Toyota Corolla Maintenance and Repair

alcan · January 2003

It's in the water pump inlet housing. Align the "jiggle valve" in the rim of the thermostat to within 10 degrees of vertical when installing.

mosquitonet · January 2003

need help on how to remove a busted fuse -ALT 100 A:tail lights, stop, ecu,am1, abs. this is #34 fuse on the manual(95). Spent a lot of time trying but to no avail. have Haynes repair manual but have no discussion on removal of this major fuse. car is dead. i like to get some help from toyomaritans out there before sorting to towing this poor buddy to a shop. all response will be greatly appreciated

mosquitonet · January 2003

have a 95 corolla that suddenly went dead. checked repair manual- suggested checking relay and fuses. found busted fuse #34:ALT 100A:tail lights, stop,ecu,am1,and abs. seems like its one of the most important fuse in the engine compartment. tried to remove it but to no avail. im thinking its prongs are secured underneath. repair manual doesnt include any discussion on the proper removal of this. hints/tips will be greatly appreciated. thanks folks!!

billwhc · January 2003

Purchased new Corolla '03 in July have gone 17,000 miles and since purchase have had "Rotten Egg-Sulfur" smell, mostly with cold engine, but also at other times when the engine was warm. This is in Hot Washingtn, DC Summer and in Washington DC winter.

Have been told by dealer in OCtober that is was the gas, it is normal, etc. It is not normal and not all Corolla '03's have the problem! Am going to second dealership and have contacted the National Safety Transportation Board to complain.

Suggest that others complain officially if they are not being helped! There is a problem and Toyota does not seem to be willing to do anything about it, so contact them officially as well. Any other suggestions, let me know. But, I for one, will not take this lying down.

Bil, In Washington

billwhc · January 2003

Purchased new Corolla '03 in July have gone 17,000 miles and since purchase have had "Rotten Egg-Sulfur" smell, mostly with cold engine, but also at other times when the engine was warm. This is in Hot Washingtn, DC Summer and in Washington DC winter.

Have been told by dealer in OCtober that is was the gas, it is normal, etc. It is not normal and not all Corolla '03's have the problem! Am going to second dealership and have contacted the National Safety Transportation Board to complain.

Suggest that others complain officially if they are not being helped! There is a problem and Toyota does not seem to be willing to do anything about it, so contact them officially as well. Any other suggestions, let me know. But, I for one, will not take this lying down.

Bil, In Washington

billwhc · January 2003

You can officially inform the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration www.nhtsa.gov of the sulfur issue and the more that complain the more likely they will get involved with Toyota and get a solution. I submitted mine today and it took only ten minutes.

Don't sit back and take it; do something constructive.

mcdawgg · January 2003

It's not just Corollas with the rotten-egg smell. Look at the other boards - Hondas, Nissans, etc. have the same complaints.

hhomer · January 2003

Yesterday I got my car back from the dealership after my 1,000 mile checkup. When I woke up this morning, I noticed that the headlamps were on. I knew I couldn't have forgotten to take them off, because of the horrible beeping that reminds you. When I was driving it to the dealer this morning it was dark and my regular lights did not go on with the sensor. By the time I got there, it was bright, but my DRLs were off at that point. So there has to be a glitch with the Sensor and the DRLs. I just called Toyota, and the part is on back order, so I am not sure what the interim solution will be.

farriz · January 2003

I have a 92 corolla.Today I started the engine and heard strange noises first.Then when I changed the gear to Reverse the car started jumping and then stopped.Now the engine runs fine and goes forward but when I change it to reverse the car refuses to move back. The rpm of the engine raises when I press the accelerator. Any clues of what might be wrong.Might be the Torque converter. If how much will it cost to fix it.

Farriz

jeprox · January 2003

simple solution for your problem is to turn on/off (manually) your headlights until your sensor is fixed.

fgf001 · January 2003

I never turn my lights on, the switch remains in the off position. Recently I set the alarm and waited for the beep and for the headlights to go off. When I returned the headlights were on. This happened twice in a row. Switch off doesn't seem to matter.

hhomer · January 2003

jeprox, because of the way the electrical system is setup, there is no way to overide the sensor with any manual controls.

fgf001, do you still have the problem? Does it only occur when it is very cold?

corolla03 · January 2003

Could the smell problem occur only in those '03 Corollas manufactured in Japan and sold in the USA? Apparently, Japan has only low-sulphur gas. Also, I heard that Toyota only shipped cars manufactured in Japan to the USA when they ran out of locally-produced cars. Could it be that the engineering is different in the cars produced for Japan? Anyway, our '03 Corolla LE was produced in Japan and sold in the USA, and smells like a sewer when using 87 octane gas. Let's hear from other owners of Japan-produced cars in use in the USA.

corolla03 · January 2003

Could the smell problem occur only in those '03 Corollas manufactured in Japan and sold in the USA? Apparently, Japan has only low-sulphur gas. Also, I heard that Toyota only shipped cars manufactured in Japan to the USA when they ran out of locally-produced cars. Could it be that the engineering is different in the cars produced for Japan? Anyway, our '03 Corolla LE was produced in Japan and sold in the USA, and smells like a sewer when using 87 octane gas. Let's hear from other owners of Japan-produced cars in use in the USA.

toyotaken · January 2003

Toyota is NOT the only manufacturer having this issue crop up on their newer vehicles. And certainly the Corolla is not the only vehicle on the road with this problem. Take a look at postings on many other models and makes of vehicles and you'll see the same complaints from Nissan, Honda, Saab, etc. owners. The greatest culprit is the newer emmissions standards as well as the formulation of the gas in some areas of the country.

As for those saying that your car is supposed to run on 87 octane and why should you use premium if it does... Your car will STILL run on 87 octane, but most premium gas offered by most distributors is low sulphur content, so that is why they are making that recomendation. For those living in areas that don't have the low sulphur requirement, other than trying different stations, this may be the only way of finding low-sulphur content gas.

I'm not saying that this is correct, or nice, to have a vehicle that has this sulphur smell, but if you had bought many other makes or models of car out there with the current levels of emmissions requirements, you would probably have the same problem.

Sorry for the long post, but just wanted to clarify some of the issues that have been brought up.

Ken

fgf001 · January 2003

It has only happened twice and yes it was cold, at least by central Texas standards....about 39 degrees.

fgf001 · January 2003

That's a negative. Folks with Yota's made in California & Canada are reporting the same stinky exhaust. We have two 03's (Calif) and neither has the problem. Both cars are @ the 4000 mile mark.

terceltom1 · January 2003

Your guess as to what is causing the "03" is convincing enough for me. Bottom line though, is when you paying around $16,000.00 for a new car you hope it would not smell like a "sewer" when you drive it. As you have stated, "it doesn't make it right". Something should be done.

corolla03 · January 2003

Ken, why don't you suggest that Toyota assign a technician rather than a public relations person to monitor this board.

Regarding your post, no comment . . .

billwhc · January 2003

Well I did take it to the dealer this morning since they offerred to do an Emissions test. They told me that they had talked to Toyota USA in Torrance, Ca. who informed them that this is, a "characteristic" of the '03 Corollas and is standard." I asked if it was standard, why weren't the buyers made aware of this? Obviously the Service Mgr. only responded with a stare...

In addition when asked if all the Corolla '03 have this problem, I was told that he had no idea. "Not everyone complains about a squeak or noise in the car."

Bottom line is that Toyota USA is refusing to admit there is a problem and is trying to pass this problem as something we consumers should accept; and perhaps most of us will...

I am moving on to a lawyer who works on such "lemon" cases in the Northern Virginia area and will advise as things proceed. We may also may spend a few hours in front of the dealer with signs such as, "Buy your Smelly Corolla from Koons".

Any suggestions for signs, let me know, I was thinking of having my dog have a sign saying, This car is too smelly for me". Anyway appreciate your suggestions and comments.

Seriously, write an official letter to Toyota USA. The address is in the service manual that comes with the car.

I did not spend $17,000 for a car that smells. I have rented five New cars (different models, usually compacts similar to Corolla) over the past eight months.. some for as long as a month, and none smelled! And I drove them in the same geographic area and same gas, always a name brand.

Bill in Fairfax, VA.

toyotaken · January 2003

Actually, Toyota hasn't "assigned" me to monitor or participate on these boards. I work for a Toyota dealership as in a Sales role and am here to hopefully provide some information and feedback about toyota's in general. I'm doing this in my own time and of my own volition. As I posted earlier, I don't necessarily think that it is appropriate for a new car to have this odor, I just wanted to point out that this is not a problem that is found only on Toyota's or Corolla's more specifically. This seems to be an issue with many new vehicles available currently, and I would assume that all of the manufacturers that are having problems like this have people working on the problem. This also seems to be more prevelant in some areas of the country and during certain times of years than others. Based upon that, it would appear that the issue is more based upon newer emmissions standards and the lack of progress in better regulations in the refinement of gasoline. There are only so many things that can be controlled by the automobile manufacturers, some are based upon the manufacturers of the catalists (which there are only a few that provide the great majority to most manufacturers) and the oil companies. Neither of these other entities are controlled by the manufacturers, so another route for you to take would be to write to these entities and/or your local representative politicians to speed up the process to regulate the oil companies as quickly as they enforce the laws on vehicle manufacturers.

I hope this helps explain where my statements are coming from.

Ken

sandman46 · January 2003

sometimes on our '01 Altima GXE. Every so often i smell it.

The Sandman :-)

friendly_jacek · January 2003

I appreciate your honesty and disclosing you affiliation with Toyota. Unfortunately there are many guerrilla-style Toyota defenders out there harrasing posters and leaving bad taste for Toyota. I am glad you are not one of them.

While I egree that high sulfur levels in US gas and higher converter temps of the ULEV certified cars are partially responsible for the problem, the fact is that the Toyota dealerships tend to point fingers and blaim others rather than try to diagnose and fix the problem. The usual treatment is: "every new car does it" or "it is normal" or "change the gas station".

IT IS NOT NORMAL, NOT EVERY CAR DOES IT, H2S IS TOXIC ANF OFFENDING, AND THESE CARS SHOULD BE REPAIRED.

It is as simple as this. I am not sure why it is so difficult to understand. If Toyota mechanics cannot diagnose and fix the problem (rich combustion conditions), the stinky car should be replaced under the lemon law regulations.

majorlag · January 2003

I was wondering if anybody has tried to use CD-RW disc on the cd player? I tried and it cannot play, it just ejects. My friend tried it on his 02 Camry and it didn't play also. I just wanted to know if these factory stock cd deck can handle CD-RW. If anybody got it to work, especially on the Corolla please let me know and let me know what brand the CD-RW is from.
Thank you and have a nice day.

jrct9454 · January 2003

...in most automotive CD players. Our Honda Accord certainly wouldn't take them, as well as our '03 Corolla. Generally, you have to use CD-Rs if you want complete compatibility - I've got many CD-Rs made for use in the car, and they all worked fine in both the Honda and the Corolla.

tertay · January 2003

MY WIFE BOUGHT A 03 COROLLA THIS YEAR AND ALSO HAS A RATTLE IN THE DASH,DEALER HAS TRIED ONCE BUT STILL NOT FIXED.BUT THE REAL PROBLEM IAM WRITING ABOUT IS WHEN DRIVING WITH THE HEADLIGHTS ON AND WHEN YOU DIM THE LIGHTS THERE IS A VERY NOTICEABLE STALL WITH THE ENGINE . HAPPENS EVERY TIME YOU USE THE DIMMER,A SPLIT SECOND HESITATION. ANYONE ELSE HAVE THIS.ALSO HAVE SERIOUS RATTLE IN THE DASH OF MY 03 TUNDRA.

jeprox · January 2003

my cd-r's works fine in my 03 corolla. only time it didn't want to work was when the cd i burned was not full. if the cd is not full, the player will think you are trying to load an empty cd and it will keep ejecting the cd by itself!
so if you only have like 5 songs on the cd, the player may not load the cd.

footie · January 2003

I think that there's a lot of evidence that Toyota 'quality' is going down very fast across their product line.

Wait until they start building the new Lexus RX330 in Canada and it gets hammered by problems.

The best Toyota's to buy aren't new ones.

huxley123 · January 2003

A dealer is offering us a '03 Corolla LE (with gold package + Cruise ) with 11,800miles on it for $13,995. It is Toyota Certified. They say it is a program car and the three year warranty will be up around July '05.
We were wondering how much would be a good value for the car? The first year depreciation according to Edmund's is around $3500. Our feeling is that anything less than 15000(TMV of new car)-3500=$11,500 could be a good value.

Also, how reliable are program cars in the long run ?

Any comments suggestion welcome.

Regarding the smell issue I was reading here - we bought a '02 Subaru Forester in November '01. For the first year we would get an awful sulfury smell from time to time (twice it turned out to be pretty embarrassing with friends in the car !). Our dealer, as well as people hanging out in the Subaru discussion described this as a smell from the burning of a rubber coating on the underside of the car (this coating is to protect the car while shipping). But having had the car for more than a year I still sometimes get the smell although its much rarer. Do not know if this is related to the Corolla smell but thought I'd share my experience.

(sorry for posting about the '03 Corolla here in the M&R section...had to relate the smell from a Subie to a Corolla somehow

)

friendly_jacek · January 2003

I know nothing about program cars.
I have some comments on the Subaru smell. I own a 2000 Subaru Legacy. For the first several months I had the burning smell from rust proof coating near exhaust (typical for subarus and not a big hassle).
The sulfur smell I experience with my 2003 corolla is distinctively different. It has an offensive sewer or rotten-egg quality. Fortunately it is intermitten.
Good luck.

nippononly · January 2003

there is a TSB from Toyota for the headlight dimming/stall thing - take it to your dealer and have them research it if they don't already know about it. It will be covered under warranty.

Yes, footie, rattles seem to be a big problem across the boards this year for Toyo, but I wouldn't assume, based on that, that long-term reliability or repair frequency has changed in these vehicles...the next few years will tell that story, I suppose...nothing that has rattled in any of these vehicles so far has caused any type of mechanical problem, or any problem at all more than annoyance.

The real threat to long-term reliability is not some rattling plastic trim, but rather the squeeze Toyota is putting on its part suppliers for further price reductions when no more are possible without decreasing quality. Toyota is not the only one doing this...in fact, one of the big keys to Nissan's revival was major pressure on its parts suppliers resulting in lower costs. And the domestics have been busily going about their own slash-and-burn thing for more than a year now.

Given my druthers, I would rather that Toyota maintained the line on the quality of its parts, and raised their vehicle prices a little if need be.

Luzer · January 2003

Is the TSP for the Corolla only, or (I'm afraid to ask), the Matrix as well. This would then beg the question - what about the Vibe.

How can I get the info on the TSP?

nippononly · January 2003

it is TSB - technical service bulletin - and as far as I know it is from Toyota only, and only affected certain cars early in the production run.

But hey, if you have a Vibe, take it out and see if it does that, and if not, you don't have to worry!

corolla03 · January 2003

Whatever 03 Corolla you buy, plan to use premium gas everywhere but Japan or California. Otherwise, your car will smell like a sewer. Ours does. It's nauseating.

nippononly · January 2003

anyone know when the rest of the country is going to go to the low-sulfur gas we already have in CA?

I was curious to see a post earlier that a Torrance, CA service department had said the rotten smell was routine, seeing as they are in CA and have the low-sulfur gas too. Are there California-operated corollas that have this problem, or was it a standard BS response from a service tech?

jeprox · January 2003

you can obtain TSB's and recall info from the NHTSA site or the ALLDATA site.

http://www.alldata.com/
http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/

just remember that with TSB's, it doesn't necessarily mean that your car have this problem. from what i understand, TSB's are more of like warnings.

jeprox · January 2003

you can obtain TSB's and recall info from the NHTSA site or the ALLDATA site.

http://www.alldata.com/
http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/

just remember that with TSB's, it doesn't necessarily mean that your car have this problem. from what i understand, TSB's are more of like warnings.

nippononly · January 2003

A TSB is a bulletin from the carmaker to its own dealer network, so that they can fix something that does not work right. They are mostly voluntary, and not all of them show up on the websites cited above. Sometimes, if you are the original owner you will get a letter from the car company telling you to take the car in to have whatever it is fixed free of charge, and sometimes they are nothing more than precautionary work on the vehicle.

Either way, they do not meet the legal standard to be a full-on recall (not safety-related)

toyotaguy03 · January 2003

I TOO HAVE A 2003 COROLLA AND IT SMELLS SOMETHING AWFUL AND ALL MY LOCAL DEALER TOLD ME WAS TO CHANGE GAS/STATIONS AND SEE IF THAT WORKS. WELL, I DID THAT AND IT STILL SMELLS, ESPECIALLY IN THE MORNINGS. DON'T KNOW WHAT ELSE TO DO BUT IT REALLY IRKS ME THAT I PAID 16G FOR A NEW CAR THAT MAKES ME SICK TO MY STOMACH ALMOST EVERY MORNING.
HAS ANY ONE FOUND A SOLUTION TO THIS PROBLEM? I WOULD LOVE SUGGESTIONS FROM ANYONE WHO IS HAVING THE SAME PROBLEM.

mcdawgg · January 2003

Lots of new cars have the sulfur smell - Honda, Nissan, etc. Sulfur is supposed to be removed from gasoline next year, so you and all the other owners of many different makes of cars will have to deal with it until then. I heard that the new cleaner gasoline was supposed to be in place now, but when Bush was elected, he delayed the new cleaner gasoline standards, which caught Honda, Toyota, etc. by surprise. I guess blame Bush for the smell (or Bush's Baked Beans!)

mcdawgg · January 2003

Look at the Honda Accord Problems Part 2 board number 4055 and 4057.

sandman46 · January 2003

Please use lower case when typing, it's hard to read and it's also like shouting! Lower case is a lot more pleasant for everyone.
Thanks!

Ths Sandman :-)

roadiedadz · January 2003

I have been a long time Toyota fan until recently. I have one of the first Matrix XR's purchased in Massachusetts. The drivers side inner door rubber gaskets have disintegrated, the drivers window gasket falls out every time I lower the window, the passenger side sun visors falls out of the head liner, yes the doors sound extremely tinny, and the CD player makes a grinding noise when I brake. I will be returning this for repairs asap. I also hate the auto light function. Toyota is falling into the American car manufacturer mode of the 70's and 80's.

nikolay · January 2003

I had the same problem in my 2003 Corolla LE J. I brought it to the dealer and they changed Air Flow Meter. I'm driving it for a week now and no smell so far. Also I was getting 26 MPg that not good for this car. They said the new Air Flow Meter will help with this problem too.

vivian24 · January 2003

I own an older model Corolla. Kept on top of all maintenance, to include recent oil change, fuel filter replacement and new spark plugs, wires, cap and rotor. My problem appears to be, while driving, instead of smoothly pushing along it feels like I am pulling or tugging something, along with slight loss of power. I was wondering if one spark plug may be misfiring or possibly air/fuel mixture being off. Any suggestions here or to my email address would be greatly appreciated.

sandman46 · January 2003

After my timing belt and water pump were replaced in november, I noticed a decrease in the gas milage. Turns out the O2 sensor wasn't working right and had it replaced on wednesday. Now the milage seems to be back up where it should be. Maybe it was just a coincidence, but after the work was done in november, I noticed the gas gauge moving at a more rapid rate. Had the mechanic check it out, I evened asked if it could be the O2 sensor. He checked it, it was, and he replaced it. Now the problem is solved!
Very happy camper now. With 66k on the odometer, am hoping to keep this puppy another year or so.
One last question, I think I need rear struts. Anyone else replace them and what's a good choice? Had the fronts done under a TSB at the dealership at 23k, some kind of groaning front end TSB. Any help would be appreciated.

The Sandman :-)

nikolay · January 2003

They changed Air Flow Meter and I don't smell rotten egg inside the car any more. But other day I got out from my car and could smell sulfur outside. It means exhaust still producing this smell it just not getting inside the car. I saw bulletin about this problem on NHTSA web site
Number 001/5884. Let your Toyota mechanic know about it.
Thanks.

Luzer · January 2003

I looked up the nthsa and found the TSB under 2003 Corolla.

NHTSA Item Number: 65609
Date was 2/83

Did not find anything under Matrix, nor Vibe.

Good info on using the correct Automatic Tranny Fluid though.

nippononly · January 2003

to have the dealer rip out the twilight sensor when I get a second to have this car (Matrix XR) serviced at 15K. If they cannot do it under warranty, I will pay them to engineer it so as to bypass this sensor. Today, in a 10-minute drive from work to home at noon, the lights turned themselves on and off 8 times (4 cycles)!!!! On, off, on, off, I am SO SICK of it.

And this on a bright sunny day. Oh yes, the Toyota engineers have outdone themselves with this "helpful" feature.

fgf001 · January 2003

There is a TSB out for the Corollas involving a bad headlight switch. It might be worth your while to investigate this to see if it has any bearing on your problem.

Toyota Corolla Maintenance and Repair

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