[hellspcangel911]

Hi All,
Let me start by saying I did search and couldnt find anything concrete, if there is something out there you are aware of I would appreciate you pointing my in the right direction.
Usually after it rains, or high humidity, the factory alarm on my 2001 SR5 goes off when its locked and in my front driveway (regardless of whether its parked flat, facing up or down). Also it does it in the middle of the night or in the middle of the day with no consistency.
I had the windshield replaced about a year ago, and when it rains a lot I notice the front center console cup holder to have water in it (it drips from the the overhead display area straight down). I cleaned the sunroof drains but the problem persists.
I found a few posts where people are pointed to the hood contact switch in the front. I searched and i dont have a switch - i can lock the car with the hood open, maybe this was on the Limited or the next generation.
I am thinking the issue is in the rear trunk door. It has the electric rear window. I had the rear hatch handle break once and when I replaced it i found a lot of rusted flakes in the door. Now, about a two years later, everytime i shut the door i hear a shwoosh of rust loose in there... the door is rusting from the inside in, mu guess is there is a lot of moisture there (not sure why because the seal appears to be in good shape and i never use the rear window). The moisture can trigger the alarm? I tried locking the car with the rear gate open and it wouldnt do it, so the switch is operable.
I'm going to open it up and see, but before I do that, anything else i could have overlooked?
The car is pampered but does have a lot of rust underneath (only 90k miles), i'm scheduled in two weeks for the frame treatment at the dealer.

Thank you!

 

[harleywu]

My 2001 Sequoia SR5 has the similar issue, any update on your car?

 

[hellspcangel911]

Nothing new... though the car hasnt done it since I got it back from Toyota (they replaced the frame under the rust recall). I know they didnt replace anything in the rear hatch or windshield. If I have time one of these days ill open the rear hatch, vaccum out the 3 pounds of rust, lubricate everything and clean the contacts... see if that makes a difference..

 

[harleywu]

Thanks, I should try to do the same thing as you said to see if there is any luck.

 

[COSequoia]

Same type of issue

We have the same problem with our 2005 Limited. This has been happening for quite awhile and now the headlights will also stay on and drain the battery. The only work around is to not lock the car with the key fob, not a very good solution.

Any updates in the last couple months?

 

[hellspcangel911]

EXCTLY! I had the car in for the rust recall, they switched the frame and I had a few issues with it since but they have been very good about continuing to diagnose and repair.
Its been about 3 months since the repair and all of a sudden the headlights would just turn on. Shes got about 110,000 miles now and this is the first time it has happened, I assume it was related to some of the electrical issues from the frame swap so they agreed to take it (next week) and hopefully fix it.
I originally thought it might have had soemthing to do with the DRLs disabled under the hood but no change.
In the meantime I'm using the battery disconnect. Very disapointing.
I'll post when i get it back from toyota.

P.S. I still think this has to do with the rust in the the rear hatch...

 

[COSequoia]

110,000 miles also....

There are a couple of things you said that are very interesting....

our '05 also has exactly 110,xxx miles on it. Also, i have been assuming to date that the water intrusion has been coming from underneath and causing the erratic behavior, when you mentioned 'back hatch' it makes me think that could be the issue. The Sequoia we have had an aftermarket back up camera installed prior to us owning it. If the rear hatch sensor is getting wet and causing the issue, it could be there is a leak at that camera...I am going to seal it up with silicone and see if i can get the issue resolved...seems like a simple way to rule it out.

Thanks for the great insight and looking forward to hearing what the dealer has to say.

 

[hellspcangel911]

the only thing i found online about the headlight issue was solved by replacing the No.4 DRL relay... I havent tried it yet but it might be worth a go..
As for siliconing the rear gate... i assume you mean putting a bead of silicone around the glass. Its not a bad idea if you dont use that feature. I would however suggest first taking it apart and cleaning everything int here, contacts, locking mechanism even replacing the latch which is known to break...

 

[COSequoia]

Yes, I am going to silicone around the aftermarket camera (about the size of a quarter) that was installed in the back hatch. If it is the window seal, that is going to suck because we use that all the time.

Let me know how the dealer goes and I may also replce the sensor you mentioned proactively depending on cost. If I do I will advise.

Also, today the radio stayed on after the car was off and the door opened, not supposed to do that either....electrical issues are just so much fun to chase down ;(

 

[hellspcangel911]

do you have any water leaks in the cab? I belive mine started after the windshield was replaced and I have been trying to find correlation with that and the electrical issues. My car is very well pampered, no accidents..etc, so i figured whatever the issue it must be either as a function of time (rust/oxidation) or mechanic interventions (frame replacement, windshield swap...etc).
still clueless....

 

[COSequoia]

The windshield had been replaced, but i have not seen water in the cabin. I am more suspecious of the driver side door and rear hatch at this point

 

[harleywu]

just an update on my SR5, when I am waiting for the solution from my mechanics, and also wait ing for the Summer to get the rust cleaned up, the alarm-off problem was gone by itself and was not back in a couple of weeks.

 

[COSequoia]

Update on my Sequoia. I verified that the vehicle will lock with the hood open so there is not a sensor there. Also that all door sensors seem to be working (ie; if any door is open, including the hatch, the system will not arm).

So my next step was to use a heater in the garage to "dry out" as much as possible, then I silicone'ed the after market backup camera in the hatch in an attempt to "seal" it up. I have taken it through the car wash 3 times now and thru as much slush as I can find, so far ir has not re-occurred.

I am not saying it is fixed, but I am keeping my fingers crossed.

 

[hellspcangel911]

I picked up the car from the dealer, they had it for a week and were unable to replicate the issue. I have had the car for two days and no problems either....but I do not believe that it is 'fixed'. Since I will not be using it, I disconnected the battery (Installed a battery disconnect at the positive terminal). I asked the techs to either way disconnect the alarm system to avoid any issues and the declined. At this point, when the weather warms up I will disable the alarm myself and see if that solves this issue for once and for all.

Just a quick note, the reason I am taking this approach is because I am tired. I dont believe its the right thing to do, and there could be an underlying, hidden problem like a chaffed wiring loom or something. I just cant pi55 off the neighbors again with the alarm blaring at 3am or come back to a dead car after the lights turned themselves on....

 

[hellspcangel911]

Ignition Cylinder

Finally, after four trips to the dealer, replacing the brake pedal sensor we may have found the answer....
Despite the alarm and the lights coming on another issue came up - I couldnt shift the car into Park (which also meant i couldnt turn the car off and lock it).
It took numerous pedal pumps, key jiggles, waiting and shifting around to get it into park. The dealer thought it was the pedal sensor and replaced it - problem persisted, sporadically.
Every now and then without the key in the ignition and the car off, I noticed the gauges starting to flicker, needles dancing and the cruise control light would come on.

I was at the trunk and heard the car turn on and a beeping sound (like when you first turn the key to ON).

Another time I parked the car, pulled the key out of the ignition and was checking my phone when i saw the gauges turn on and the beeping came back (and the DRLs came on). I took the key and gently poked at the igntion cylinder and instantly everything died.

Im convinced that the issue has to deal with the ignition cylinder. I recalled one instance when I couldnt start the car after pumping at a gas station, after disconnecting the battery and playing around it finally worked.
after researching the issue (which seems seldom) Ive learned theres a sensor behind the cylinder that detects that the key is inserted, that could be bad (preventing me from putting the gear selector into P). alternatively the contacts in the cylinder could be corroded or loose causing the issue.

Will post more info once i tear into it.

 

[imero]

were you able to ultimately find a solution to your alarm going off? the alarm on our 2007 sequoia will randomly go off in the middle of the night after it's been raining. i disconnected the hood latch alarm switch, but the problem continues.

thanks.

Finally, after four trips to the dealer, replacing the brake pedal sensor we may have found the answer....
Despite the alarm and the lights coming on another issue came up - I couldnt shift the car into Park (which also meant i couldnt turn the car off and lock it).
It took numerous pedal pumps, key jiggles, waiting and shifting around to get it into park. The dealer thought it was the pedal sensor and replaced it - problem persisted, sporadically.
Every now and then without the key in the ignition and the car off, I noticed the gauges starting to flicker, needles dancing and the cruise control light would come on.

I was at the trunk and heard the car turn on and a beeping sound (like when you first turn the key to ON).

Another time I parked the car, pulled the key out of the ignition and was checking my phone when i saw the gauges turn on and the beeping came back (and the DRLs came on). I took the key and gently poked at the igntion cylinder and instantly everything died.

Im convinced that the issue has to deal with the ignition cylinder. I recalled one instance when I couldnt start the car after pumping at a gas station, after disconnecting the battery and playing around it finally worked.
after researching the issue (which seems seldom) Ive learned theres a sensor behind the cylinder that detects that the key is inserted, that could be bad (preventing me from putting the gear selector into P). alternatively the contacts in the cylinder could be corroded or loose causing the issue.

Will post more info once i tear into it.

 

[hellspcangel911]

Wish I could say I figured it out but the issue still comes up every now and then. I replaced the brake pedal sensor and that helped but Im still having issues with the car.

Recently the alarm has started going off again and the parking lights stay on. Then to add to the fun, the green CRUISE light has started flashing while driving.

Im trying to locate the tail light relay to see if that solves the light issue

 

[hardtopte72]

My 2005 did it for the first time a few nights ago. No clue why and it hasn't happened since. It had rained the night it happened but I washed the car after that and it didn't do it again.

No idea what is causing it and my wiring is nice and dry.

One thing I did notice is on my driver side door latch, the white plastic covering (which appears to give the door the nice quality closing), is all worn out, causing me to have to slam the door shut. I have an overheard DVD player so no dome light to verify whether the door was "open" when the alarm went off, though it does seem like a likely cause. Here are pics to show the difference:

Driver side front:



Driver side rear:

 

[Sean T]

My '02 Sequoia's alarm would go off sporadically at any time of the day or night. In the forums, some suspect a leak after the windshield after it was replaced or some suspect door or hood contacts as the problem. I brought my Sequoia back to Safelite Glass who replaced my windshield and they did removed the molding to check for leaks. In the process, they've cleaned up the car molding which was caked with crud and around the engine compartment that had a lot of leaves that were clogging the drainage system which cause water to leak back into the car - probably causing electrical problems. Satellite quickly pointed to the sunroof drainage system (two hole near the front of the sunroof area) which were clogged - they've seen this happen with vehicles of all makes and models. The tech who had pride in his workmanship used an air hose to blow into the drainage hole which is connected to a hose that runs down the interior molding to drain behind the engine compartment. Once he blew out the stuff that was clogging the sunroof drainage system, water flowed out and now my alarm have not gone off in several days.This seem to be a common problem and I wanted to post this information.

 

[fourwd1]

Thanks for posting this, it may help someone else in the future !