I was driving on cruise control on a highway (approx. 60mph) in my 2003 toyota corolla s. Suddenly, it started accelerating on its own and started swerving. I hit the brake pedal and attempted to counter-steer but lost control of the car and crashed front-end into the guard rail, then the car started spinning and I believe it must have hit the guard-rail further down. The front is demolished, the driver side was bent in so could not open the door fully, the back bumper was gone and the passenger side was heavily scratched. The airbags never deployed.
2003 Toyota Corolla airbags complaints
Page 12 of 12: complaints 311 to 333 of 333, newest first, as owners wrote them.
Tl* the contact owns a 2003 toyota corolla. The contact stated that when the vehicle approached a stop sign, both front air bags suddenly deployed and the horn began to sound. The horn stopped for a few seconds and the air bags began to make a "popping sound" and the horn began to sound again. A bystander disconnected the horn and the vehicle was towed to a dealer to be repaired. The driver was injured when the air bags deployed. A claim was filed with the insurance company; yet, it was denied. The failure and current mileages were approximately 200,000. Updated 11/03/10. *lj..updated 12/19/12 *bf updated 12/21/2012 *js updated 02/22/13 *bf updated 02/27/13
I was parked (motor running) in my 2003 toyota corolla in front of a friends house waiting for him to pick me up and go to lunch when my airbags deployed . My windshield was broken and I was hit in the forearm by the bag. I need your guidance on determining the what caused this situation and how to proceed with the repairs. I have talked to toyota representatives here in puerto rico and they advised me they had no responsibility for the incident and if I wanted to determine what caused the airbags to deploy I would have to do it on my own. I was left with the feeling that ware and tare, mileage and car age are the factors causing the failure. If this is so toyota should alert their clients to replace the airbag system after a certain mileage and /or car age. Because I am not a mechanic I told the toyota representatives I would contact you to report the incident and their assertion they have no responsibility at all regarding this matter. I registered a police complaint and it was classified as not due to an accident. Presently my car is at my mechanics garage but no work is being done to it.
Tl*the contact owns a 2003 toyota corolla. The contact was at a traffic light on july 21, 2008 when a vehicle traveling approximately 45 to 50 MPH crashed into the rear of his vehicle. The contacts vehicle also crashed into a vehicle in front of him and was destroyed. The air bags did not deploy and the contact sustained back, neck and other injuries. A police report was filed. The VIN was not available. The failure mileage was approximately 55,000. Updated 07/26/10.
On july 9, 2005, I was involved in a single car collision driving a 2003 toyota corolla type s, in which the air bag did not deploy.
My daughter was driving our 2003 toyota corolla this morning when she reported that the cars brakes didn't appear to work properly. This resulted in a property damage crash into a guardrail. It was a frontal crash into a guardrail at low to moderate speed, the airbags didn't deploy.
2003 toyota corolla ce sedan l-4-1.8l air bag light went on dashboard, mechanic says it is a short in p/t squib (lh) circuit and that this should not happen since the car was not in an accident. Warranty is expired but would like to know if this is occurring on same models- this is safety issue-toyota will not take care of. *tr updated 3/17/10 *cn updated 05/10/10
2003 toyota corolla have defective air bags. Consumer wants to know about recalls for air bags on his vehicle. *nj the consumer stated there was a loud explosion which startled everyone in the vehicle. They pulled over to the side of the road, but no one could determine the reason for the explosion. However after driving about 20 yards, a second explosion occurred and when the consumer looked over, he noticed the air bag had deployed in an abnormal way out of the steering wheel. It did not fully expand, but simply popped out. The consumer also noticed smoke and a strong odor. The consumer looked at the side of the vehicle and noticed that the passenger side air bag had also deployed. *jb the consumer is seeking reimbursement. Updated 06/17/13
Tl*the contact owns a 2003 toyota corolla. In august of 2007, the air bag light illuminated weeks after a minor crash occurred. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and repaired. In june of 2008, while driving 10 MPH or less over a speed bump, the air bag light illuminated again and has remained lit. The failure mileage was 65,000. Updated 09/11/08
Tl*the contact owns a 2003 toyota corolla. While driving approximately 35 MPH, the contact rear ended a merging vehicle. The air bags failed to deploy, which concerned the contact. Both vehicles were damaged. There were no injuries. The vehicle was towed to a local lot and a police report was filed. The insurance adjuster has not determined the damage/loss to the vehicle. The vehicle has not yet been repaired. The current and failure mileages were 150,000.
I was driving my toyota corolla and hit another vehicle when they pulled out in front of me. My vehicle sustained damage to the front and the airbag did not deploy.
I am an owner of a 2003 toyota corolla, which was involved in a really bad frontal wreck. My vehicle had collided with the rear of an SUV at approximately 70 MPH and braked about 200 ft away from the vehicle in front when it collided. Neither of the air bags deployed, nor the driver or passenger. The passenger hit their head against the windshield and shattered the front windshield. This could have been prevented if the air bags would have deployed properly. I have contacted the toyota dealership on numerous occasions via email and phone so they may inspect the vehicle, but I never heard anything back from them.
On april 27, 2006 my dad started the engine to go to church and the car accelerated in parking position. Car was turned off and started again, once started it drove fine. The same day when my dad was coming from church he started the car and when he put it in drive the car accelerated itself and itt bolted out and went over a pile of sand that was on the side on the road. The car flipped and stopped against the fence of a house. The air bags did not deploy. My dad was taken to the hospital and the car was a total loss. He was lucky to have his seat belt on. I've reviewed other complaints and it seems to me that this has happened too many times to just be a random defect. I hope this accident is investigated to avoid unnecessary deaths due to this problem.
While rolling to a stop between traffic signals foot off the gas pedal my vehicle suddenly revved itself up and bolted forward creating a 3 vehicle accident. I hit the brake when I felt the initial surge, but still hit the vehicle in front. Seat belts were worn in each vehicle and my airbag didn't deploy. My vehicle has suffered over $4,500 in damage and won't run while it sits at an auto body shop, the nose and bumper are badly damaged. I was told this sounds like "unintentional acceleration" . The vehicle is awaiting the parts for repairs.
On january 7, 2006 at about 2:30 a.m. My daughter, [xxx] drove back home to san mateo from santa cruz in a toyota corolla le of 2003 with a[xxx] and [xxx]. As she drove on highway 17 near san jose she tried to step on the foot brake to maintain safety control at the speed limit of 35 miles per hour while going down the winding slope. However the car seemed to have no brake and started spinning with the left side of the front first hit the central concrete divider then the tail also hit the divider and the car finally stopped. No third party was injured and no property was damaged with the exception that my daughter got some bruises on her left thigh and the car ended up with a total loss. My daughter then unbuckled herself from the car seat and called the police with her cell phone through which she was advised to call a tow truck. When the tow truck arrived at the scene the driver said to my daughter that the car got no brake and he had to put additional chains and stoppers to secure the car while towing. Surprisingly none of the airbags in the car was deployed in the accident. According to my records, the car was fully serviced by the dealer, toyota 101 in redwood city just a couple of months ago and as recent as a week ago that I had the car's engine belt changed also by toyota 101 before the accident occurred. In view of the foregoing I suspect that there must be some defect in the car safety system including the airbags and foot brake. I and my insurance adjuster tried to contact the manager of toyota 101 by phone for numerous times but to no avail. I sincerely hope that your department can help and bring this matter to the attention of toyota 101 who should be responsible for such an incident due to the defect. *jb updated 07/17/2012 *js information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6)
Dt: consumer was involved in a crash at 45 MPH and the airbags did not deploy. The adjuster told consumer that he saw this all the time, that the airbags did not deploy in crashes or they deployed for no reason. There was a police report. Consumer's vehicle was involved in a t-bone crash. The other vehicle pulled in front of consumer's vehicle and it t-boned the other vehicle. There were no injuries. Consumer was fearful that the manufacturer had an unsafe vehicle. Consumer was hesitant to drive the vehicle again fearing that the airbags would fail again after the vehicle was repaired. Toyota has been very uncooperative and hung up on the consumer. *ak the manufacturer concluded that the air bags operated as designed.
I had a substantial frontal collision in which my airbags never deployed. As a result my face and arms hit the steering wheel.
The driver was involved in a frontal collision, and both frontal air bags failed to deploy. Driver and passenger sustained major injuries, and were transported to the hospital by ambulance. Vehicle was towed to a garage.
While driving 30-35 MPH, another vehicle cut the consumer's vehicle off, this caused a head on collision. Upon impact, the air bags did not deploy. The driver, passenger and the other occupant in the vehicle sustained some injuries. *ak the other vehicle made a left turn on the consumers right of way. Which caused the accident. The vehicle was totaled. *cb
My air bags did not deploy when I was in a serious accident .. My vehicle is undrivable! The police at the scene was surprised it did not deploy.
8856 miles during a 30mph collision with 2 parked cars, the front airbags never deployed.
The vehicle was involved in a frontal collision, and the air bags failed to deploy. *jb
Consumer called complaining about being in a frontal collision at 25 MPH and the air bags did not deploy. Also stated that dealer were contacted and has declined to give any service to the consumer because there is no recalls on the vehicle. Also stated that has spoken to the manufacture and they are giving him the run around. Ts
VIN decoder
See the problems and recalls for an exact car
Buying a used 2003 Toyota Corolla?
Check the exact car before you pay: accidents, salvage or flood titles, odometer readings and previous owners.
Check its history