Shortcomings of the 2010 Corolla?

[toyweb]

One annoyance from 2009 has been somewhat fixed (there is a dedicated clock display for 2010, though low position is less than ideal, it's better than nothing).

From what I've read, some others remain.

Squeaks and rattles all over the interior.
A/C vents/filter grows mold/ammonia in summer unless you take special steps to try to prevent it and remedy it.
Steering wheel wanders on straight roads at highway speeds.
A/C is too weak to handle cooling the interior on very hot summer days (any worse than a new Civic or Sentra?).
What else is a common complaint of the car?

[teriyaki]

No telescopic Steering Wheel

[Jeff Lange]

Originally Posted by teriyaki

No telescopic Steering Wheel

Umm... the steering wheel has tilt and telescopic. Read your owners manual.

Jeff

[SuperchargedMR2]

Originally Posted by toyweb

One annoyance from 2009 has been somewhat fixed (there is a dedicated clock display for 2010, though low position is less than ideal, it's better than nothing).

From what I've read, some others remain.

Squeaks and rattles all over the interior.
A/C vents/filter grows mold/ammonia in summer unless you take special steps to try to prevent it and remedy it.
Steering wheel wanders on straight roads at highway speeds.
A/C is too weak to handle cooling the interior on very hot summer days (any worse than a new Civic or Sentra?).
What else is a common complaint of the car?

The clock has been on some 09's as well but it is not on all 10's. I looked at a dealer and not a single car had the clock.

I've had no rattles or squeaks on my 09.
No issues with mold or ammonia smell.
No issue with the EPS or wandering, the car drives straight and true with a decent steering feel.
A/C works great! It cooled the car down quickly even when we had 2 weeks straight of 90's & 100's this past summer.

[SuperchargedMR2]

Originally Posted by Jeff Lange

Umm... the steering wheel has tilt and telescopic. Read your owners manual.

Jeff

+1

[Exit9]

Originally Posted by toyweb

One annoyance from 2009 has been somewhat fixed (there is a dedicated clock display for 2010, though low position is less than ideal, it's better than nothing).

From what I've read, some others remain.

Squeaks and rattles all over the interior.
A/C vents/filter grows mold/ammonia in summer unless you take special steps to try to prevent it and remedy it.
Steering wheel wanders on straight roads at highway speeds.
A/C is too weak to handle cooling the interior on very hot summer days (any worse than a new Civic or Sentra?).
What else is a common complaint of the car?

Have not had squeaks or rattles (fingers crossed). Haven't noticed steering wandering around the road. Had a slight funky smell but it went away. The 1.8L A/C is good - its better than my 02 Echo (large glass area tinted) and about the same as my previous 95 3.8 V6 Buick or the wife's Mazda 3. The real issue is how long it takes to get a hot car cooled down to comfortable range when it is 95-105 degrees F inside. For me in MO, its seems like about 5 minutes - Arizona would probably be a longer time. I recommend parking in the shade or parking facing the sun and using a windshield shade. The A/C is more than capable of holding the temperature down once it reaches the comfort zone (i.e. on a trip for example). Not saying people aren't having those problems, but I think a lot of people are like me and don't have those problems. The people that are ok with the car probably don't post so there is a tendency to think that the complaints apply to all 10th generation Corollas.

[TFCommanderBob]

I agree with Exit9, I'm problem free (so far). A search would reveal this type of topic has been posted at least a couple times before.

My only rattles are when driving on my .25 mile gravel driveway. Everything rattles. But once on the road I rarely hear a squeak. We shall see if that changes as I prepare to install my audio stuff over the break.

No bad smells, AC complaints, Steering complaints etc. Doesn't drive like a sports car, but then again it isn't one.

I'll be replacing the radio, but the clock as it is is kind-of a pain but not truly worth complaining about...

Only thing that occasionally bothers me is when it ignores me pumping on the gas a little if I'm pulling out behind someone who starts slower/later than I expected (manual) and it rumbles down low in RPMs. Had it not ignored me, it wouldn't get that low! But whatever, if it helps with fuel efficiency so be it.

[Teslank]

well no rattles here at 12000km
steering wandering ? problem between steering and bench... no offense, just mean electrical power steering is another game at driving with it
my xrs have 17 inch tires and when i drive on destroyed roads it gives me alot more feedback than a hydraulic p/s that absorb defects on the road(twisting shaft in p/s assembly) therefore the electrical p/s is a straight shaft (like a normal steering)

electrical power steering means you must hold more firmly the steering vs a hydraulic one

and yes its gonna kick in your face when you hit tire channels on the road!
evolution its called have its little drawbacks sometimes !

and i have the clock integrated on my left side information center, would be damn better to have it BOTH in the dash AND the RADIO!!!!(cmon toyota stupid to forget this!!)

if i have something i could blame is the lack of finition inside the car... dash in plain solid plastic ? comon thats hyundai for ya! flat tire tools holding on top of spare tire and secured only by the small weight of the plastic cardboard in the trunk ? jack loose on the bracket ??
trunk and gas door opening lever in metal with rubber ?? comon first thing that gonna rust if not in plastic(like my '97 corolla)
solid beam for rear suspension? what happenned to my multi-link rear suspension ??('97 corolla)

but still love the car and hope that it is still a toyota and not gm minded made....
btw XRS engine should be something standard in the corolla and for the XRS the 3.5V6 in the venza should be something to dream about :P (260hp !) now we talk about X - Racing - Special (dunno if xrs means that loll but love the sound of it !)

[eskymi]

Some squeaks and rattles since the car sits out in the cold now.

Didn't have it long enough to have the smell of mold, but if so, I will take care of it.

We don't have the issue with the car wandering. I have heard that, but as I pointed out on another site, many Americans take the easy way and expect the car to drive itself. You can't have one hand on the wheel and be playing a cell phone and radio or the shift knob, or eating. You still have to drive the car.

My three toys have been great for us so far. I couldn't be happier. And if something does go wrong, they are all covered under warranty right now, so I'll get it fixed. My wife works for the dealership, so it's easy to have her bring the cars in and they do the work (repair or oil change) when she is working.

[MagnaGrolla]

#1 nit pick for the Rolla...

Needs 5spd Auto trans, would add another 2-3mpg on the hwy.

Other than that... Rear discs, a center sun-visor, trunk lids closes funny,

[teriyaki]

Originally Posted by Jeff Lange

Umm... the steering wheel has tilt and telescopic. Read your owners manual.

Jeff

Silly me. I've been hearing my brother rant about this for ages and didn't bother to confirm it, ever.

Now that I've given it some thought, some minor inconveniences:

5-spd auto would definitely have helped.
No auto-lift on either hood or trunk (trunk helps especially on shopping trips)
No extendable sun-visors

All these are very minor and not expected to come from a car in this price range though, so to think we're discussing such things is a testament to our cars

[toyweb]

Originally Posted by teriyaki

Silly me. I've been hearing my brother rant about this for ages and didn't bother to confirm it, ever.

Now that I've given it some thought, some minor inconveniences:

5-spd auto would definitely have helped.
No auto-lift on either hood or trunk (trunk helps especially on shopping trips)
No extendable sun-visors

All these are very minor and not expected to come from a car in this price range though, so to think we're discussing such things is a testament to our cars

I didn't know about the sun visor. Is there any workaround with third party aftermarket visors?
A 5 speed automatic would be better ang probably raise the highway mpg to the top of the class, but I found the 4 speed auto to be OK when I test drove a 2009 Corolla in 2008. The 6 speed automatic in the new 2011 full-sized Hyundai Sonata manages to give that car 35 mpg highway ratings, so the Corolla should be capable of much better.
I wonder if Toyota will add a newer transmission with one or 2 more gears for the 2012 MMC like the did with the 2010 Camry? With a all-new Civic coming out next fall in addition toi the new and bigger Kia Forte 5-speed AT with Fuel Economy Package beating the Corolla's mileage despite also having a more powerful motor, Toyota will feel some pressure to update the Corolla before it is replaced with a new model in several years. The Chevy Cruze will also get 40 mpg highway even though its a larger car than a Corolla.
It's funny how fast the Corolla's mileage rating has gone from the highest to midpack.

[kniterider09]

Originally Posted by toyweb

One annoyance from 2009 has been somewhat fixed (there is a dedicated clock display for 2010, though low position is less than ideal, it's better than nothing).

From what I've read, some others remain.

Squeaks and rattles all over the interior.
A/C vents/filter grows mold/ammonia in summer unless you take special steps to try to prevent it and remedy it.
Steering wheel wanders on straight roads at highway speeds.
A/C is too weak to handle cooling the interior on very hot summer days (any worse than a new Civic or Sentra?).
What else is a common complaint of the car?

i've had none of the above issues on mine at 34000kms. its -37C here and still no rattles or issues. i somewhat agree on the clock placement issue, BUT that was in the first few days of driving, now i am used to it and doesnt bother me at all.

[sinnaever]

My common complaint about the Corolla is the people who buy a new car and complain about it.

It is called thorough research and test drives. Why do idiots buy cars without actually looking into what they have and don't have.

Whats worse is that they complain on a forum about their stupidity. Geez people, why aren't you happy with your cars?

Go buy a Chevy Cobalt or Dodge Caliber and then come back and complain about your Corolla.

[LeanBurn]

For me it would be throttle by wire. It absolutely took all the fun out of driving a manual. I drove all kinds of manuals in my 20+ years of driving and they all were fun in their own way...Now an 80 year old woman can shift as fast as a 20 year old tuner boy. Makes short shift kits and all that completely useless. So I went with an automatic, so in a way I dealt with my dissappointment, and its not so bad....although I can tell DBW is still there as I press the gas pedal....still gets awesome fuel economy though...just as good as a manual.