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03 corolla, known issues?


tipota
01-22-2012, 06:42 AM
I had my 03 corolla for about a year now. so far ive had to replace the left front hub, starter, and sway bar links. i had a 97 tercel before for 4 years and got rid of it at 180k miles, and all i ever had to replace was the clutch. my 03 corolla had a new clutch put in right before i bought it, at 100k miles. are there any known issues with this car? i feel like a lot has been replaced on it already and it hasnt been living up to the reliability of a corolla. also, should i change the water pump? i dont know when its been last changed and its recommended to change it at 120k miles. what about the oil pump, how often should that be changed? how will i know if it fails? i certainly dont want to blow my engine because of a failed pump.

quick69gto
01-22-2012, 02:09 PM
We have an '03 Corolla with 456,000 miles on the original engine and auto trans.
This car is meticulously maintained with regular 3000 mile oil changes and 30,000 mile trans services/ coolant services/ serpentine belt replacement/etc.
Water pump, oil pump, timing chain was never replaced. However, both front and rear hubs were replaced once, along with one starter and one alternator. Sway bar end links were replaced once. Both axles were replaced twice.
The dash gauge cluster was replaced with a low mileage unit from eBay because the odometer stopped at 299,999 miles (known issue).
Clutch/brake/tire replacement intervals depends on your driving style.
The car does have one gremlin that I haven't figured out yet: The cruise control works but shuts off when it tries to accelerate for a hill.
These are the only issues we've had with this car.
Just to let you know, this Corolla is driven 8 hours a day, 5 days a week, usually in city traffic.

Good luck!

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