Toyota Corolla Maintenance and Repair

deagled

After getting home with my new XRS I heard a strange ticking sound coming from under the hood. I checked and it sounded like a fast sucking/clicking from the top right corner. I buzzed back to the dealer and there tech had no idea what it was. When i got back home the noise was gone. Since then i have heard this noise a few times, but each time i take it to the dealer it isnt clicking. anyone out there have any ideas?

wenyue

I don't know where to post, but I guess this is as
close at it comes.

I noticed my new 99 Corolla makes a ticking sound.
It happens when I shut off my engine after a
drive. That was when the weather was colder, and
now it has disappeared. It sounds just like "tick,
tick, tick..." continuing on a regular rhythum. I
don't know if it only happens during the break in,
or was it because of the cold temperature. I
check all my fluid levels very frequently, and
hasn't noticed any leaks.

Any of you new Corolla owners had this experience?

Mr_Shiftright

Sounds like the engine cooling off, quite normal, I'd say, but I'm presuming this goes away in 13-30 seconds?

gus

Or perhaps the ticks get slower or more irregular over the next few minutes?

wenyue

Mr_shiftright

It disappears in about a minute. If it is engine cooling off, why the noise?

Thanks in advance.

Mr_Shiftright

My understanding is rapid cooling of metal parts of different thicknesses and types...a contraction or flexing. AFter you shut an engine down, it actually heats up for just a little while (heat-sink effect) before it starts cooling, when the cooler outside air takes over. You might notice a similar sound in house wall heaters when you shut them down.

wenyue

here is another note:

I just noticed a little wind weezing noise + little vibrating sound coming from my driver side front door on my 99 Corolla LE. It only happens when I go over a bump or pothole. It sounds like air leaking into the car via the door seal, but there doesn't appears to be any water leaking in. I originally thought it was the antannae whipping about when I hit a bump, but even when I fully retracted it, the noise is still there. Has any one had a similar problem? It's not loud, pretty faint, but noticable w/ radio off. Some suggestions pleas.

windstar2

I have purchased a 98 Toyota Corolla LE today. During my test drive, I noticed the steering wheel vibrated at 70 mph. 60 MPH was ok. Anyone else out there noticed this problem? Is it fixable?

gus

Try switching the tires front to rear. If the problem persists, you know that it's not wheel balance, and may be the rack or some other steering component.

wenyue

The noise is gone... 2 weeks now and no more wind noise or vibrations. Strange... maybe something just wasn't worn it yet. Thank you all for your information.

guitarzan

Wenyue, the Toyota's have such close tolerances, that sometimes even a small amount of dirt can prevent the door or window from sealing properly. Did you wash your car recently? Or experienced rain? That could have gotten rid of any dirty on the seal. Or, like you said, it may have just needed to be broken in a little.

chickenlegs

I have a manual 1999 ve corolla. I noticed from the first day of driving it that going very slowly and turning, there is a "boingg" sound (like a spring) going on near the driver's compartment. At first I thought it was the steering, then the brakes, or the clutch, but I can't identify where the sound might be coming from. All my fluids are filled, so I'm not sure what the problem could be.

Any ideas?

wenyue

Thanks for the info. Yeah, i did wash my car recently. For what ever the reason, the noise is gone.

Oh, here is another stupid story. I thought I heard a vibrating noise coming from the driver side window. I was worried, turned off the radio and listened closely. Noticed it only happens when i drive over rough pavement or bumps. I was debating whether I should take it to the mechanic. The next day (before I went to the mechanic), while I was driving, I realized that noise was coming from my wrist watch's. I wear my watch pretty loose, and every time, I drive over a rough spot, my watch band(metalic) would shake like a wind-chime and produce that noise. God I felt really stupid.

wenyue

I don't suppose you have ABS. It could some times cause that noise. But that is more like the property of a Ford or GM cars.

chickenlegs

No, I don't have ABS. One thing I did notice is that it only happens when I am braking (and stepping on the clutch) in a low gear.

shmang

It might be the synchronizer. Normally, new cars w/5spd will have a synchronizer to reduce clutch wear. So when you are in low speed, the gear ratio difference is more than in high speed and you will notice that kind of sound, it is not anything unusual, next time, try to disengage your clutch while on 3rd gear and try to push the stick into 1st gear(But don't engage the clutch), you will hear that kind of sound again.

ant1

I'm thinking of buying a 99 CE I got a quote for 14,100 with a/t and the value package (thats the out the door price) is that good?

wenyue

ant1

If it includes the value package, then it probably is a good price. Best of luck.

aloha2

I'm considering purchasing a Toyota Corolla CE.
Overall, do you think it's the best car you
could buy for the price? Thanks

ohh

My friend bought a corolla LE for that price.
So I think you can probably get a few hundreds bucks discount from there.
check out carsdirect.com and see what price they give you. i think corolla has $500 dealer incentive (at least it used to two months ago)

wenyue

ohh:

The $14,100 is the out of the door price (tax and tag included). With value package, it would probably be a good price (as long as sales tax is 3% or higher).

alohoa2:

I think its the best car when comes to daily commuting. Not the sporties handling of cars, but it's the most reliable economy car with possibly the best over all engine out there.

If you want to drive for fun, try a Mazda protege ES instead. It should cost as much as a TOyota CE w/ value package.

highway_69

just reading the notes about cost of the CE, i just worked a deal out for a CE with the VP value package, cruise and those nice mats (hate those being an extra) for $13,390 then add the shipping of $420. not a bad deal and it was advertized in the paper (5 cars at this price) well i used that add to convince the dealer i was at he was to high. (had it at $14,200) and then i looked on the web and see another $100 coupon from class action to apply. too late for me cause the coupon has to be presented before papers completed..

poiu1

hi! the steering in the VE model is non -adjustable and is too low...and my legs constantly touch the steering wheel...

and it is bugging me a lot...

i spoke with a few dealerships... and they were not able to help me out... one suggested to trade in the vehicle and take a CE!

any help is appreciated...

thanks in advance

hc28

Hi, I brough my corolla LE 5-speed for 14,000. Is this good or bad deal. (not include tax and tag)

gus

(hc28), this is a question you should ask in the Smart Shopper Conference, not here.

Gus,
Conference Host

130

Hi!

I've just bought a new 99 Corolla CE, 4-speed automatic. Its engine whines when accelerating, especially between 10-40 mph. Is this normal with Corollas or should I have it serviced?

Thanks,
Raz

luq

I am currently looking into buying a Corolla CE. I think there may be good deal as end of year approaching and the Labor Day weekend coming up. I don't seem to see that kind the deal the other people talked about in the newspaper. I didn't decide to buy a new car until last week, and I haven't shopped around to find out the best deal yet. I also would prefer to find a car before Labor Day. Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated.

gus

Check the Smart Shopper Conference.

http://wellengaged.com/engaged/edmund.cgi?c=Smart_Shopper

gus
conference host

gus

wenyue, I don't mind at all--answer the questions twice if you want to!! In fact, I encourage people to answer each others' questions. Nobody has the answers to everything, so member participation is vital to the success of the Maintenance Conference and the Town Hall in general. Thanks for speaking up!

nshldagd

Having problem with a 90 corolla aux fan and a/c
fan. I can't get it to shut off,I replaced the relays and the radiator fan switch with no luck?

mt1

I have a 1996 Gea Prizm, with the 1.6L. Can anybody tell me when the timing belt should be replaced? Can't find it in the manual.
Thanks.

brspeck

I have a 94 Geo Prizm (mechanically identical to Toyota Corolla). over the past few months it has been making a strange noise which has gotten worse. While moving slowly, it sounds like a sort of rubbing or scraping and while moving faster it turns into a sort of whine. It sounds like the noise happens every time the wheel goes around, and it's coming, as far as I can tell, from the front wheels. Happens almost always when I am turning, almost never when I am going straight. Also it almost always happens when I am coasting with the clutch in, although occasionally I will hear it when accelerating or coasting with my foot off the clutch. It has brand new brake pads on all four wheels... has been in to the dealer once for this problem and they weren't sure what the noise was, but said to wait and see if it goes away. Three months later it's getting a lot worse!

jonathan75

Maybe it is the wheel bearings or the CV joint. I would take it to Midias and they will check it for free and tell you how much it would cost to fix it.I think it is the CV joint.

gus

#33> The extreme driving service schedule for the Corolla recommends a 60K timing belt replacement. If the belt is anything like the quality belts Toyota uses for the Corolla, you should be ok until about 80K. Think about doing the water pump at the same time as the timing belt, because you need to remove the timing belt in order to get to the water pump.

rdeschene

REPLACE THE TIMING BELT WHEN YOU SHOULD.

Otherwise, you're looking at a complete rebuild on the engine if the belt goes. And that's around 4 to 5 grand.

rdeschene

Risk consists of probability/likelihood and consequences. Here the probability is small, but the consequence of being wrong is very large.

You end up spending the money at 80K or 60K, either way, from Gus' advice.

gus

These engines are not interference engines. A broken timing belt will be an inconvenience, but not a disaster. You will not bend valves or crack pistons.

Gus
Conference Host

jonathan75

I talked to a mechanic about the Corolla. He said it was a non-interferance engine.

gsrini123

I have a 98' Corolla CE.
I have noticed one problem.
When I start driving my car in the morning after starting and allowing 30 secs for engine to warm-up, I get some noise from the brakes when I apply the brakes.
Can anyone tell me why this is?

sowashco

My sister's new 99 Corolla as a paint job that is very easily scratched. Lightly dusting the car with a clean rag caused scratches down to primer. Dealer doesn't see any problem, local body shop concurs saying "black" is a difficult color to paint and this is normal. I have some background in polymer science and I know that this paint job is much worse than normal or what should be expected despite any difficulty the particular color might cause.

My sister contacted the "zone" manager and got the same story. I want to escallate the problem to the next level - does anyone have any advice? Who is the next level? How can I get Toyota USA to notice (rather than being ignored by the dealer)? Post here or at ctmurray@sowashco.com. TIA

rdeschene

timing belts. OK, so it is a non-interference engine - how much is a break-down by the side of the road (maybe) worth to you.

You'll spend the money this year, or next year. Even if one is in a financial situation whereby it takes an extra month or two to pay for the maintenance - is THAT amount worth the relative risk.

It all depends on the person, I guess. A lot of people carry minimal disability, or home, or liability insurance. And, on average, they're OK without it. But, by definition, some portion of the people have their lives destroyed, financially. As I said, it depends on the person.

yjin

Hi all,

I just notice some noise when I was driving my 200 0 Corolla. When I start slowly, there is no such noise. But when I press the pedal harder, there is some noise, more like hissing noise coming under the hood. It is not smooth hissing noise, but it is also not knocking noise. But it is something other than engine whining.

Did anybody experience the same/similar thing?

Thanks

sponakala

Hi,

Can some body tell me what kind of oils (I am sure there are some numbers) to buy for my Toyota Corolla 1994 model.

[Background:
For the first time I wanted to fill all the needed oils, and went to Pep-boys to buy. I must confess that I was puzzled to see arrays of different numbered oils. Unfortunately, I don't have my car manual to help in chosing the right oils for the following FIVE.]
1. Power steering fluid
2. Break fluid
3. Transmission fluid
4. -------------(One more, I donot know its name)
& 5. Engine oil

I am planning to buy Chilton Repair manual to help me with all the needed info. But before it could arrive, I shall need this information.

Hope some body would help me.

Srini

x082483

My brother has a 1999 Toyota Corolla, which he purchased in January. There are 14,000 miles on the car. He just recently went on a long trip (about 300 miles) and said he hit a cone in the road going about 25-30 mph (construction zone). He said that the car runs and rides fine but he just recently noticed a slight noise when braking and turning at a low speed (ie parking or turning into a neighborhood. He said there was quite a bit of rain on his trip and suspects the brakes might have been wet, but he is a little concerned and would like to know what the problem may be. Also, how would you rate the 185/65 Goddyear Integrity tires on this car. I rode with my brother and the tires seem quite noisy.

elizabethluna

Yes, I have the same whining noise. Almost a buzzing sound above engine noise, only noticed it with radio off. Most noticeable around 20-35 mph. I have a 1999 Corolla CE. Haven't decided if I need to take it in yet. Any suggestions?

yjin

Yes, "buzzing noise" might be the better word to describe it. Many others notice the same thing. Maybe we should to contact Toyota first to see if they can give some explanation.

130

Well, I have a 99 Prizm and its engine whines too, it's most noticeable when accelerating from stop, between speeds of 20 - 40 mph. I took the car to two Chevy dealerships so far. The first dealer told me that it's just the air rushing in, the other that the noise is normal for this type of engine. I asked them both why other 99 Prizms don't have this problem and they couldn't answer the question. They seem very reluctant to do anything about it.

Many other Prizms and Corollas' engines whine, it's a widespread problem. Is there anyone who took his car to a Toyota dealership because of this? Did they tell you the same BS the Chevy dealers told me?

I think that the only way to have this problem fixed is to let Toyota know about the problem, maybe they can do something about it. Maybe if we all call/write Toyota and ask to talk to a manager there or someone in charge then we could figure out what's going on.

rachm

I got the same problem with my Corolla 2000: whining, buzzing when I start it at low speed, or from stop, especially when I'm on a upper slope. I drove it in the dealership and got the same answer as in #50. Then I called Toyato company directly and they let me to contact dealership. I think all those people who have this problem should contact Toyota to let them know and see what can be done.

mazda323

Is the engine on a 91 Corolla an interference engine? Will a broken timing belt result in serious damage or can I take my chances and wait till it breaks.

mousumi

I am evaluating some cars, should I go in for Corolla 2000.

bpdallas

I bought a Black 1999 Corolla LE and soon discovered acid rain damage to the clear coat. At first I thought it was water spots but after her first wash the "spots" didn't go away. Toyota said that the warrenty doesn't cover acid rain. The body shop recommends sanding and waxing but will not guarantee that the finish will not deteriorate. After some negotiation with a dealer rep the dealer is buying back the car. I'll never buy black again!