2010 Toyota Corolla

terceltom · January 2010

Guess it wasn't anything obvious huh? I hope he gives you a loaner for your inconveniance for the day that he looks for the rattle.

schong · January 2010

I just leased a 2010 Toyota corolla last month. What I experienced from my new car are as follows: It's rolls down on the steep inclines and the car surges when I put my foot on brakes for the 1st second or so.

terceltom · January 2010

Wow, that's really weird. I hope you took it back immediately and told them about it. Any car that surges forward when the brakes are applied is not fit for the road. UNSAFE! Do not drive. Certainly NOT a characteristic of all new Corollas.

susan_spencer · January 2010

So glad I spent the time to check out the new Corolla beyond the test drive from the dealer. I wanted to check out the Electric Power Steering and power on accelerating over grades and entering freeway. These things checked out fine. What didn't check out had nothing to do with my initial concerns. The seats have been cut in length and do not adjust sufficiently to sit comfortably especially with the head rest hitting you in the back of the head. The fabric and foam are shoddy in fact you could see the back seat fabric rippling with the foam a bit sunken on a 2010 car. The interiror trim quality is about a 2 compared to a 8 or 9 from a 15 year old camry. The road noise was more than I would like which was noticable immediately. Really worth the few dollars for rental but disappointed the seats are so uncomfortable. This is not an easy fix with a back support pillow. The seats are cut short in length (makes interior look larger) and does not allow for a pleasant experience. Couldn't wait to return the car. The seat comfort was never an issue in the older camry whether a short or long ride. Too bad, as it has the MPG and safety going for it.

terceltom · January 2010

Your comment is totally ABSURD! The seats are the standard 19" from backrest to front of the seat and haven't changed in decades. The seats were not "cut". I have my six vehicles sitting outside and I measured them all, they are as follows. "86" Tercel - 19", "92" Corolla - 19", "01" Corolla - 19", "02" Celica - 19" - "94" Voyager 19" and my "09" Corolla(exactly as the "10") and guess what? 19" WHAT ARE YOU SAYING ?? Okay, you don't find it comfortable but nothing has changed girl ! By the way, this is the most roomy Corolla produced to date by Toyota. Perhaps you should compare apples to apples and not apples to oranges.

huey5 · January 2010

I bought a 2010 LE 20 days ago. Today after I turned off my car, the passenger air bag light kept flashing. Can anybody help me on this issue? Thanks in advance.

terceltom · January 2010

You have a brand new car, I would just give the dealer a call to be sure? You don't want to guess when it comes to such a vital safety accessory as the airbags.

Sandman6472 · January 2010

Susan should probably look at another Camry instead of the Corolla...the seats are much better. But please don't berate someone else whose opinion doesn't agree with yours...chill out man! We all know in here that you love your Corolla...good for you, but Susan didn't agree & maybe she should've compared it to a Civic or an Elantra...a car in the same class.

Good luck Susan with your search and keep us posted.

The Sandman :shades:

terceltom · January 2010

Oh it wasn't a matter of opinions it was a matter of fact. The seats are, and always were 19". Seats being "cut" IS absurd!

rosca · January 2010

Well, I had quite an experience

Took the car to the dealer last Tuesday and he gave me a loaner, while saying that it would only take a couple of hours. Guess what? They could not figure out why the car was producing that sound for three whole days

Finally, they figured out some body defect in the trunk area on Friday, had the car sent to the body shop, got the area welded, and gave it back to me on Friday night at 8 pm. Now, the car is quiet like a Lexus (exaggeration of course

-- But I certainly could not believe that a new car would have a body defect. The service guy said he would send the paper work later in the week so I would know for sure what happened in a week or so.

terceltom · January 2010

Well I'm so glad they finally found your problem and took care of it for you. Gotta remember cars are welded by robots and even they aren't perfect. I would say kudos to that Toyota dealer for sticking with the problem and not just blowing you off like some might have. Enjoy your car !

Karen_S · January 2010

If you are a Toyota owner and interested in sharing your reaction to the recall with reporters, send an email stating the vehicle you own, your telephone number, and the best time you can be reached.

Send to: karen@edmunds.com

revit · January 2010

The 2010 Toyota Corolla cannot be purchased:

terceltom · January 2010

That is correct! Not until the accelerator pedal recall on the 2010's sitting in the lots are repaired.

mnf · January 2010

Unless you have been on a island,cant read or dont watch TV everyone should know by now. Perfect time to purchase is when they resolve the issue and come out with HOT deals.

MNF

phili · February 2010

Hi. I have a problem with tinnitus (ringing in the ears) which is made worse by road noise. I drive a few hours each day, mostly city driving. I'm looking for a small Toyota/Scion which is cheap (sub $18,000 MSRP) and quiet. Any tips?

canuckrolla123 · February 2010

To sammy_to.

I've put about 3,500km on my new 2010 Corolla. No regrets at all! The car drives like a dream. I've only driven Toyota, 1 Tercel, 2 2002 Corolla's and now a 2010 Corolla.

The Corolla rides well in a strong wind. This happened a few weeks ago on the highway in a strong wind. Didn't notice anything different from my lower profile 2002 Corolla.

Today, while driving along the highway at night, I had to swerve suddenly. Looked like a roll of carpet or something large was obstructing the one lane. I saw the car in front of me swerve. Didn't know why. Almost as it got out of the way, I saw the obstacle on the road. I swerved too, consciously being aware not to over-steer back into the lane. I recall the Vehicle Stability Control activating with its beep beep sound. This all happened in a second or two. I avoided the obstacle and maintained control of my car. Forget how fast I was going but it was a highway so maybe 110 km/hr or so. I'm not sure if the VSC helped but I sure heard it being activated. Maybe the electronic power steering helped too, making it very easy to steer quickly.

The electronic power steering is extremely noticeable when you're parking and need to bring the steering wheel back.....like butter.

Now that I have driven the Corolla for over a month, I don't notice any of the negative points noted in the Edmunds review of the 2009 model. I'm not a test car driver so obviously I am not aware of how other makes and models drive and compare to the 2010 Corolla. I've rented a Chevy Cobalt, PT Cruizer and one other make recently. This car drives like any other car I have driven. As well, it's a quiet ride too. Quieter than my 2002. I can hear the subtleness in the vocals of a CD track while driving at highway speeds.

The only thing that bugs me is that the headrest doesn't stay all the way down. I push it all the way down. There must be a way to keep it down. Other than that, nothing bad to say about the 2010 Corolla. A great drive. Well, the backend is a bit higher than my 2002. Love the trunk, quite spacious. Wish there weren't those 2 bumps on the surface of the trunk nearer the passenger compartment but I'll just have to place things better.

terceltom · February 2010

So glad to hear you like your new ride. I was beginning to think there weren't too many of us out there anymore. Although I haven't had the head rest problem, I agree with everything you said about the new Corollas. I couldn't be happier with my purchase. I think the new EPS steering was a wonderful new feature. I have a Barcelona Red XLE. I just love the JBL 400 watt upgraded sound system I have. My previous rides were "86" Tercel, "79" Corolla and an "02" Celica. Currently I have a "92" Corolla an "01" Corolla, "94" Voyager and the "09" Corolla. Don't ask me how I slipped a Chrysler product in there. Shopping for a new TRD Tacoma. My Corollas are amazing, all I do is change the oil and rotate the tires and the things run forever. Oh, and of course the very rare "recalls". Just sold the "86" Tercel, had it for 24 years and it was running like a clock when I sold it. By the way, the "94" Voyager has given me great service also

rosca · February 2010

I think there are many like us who are just not able to keep up with the assault on our beloved Toyota brand -- It is fascinating (and sad) how much hype has been created in the media over something that no one knows for sure about. Anyways, I had a wonderful experience with my 2010 Corolla viz-a-viz its traction control. I live in the NJ area and because of some stupid reason, I ended up driving in the blizzard that came to our region this Wednesday late afternoon. I could not believe how many cars got stuck on the road or slipped, but my Corolla kept on going with at least 6 or 7 times the traction control going on (I could see the blinking light) when I feared that I would be stuck on the road. I drove more than 7 miles and finally got back to my home without any incident. I am sure that I would not have it on my older car. Keep up the good work Toyota and don't give in to these sharks.

Sandman6472 · February 2010

People seem to forget that all companies have had recalls over the years...I found a list of the brands and the #'s of recalls and Toyota is not the tops in vehicles affected. People just love to knock the particular company with the latest recall because any of the major domestic and foreign brands could be in a similar situation at any given time. Folks need to remember that cars are machines built to certain tolerances built by man, and sometimes machine.

Toyota will get past this and move on selling great vehicles just like all the other brands. Personally, I'd have no trouble owning a Toyota or Ford or GM...etc. If a company makes a vehicle that we like within our $ constraints, we'll by it. Modern vehicles have all come so far these past few years, we're finally at the point that we'd look at all brands as of now...and buy what fits our list of needs...end of story!

The Sandman :sick: :shades:

terceltom · February 2010

Your absolutely correct with your statement about why we buy a certain car. It's not that I'm in love with the Toyota brand. I would just add to your statement that for me it's not just about the reasonable pricing on the Corolla or even as much about liking it over other designs, but mostly about reliability and longevity and how much this car is gonna cost me in the long run. Just like the most current commercial Toyota has on T. V. where they state 80% of Toyotas 20 years or older are still on the road. That's absolutely an amazing figure to me. Can Chevy, Ford or Chrysler say that? I don't think so!

terceltom · February 2010

I'd like to correct my last post, corrected to "80% of the toyotas sold in the last 20 years are still on the road" not "80% of Toyotas 20 years or older are still on the road". Still an astronomical figure that I'm sure the big three couldn't match.

revit · February 2010

Toyota probes Corolla steering as its chief says he won't attend U.S. hearing
Yuri Kageyama / Associated Press

Tokyo -- Toyota is considering a recall of its hot-selling Corolla subcompact after complaints about power steering problems -- another blow to the world's largest automaker already reeling from a string of recalls for safety problems.

Company President Akio Toyoda, meanwhile, said he won't be attending the U.S. congressional hearing on the automaker's safety lapses, entrusting the job to U.S.-based executives -- though he did say he would consider appearing if summoned. He said he wanted to focus his energies on improving quality worldwide.

"I trust that our officials in the U.S. will amply answer the questions," Toyoda told reporters Wednesday. "We are sending the best people to the hearing, and I hope to back up the efforts from headquarters."

He said Yoshi Inaba, who heads Toyota Motor Corp.'s North American unit, was more familiar with the U.S. situation and was the best executive to deal with the hearing. Toyoda said he was still making plans to go to the U.S. and dates have yet to be set.

But in an alarming disclosure that could widen Toyota's recall crisis, the Toyota executive in charge of quality controls, Shinichi Sasaki, said Toyota was taking seriously the complaints about power-steering problems in the Corolla, the world's best-selling car.

Sasaki said drivers may feel as though they were losing control over the steering, but it was unclear why. He mentioned problems with the braking system or tires as possible underlying causes of the steering problem.

There have been fewer than 100 complaints, the automaker says.

Speaking at Toyota's Tokyo office, Sasaki said it was still uncertain if a Corolla recall would be necessary but the automaker is considering one. The number of affected vehicles is unclear, he said.

The company was putting customers first in a renewed effort to salvage its reputation and would do whatever is necessary if a fix is needed, he said.

Toyota has recalled 8.5 million vehicles globally during the past four months because of problems with sticking gas pedals, floor mats trapping accelerators and faulty brake programming.

Reports of deaths in the U.S. connected to sudden acceleration in Toyota vehicles have surged in recent weeks, with the alleged death toll reaching 34 since 2000, according to new consumer data gathered by the U.S. government.

terceltom · February 2010

As I posted on the "Toyota EPS" forum, with the small number of complaints (less than 100) it's fair to say that if this is a problem at all, it only seems to be affecting some newer Corollas.

canuckrolla123 · February 2010

When I roll down the passenger side power windows and then roll it up again, this action drags water up thus wetting or smearing the window. Anyone else have this happen? Don't recall that occurring on the 2002.

Yes, the 2010 Corolla is a quiet ride especially in the city but at highway speeds I'm sure other makes can be even quieter. I'm not complaining and it's much quieter than my 2002.

backy · February 2010

This happens to some degree on all of my cars for awhile after I wash it. You might try cleaning the glass real well e.g. with Bon Ami and seeing if that helps any.

terceltom · February 2010

The rubber window seals on some cars where the window recedes are not as tight as others. My windows wet on my 2001 and my 2009 Corolla like your stating, but smearing would be of some concern to me. Is it a greasy smear?

canuckrolla123 · February 2010

By smearing I don't mean as in oil but just streaks...perhaps I should have used the term streak as in streaks of water running up the length of the window. The end result being the just cleaned window is now smeared.

While I'm at it, after I use the windshield fluid and the wipers have had a go, the water on the sides start to streak up and outwards due to the air blowing on the windshield when traveling at a high speed. I found that annoying and did not notice it on the 2002. I'm no engineer but maybe it has something to do with the slope of the windshield and hood of the car. The hood on the 2010 car is noticeably steeper than the 2002 so currents of air flowing over it may be of a different dynamic than on the 2002.

Aside from these very minor annoyances, I am very happy with the 2010 Corolla and feel great about the car every time I get into it (hey, it's only been 1 1/2 months....I'll get over it eventually :-)

terceltom · February 2010

Good luck with your new car ! If that's all that you ever have to deal with you'll be a very happy Corolla owner.

canuckrolla123 · February 2010

I'm a happy owner. No question about it. As I have said before, the car rides like a dream. Smooth, quiet, roomy and am one of those who appreciate and enjoy the EPS (works great...if I didn't know the car had EPS and was asked to describe how it felt...I'd simply answer that it was easy to steer). Reading the 2009 Corolla review here had me concerned initially but my own experience with the 2010 is a very different one from the review. The only unpleasant thing about owning the 2010 Corolla is the fact I'll be paying for it over the next several years, albeit at an easy to take 1.9% interest rate. :-)

terceltom · February 2010

Great rate! Best I could do is 3.1 % from my credit union when I bought mine.

Perhaps you might want to post your (#141) oppinion of the steering on the EPS forum, I get blasted on there when I offer my 2009 Corolla approval.

http://townhall-talk.edmunds.com/direct/view/.f1d0fdf/120

canuckrolla123 · February 2010

The 3 year rate from Toyota Credit was 0%. 4 years was 1.9%.

This is a public forum and just about anyone can post here, including myself of course. Which means people can say just about anything. I participate on a few other forums (none are car related other than this one). You'll have to use the gray matter between the ears to try and figure out what's legit and what's not. I only had a chance to take a quick look at the link but if I were that person, I would have done something about it a loooooong time ago instead of just posting here. I don't care if it's a Toyota, Honda, Chevy, Ford or whatever brand.

My experience with the new car has mostly been with Michelin snow tires. I've only driven maybe 400+ kilometers with the original tires the car came with (forget if they were summer or 4 seasons now). It will soon be time to put the winter tires away.

Now back to the 2010 Corolla. Since I've been driving a 2002 for close to 8 years I haven't been car shopping or keeping up with the style changes in the Corolla until my recent purchase. I notice the tachometer and speedometer have switched sides. I preferred having the speedometer on the left as I could glance at it more readily without having to take my eyes off the road.

I like how they have redesigned the shifter. Very neat. The 2002 had a straight shifter so it was easy to move the car before Drive or Reverse was fully engaged. The new design prevents that which is a great idea. I'm not sure in which model year they first implemented that design.

Although I don't use it much as mine is normally set to the outside air temp, it's still nice to have those litres per kilometer (in the USA I imagine it would be gallons per mile) stats, etc.

The two small overhead lamps in the front....very useful and bright too. No longer having to reach for a flashlight to read something.

One of the best new features is the TPMS or Tire Pressure Monitoring System. I've always wanted a car with that. Over the past 8 years or so, I've had about 4 occasion where the pressure in one of the tires has gone quite low. Each one was due to a foreign object (a nail or similar object) puncturing the tire. Each one was a slow leak so low pressure in the tire was not visually obvious. A tire can get very low in pressure before you will notice it visually. So this TPMS is well worth having.

agi123 · February 2010

I bought the 2010 corolla in July first week. Last week I received an email stating that my car fall under the new A0A call back and gave my car for servicing on Feb 12th. Reached home around 4:30 pm after the fix, parked in my drive way. After a minute, I was reversing the car from my drive way on to the road, the car reached almost to the road, now the car started reverse acceleration by itself, took a U-turn (as my steering wheel is turned left) and hit a small tree in front of my house and stopped. The tree stem is stuck under the car, hence the car was stopped. if there is no tree, the car would have hit my house. The acceleration was so fast, and my leg was on the brake pushing hard, but still no use. This is more than a week and Toyota is sitting all these days and the response is very poor.

Please let me know if any one faces similar issues. Started contacting the NHTSA about the incident;

terceltom · February 2010

Where is your car "sitting"? You should have had it immediately towed back to them at their expense and then asked them for a loaner car until they can guarantee that your own car is repaired and safe!

agi123 · February 2010

The car is sitting at the local toyota service center and service center or toyota refuse to provide a loaner from last 8 days. now the service center say toyota authorized a thirdparty investigator and not sure how many days this amy take.

terceltom · February 2010

That's crazy! Eight (plus) days would really pi** me off. There must be some kind of legal ground you have to get a loaner. I hope someone else has some suggestions for you.

agi123 · February 2010

Initially Toyota said that the regional center will take o5 business days. Now the same Toyota case manager says this may take up to 60 days to find the details and they authorized the third party test center to carryout the tests. Toyota insists on activating my insurance and let the adjuster come and verify. I clearly rejected this and said this is the Toyota problem and not mine. The service center and Toyota refuses to give me the loaner vehicle until the tests are complete.

So be aware that when Toyota asks to inform to your insurance company, just inform and ask the company to wait until Toyota finishes its detail testing. This is a new car, with 1850 miles on this and why should we pay for Toyota mistakes. I requested to talk to the case manger's supervisor and she refuse that and says she is the head of the unit and she operates independently. This is my first Toyota car and I believe Toyota is not customer friendly at all.

brule · February 2010

Snip from another forum:

Does anyone know how to read a vin # to see if Corolla's were made from this plant? thx lG
LOS ANGELES, Aug. 29, 2009

Whistleblower:Nummi management routinely deleted or downgraded significant and serious defects.
"steering wheel alignment defects" (NUMMI) factory subjected her to a campaign of intimidation
http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/whistleblowe...

Toyota Accused of Hiding Evidence
Former Lawyer at Automaker Charges Evidence in Rollover Cases Was Concealed, Destroyed
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/08/29/cbs ...
http://forums.anandtech.com/archive/index.php ...
Whistleblower says defects hidden at Toyota-GM Calif. plant
Yuri Kageyama / Associated Press
TOKYO -- An employee at a California plant run jointly by General Motors and Toyota is accusing her managers of allowing serious defects to go unchecked, including faulty seat belts and braking, and retaliating when she resisted, according to a lawsuit filed earlier this month.-

terceltom · February 2010

Okay, so now are they going to recall for the seatbelts? . . . .LOL

2002corollaon · February 2010

Anybody experience this on their Corolla? Power windows going down forces rubber seal on inside of window to push inward? Like the force or friction of the window going down catches the rubber seal/guard and curls it toward the window and downward? After a few days of this it stops doing it. You can still see the window is unsteady as it is being rolled down electronically with some squeaking sounds as well. Then the window works perfectly fine again. Weird. Then the problem reoccurs. Obviously something is not right with the window.

malibublues · February 2010

I have a new 2010 Corolla after my 2009 Corolla accelerated on Jan 18th. The new car has accelerated twice. The second time was after the new pedal recall part was installed. I sustained injuries with each acceleration incident. Both vehicles had complete brake failure too. I ran through stop lights & stop signs and had to use my emergency brake. My pedal is still sticking with the new recall part in it.
The dealership is useless. They do not want to give loaner cars, and I have had to pay for car rentals. They even refused to get my car towed the first acceleration incident. The last acceleration incident on Feb. 15th, they checked out the car and said it is fine. Their exact words were "It drives like all other Corollas. It is normal for Corollas to accelerate to 80 MPH" If I were you I would get myself a good lawyer, and keep hounding the dealership. Do not back down and take their crap!

terceltom · February 2010

So how much damage did your 2009 and 2010 Corollas sustain in the accidents? What kind of injuries did you sustain? Who's paying for the damage to the vehicles? If your two cars were two that had this acceleration problem it seems unlikely that the rear mechanical brake would have stopped this rapid acceleration on your vehicles. Reports are that only shifting to "neutral" will stop them. The mechanical rear brake only operates on the rear wheels while the intense acceleration comes from the front wheels. It's gonna take much more then the minimal effect from the rear mechanical brake to stop a speeding car going 80 mph.

So let me get this straight, your dealer said "it is normal for Corollas to accelerate to 80 MPH" ? I'm sorry but I don't see a dealership opening themselves with that kind of response. When you called Toyota did they agree that their cars normally "accelerate to 80 MPH"? If not, didn't they want the dealers name that said this?

rmonteiro · February 2010

■Rudolph Monteiro on February 10th, 2010 4:22 am
Today morning I reached my son to school in my new 2010 corolla S purchased in Dec 09. I was approaching the intersection and was around 50 ft away from the suv which was stopped at the red light. The road was a gentle decline. I was driving around 20-25 mph and from 50 ft started to gently apply the brakes. When the car reached around 10 ft away from the suv in front of me the brake pedal was fully depressed but the car just didnt stop. It kept rolling till it hit the suv. I had a fender bender. Took the car to Toyota dealer, they drove it around the dealership and said everything was ok. I insisted that it was the fault in the brakes and this was my first accident in my 28 yrs of driving. I had driven cars without ABS and brake assist in snow conditions and never faced such a problem. I have written to NHTSA and spoke to Toyota customer service. Said their case manager will get back in two days. I have hardly a 1000 miles on my car. Imagine if I was on the highway and this was to happen. It would be a fatality for the whole family.
■Rudolph Monteiro on February 10th, 2010 9:15 pm
Have you all guys who got into similar incidents with their braking put in a complaint to NHTSA or spoken to their insurance companies? The dealers of Toyota will always claim that it was snow or ice or our driving which was not good etc that led to this incident
I think all such Corolla owners should get legal help if Toyota doesnt repair the damage at their expense.

trikev19 · February 2010

In December '09, I traded my '94 Corolla for a '10 Corolla. My '94 Corolla was a fantastic car and the seating material was perfect after fifteen years. The seating material in my new Corolla is disappointing. It attracts lint, dog hair and holds dirt and is extremely difficult to clean. It is a cheap, poor quality material. The dealer says that it is a common complaint.

I bought the new Corolla based on my experience with the '94 Corolla. I didn't realize that Toyota's response to competition from Korean autommakers was to cut quality. Look very closely before you buy!

terceltom · February 2010

I have this same seating material on my "09" Corolla as well, and as you state, I do find that the seats collect lint, dust, etc. However, Toyota considered this new textured velour material as an upgrade to there previous seating material. Actually "Epinions" gave the "09" Corolla good grades (7 out of 10), for it's seating material. Are you actually judging and regretting your whole Corolla driving experience on the seating material? Considering how well my "09" Corolla operates and handles and has served me, the lint on my seats are the least of my worries. You might find higher cosmetic quality out there, but for less, that might be questionable.

phatsprint · February 2010

Hello, Corolla owners. I'm thinking about leasing a loaded corolla s with Extra V package 3 moonroof, all weather package, and 6 disc changer for 170 a month with ZERO down. That's with tax title plates and everything. The car books for 19,895 I can get it for 16800. Good deal? I think so.

2002corollaon · February 2010

I now know what the problem is with the wondows and rubber strip. The problem is with the strip. I'm sure nothing comes out 100% right at the factory.

I had a service manager look at it and he immediately blamed the tinting on the window. Anything is possible of course but I knew this would be absurd if true. What car manufacturer do you know of who would build a car that you couldn't tint the window? None that I know of. No car window has that sort of unforgiving tolerance. No one engineers a car window to do that. Besides the fact tint is so thin and practically bonded to the window glass and is smooth that any added perceived extra "thickness" is insignificant. But it's always easier to blame a problem on the "other guy".

I've also had previous Corolla's tinted and had absolutely no problem. And I'll bet no other person has had such a problem either. Maybe if someone did a do-it-yoursdelf tint job and the tint bubbled up....perhaps then.

The manager was just trying to be helpful so he rolled up his sleeve and tried to see what he could do to help. I appreciated this and its' very good service. However, in doing so he or someone else ended up nicking the tint. Problem is no one said anything. But I quickly saw the damage (can't help it, the damage was staring me in the face and it being a new car, I'd notice that for sure). Once I brought it to their attention they agree to pay to get it replaced.

I'm not mentioning what city or dealer because it's not necessary. As many people already know, just be aware of what your car looked like before it goes in for service and check it afterward. Even take videos before bringing the car in if needed. The dealer has a very good reputation so I know they stand by their work and customers.

I'm starting to wonder about QA at the factory. Sure, people can have a bad day. The top of my front dash is not level on both sides. You can see the edge on one side has a very noticeable gap. Initially, both edges (driver side and passenger side) of the top dash had a blue dot/ink just at the level of the top of the dash. I was told that the technicians at the factory use these 2 blue dots to level the top of the dash. I mean, it appears the car left the factory with the dots still on the car (as opposed to being wiped off) next to the dash and the dash obviously not level. Not sure how that passed inspection.

The only thing I could think of is that maybe someone broke into the car to steal one of the airbags and they had to repair it. I hear that airbags are a popular theft item nowadays.

terceltom · February 2010

Perhaps it's not the thickness of the tint that's causing the window to hang-up on the rubber, but maybe the composition of the tint. In other words, maybe the tint is adhering to the rubber on the way down. I have both my 2001 and my 2009 Corollas tinted and have had no problems with my windows or tinting but I suppose it's plausible that it could be the tint. Another thing to watch for is if the tinting is not done properly, (applied well below the rubber strip), the rubber can catch of the lip of the tinting causing the rubber to peel under the door. I guess the easiest way to find out if it is the tint that's causing your problem is to ask you if you had the problem before you did the tinting?

2002corollaon · February 2010

Anything is possible.

Keep in mind people roll their windows up and down thousands of times during the life of the car. They roll it up and down when it's raining, snowing, when it's windy, etc. During this action dirt or even ice in winter can't help but be dragged down into the crevice or stick to the sides of the window or sides of the rubber seal. Engineers take all this into account when designing the window unit. The added "thickness" of a sheet of tint is insignificant when compared to the above. I can always write to Toyota and ask them. I don't think there is any need to do that. But the subject has me intrigued now (because I never heard about tint being a problem) so I may ask a number of people such as mechanics and other people in the business, etc. I personally know a mechanic at a Honda dealership. I'll be interested in knowing if he's ever encountered a similar problem during all the years he's been at this. I may learn something.

I would like to hear from others who may have had a problem with a rubber window seal/guard that was the result of tint (professionally applied of course). Particularly if you have a more recent model.

terceltom · February 2010

Just out of curiosity how dark of a tint did you get? I got 20% film for my "09" Barcelona Red Corolla. I should have gone lighter as it's a little hard to see out of in the dark. On my 2001 Black Corolla I got 35% film; this is a much better shade for me.

2010 Toyota Corolla

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