Toyota Corolla Maintenance and Repair

jeprox · October 2002

to those of you interested in protecting your 03' corolla radiator from bugs and little rocks... should also work for the matrix.
i installed a bug screen right in front of the radiator and invisible from the outside. works great, protects your radiator and cheap! you can only see the screen if you look under the bumper or peek through the grill.
took me less than 30mins. to install it.

just buy fiberglass bug screen and cut to the correct size. it's better if you can get another set of hands to help you.
- remove 2 bolts/brackets that holds the radiator.
- lift the radiator a bit so you can slide the screen underneath it.
- lower radiator so it will sit on the screen and hold it in place. pull up the rest of the screen and use the bracket on each corner to hold screen in place.
- screw back in the bolts and you are done!

you may have a bit of pulling to do on the screen so it's tight. other than this, the install is real easy. i did this for my sienna van as well. works real great. lots of room between the grill and radiator for the 03' corolla so it's real easy to install the screen.

btw, cost of the screen was about C$5.00

good way to keep your radiator from getting damaged by rocks or bugs

fgf001 · October 2002

One of the known boo-boos for the '03 Corolla is the total lack of thigh support for drivers 6' tall & over (5 speed). My temporary solution is a wedge shaped seat cushion with the thick part towards the steering wheel for thigh support. It's a pain getting in & out as you always have to rearrange the damn thing to fit correctly. Certainly other tall folks have this same problem...I'd love to hear your solutions short of replacing the entire seat. I can drive my lady's '03 with no problem as it's an automatic and seat placement is not critical to reach only two pedals and there's no concern about shifting smoothly.

jeprox · October 2002

anyone know the bolt pattern for the 03' corolla steel rims? i think it's 5x100 but i'm not 100% sure.

thanks

jrct9454 · October 2002

...it's 5x100.

jeprox · October 2002

thank you.

jumbieman · October 2002

Anybody else notice this on the cruise? Resume doesn't work after about two or three minutes after touching the brake to come off cruise. You have to activate SET again.

hbhoward · October 2002

Since we purchased our 2003 Corolla LE in July, there has been an intermittent rotten egg smell. Took to dealer at 1130 miles. Was told that the new cars had a whole new clean air system and "that just means it's working." Ran MPG test on our own and only got 30.4 MPG. Took back to dealer at 1996 mis. Told them we felt the smell and low MPG were related. Service dept. ran a fuel system diagnosis (and charged for it) and came up with 38.1 at 55MPH and 37.14 at 65MPH. Of course our problem is intermittent and the test ran for .01 mi. Have since run 2 more MPG tests on our own, and only got 35.2 (and that was really babying it) and 32.2. Car is rated at 38 MPG. I am now in the process of communicating with Toyota Motor Sales USA.

nippononly · October 2002

this rotten egg smell is a very common theme among new corolla owners right now, and even some camry owners too. Maybe if you try a different dealership, they will be more familiar with it.

jumbieman: I have not noticed this behavior of the cruise, and it may be that yours is malfunctioning...BUT, it is programmed to cancel its set speed if you drop below 25 mph, so if you hit the brakes and go below that speed, you are supposed to have to set the speed again.

jrct9454 · October 2002

My first reaction to the "problems" above is that these are non-issues.

Your fuel consumption figures are right on for a relatively new car, and well within the range of the EPA figures. There is nothing wrong with the car and nothing Toyota needs to do. Our '03 LE automatic ranged from 27-39 mpg, with a suburban average of 30-32, and a highway trip average of 33-37. The only way you are going to exceed 35 mpg consistently is to drive at speeds not exceeding 65 mph [which is how the high figure of the EPA estimates is achieved]. As an OVERALL avg, my usual rule of thumb is about 10-15% over the EPA city figure. If you do better than that, you're ahead of the game. And if you don't have at least 5000 miles on the car, it will continue to get gradually better.

The smell you refer to means you are using a gasoline brand that has an excess of sulfur in it; not unusual depending on where in the country you are, and who is the supplier of the crude that the refinery is using. Switching brands sometimes helps. Where RFG is used [CA, some parts of Oregon, some areas of the NE], this happens less often because the RFG formula calls for reduced sulfur, which incidentally will eventually happen nationwide, though not for a few years yet.

And no, there is absolutely no connection between the smell and your fuel consumption - which, as noted above, is well within the parameters you can expect for this car.

herzogtum71 · October 2002

Have others experienced what jrct9454 describes? I keep a complete log of gas mileage and have never had a car improve significantly after a break-in period. My '94 Corolla wagon (5 speed), for example, had averaged 37.2 mpg over the first 1,000 miles and 36.1 mpg over the first 5,000 miles. It averaged 35.5 mpg over the first 9,500 miles, and I just figured that it has averaged 35.0 mpg over 100,400 miles. Similar experience with my other cars.

nippononly · October 2002

I hear this from all sorts of folks. Mileage will improve, mileage will improve. I understand the theory behind it, but no car I have ever owned new has had better gas mileage after the first 5K miles...having said that, I have a suspicion that this Matrix is getting slightly better mileage now (maybe 1 point) than it was new (it now has 4000 miles), but I have not been tracking closely enough. Either way it hovers right around 33/37, and yes, I DO stick to the speed limit as a gas-saving measure...

jrct9454 · October 2002

...with disagreement, and the amount of improvement varies a lot by make and engine. However, most modern engines from Toyota and Honda are not REALLY fully broken in [rings seated, no extra friction points] until somewhere between 4k and 7k miles. Depends on too many variables to go beyond this rule of thumb.

Having said that, measuring fuel consumption can only be done religiously with a log book and a commitment to doing the calculations on every fillup. I do and have always done. If you do, then you've got accurate figures. And NOTHING varies from car to car and driver to driver like fuel use - that's why the EPA tests are just benchmarks. Most people will have a hard time matching the EPA figures [which is where I got my 10-15% over the city number from], and there will be the occasional cotton-foot who can consistently beat the EPA numbers.

An automatic '03 Corolla that averages 30-35 mpg is "in the lane" ... I was merely reacting to the claim that it should somehow be dramatically better.

For a good real-world benchmark, the fuel consumption that Consumer Reports publishes with their road tests has, in my extensive experience, been VERY close to my overall annual average for most cars I've owned [and I've had 50 new cars in the past 37 years].

fgf001 · October 2002

The chrome lug nuts that come with the aluminum wheel package on '03 Corollas (and perhaps Matrix) are not a one piece unit. The chrome exterior that you see is merely a cap that is glued on to the lug. While having the Firestone recall done several of these caps just came off, no fault of the technician. If they are not damaged, a touch of super glue makes it look new again. I believe I will order real chrome lugs for this car. Every time the tires are rotated it will be the same thing and only a matter of time until one is damaged or lost.

jmc13 · October 2002

I just bought a 2003 base model Matrix and I've noticed a relatively loud metallic "ping" or "clunk" when shifting from park to reverse. The car drives fine when in gear but I'm concerned about the sound its makes. Unfortunately, it does'nt do it every time I shift so you know when I take it to the dealer it won't "clunk" on cue and they'll look at me like I'm crazy.

Anyone else have the same problem?

nippononly · October 2002

are parking on an incline and not setting the parking brake, but just letting the car rest on the 'park' gear, a clunk coming out of park would be perfectly normal.

jmc13 · October 2002

No. The car is parked on a level surface, parking brake off, brake pedal depressed. Shift from park to reverse. I would characterize the sound as more metallic - like banging two steel rods together. It is very noticeable; not subtle at all. Something is not right.

jeprox · October 2002

it could be your tranny just needs to be adjusted. some tranny from old hondas and caravans
would give this big "clunk/jolt" when you shift from park to reverse.

did you check your tranny fluid just to make sure it's on the right level?

jmc13 · October 2002

No I haven't checked the fluid level but I will tonight. Thanks for the suggestion.

hbhoward · October 2002

The response by jrct9454 seems to assume that this is my first new car and/or first Toyota. It is the same speech I have been getting from my dealer. The truth is this is my 6th new Toyota, so I know what to expect from my vehicle.

As for fuel economy...in all 5 previous Toyotas, I have consistently gotten 2-3 MPG above the highway rating on trips, and that is driving with the flow of traffic on interstates. On a trip 2 months ago, I got 29.5 MPG from my 1998 Camry V6 which is rated at 27. If the dealership can produce 37-38 MPG on a fuel diagnosis scan of the 2003 Corolla, it means my car is capable of getting that kind of MPG. Yet I haven't been able to reproduce that MPG on several tanks of fuel, no matter how I drive. I disagree with you when you say there is absolutely no relationship between the smell and fuel economy. The sulfur smell is intermittent. I believe that when the car emits the odor, it also delivers very poor fuel economy.

As for the sulfur smell being caused by the gasoline, and not the car...in the past few months my family has owned a 95 Corolla, now replaced by a 2003 Matrix, a 96 Tercel, replaced by a 2003 Corolla LE, a 98 Camry V6, and a 2001 Echo. We each use 2-3 different brands of gasoline in each of the vehicles. Why is it that the only cars emitting a sulfur smell are the 2003 Corolla and Matrix?

friendly_jacek · October 2002

As you know well, milage is a very relative thing. Depends on type of transmission, driving style, AC usage, and traffic. My AT 2003 S just delivers 26-27 MPG in my city traffic commuting. Sounds poor, but this is an improvement for me from 20-22 MPG I experienced with Mazda Protege and 18 MPG with Subaru Legacy in the same gruelling traffic.
Re egg smell, I have seen many complaints about it on this forum. You may want to search in this or similar board. It sounds like a small percentage of Toyotas has this problems and it may be difficult to repair. Someone had to replace converter to get rid of it.
Good luck and keep us posted.

jrct9454 · October 2002

...have it your way. Call in the regional service rep if you don't trust the dealer, or find another dealer.

behhpp · October 2002

My corolla stinks too. Didn't notice it when car was new and ran AC on the recirculate mode, but I smell it now as outside air gets in the car. It is really bad. Makes no difference what brand of gas I buy. Is there a fix for this that anyone has found?

jrct9454 · October 2002

I will repeat: depending on where you live in the nation, this can be an ongoing problem that varies with the source of the crude that was used to refine your gasoline. It is a common complaint across all makes of cars, not just Toyota [I follow many makes online, and this happens all the time].

We have never had this problem since going to RFG in our CA cars, including our '03 Corolla. Your profile gives me no clue as to your location, but I will bet it is not in an RFG state.

The catalytic converters in these cars [to achieve ULEV certification] do NOT like sulfur at the levels that some refiners can still legally get by with. Complain to your Congressperson about the ridiculous amount of leeway that the current law gives the oil companies to get the sulfur out of our motor fuel. This issue was settled in Europe many moons ago. We will have to wait years more for the current law to solve this problem nationwide in the USA. It is also why we can't use the clean diesel technology that is widespread in Europe - the crap that gets sold as diesel in most of this country is poison for the emissions systems.

footie · October 2002

Bill,

In order to validate this as a 'it's the gas' problem per jrtc9454 suggests, go to your Toyota dealership where you bought your car and go test drive about 3 or 4 used Toyotas on the lot. Tell them you are shopping for your college kids, or if you are too young, you are shopping for your Mom.

If they stink with the windows down like jrtc says, hey, then maybe it is the gas in your area.

You can also try Toyotas at another dealership to cross check.

If the cars you test drive don't stink, then your car has a problem. If the dealership doesn't deal with it and fix it, put them and Toyota on a lemon law "3 strikes and you are out" plan.

Hydrogen Sulfide is a culprit the stink. It's chemical formula is H2S. It mixes with H20 (water vapor in the air) to give H2SO3 and H2S04, which are known as sulfuric acid. Long exposure to it isn't probably very good for you or your car. In areas of the country where high sulfur coal has been burned, it creates what's called acid rain.

Good luck!

hbhoward · October 2002

Because none of the other cars in our family, besides the 2003 Corolla and Matrix, are experiencing this problem, I'm convinced it is a design flaw within the car itself, and not a problem with the gasoline.

As for going to another dealer to resolve the problem, I believe the dealership is saying exactly what they have been instructed to say. I don't believe they have been given any kind of notice from Toyota Motor Sales USA as to a way to correct the problem. And, until a number of displeased Corolla customers go on record, there won't be any effort to correct the problem.

Right now, I am communicating with Toyota Motor Sales USA. In the past, they have always come up with a solution for me. I'll keep you posted.

jeprox · October 2002

to those of you who owns 03' corolla and this may apply to matrix owners too...

if you look under your steering wheel, sort of under the 9 o'clock and 3 o'clock position - you will see a hole on each side. do you have plugs covering these 2 holes? if look closely, you will see a screw/bolt inside. i just find it strange that toyota didnt put plugs to cover the holes.

my dealer said they dont know if those holes are left open on purpose or supposed to have plugs there.

friendly_jacek · October 2002

H2S has an extremely strong rotten egg smell. However, H2S does not react with water to produce H2SO3, SO2 does this trick. H2S is water soluble, though. Because most cars do not stink like rotten eggs, sulfur in the fuel is usually burnt to SO2, which contributes to acid rain indeed. Only rare cars (and not just Toyotas as jrct noticed) emit significant amounts of H2S. Interestingly, H2S is a flammable gas, so it should be burnt to SO2 and H2O in the cylinders or catalytic converter. The central issue is what conditions of engine, converter, or exhaust allow for this incomplete combustion of sulfur/sulfates?
And this is where I have no idea.
Based on an anecdotal story that converter replacement helped a previous poster here, one could assume that defective converter is the culprit. I bet that the converters are made by part suppliers and not by car manufacturer (but I dont know for sure). Since converters contain precious metals (palladium I believe), it is easy to assume that the makers try to put as little of the good staff as possible to cut costs. But again, this is a speculation.
One more disclaimer: my chemistry knowledge bases on a high school course, so do not quote me in you correspondence to Toyota (and no, my 2003S does not smell like rotten eggs, not yet ;-)

nippononly · October 2002

do you mean where the cruise stalk comes through? That is what is at the 3:00 position on my steering wheel, just under it. At 9:00 there is a little plastic cover on a hole.

friendly_jacek · October 2002

I am sorry, but I personally have problems with your advice Re: sulfur and milage.

There is a guy with only one car (of many) with H2S emission problem. He is being blamed for buying wrong type of gas with high sulfur content, even though he tried different brands and his other cars using same fuel do not stink. If lax US fuel sulfur regulations are to blame for H2S emission problem, how come our roads dont stink like rotten eggs? Dont get me wrong, sulfur in fuel and acid rain are big problems, but would not account for the fact that same cars stink regardless of fuel brand and others just dont.
You almost sound like a doctor seeing a psychotic patient and saying it is just in your head.

The other issue. Nowadays, most people do not see any difference in mileage after break in period. I didnt, other posters didnt. Unless you experience clearly indicates otherwise, I see no sense in repeating this old truism, which is apparently not true anymore. Perhaps it was true in the past when the first oil change was needed after 500 miles and the used oil was full of metal shavings.

Irct, do you work for Toyota? You advice sounds exactly like the advice people are getting in the dealerships.

Regards,
Jacek

zukhov · October 2002

I've owned a cosmic blue XR Matrix for 3 months now. Overall, a fine drive that I highly recommend. I have noticed very annoying creaking sounds from the dash area. It seems to happen with the cold weather. Looks like the cold weather caused materials to contract/expand etc...I can't quite figure out whether it's the dash or the windshield yet. Very annoying as I said. Any bumps or ruts in the road, and the creaking/cliking sound emanates from the dash area.

Do any other Matrix owners share this problem?

leafguy2727 · October 2002

Go back in time on the posts. A few others had problems with squeeky dashes, I personaly haven't had any problems, maybe 1 or 2 squeeks. There was a fix with the clips on the dash being shaved down or something like that.

Up to 23,000 km on my XR, no major problems, love my car!!!!!!!!!!

jeprox · October 2002

no, not where the cruise stalk comes out from.
on the steering wheel, at 9 and 3 o'clock position... look sort of under or if you turn your steering wheel to the right/left, you will see 2 small holes at 9 and 3 o'clock. the holes are about half an inch in diameter and not covered.

you mentioned u saw this hole at 9 o'clock that is covered, probably the same hole i'm talking about. look on the other side and there's another one there.

on my car and many other corollas i saw, the two holes are not covered!

8u6hfd · October 2002

Which Toyota owns a good chunk of.

If you go back a million posts, back to the April to May 02 dates....many said the rotten egg smell goes away after a few hundred miles.

silv3rrice · October 2002

I'm not really good with cars and I just got my 03 corolla LE auto, so I hope you kind people can spare me some advice. My question is in regards with air conditioning. Imagine being stuck on a traffic,your on Drive and your stepping on your breaks. While I have my AC on, it seems like there's a small jolt every 15 seconds and feels like the car is literally gasping for air and moving a few centimeters forward (even i'm stepping on the breaks hard enough). This doesn't happen when i have my AC off. Hope you guys and gals can shed me some knowledge as to whethere this is normal or something to be checked out. Thank you.

jumbieman · October 2002

Silv3rrice, yes I know what you mean. It is a very slight lurch. I had it on a 1991 Corolla and also now on my Matrix XR. I believe it is caused by the a/c compressor clutch engaging and disengaging. I've had other cars - Altima, Caravan, Windstar, etc - and they did not do this. Might be a Toyota "feature"?

jeprox · October 2002

my sienna have the same problem you described. yes it happens and yes its normal.

this happens everytime when your compressor kicks in to maintain the cool temp. you will notice this happen more when the weather is really hot and your a/c is on. when the compressor kicks in, your RPM rises... its like you stepped on your gas a bit so your car inches forward if its in gear. this happens only on cars with auto tranny.
you will notice this more if your car is a 4 cylinder. if you have a v6 or v8, you wont notice it very much unless you look at your RPM gauge.

now you know what is going on... all you do is when your a/c is on and each time you come to a complete stop, make sure you step on your brakes firmly. this will solve your problem of the car inching forward.

silv3rrice · October 2002

Thanks guys for the advice. I'm due for my first check up for the car, I'll sure mention it to the dealer too when I go there. Again thanks a million.

zukhov · October 2002

Thanks for the advise Leaf man. By the the way those Leafs have no where to go but up right now. Going to see them at the ACC on monday. Sorry for the diversion.
I've seen the previous posts re a scratching noise that comes from the speedomitor housing. This is defenitely not it. A sort of cracking sound. It may be coming from the windshield itself, and has only happened since it got colder. Less annoying, but there is: A slight vibration in the driver's side window at certain RPM when it's closed, a slightly squeeky clutch when cold, glove compartment makes a noise over big bumps, and a buzzing vibration at certain RPM that seems to be coming from the front passenger side speaker cover area. I'm a bit picky with noises, especially with a brand new car. Otherwise, I love it.

nippononly · October 2002

the door makes noise when I drive over rough pavement. Apparently, this is because they now use a cable to connect the door pull to the actual latch, rather than a steel rod like they used to. This cable is not taut when it is not in use, and can slap against the metal reinforcement panel when you drive along, making a rattling sound. They pulled my door panel off and insulated the cable, and voila! Noise (mostly) gone!

Also, apparently, it is very common for rattle/buzz to occur at speaker covers, and for a buzz to occur in upper dash area at certain engine RPMs. The master tech I had riding with me said there was no fix for these yet, but a certain amount of buzzing and even a little squeaking was to be expected from such an extensive use of plastic.

Check the kick panel in the footwell - passenger and driver side - it can be loosely installed and will buzz at certain engine speeds as well.

angenora · October 2002

I own a 2003 Corolla and have a metal on metal banging/rattling noise coming from the front end of the car whenever I hit a sharp bump such as a pothole. After almost 3 months of taking the car back and forth to the dealership, it has been diagnosed by Toyota as a design issue with the front strut mount. The part has recently been re-manufactured and I am waiting to have it installed on the car. Hopefully this will fix the problem. Is anyone else experiencing the same difficulty?

jrct9454 · October 2002

...not on our car, but on at least one other whose owner has posted on this board. There was a "homemade" solution at the time that a particularly clever dealer tech worked out, but it sounds like now there is something more "formal" available from the factory.

gcboyd1 · October 2002

I have 10,500 miles on my 03 CE. I've got the rattle above the instrument cluster, one on the passenger side of the dash near the front window, multiple creaking noises from behind the center console, etc. They're minor, but they're present. Do I trust the Toyota service techs to dismantle the dash and put it back together? Or do I chalk it up to the price of so much plastic? I have a rattle in the door that I'm not too worried about, since I can stomach removing the door panel. But the dash worries me. I don't want it to get worse. Comments?

nippononly · October 2002

I have decided to chalk it up to the inevitable downside of so much plastic. I certainly don't think that pulling out the dash will ultimately benefit me - they never go back in as well as they came out, and then there will be ten NEW squeaks and rattles!

I think squeaks and rattles are inherent in a design that uses this much plastic. That is to say, I don't think they can really be "fixed". Nothing is out of order to cause them in the first place. They probably will get worse as everything on the interior loosens up.

For me, cars are a long-term investment usually, so I will grit my teeth and keep it a while because I do expect to have the longevity of Toyota engineering, but this may be a factor in the next new car NOT being a Toyota.

friendly_jacek · October 2002

A question. When I took a delivery of my 2003 Corolla S, there were rubber plugs in the glove box with the following description IMPORTANT To the pre-delivery inspector: insert these rubber plugs into the holes of the center floor side member extensions. When I brought it up to my salesman, he replied that these are just spare ones. This was a lie, no plugs were installed. The service manager had a different story; cars in South (I live in Southeast) should not have the plug installed because it may facilitate corrosion (sic) by keeping moisture inside. I suspect that people working at Toyota dealerships make up stuff as they go, but I wanted to know if anybody (especially in south US) has similar experience with these uninstalled plugs. Thanks a lot.

tolyp1 · October 2002

I also live in the southeast and had the very same set of plugs in my glove box when I took delivery of my corolla. I figured out where they went under the car based on the picture on the bag they were in. I found the holes and plugged them in. I really dont know what those things are supposed to do but...........facilitate corrosion?????? I dont think so. Corrosion of what imparticular? Sounds like a bunch of hogwash to me. They were obviously put in the glove box for a reason.

corolla0310 · October 2002

Hi I just got my 2003 Corolla LE and it comes with power door lock. Question: Should it automatically lock the door once I drive the car? Mine is not doing so. Can someone tell me if there is something wrong with my power lock or LE doesn't have this feature.

Thanks!!

fgf001 · October 2002

It does not lock the doors automatically. Nothing is wrong.

dynolu · October 2002

In my '03 Corolla, there's an annoying vibration/rattling from the front left that seems to be coming from the dashboard, apparent at low to moderate speeds. Anyone else experiencing the same?

gcboyd1 · October 2002

my thoughts exactly. My 93 geo prizm developed a rattle in the dash at about 65,000 miles, so I'm disappointed to say the least. I don't know that this toyota is going to be such a long term investment for me, either.

Nice to know I'm not alone.

nippononly · October 2002

If this thing developed rattles at 65K, I could forgive it, because that is a fair number of miles under the wheels.

Imagine your car rattling and squeaking like a ten-year-old right from driving it off the dealer's lot!

On all these little cars, they use a ton of plastic, both to keep the price down, and because it is light and therefore efficient. But I think in recent years, Toyota has gone a little overboard. I have a couple of rattles that aren't even drowned out by the stereo unless it is pretty loud...

Problem is, I think most of the compacts and subcompacts out there are like this. I think the notable exception is Jetta and Beetle, BUT UNFORTUNATELY in those vehicles, buttons will begin to break off at 25K, the windows will quit at 40K, the electricals will be shot at 50K, and the transmission will quit at 75K. At least the Toyotas do not have these type of problems. While they may be annoying, they are cheap to own and operate.

Toyota Corolla Maintenance and Repair

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