Faults:

I have just recently purchased the 2009 Toyota Corolla about 2 weeks ago. The first time I washed it, a couple of flecks of paint came off (at a carwash, not the kind you drive through, but the kind with the hose and brush with soap), which was annoying, because it left two black marks on the bottom of the car by the driver door. Every time I get in the car I notice it. I have since bought car paint from a site online and took care of it. (I bought the primer, the paint and the clear gloss coat all for about 30 bucks with shipping.) Other than that, the car drives great, the gas mileage is great, and it's been reliable so far)

We did take it on a road trip from Mesquite Nevada to San Diego, Calif (about 6 hour drive one way) and for some reason I just couldn't get comfortable with the headrest. It actually kind of hurt my head... I dunno, I've never had a problem with any other cars I've owned to even notice or realize that it could be a problem. But it was actually hard to fall asleep or get comfortable... I even tried taking off the headrest.

All in all, just little things. I had read reviews about the paint job being kind of cheap, but felt I could live with that if the car was reliable and would last long. I don't count the paint issue as being that big of a problem, because of this.

I love the car so far, and hope it lives up and lasts as long as most all Toyotas do. :)

Faults:

Brakes needed a quick service at the 10,000km mark, but that was covered by the warranty. Nothing major, just didn't like the sound coming out of them.

General Comments:

The XRS is a nice upgraded Corolla. As long as you don't try to compare it to the Civic Si, or Golf GTI, you will love it for what it is. A good car to compare it to is the Mazda 3 GT.

The car has lots of torque, and is a blast to drive.

The bucket seats are really comfortable.

Moonroof is of great quality.

The suspension wasn't to my liking, so I did a dealer upgrade, and had them install the TRD springs, to bring the car's center of gravity down a bit.

Instrument panel is simple, and nice easy to use buttons and knobs.

Minimal blind spots, all around high visibility.

Just remember, this car is NOT a performance car, it is a peppy Corolla that is fun to drive. If you are in the market for performance, then look elsewhere.

HOWEVER, the XRS is the best tuner car out of all Corollas, since it uses the same parts as the Scion tC & 2008+ xB. So plenty of engine upgrades, as far as forced induction and bolt on parts are concerned.

Faults:

I have not owned the vehicle long enough to have anything go wrong with it.

I have changed the oil once to a synthetic. The oil filter is inconvenient to access, and the small clip that holds the plastic oil filter cap from unscrewing broke, but was only $1.23 to replace. In my opinion, this is a poor design change, but I understand the reasoning behind Toyota changing it is to lessen environmental impact of filter changes, as there is no steel filter can, but rather a paper cartridge to dispose of.

I had to repair a slow leak in a tire, which the tire pressure monitor system alerted me to.

General Comments:

The car handles well in cornering, and acceleration and braking are sufficient for the class of vehicle.

Gasoline mileage is better than the ECHO (previous vehicle) on combination highway/city trips, with better acceleration and a bigger engine, less noise, better control, and more comfort on the highway.

Automatic headlights, heated side mirrors, and tire pressure monitoring are nice additions.

Accelerator seems "touchy", as in it is hard to find a single speed and hold it. The car tends to want to either speed up or slow down. I don't know if this is due to the recent recall (which I haven't had repaired yet), or just the nature of Throttle-by-wire technology.

The cruise control works fine, but with a slight bit of delay, causing the car to have to downshift on hills, where I wouldn't have if I were not using cruise control.