Toyota Raum: Power sliding door failing to open or close

The power sliding door is the Raum's signature feature and it is also its signature fault — the same mechanism Toyota used across several models has a known record of failing. It stops partway, refuses to open at all, opens but will not latch, or works intermittently depending on the weather. Causes range from a worn motor and a stretched cable to the roller and rail wearing, or a door sensor that no longer reports the door as closed, which can then keep the interior light on and flatten the battery. For most buyers this is the deciding fault on a Raum rather than a mechanical one, because the sliding door is the reason to buy the car — and a failed one turns a family-friendly wagon into an awkward one. It is also entirely testable in the driveway, which makes it one of the easiest checks in this report.

• Door stopping partway, or refusing to move under power
• Door opening but not latching, or needing a hard push to catch
• Grinding, clicking or straining noise from the door as it moves
• Door ajar warning with the door visibly shut, or the interior light staying on
• Battery going flat after the car has stood a few days

Test the door many times, not once — this fault is often intermittent and a single successful cycle proves nothing. Operate it from the key fob, from the interior switch and from the door handle in turn, and run it fully open and fully closed at least five or six times, listening for grinding, clicking or a strained note and watching for any point where it hesitates or stops. Then open and close it by hand with the power system off and feel whether it slides smoothly along its track or drags and catches. Look along the runner and at the rollers for wear, damage or a build-up of grit. With the doors shut and the ignition on, check the dash for a door ajar warning and check the interior light goes out and stays out. Ask the seller whether the door has ever failed, whether the motor or cable has been replaced, and whether the battery has ever gone flat while the car was standing — a flat battery on a Raum often traces back to this door. If a workshop inspection is possible: ask for the door motor, cable and sensor to be checked.

$400 to $2,200 at New Zealand independent workshop rates. That is for this job on its own, not for the car.

An estimate, in NZD, for the repair as normally carried out. What a specific car costs depends on which part has failed and what it damaged on the way — treat this as the floor for a negotiation, not a quote.

• “Does the power sliding door work every single time, from every control?”
• “Has the door motor, cable or sensor ever been replaced?”
• “Has the battery ever gone flat while the car was parked up?”

The failure described above is documented in published sources — owner forums, technical service bulletins, recall notices and workshop write-ups — held in our fault database. The inspection instructions and the cost estimate are KickTyres’ own interpretation of them, and it is a starting point for an inspection rather than a manufacturer statement.