2006 Toyota Corolla: loss of power steering

Filed Feb 2, 2014 · Acceleration, Body · 57,000 miles · MA · crash

I was backing up out of a parking space, stopped and put car in drive position, and 2006 toyota corolla accelerated to a high speed, engine roared. I put my foot on brake immediately, shut off engine and pulled emergency brake. Lights on dashboard were lit, and I had no power steering. Car bolted forward and hit the back of a parked truck which stopped my vehicle. My daughter was in the passenger side and experienced this horrible event. I was bringing her home from an operation on her arm. Needless to say, we were both terrified. Had car towed to the toyota garage. The service manager said he couldn't touch the car due to protocol, and gave me the 800 # for toyota. That was on a monday and on friday I had to get my own rental car as I had not heard from toyota in regard to a rental car.

Filed Jul 12, 2010 · Electrical, Engine · 75,000 miles · CA

I was driving my 2006 toyota corolla s on the freeway today, and suddenly, without warning, the engine shut down. I had no power steering or ABS brakes, and no control of the car. After having it towed to the dealership, I found out that 2005-2009 toyota corollas have a huge issue with the engine control module, and that upwards of 5 cars a month come into the dealership with this same complaint. I find it ridiculous that every review I've read mentions that this car has this problem with the ECM, but that nothing has been done about it yet. On top of the reviews, there have been news reports about how toyota is aware of this problem, and says that this problem does not pose an unreasonable risk to safety.

Filed Jun 1, 2010 · Fuel system · 7,351 miles · TX

Our 2006 toyota corolla experienced a complete engine shut-down on a freeway. The engine simply shut off, which cut off the power steering. We were able to bring the car safely to the side of the road, but the vehicle would not re-start. This engine stall could have resulted in a very serious crash because the car quickly lost speed in fast-moving traffic, and the steering became hard to turn. This incident happened in 2007, but we now understand that this was a common problem with the 2006 toyota corolla and we want to register a complaint. Further, the dealership required seven attempts to fix the problem. The "check engine" light came on frequently after the first failure and the dealer did not know how to fix the problem. Further, when we tried to file a "lemon law" complaint, toyota said that each of the seven "check engine" events was a different problem and therefore the car was not bought back by the manufacturer.

Filed Apr 30, 2010 · Electrical, Engine · 99,000 miles · IN

Driving @ 60mph when the engine and all electrical components completely shut off. I had no power steering and due to no power assist brakes the car was more difficult to stop. It is extremely dangerous to be driving along and have that happen. I was fortunate to be on a country road with no other traffic. Had I been on a busy interstate at 70mph it could have been very problematic. Toyota has said that the ECM needs replaced and that the engine cut off on them as well when they tried it. It did restart the following day but I was too afraid to drive it again and had it towed to the dealer!

Filed Feb 24, 2010 · Engine · 48,874 miles · AL

Driving home when check engine light came on and engine shut off while in a busy curve of a local street. Lost power steering assist. Created a safety hazard being that I was causing a traffic hazard in a curve. Only able to start engine by holding gas to the floor, engine sounded like a lawn mower and ran barely over idle. Made it home at about 10 MPH. Next day engine started but check engine light was still lit. Drove to dealer, engine was surging and car shifted very hard. Dealer found that the ecu or computer had failed and replaced it under the emissions warranty. This is the second time that this computer has failed on my vehicle. First time was at 25,939 miles on 08/15/07 and they replaced the same engine computer this time my wife was driving the car in traffic and it did the same thing. Current incident happened on 12/28/09 with 48,874 miles on vehicle. I can see that this could have been a more serious safety issue if we had been pulling out into traffic when the computer failed.