2002 Toyota Corolla engine problems

Filed Apr 23, 2021 · Engine · 74,047 miles · CT

Ive owned this car for 3 weeks and have had to put 2 quarts of oil in every week because every morning I start my car lot of blue smoke is coming out my exhaust. This is because the design temperature for the pistons in this engine was 120 degrees celsius and the actual temperatures reached are 160 degrees celsius, which causes the petroleum oil to sludge up and carbon to accumulate in the piston oil holes that allow oil to flow to the piston rings. This blocks those oil holes, preventing oil from getting to the piston rings and subsequently the piston rings wear very, very quickly, then allowing oil to be able to slip past the piston rings, into the combustion chamber and out the exhaust. This will lead to replacing the pistons which is an extremely expensive and labor intensive job just because toyota made a mistake with the way they built the engine. It's a shame that toyota hasn't recalled this vehicle because there are countless amounts of records on these cars having that problem. The car can break down after so much oil has been burned and that could happen un expectedly. It's drivable but not safe.

Filed Dec 3, 2019 · Engine · OH

The engine is using excessive oil. Need to add 1 quart every 300 miles to keep filled. The car has 120,000 miles. Notice blue smoke upon acceleration. Car has been regularly serviced according to toyota owner's manual.

Filed Oct 18, 2019 · Engine · FL

My toyota corolla 2002 ce has a design flaw with the pistons. There are not enough holes in the pistons to allow enough oil to go through and as a result, the vehicle is burning a lot of oil, up to 1 quart of oil every 250 miles. Please! Can you help me with this situation? Thank you.

Filed Nov 30, 2015 · Engine · 50,000 miles · MA

Tl* the contact owns a 2002 toyota corolla. While driving 65 MPH, there was a low rumbling sound coming from the engine. There was also a strong exhaust odor inside the vehicle and it burned more oil than normal. The contact had to place approximately five quarts of oil into the vehicle after driving 150 to 200 miles. The service engine light remained illuminated and the vehicle failed to accelerate normally. The vehicle was taken to a local mechanic and diagnosed that the head gasket needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired and the failure recurred. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 50,000.

Filed Oct 16, 2012 · Engine · 78,000 miles · NC

Tl* the contact owns a 2002 toyota corolla. The contact stated while accelerating, the vehicle lost power and within a few minutes it suddenly accelerated. The brake pedal had to be depressed in order to control the speed. The vehicle was taken to the dealer several times for the failure. A diagnostic test was performed that was unable to display a failure code. The 02 sensor and the catalytic converter were replaced; however, the failure was not corrected. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The VIN was not available. The approximate failure mileage was 78,000 and the current mileage was 147,000.

Filed Jan 31, 2012 · Engine · VA

The problem is and has been excess oil usuage. It uses a quart about every 400 hundred miles. I bought the car used at a local honda dealer may, 2010. It had 102,000 miles on it. It now has 117,000. It's been using oil every since I've had it. I took it back to the dealer and they couldn't find any thing wrong. They said the engine was clean and there were no oil leaks anywhere. I've searched the internet and there are alot of complaints posted about this car. The problem is the engine put in the car in 2002. A 1.6l was replaced with a new 1.8l engine and evidently the 1.8l didn't seat properly causing oil usuage. My son drove this car while he was at college. The problem is, with this kind of oil usage, you can run the car out of oil. We tried to keep up with it, but if you run it high speeds it will use more oil. If the car runs out of oil on an interstate and the engine locks up, well you could have a serious safety problem. I keep the car at home now because of the safety concerns. We drive it locally only.

Filed Aug 24, 2010 · Engine · CA

My toyota corolla 2002 keeps wanting to stall. I've taken it in several times and mechanics says there is no problem. Not sure what to do.

Filed Mar 5, 2010 · Engine · AZ

In august 2009 my catalytic converter attached to the muffler went out. They put in the code that was given for that job. I have had nothing but problems , I was back in the shop every other week because my emergency light would keep coming on. I am 68 years old and for me this is a safety issue because I didn't recognize my car was having other problems. This electrical problem has not been addressed/corrected to this day. L would appreciate if you would contact toyota and have them take care of this.

Filed Nov 23, 2009 · Engine, Steering · 116,000 miles · NC

Tl* the contact owns a 2002 toyota corolla. While driving approximately 35 MPH the engine warning light illuminated on the instrument control panel. She added oil to the engine, and then towed the vehicle to a local repair facility. A mechanic stated that the tie rod failed, and that the engine needed to be replaced. No repairs were made. She filed report number 091113338 with the manufacturer. The current and failure mileages were 116,000.

Filed Oct 8, 2009 · Engine · 110,000 miles · GA

I have a 2002 toyota corolla that uses an excessive amount of oil it is not leaking it out it is burning it. After reading numerous complaints of virtually the same problems from other toyota corolla consumers I believe this seems to be a common problem in this year make and model. I even had to replace my catalytic converter due to the problem. My local toyota dealership told me to call the national toyota customer experience line and they told me that this was not a recognized problem. From everything that I have been told from car repair places and the internet I must "your looking at a complete overhaul... You want to replace the piston rings and valve stems... But every gasket you touch or go near should be replaced along the way. Also add in incidentals for items that break or things that are discovered along the way..." toyota will not admit that this is a manufacturing problem; however, lots of people are having issues with it including myself. I have not done an overhaul of the engine because I am looking for toyota to take responsibility for their poor work. I did replace the catalytic converter in july of 2009. Right now I am going through all my in less than 3,000 miles. I have to put oil in before my regular oil changes. Now I am just waiting for the next major replacement due to this problem. Many others are putting quarts of oil in every 1,000 miles or less. I can't wait until I get to this point to have this resolved.