Toyota Corolla

raychuang00 · September 2001

All I can say is that if this is the replacement for the current Corolla, Toyota buyers will have some getting used to in terms of its design. The general shape of the new Corolla is much more rounded, and it reminds me a bit of a Toyota Echo "writ large."

mpyne · September 2001

im a current corolla owner 2002 and i think the 2003 corolla is ugly. i personally think it looks like the civic sedan. the car looks cheap looking
they couldve used the design they have now and enhanced it. just my opinion

diploid · September 2001

Actually, it seems as if Toyota copied the Renault Scenic's front- which isn't too bad, but it's a big departure from the current model.

gsbhasin · September 2001

Hi guys,
I bought a new Corolla CE 2002 Auto over a month ago and have 2200 miles on it now. My daily commute is 100 miles round. I was planning to take the car from Orange county to San Fransisco over a weekend. Its about 800 miles round trip.
Does anyone know if its ok to drive a new car that much over 2 days and 400 miles at a stretch?

Also, when do u get an oil change? The manual says 5000 miles but I have read people saying 3000 miles in this forum.
Thank you

desertguy · September 2001

Your Corolla is certainly broken-in with 2200 miles on the odo. I would not hesitate to take that trip. My comute is 90 miles round trip but it's get on the freeway, shift into 5th and cruise to Palm Desert before shifting out of 5th again. Great for mileage. I just got my first oil change on my 2002 S and it was at 4800 miles. My type of driving is the easiest on oil as the car always gets well warmed up and many of the contaminents are burned off. Commuting in Orange Co. has got to be a lot of stop and go. At least it was when I commuted from Mission Viejo to LA. The dealers all put out 3,000 because they make more money that way. I think sticking with what your factory manual says is just fine.

truckdude1 · September 2001

Hi do any of you have a 93-97 Corolla that you bought used with an Automatic whats the milage and how well does it run were looking for a used Camry or Corola for our son that costs under 6 thousand dollars ! please help

dave594 · September 2001

A few weeks back the Car Talk guys addressed this issue. They said that if you use good oil like the owner's manual says to, you should do fine sticking with the recommended maintenance interval, which is 7500 miles. If you want to be on the safe side, change it at 5000 miles. 3000 miles is overkill unless you drive in a severe condition.

jlim1 · September 2001

Jeprox: The all-new Corolla's looks can be found at: www.toyota.jp
Asian-new Corolla has been released into market for quite some time now. I also learned that the new Corolla is a leap of improvement from current generation's shortcomings - for instance, crampy interior room, and dull styling.
The North American market will definitely take a while to like the new Toyota's style found in new Camry and Corolla (soon in Winter/Spring 2002).
Hope this helps.

jlim1 · September 2001

The Toyota's Japanese site is actually:
www.toyota.co.jp

jrct9454 · September 2001

...that the North American version of the Corolla will have different styling than the Japanese car. How different remains to be seen, and I think the differences are likely to be minor, but don't assume the Japanese Corolla, especially the sedan, is the car we will see here. Certainly, the Matrix gives you some clues about the front on the car, and that is not radically different from the homeland Corolla in general theme, just in details. Suffice to say, though, that the three-box sedan look with the more "formal" front end is probably a thing of the past.

coolguyky7 · September 2001

When is the 2003 Corolla supposed to start selling in the US?

gsbhasin · September 2001

does the CE auto 3 spd go? Mine tends to make a bit of noise of if I push it over 70 mph?

And the tachometer does not have an RPM reader so i could see if it goes over the redline....

coolguyky7 · September 2001

This is an article on the Toyota Matrix on caranddriver.com. The way I read the article, it almost sounds like the Corolla is in jeopardy with the Matrix coming out...what that means I don't know. I don't think Toyota would kill off the Corolla for the US. No way that can happen!

http://www.caranddriver.com/xp/Caranddriver/features/2001/october/200110_preview_toyotamatrix.xml

jeprox · September 2001

little confused with your statement...
"And the tachometer does not have an RPM reader so i could see if it goes over the redline.... "
i think you meant the speedometer.

thank you jlim1 for the toyota site. i saw the car few weeks back after i posted the question about 2003 corolla. the 2003 model looks like a bigger version of echo. i personally think 2003 corollas will be more along the lines of the matrix. asian models rarely makes it to north america. just my opinion.

gsbhasin · September 2001

jeprox,
man, i am sorry. i meant the speedometer.
it makes a bloody lotta noise if i pull it over 70 mph, not the road noise (which is there after 50) but the engine noise and its not loud groan, but kinda deep hissing noise that is audible only after 70. And this noise appears like something is grinding fast somewhere, some rotor or chain.....

savoid · September 2001

I was wondering if anyone can give me any info on the corolla 4wd wagon I found a 1988 but am worried about the reliability of this car. Does anyone have any experience with this model? Your help is greatly appreciated thanks.

mpyne · September 2001

The Corolla's brand [image] is a big issue for us," says Takeshi Yoshida, Toyota's chief engineer for the Corolla and resident small-car czar. The current four-door vanilla Corolla "is not a vehicle that conceptually is going to appeal to a younger buyer base."

i think the current design of corolla is extrememly nice, it has a very classy, non-offensive look. am i the only one who thinks this?? the front end grill is similar to the is 300, the back end has the sweet lexus look. i dont like the matrix personally. who needs another hatch back. some of us like sedans and coupes.

dave594 · September 2001

I guess the Corolla S is Toyota's attempt at luring the young buyers into their showrooms. I bought one, but then I'm hardly young. I don't think the 20 something crowd will be interested in Corollas as they are much more inclined towards the Civics, Focuses and the Jetta/Golfs. Unfortunately most of Toyota's lineup (except for the trucks and SUVs) is appealing only to the 30 and higher segment of the population. Its image problem in the under-40 consumer base in its home market is very depressing. The young Japanese buyer are much more likely to buy a German import than a Toyota, as Toyota has the image akin to Buick has here.

jeprox · September 2001

i personally like the corolla and prefer it over the civic. if only more aftermarket parts are available for the corolla, i think corolla's can be a big hit with the younger crowd.

gsbhasin:
70mph is not that fast and a corolla should be able to handle that speed - even with 3 speed auto. the hissing sound may be coming from your windows/doors. my corolla used to have this sound coming from the window/door seals if i drive past 130KPH.
hope this helps.

britton2 · September 2001

I think the Corolla looks great - mine is a 2001 LE - had a Civic before this - 1986 hatchback DX - a darn good car too - before that I had a Corolla hatchback - 1980 - another good car - I prefer the look of the Corolla over the new Civic - but I have seen pics of the 2003 Corolla and I think it looks good too - I'm way past "twenty-something"!

canc · September 2001

I think the current Corolla looks great. Of course it's not a huge head-turner, but still sporty enough for my tastes. The Corolla has the kind of style that you don't get tired of after a while. Some cars are more dramatically styled, but it makes me wonder what it'll look like in 10 years' time.

I'm 25 too, and a lot of my friends either have a Corolla or consider one when buying a car of that class.

True, there aren't as many aftermarket parts for the Corolla as there is for the Civic, but the Corolla still has more than many other cars out there.

The Corolla might not appeal to some younger buyers such as myself because of its price. The Civic was at least $2500 cheaper than my Corolla when I bought it this year, but only after trying both out that I came to realize that you really do get what you pay for.

huang4 · September 2001

I have a 98 corolla and want to change it's coolant. Does anybody know where is the output of coolant? I heard that the spark plugs can last 100,000 miles but the others told me to replace them every two years(30,000 miles). Which one is
correct?

Thanks in advance!

desertguy · September 2001

The plugs will last. But, from what I have read if they are not changed @ 30k to 40k they become practically welded to the block. It will be almost imposible for the layman to remove them if they havn't been touched for 100k. I know I read this in the nationally syndicated column Click & Clack for one. Plugs are cheap enough that it would be wise to change them more often IMO.

dave594 · September 2001

Read the owner's manual to see how to drain the radiator. You have to remove the drain plug or bolt. Also, when you do this, be careful not to just dump the old coolant anywhere, especially into a storm drain or on the ground. Antifreeze is poison to birds and animals, and have to be disposed of properly.

huang4 · September 2001

desertguy&dave594, thanks a lot for your help!

I wonder anyone uses synthetical oil, $50 per gallon. What is the difference of normal oil and synthetical one? Should I start to use it on my corolla(45K)?

Thank you.

huang4 · September 2001

desertguy&dave594, thanks a lot for your help!

I wonder anyone uses synthetical oil, $50 per gallon. What is the difference of normal oil and synthetical one? Should I start to use it on my corolla(45K)?

Thank you.

dave594 · September 2001

Huang4, where are you shopping for synthetic oil at $50 a gallon? Mobil 1 usually sell for about $4 a quart. That comes out to about $16 a gallon. I've used Mobil 1 on two previous cars, Honda Accords. One I owned up to 130,000 miles, and the engine was tight, never burned oil. I guess if you want maximum performance and you don't mind the price, go ahead and used it. You can also stretch out your oil change interval to the maximum, in this case, 7500 miles or so. I used to hear stories about switching from petroleum based oil to synthetics on a car that's already pretty much "used to" regular oil, something to the effect that the seals would shrink if you switch to synthetic and you would start burning oil. Don't know the truth to that story. If your car isn't burning oil, and the engine is running fine, and you regularly change the oil at the recommended intervals and use quality oil, you really won't gain much of an advantage from switching to synthetic. But if you really think it'll help, go for it.

jeprox · September 2001

if you have platinum plugs, they are supposed to last you at least 90,000kms. regular plugs normally last half or less that time. it also depends on your driving habits.

coolant drain plug is usually at the bottom rear of the radiator or it can also be found on the bottom front of the rad.

canc · September 2001

The current generation of Corollas have iridium spark plugs, which last even longer. What's this thing about the plugs fusing with the engine?

dave594 · September 2001

The problem with not removing the plugs often enough is that with time the plugs get to be impossible to remove from the engine block. I've heard Click 'n Clack discuss this on Cartalk a few times. Yes, the plugs will last 100k miles, but it won't do you much good if you have to break off the plugs and drill them out. Safer to just change them every 50k miles, or just remove them and clean off the threads and reinsert them every couple of years if you don't want to change. But if you go to that much trouble, might as well put in new ones if you took them off already.

canc · September 2001

Thanks for explanation. I wasn't aware that they could get stuck in the block, so I guess I'll have to do that every few years. I've heard iridium spark plugs can be really expensive, so I'll be keeping them until the recommended change.

While we're on the subject, are the spark plugs on the Corolla 1.8L VVT-i engine found underneath the top black plastic that reads "VVT-i 16 valve"? I hope so!

jeprox · September 2001

corolla's come with iridium as OEM? i can see having platinum as OEM but iridium? i've been trying to find these plugs in canada and so far, no luck! anyone know where i can buy these in canada?

thanks.

huang4 · September 2001

My friends told me Texaco is the best and BP is very bad. I don't know this is true or not but
the price of Texaco is much higher than BP's.
Should I start to use Texaco instead of BP?
Thank you in advance.

canc · September 2001

jeprox: My 2001 Corolla has iridium spark plugs, and as stated in my owner's manual, all current generation Corollas have iridium spark plugs that only need to be changed at 192,000 kms.

huang: Buy the cheapest one. Your Corolla won't mind. It's not like you have a gas-guzzling Lexus that requires high grade gas.

desertguy · September 2001

huang - Your friends must own stock in Texaco!! As Canc said, use the brand that is least expensive.

truckdude1 · September 2001

What year corolla and with what mileage and condition could i purchase for under 5,000 dollars ? I want a car that looks good , shiny and runs great with an automatic transmission and air conditioning, i do not want a civic for our son or daughter since we have a new one but are the 93-96 corolla's still good and are they reliable to buy a used one with up to 125,000 miles and how long would this car last for if i buy one with high miles ? please help soon
Truckdude1

tundradude · September 2001

As a general rule, the 93 thru 97's are excellent cars. If you have any doubt in one that you have found, take it to a mechanic. I would suggest though that you would stick to a DX or an LE. If you want an automatic, the 1.8 comes with a 4-speed auto.

I put in my 95 DX and assumed it has an automatic with 110K and Edmunds suggested $4720. The manual was $4476. Both prices suggest middle grade (private party).

The cars lasting is all revelant on its previous history, but here again, Corollas are better than usual even with amounts of punishment.

If you are between a higher grade older model and a lesser grade newer model, I would go with the higher grade.

The big thing you have to worry about these particular year Corollas is: Has the timing belt been properly done? However, if it does break, it won't lock up the engine like a Honda.

spike78 · September 2001

Guys.. check out this link...

http://www.auto2000.astra.co.id/berita/berita.htm

I don't know if all of you have seen this one.. I'm new here, don't have time to read 1038 messages

canc · October 2001

The service manager at my Toyota dealership told me that Toyota was discontinuing the touch-up paint bottles and replacing them with the paint pens I wrote about here a while ago. You should thus be getting some soon, unless it's specific to Toyota Canada, which I doubt.

gsbhasin · October 2001

Hi,
I have a 2002 Corolla CE auto. Can i get power door locks and CD changer installed on it? If yes, does doing that violate any warranties? How reliable are these 3rd party electronics?

And how much do they cost approx. in South CA?

canc · October 2001

I haven't heard of people installing power door locks as aftermarket, but the cd changer can be installed easily. Just go to any electronics store and they'll install it for you. The price, of course, depends if you're buying a 6-disc or 12-disc changer. Also, a Clarion will be more expensive than a Sony. There's a lot of variety out there, so shop around.

I recently upgraded my speakers in my Corolla and the sound I'm getting out of them is amazing! I upgraded my 4 speakers (which were 6.5 inch, 20 W speakers) with 4 Infinity 80 W speakers. The sound is extremely clear, and it feels like I'm in a concert hall, yet it doesn't sound like a boom box. And with the Corolla's noise insulation everywhere, you hardly hear it from the outside... until I open up a door.

ultrarunner · October 2001

How long did it take to change the speakers? What was the most difficult and did you have to make any alterations?

canc · October 2001

It took about 1 1/2 to 2 hours to change all four. The two rear ones are easy because they can be reached from inside the trunk. The front ones, however, have brackets that are integrated with the original speakers. I had mine professionally installed since I didn't want to mess around with that too much, and the guy who installed them for me made brackets for the front speakers. I wanted to keep the stock car look and I was able to keep the original speaker covers and everything. In other words, you'd never know I have Infinity speakers, since it looks exactly the same as before I had them installed.

The model number is 675i, and the nice thing about them is the tweeter reorients itself so that it can face the listeners.

jmcarolla · October 2001

What could be a good mileage for 2001 Corolla CE for city driving?
I am getting about 26 mpg and have 14K with regular oil changes at 3K.

britton2 · October 2001

Do you have an automatic tranny? Mine is a '01 LE with the 4-speed auto - I get between 30-32 MPG in the city - I alternate between 87 and 89 octane gas - I do mostly city driving - I keep my tires at about 32 PSI - good luck

catz78 · October 2001

Hi,
I was wondering if anyone would know where the fuel filter on a 93 Toyota Corolla would be located. My car has a stalling problem. Sometimes when I back up it stalls and sometimes when I press on the gas after stopping it will hesitate but not stall. Do you think it is the fuel filter? Thanks.
Cari

canc · October 2001

Sounds like a fuel filter problem, in which case you should either replace it yourself or have it replaced. One of my friends, who had a 90-93 Tercel (can't remember the exact year), had put regular fuel in his car for years, but then recently had filled up using ethanol gas. Ethanol removes carbon deposits in the engine, thereby clogging up his filters. His car had intermittent losses of power and he stalled a few times too, because there wasn't enough fuel coming in.

terceltom1 · October 2001

I have a 2001 LE automatic and I am getting 24 MPG. in the city and 35 highway. This is right on with what Consumer Reports says you should get.I use the recommended (Reg.) gasoline.

eharri3 · October 2001

For those who've driven both the new and the previous generation Corolla, Have any improvements been made to Corrola Manuals? Especially with this new 'S' model with the ugly red sticker on the trunk lid? I've driven my parents' '97 CE on a fairly regular basis and the shifter feels connected to a bowl of pudding, making me make dumb mistakes like missing gears that I almost never do in other cars. The throws are too long and it's very notchy and wobbly. Has it been revised at all?

dave594 · October 2001

I just got my S with the 5 speed. My previous 5 speed was an 86 Accord, and the Corolla, while not possessing a German precision transmission, is competent and does the job as it's supposed to. I feel that it's comparable to the feel of my old Accord's stick. My only problem is sometimes trying to shift into first after almost braking completely, but mistakenly shifting into third instead. Could be that I'm not totally in sync yet with the feel of the shifter. But I haven't had any complaints regarding the crispness of the shifts or noticed any wobbling at all. It gives enough feel of the engine to make me comfortable with it.

Toyota Corolla

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