1997 Toyota Corolla Si 1.6 4A-FE
Summary:
Reliable, but when you get a lemon, write it off or sell to the next victim, parts cost millions
Faults:
Leaking power-steering, too expensive to fix.
Burns a lot of oil, engine rebuild too expensive to consider.
Rear brakes stuck, due to faulty regulator, too expensive to even consider.
Clutch failed at 180000km.
Rust, rust and more rust, the body just fades away.
Wheel bearings whine, unable to replace due to enormous cost.
General Comments:
Although I got a lemon, I must say it is reliable. The main problem is, that when the car gets about 8 years old, every two or three failing components cost a total of the cars current value, so you can't fix it, just wait and see how long it will last. I believe this is different in Japan for example, but here in former USSR it is really impossible to deal with this car when it starts loosing pieces, the money numbers just aren't realistic.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No
Review Date: 22nd February, 2006
15th Nov 2006, 03:14
Just bought one. Some problems with rust, some problems with burning to much oil, but that's because of the previous owners fault. On this week I'll change some parts in engine and everything is gonna be alright. Costs of repair is not so low as VW, but you have to pay for pleasure :)
6th Nov 2007, 17:01
I agree; Corolla forever.
5th Jan 2008, 13:08
Does anyone know what the capacity of this car's oil tank size is? thank you.
6th Jul 2011, 11:19
I don't care about burning oil. I had one, they're class. I beat a Celica 1.8 with one, and I knocked 130 mph out of it. Oh yeah, and I crashed it into a tree and survived :)
24th Feb 2006, 19:35
Don't be too hard on the guy from Estonia. He apparently doesn't have the luxury of walking into Advance Auto Parts and buying a wheel bearing, one of thousands in stock, for a '97 Corolla for $23.95. Maybe he could at least repack the bearings with grease, and that might extend their life, and it wouldn't cost anything, but the time to take the wheels off. True, maybe a hose is leaking from the power steering pump, and that could be replaced cheaply with just a piece of high-pressure hose and a couple of clamps. But if it's the seal, then again, apparently it isn't so easy to just shell out a couple hundred bucks to buy a new pump. Yes, the only real choice is to absolutely baby this car to coax it into lasting as long as possible. It would be a shame to lose the use of a car because of some ancillary failure like a frozen brake pad.