the inside of the recessed fuel filler opening (part of vehicle alarm system, to prevent fuel theft?), and it pushes against the rear side of the fuel filler door adjacent to the top hinge. It's a two-fold problem: the force required to depress the push button when closing the fuel door is significant (much more than should be used to trigger/disable an alarm), and the twin hinges on the door are out and out crap. Toyota should be ashamed for letting a design like that get off the drawing board and into the manufactured vehicle. Seriously!!! I disabled the push button by unscrewing the retaining bolt, pulling out the rubber boot around the filler pipe, sticking my hand in and grabbing the push button cable to pull it out through the filler pipe opening, and then using a zip-tie to depress the spring and disable the alarm. Given the number of cycles of use for a fuel door, you'd think Toyota (quality control, right guys?) would do a better job in the design phase. Oh well, live and learn...and buy a replacement fuel door for my wife's Sienna.

 

Not common.
But many people listen to their vehicles. Your van was crying out to you to oil the hinge. A drop or two of oil and the hinge would not have broken.

Lubricating the hinge is in interesting idea but oil would end up running down the bodywork. All except three of the vehicles I've owned in the past half century have had fuel filler doors and none ever required lubrication of filler door hinges. Lubrication was not specified in either maintenance schedules or shop manuals of any of those vehicles but I'll check with the dealer if filler door hinge lubrication is in the specifications for the Sienna. The last vehicle I owned that had a maintenance schedule that specified lubrication of any hinge was made in 1956!

 

Bravo, great reply .....

 

One drop of oil on two metal squeaking parts will not run down the bodywork. I know because I have done it. Listed in the manual or not, if two metal parts of a hinge start to squeak, and keep squeaking over several months, a drop of oil is likely a good idea, especially in any area that uses salt on the roads. You can call it interesting, I call it prudent.

 

One drop of oil on two metal squeaking parts will not run down the bodywork. I know because I have done it. Listed in the manual or not, if two metal parts of a hinge start to squeak, and keep squeaking over several months, a drop of oil is likely a good idea, especially in any area that uses salt on the roads. You can call it interesting, I call it prudent.

It has taken an unusual amount of force to open my Sienna's fuel filler door since the van was new so I suspect a manufacturing or assembly defect although the hinge design is poor compared to other vehicles I've owned. At least now that the top hinge is broken, the filler door swings freely like those on our other vehicles and all the other Toyota and Lexus vehicles we've owned or own now.

I'll check other Siennas tomorrow when I have mine at the dealership for repair to see if their fuel filler doors swing freely or require an unusual amount of force like mine did.

 

On my 2011 the hinge on the fuel filler door also broke at the top of the hinge. It's the door safety push button that's breaking these. No cheap fix discovered yet.

 

Mine just broke today. Seen another post on here with a LOT of other folks experiencing the same problem!

 

Welcome to the Unhinged Club!

 

Mine broke too. Hinge bracket snapped.

 

Same problem with mine. Broke at about 3.5 years. The place where the "hinge" is crimped to the post is poorly made and does not easily swivel, despite lubrication. It's a horrible design.

 

Mine started to creak badly a few weeks ago. Two drops of Kroil and some movement freed it up nicely. I followed that with two drops of 30 weight oil. No drips, and totally quiet and smooth again.

Now that you know, oil it preemptively to avoid issues.

 

Finally got around to oiling mine (kept forgetting). I just put a couple of drops of 3-in-one oil on both the top and bottom hinges. That seems to have done the trick. It's now very easy to close the door now. I'll have to remember to do this a couple of times a year since I'm sure the oil will eventually wash off since that door isn't really sealed from the elements.

 

I gave up, bought some 3-in-1 oil and lubed the fuel door hinges today. Opening and closing the door over and over after lubing the hinges eventually made the door move smoothly again although I had to keep mopping up the oil with a towel as it ran from the hinges. The 3-in-1 oil dispenser I bought has a built-in tube that extends six inches or so which makes it easier to apply.

The fuel door hinge design is still utterly pathetic in my opinion. I've had a bizillion vehicles with fuel doors - keep several of them 10 to 15 years - and this is the first time I've ever lubed one.

 

Since the hinge area is painted, it may be a bit tricky to get the oil to wick into the joint. But once it's in there, you really only need a few drops. Something like WD-40 would likely wick in there easier, but I find it's too light of a lubricant for something like this. It will evaporate after a few weeks or maybe a few months at most and you'll be right back where you started.

 

And that's why I started with Kroil to penetrate the entire structure, followed by 30w for longevity and good lubricating properties.

 

Mine was sqeaking too. I used http://www.valco-cp.com/gellube.htm

 

Just add this task in the list for preventative maintenance.

Any silicone based spray will work fine. Being water resistant it will also prevent rust. While you are at it, you can also spray the front door hinges.

Even before the fuel door hinge starts squeaking, the door itself will stop going all the way back on its own when you pull the "Fuel Door" tab inside the cabin. That's the sign that the hinge needs lubrication. Since we have owned the van, I have had to spray on an avg, thrice a year and its been working fine so far.

 

Thanks!! I'll lube those too.

 

My fuel filler door hinge broke on 2012 Sienna. I had my car in for service and when I picked it up, the service advisor asked if I have ever had any problem with the door. When I got home from Las Vegas, I checked the door and found the top hinge of the fuel filler door was broken. I do not know why the dealer advisor did not tell me the hinge was broken. Wilson Toyota Las Vegas.

 

YES, COMMON problem. Poor design. Toyota does NOT stand behind it, even under warranty. Pathetic! This, among numerous other things WILL prevent me from buying another Toyota. Had a Gen. 2 and was pretty happy. Gen 3 is a BIG step backward for Toyota.

P.S. Watch "car-parts.com" for a hinge from a van in your color. You just might get lucky.

 

The pin in the upper hinge of my daughter's Sienna worked its way up, out of the hinge, making her think it had broken. The safety switch thought the fuel door was open, preventing the sliding door from opening. I lined up the two halves of the hinge and tapped the pin back into place. You might check for a similar situation that could look like a broken hinge.

 

There is another post on this, #4865?

Here's what I had posted there.

1st post didn't list, here's what I had sent to Toyota and the NHTSA

FUEL DOOR HINGE BROKE BECAUSE THE FUEL DOOR PIN HAS SO MUCH TENSION THAT IT BROKE THE HINGE. THIS CAUSED A SAFETY ISSUE BECAUSE THE DOOR CANNOT BE OPENED FROM THE INSIDE IF IT IS NOT CLOSED ALL THEY WAY OR PUSHED CLOSED ENOUGH FOR THE SENSOR TO ALLOW THE SLIDING DOOR TO OPEN. THIS EVENT WAS REPORTED PAST THE 36 MONTH WARRANTY, (AT 40 MONTHS, BUT LESS THAN THE MILEAGE WARRANTY), BUT HAD BEGUN BEFORE THE WARRANTY HAD ENDED. CURRENT OWNERS SHOULD BE AWARE THAT IF THERE ARE INSTANCES BEGINNING OF THE DOOR NOT BEING ABLE TO BE OPENED, SHOULD CHECK THE HINGE AND PIN TENSION AND HAVE IT FIXED WHILE IT COULD BE UNDER WARRANTY. THIS SHOULD BE AN ITEM COVERED UNDER AN EXTENDED WARRANTY DUE TO THE SAFETY ISSUE OF NOT BEING ABLE TO EXIT THE VEHICLE IN AN EMERGENCY SITUATION. THIS HAPPENED SEVERAL TIMES WHILE PARKED AND EXITING THE VEHICLE. THERE ARE OTHER INSTANCES OF THIS ISSUE ON DIFFERENT SIENNA AND TOYOTA FORUMS. Toyota service manager confirms that it is excessive, but only resolution would be to replace cable with no guarantee it wouldn't have excessive force also. Only other resolution would be to have Service Bulletin issued by Toyota.

Your tracking number assigned by NHTSA for this issue is 11025478. Please keep this number for your records and for future reference. Once your complaint has been processed, you will be able to view it online and find any related documents. Please allow two business days for NHTSA to review your complaint.

 

I want to thank everyone for bring this information to my attention. After reading this thread, I went out and checked the fuel filler door. It did not seem too stiff but I added a few drops of oil and it moved a little easier. Going forward, I will add this to my annual maintenance checklist.

 

i have a 2015 Sienna LE the top hinge on mine broke like 2 weeks ago asked the dealer if there is a fix for it and he said that there is reports of this happening to a 2015 model so its not covered
i a, just going to weld it up my self and drill out the hinge so its not so tight

 

While stiff hinges contribute to the issue, the real problem continues to be the sliding door interlock button that requires so much force that it distorts the fuel door when you close it. If it wasn't for that pressure, the fuel door hinges wouldn't break. And I suspect that any fix to the hinges will just break again.

 

Hi, seems we have the same problem here. 2014 SE, just outside of 36 month warranty, has 32k miles. The interlock button is so hard I cant even close the fuel door anymore, and the sliding door will not open. Any DIY fix? I have an appointment at the dealer on Monday and was wondering if there is a cheaper option like accessing the button from the driver side rear trim and seeing what the culprit is. Is there a part number we can easily swap out on our own?

Thanks so much!

 

I have a Toyota Sienna SE with the same broken upper hinge problem. Happened at about 75k and warranty does not cover it so I'm waiting till I have to get it fixed. It will cost 425 canadian dollars.

 

I have a 3 year old Sienna and my door hinge broke completely off too. The dealer charged me $400 because I needed a whole new door. Complete ripoff to be charged for a defective part. In my 30+ years of driving I've never had a car that this happened to!

At least Toyota finally took ownership of the sliding door issues. When that first started happening the dealership wanted almost $2,000 and told me it was my fault for opening and closing the doors too much! I was able to get both doors fixed free of charge finally. I love Toyotas, but they really need to take ownership for their issues much more quickly.

 

Yep, mine broke on my 2015 Sienna. That's kind of frustrating. We had a 2007 Sienna before we purchased this one and never had this problem. What changed? I can't believe that tiny metal flap is all that's holding that thing on. That's the best they can do on a $40,000 vehicle?! The one on my Prius is much more durable. What the heck? Any fix for this yet?