T3 Problems

[kct1]

Hi,

I am a newbie to this site. I joined to register faults that I have experienced with my Corolla T3 since purchasing it.

I live on the Isle of Wight and bought this model, my 2nd Corolla, from the official dealership almost three years ago; the warranty runs out in September.

The car was a demonstrator with six thousand miles on the clock when I purchased it, and was in almost showroom condition. It only has 15610 miles on the clock now.

Fault 1) After the first three weeks of driving, the engine would cut out for no apparent reason. At first I thought it was my driving -- new car and all that. This went on for a few weeks before I took it in to the dealer. They couldn't find anything wrong with it, but changed the fuel pump just in case it was that. Another three weeks and it finally went back to the dealer. They drove it themselves for a further two weeks, when it happened to them and it was discovered that the problem was a faulty ignition switch. It was replaced under warranty and no more problems till now.

Fault 2) This started a couple of weeks ago when reversing: a horrible whining from the front end every time I reversed. At first I thought it might be a stone lodged in the break shoe and gave it some time to work loose before more drastic action was needed. It did not clear by itself and I have now been told that it is a noisy clutch and will be replaced under warranty.

I have a sneaky feeling this isn't going to be the last of the problems. I just hope it is the clutch and not the gearbox.

In fairness to the dealership on the Isle of Wight, they have been very helpful and understanding. I hope Toyoto get their act together as I, like most other Toyoto owners, have bought their cars because of the reliability they have built their sales on.

Keith.

[T600]

Welcome to TOC Keith.

Sorry to hear that you're having problems with the Corolla.

We've had a few toyotas over the last few years and only had one major problem which was with the top end on the VVTLi engine in a Celica 190. It took a while to get that sorted, but to be fair the dealership kept at it, and once it was fixed it stayed fixed. Didn't put me off the brand at all because compared with the problems we had with other makes this was nothing.

So persevere and I'm sure you will get the problems sorted.

Re the warranty - don't forget you can extend it for a reasonable price; it's a few hundred quid but if you're worried about having problems in the future then it's probably worth it.

Tony

[kct1]

Welcome to TOC Keith.

Sorry to hear that you're having problems with the Corolla. 

We've had a few toyotas over the last few years and only had one major problem which was with the top end on the VVTLi engine in a Celica 190.  It took a while to get that sorted, but to be fair the dealership kept at it, and once it was fixed it stayed fixed.  Didn't put me off the brand at all because compared with the problems we had with other makes this was nothing.

So persevere and I'm sure you will get the problems sorted.

Re the warranty - don't forget you can extend it for a reasonable price; it's a few hundred quid but if you're worried about having problems in the future then it's probably worth it.

Tony

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Thanks for your reply and the welcome, Tony. I have had a Corrola for the past eight years or so. My earlier model had no faults or problems with it at all, and that too was purchased second hand with very low mileage. This was the reason why I bought another when the time came. I think in general, though not particularly exciting cars, the Toyoto Corrola's are very reliable. Most mechanics I speak to seem to praise them very highly for their mechanics. Thanks for the tip about extending the warranty. In view of the problems I have experienced, it might prove to be a good idea to check this out in September.

Regards

Keith