It's a 2005 Corolla CE with power locks but no power windows and cruise control. The price $9,807 is very low (compared to other dealer prices in this area for the same car) - and I was wondering why. The Carfax and Autocheck are both clean; one owner car and no accident. The dealer says they've had the car up for sale since July 2008. I'm thinking that's a really long time, there must be something wrong with it that people don't want it. They say they had it listed for $12,800 but only recently lowered the price. I find it hard to believe they cut 3 grand like that, at once.
However the dealership seems very reputable; they even won a "national dealer of the year" or smth - award. There's also a 60 days warranty on the car. Mileage is very good - 48K. It has been checked at their body shop (they showed me a checklist with a couple of dozen entries) and supposed to be in perfect condition, with all adjustments up to date.
I test-drove the car; first it looks extremely clean, like new, both on the inside and the outside.
Unusual little things I noticed - brake pedal is VERY slipery - I haven't seen that in any car.
Steering is very tight. I drove other Corollas, including 2005's and none opposed such resistance on steering. Shifting from 1st to 2nd seems a bit jerky, or 2nd speed might be skipped altogether.
But the biggest thing that worries me is the idle engine noise. It's pretty uniform but very loud. Far from most other cars I've looked at that were barely audible.
What do you guys think about this. Could it be that the noise is just because the car has been sitting outside in the cold (around 23 to 30 degrees) with little or no driving? What about the steering?
It's hard to gauge the potential problems because of the cold weather. The idle might be louder when it's cold...cars just seem to make more of a "din" when it's cold out. The steering will also probably be tighter when cold, but if it's significantly worse than other Corollas you've driven, then maybe something is wrong. If the brake pedal is just slippery to your shoes (like your shoe wants to slide off it), it's probably just Armor All or some other nonsense that the dealer applied to make it look "new". Armor All is nothing more than petroleum grease, and it doesn't belong on ANY part of the car in my opinion.
Good luck with the car search. I agree that for a Corolla to be sitting unsold since July, there may be an underlying issue with it. I actually bought mine in July '08, and they were selling like hotcakes then because of fuel prices. I'd imagine that sales might be slower now, but for it to be sitting for 6 months...eh...it'd be good to take it to an independent mechanic and get his impression of it.
I have seen belt tensioners cause a light knocking or clunking sound at idle.
__________________ 2005 Corolla LE - Impulse Red - Auto Trans - 1ZZFE - 86,000mi 2003 Echo - Auto Trans - 96,000mi. - slow as dog-dirt - I'd rather put my money in the bank than in the tank!!!!!
Indeed, there's also a TSB for belt tensioner replacement, covered by Toyota's normal warranty provisions. If the '05 CE is still under some sort of warranty by Toyota (unlikely at this point), Toyota will replace the tensioner for free. If no warranty, it'll be at the owner's expense.
ACCESSORY DRIVE BELT/
BELT TENSIONER ASSEMBLY NOISE
Models:
’03 -- ’07 Corolla & Matrix
Technical Service
BULLETIN
April 17, 2007
Some 1ZZ--FE and 2ZZ--GE engines may exhibit a squealing and/or rattling noise coming
from the engine compartment during vehicle operation. The belt tensioner assembly has
been improved to correct this condition.
S
2003 -- 2007 model year Corolla and Matrix vehicles produced BEFORE the
Production Change Effective VINs shown below.
ENGINE
PREVIOUS
PART NUMBER
CURRENT
PART NUMBER
PART NAME QTY
1ZZ--FE 16620--22012 16620--22013
Tensioner Assembly V belt
1
2ZZ--GE 16620--22032 16620--22033
Assembly, V--1
1ZZ--FE 90080--91139--83 Same
Belt V
1
2ZZ--GE 90916--A2007 Same
Belt, 1
OP CODE DESCRIPTION TIME OFP T1 T2
EG7018 R & R Accessory Drive Belt & Belt Tensioner 0.6
16620--2201#
16620--2203# 91 99
Applicable Warranty*:
This repair is covered under the Toyota Comprehensive Warranty. This warranty is
in effect for 36 months or 36,000 miles, whichever occurs first, from the vehicle’s
in-service date.
* Warranty application is limited to correction of a problem based upon a customer’s specific complaint.
ENGINE
Introduction
Applicable
Vehicles
Production
Change
Information
Parts
Information
Warranty
Information
ACCESSORY DRIVE BELT/BELT TENSIONER ASSEMBLY NOISE
-- EG021-07 April 17, 2007
Page 2 of 4
1. Verify that the noise is coming from the accessory drive belt/belt tensioner assembly.
2. Inspect the accessory drive belt and belt tensioner assembly.
If there is any roughness to either of the belt tensioner assembly bearings or any sign
of damage, scoring, or glazing on the accessory drive belt, replace BOTH the belt
tensioner assembly and the accessory drive belt.
3. Remove the drive belt.
1ZZ--FE:
A. Remove the engine under
cover RH.
B. Remove the drive belt.
a. Turn the drive belt tensioner
clockwise to relieve tension on
the belt, and then remove
the belt.
b. Carefully return the tensioner
to the unloaded position.
NOTE:
S
When retracting the tensioner, turn it
clockwise SLOWLY in 3 seconds or
more. Do NOT apply force rapidly.
S
After the tensioner is retracted all
the way, do NOT apply more force
than is necessary.
2ZZ--GE:
A. Remove the engine under
cover RH.
B. Remove the wire
harness protector.
a. Unfasten the 3 clips,
then remove the wire
harness protector.
b. Disconnect the pressure
sensor connector.
C. Disconnect the suction hose
sub--assembly.
a. Remove the 2 nuts installing
the suction hose
sub--assembly.
b. Disconnect the suction hose
sub--assembly.
D. Remove the drive belt.
a. Turn the drive belt tensioner
clockwise to relieve tension on
the belt, and then remove
the belt.
b. Carefully return the tensioner
to the unloaded position.
NOTE:
S
When retracting the tensioner, turn it
clockwise SLOWLY in 3 seconds or
more. Do NOT apply force rapidly.
S
After the tensioner is retracted all
the way, do NOT apply more force
than is necessary.
4. Remove and replace the belt
tensioner assembly.
1ZZ--FE:
Install a NEW drive belt tensioner
assembly with the bolt and nut.
5. Slowly move the belt tensioner at LEAST 4 times through its full stroke. (It should take
at LEAST 3 seconds to work it through one full stroke.) This will release any air from
the tensioner assembly and prime it for proper operation.
6. Install a NEW drive belt.
7. Install the engine under cover.
1ZZ--FE:
Install the engine under cover RH.
2ZZ--GE:
A. Install the suction hose sub--assembly.
Torque: 9.8 N
Sm (100 kgfScm, 87 in.Slbf)
B. Install the wire harness protector.
C. Install the engine under cover RH.
Torque: 7.0 N
Sm (71 kgfScm, 62 in.Slbf)
8. Confirm the repair.
Repair
Procedure
(Continued)
__________________ 2005 Corolla LE - Impulse Red - Auto Trans - 1ZZFE - 86,000mi 2003 Echo - Auto Trans - 96,000mi. - slow as dog-dirt - I'd rather put my money in the bank than in the tank!!!!!
Thanks a lot for the replies guys. The noise is actually uniform, no rattling, squealing or knocking, just the normal engine sound only loud.
I called the dealership again and talked to them about it.. they went to the car and started it and said the engine was revving at 2000 RPM to warm up and that's why it's loud. Now I don't know too much about cars but I looked online and indeed it seems most cars do that on cold weather, idling at higher RPM for a couple of minutes to reduce warming time. But do 2000 RPMs account for that high a noise? Aren't Corollas supposed to be pretty quiet even when on the road?
The pedal feels slippery against the shoe, yes. I'll check if there's any grease on it, thanks for the tip.
There also some Toyota warranty left on it, not too much and not for all components.
I'll try to get them to let me take it to a mechanic if it doesn't sell by Saturday.
One more thing.. they are asking me to get non-owners insurance to let me test-drive the car again on a highway, anyone has any recommendation for MD? Geico and a couple of others that I called don't offer that in this state.
I would run not walk away from this car. There are too many potential serious issues with it. None of what you described is normal. No matter what the dealer says. There are a lot of good Corollas to be found. This one sounds like a boat load of trouble to me. I have owned and worked on 6 Toyotas over the years and none have had the issues you described.
I haven't found the Corolla's engine to be quite as quiet as, say, a 4-cylinder Camry, but it's pretty good. On a cold start, I wouldn't describe it as "quiet", but again, it's hard to know exactly what this one sounds like.
If this outfit is making you take out an insurance policy to test-drive a car, I'd forget about it. There should be enough good used Corollas in your area.
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