Airbag, brakes, and exterior lighting issues are among the top complaints to the NHTSA from vehicle owners
According to Toyota, the appeal of the 2022 Corolla and all-new Corolla Hybrid, is “quality, durability, and reliability.” But owners whose airbags don’t deploy, brakes fail, or headlights fail to provide sufficient illumination at night, are justified in repudiating these claims.
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A total of 22 consumer complaints were filed with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) between October 2021 and mid-September 2022. These relate to 11 components and/or systems with some that mirror serious complaints made about the 2021 Toyota Corolla.
Top of the list are airbags not deploying in a crash, which was also a major concern of 3 owners whose 2021 model crashed. None of their airbags deployed and in 2 of the incidents people were injured.
There are 5 complaints from 2022 Corolla owners whose airbags didn’t deploy. Sadly, somebody was injured in every crash.
Deficient exterior lighting, including headlights with poor visibility, was another complaint about the 2021 model that carries through to the 2022 Corolla. So are faulty brakes.
Other serious issues mentioned in complaints about the 2022 model include malfunctioning cruise control, cars stalling, and cars losing acceleration. Structural issues are also a problem, with one complaint citing an injury caused by the driver door handle.
| Complaint Category | Number of Complaints |
|---|---|
| Electrical System | |
| Unknown Or Other | |
| Engine | |
| Service Brakes | |
| Power Train | |
| Steering | |
| Air Bags | |
| Exterior Lighting | |
| Visibility/wiper | |
| Structure:body |
The reasons for the crashes when airbags didn’t deploy are varied, but not relevant. The issue is that in all 5 crashes reported in complaints, the airbags didn’t deploy on impact.
A young woman from Virginia crashed while driving at highway speed as she “approached sudden oncoming traffic.” She initially refused medical treatment, but when she started to stutter, her parents insisted she get medical attention. She also experienced a tingling sensation down her left arm. A hospital doctor diagnosed a severe concussion and her mother states that “her personality has altered since the accident.”
An owner from North Carolina was driving a one-week-old Corolla when he was T-boned by a car that ran a red light. “My airbags didn’t deploy and my car was totaled.” He also reported an injury, but didn’t describe it.
Driving at only 8 mph, an owner from Connecticut “was hit by another vehicle in the rear passenger door and spun around full 180 degrees and air bags did not deploy.” He injured his back and ribs.
A Californian woman crashed into a building when her brakes failed. Again, the airbags didn’t deploy. She had back pains, but there wasn’t major damage to the vehicle.
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Dead spots and inadequate illumination at night is dangerous. It’s as simple as that.
An owner from Massachusetts was told, after reporting lighting issues to a dealer, “that the problem was only my opinion. I paid 27,000 dollars for the car and that kind of service stinks.”
Asking the NHTSA for “help,” the complaint describes how the low beams on the car only reach “shadows beyond the visible lighted area of the beams.” Beyond this, the shadows are dark. There is “no penetration through the shadows, restricting my view down the road. I have to switch to high beams to actually see down the road. I’ve been driving cars for 72 years and I have never had this problem. I love the car but hate driving it at night!”
Another complaint includes a photograph of someone holding a measuring tape. At about 76 feet from the car, the person cannot be seen.
An owner in Indiana highlights a different problem. “The left headlight has a dead spot where it does not light up the driving lane.”
All 3 of the complaints about brakes are listed under service brakes rather than parking or other brakes. Two crashed because of faulty brakes, but only the woman mentioned above was injured.
According to the complaint, the driver was driving at 5 mph when the accident happened. She “was depressing the brake pedal but failed to stop the vehicle and crashed.”
The third complaint involves brakes with rust on them that cause vibration. Additionally, the brake rotors needed to be resurfaced.
Do you think you’ve bought a lemon? Unfortunately, there are always lemons that make it from the assembly line onto shop floors. It’s happened with previous Toyota Corolla model years and it’s inevitable it will keep on happening. The key is to be aware and get advice from a lemon law attorney if you suspect you have a lemon.
Lemberg Law is a consumer law firm that has helped many consumers get lemon cars out of their lives. Contact us immediately if you suspect you have bought a lemon and we’ll assess the issues.
Legally, Toyota will have to foot the bill, and you will get the benefit of a buy-back, replacement, or a cash settlement, if the circumstances warrant it.
Brian Jones spent more than 30 years working as an ASE Certified Master Tech and Parts Specialist at multiple dealerships. Brian has become an authority in the industry, traveling across the country to consult for car dealerships and contributing his expertise as a writer for several major automotive publications. In his spare time, Brian enjoys working on pickup trucks, muscle cars, Jeeps and anything related to motorsports.
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That 72 year old needs to stop driving. We want SE’s over here and all the old bats bought them.
2022 Corolla my first brand new car I was driving a 2014 Corolla before this one and the new interior is so cheap and it was put together so poorly, gaps in the plastic and already scuffing from wiping my dash board with a micro fiber towel it’s cheap like a toy car and the cruise control is a hit or miss too.
Problemas com toyota corola se año 2022 el la pantalla muestra nivel de aceite bajo visitar taller fue me lo entregaron con 4 millas el 28 abril el 14 de junio de l año 2022 se prendió la electa por primera vez se llevó y los siguientes meses sigue la citación en diciembre no responden que van a enviar un técnico de la toyota para lo revise después de llevarse todas las vecez al deler que dicen el carro no tiene nada si hay alguien que tenga este problema por informar gracias
Translation: Problems with the 2022 Toyota Corolla: low oil level light, visited a shop, it was delivered to me with 4 miles on April 28. On June 14, 2022, the elective turned on for the first time, it was taken back and the following months the issue continued. In December, they did not respond if they are going to send a Toyota technician to review it after taking it to the dealer every time they said. If there is someone who also has this problem let me know. Thanks
I bought in June of 21 a 2021 Toyota Corolla LE brand new I only drove the car 300 miles and I started noticing a noise in the engine it wasn’t all the time only when it was a reference to like 2,000 RPM or 1800 RPM it was a knocking noise first it started when it was cold and wide awake I know when it was hot that it was the opposite it got worse when it was hot done the same thing all the time and it continued to sell loud I mentioned it to the guy that sold me the car he refused to even listen to it I was so disgusted I know was I heard all those Toyota’s making the same noise not when they’re brand-new something and some making noise I know it was not normal it sound like a bearing noise a worn-out Derek at 400 miles but it got a hundred miles I just started to get rid of a car I paid with tax
$24,000 I sold the car for $18,800 just to get rid of it cuz I did not want to deal with it it wasn’t worth it I was disgusted with it and I took a major loss I’m not typing this I’m using talk to text so I hope it all makes sense I remember hearing same noise in other used corolla not all many used corolla motor sound good other s same terrible noise when I heard that noise at 4,500 hundred miles I carefully broke in my corolla hearing same noise in some others I knew I got a lemon that no 1 will ever fix I lost 5000 dollars and I sold my 1997 corolla that ran as new no noise 27 yeah old car 500 sold it I paid 3500 dollars a 1991 corolla so I lost 8000 total and now a. 34 yo car runs quite and better no air bags or conditioning to me it was a total waste I should have kept my 97 Corolla so now I threw away over $8,000 and driving 1991 Corolla cuz the motor does not sound like it’s going to blow up like the brand new one
2022 Toyota Corolla, brights don’t stay on. And decayed reaction when turning switch on, light’s act weird.