IllustrationTHE SUN VISOR FLIPPED IN THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION, WHICH CAUSED THE SUN TO SHINE INSIDE THE VEHICLE. TS *JB
1998 Toyota Corolla
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
Similar to other model years
Owner complaints for the 1998 Toyota Corolla do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 129.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all Corolla years →Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.
What owners reported most
All reported categories
Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.
When problems were reported
Mileage at the reported incident
60–25K
825–50K
1450–75K
1875–100K
11100–150K
7150K+
64 reports with mileage · 161 unknown
NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.
What to inspect
Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.
- Air Bags. Review the 61 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Structure. Review the 24 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Vehicle Speed Control. Review the 18 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
36 crash reports8 fire reports24 injury reports
What owners actually said
225 reportsI WAS LEAVING AN AUTOMATIC CAR WASH. CAR WAS IN NEUTRAL. WHEN I PUT CAR IN GEAR, IT TOOK OFF ON IT'S OWN. I TRIED TO BRAKE BUT WAS UNABLE TO STOP THE CAR. MY CAR WENT THROUGH A FENCE AND HIT A SMALL TREE. THE CAR WAS TOWED AWAY AND LATER WAS TOTALED. WHEN THE MECHANIC TRIED TO START THE CAR, IT IMMEDIATELY WENT UP TO 250…
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I WAS LEAVING AN AUTOMATIC CAR WASH. CAR WAS IN NEUTRAL. WHEN I PUT CAR IN GEAR, IT TOOK OFF ON IT'S OWN. I TRIED TO BRAKE BUT WAS UNABLE TO STOP THE CAR. MY CAR WENT THROUGH A FENCE AND HIT A SMALL TREE. THE CAR WAS TOWED AWAY AND LATER WAS TOTALED. WHEN THE MECHANIC TRIED TO START THE CAR, IT IMMEDIATELY WENT UP TO 2500 RPMS MR
WHEN I APPLIED THE BRAKE DURING A RAINING DAY, MY CAR SUDDENLY WENT TO THE SIDE. THIS KIND OF SCENARIO HAPPENED TWICE BEFORE ( ON LOCAL STREETS WHILE DRIVING AROUND 20 MILES PER HOUR). I FELT THAT THIS CAR'S BRAKE SYSTEM WAS DIFFERENT FROM THAT OF THE OTHER CARS I OWNED BEFORE. SHOULDN'T THE ANTI-BRAKE SYSTEM HELP THE CAR STAY S…
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WHEN I APPLIED THE BRAKE DURING A RAINING DAY, MY CAR SUDDENLY WENT TO THE SIDE. THIS KIND OF SCENARIO HAPPENED TWICE BEFORE ( ON LOCAL STREETS WHILE DRIVING AROUND 20 MILES PER HOUR). I FELT THAT THIS CAR'S BRAKE SYSTEM WAS DIFFERENT FROM THAT OF THE OTHER CARS I OWNED BEFORE. SHOULDN'T THE ANTI-BRAKE SYSTEM HELP THE CAR STAY STRAIGHT ON THE ROAD? ON 09-20-2002, IT WAS RAINING, I DROVE THIS CAR ON THE HIGHWAY AT THE SPEED AROUND 50 MILES PER HOUR, ON THE FIRST LEFT LANE. AFTER I APPLIED THE BRAKE IN ORDER TO REDUCE THE SPEED FURTHER, MY CAR WENT TO THE RIGHT SIDE, AND THEN LEFT SIDE, AND THEN CRASHED TO THE MIDDLE CONCRETE. *PH *JB **DIMSII IVOQ ENTRY POSTED AFTER 12/12/02 CUT OVER TO ARTEMIS**768012
WHILE DRIVING AND WITH NO WARNING AIR BAG LIGHT CAME ON. AIR BAG COULD BE INOPERATIVE IN THE EVENT OF AN ACCIDENT. DEALER NOTIFIED.*AK
ON SEPTEMBER 2, 2002, AT ABOUT 10:00AM WE WERE DRIVING SOUTH ON INTERSTATE 5 ABOUT 40 MILES NORTH OF EUGENE OREGON WHEN WE HAD A BLOWOUT ON OUR REAR PASSENGER-SIDE TIRE. THE WEATHER WAS CLEAR AND WARM AND THE ROADWAY WAS DRY. WE WERE TRAVELING ABOUT 60 MPH AND DID NOT HIT ANY OBJECT, BUMP, OR DEPRESSION PRIOR TO THE BLOWOUT. TH…
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ON SEPTEMBER 2, 2002, AT ABOUT 10:00AM WE WERE DRIVING SOUTH ON INTERSTATE 5 ABOUT 40 MILES NORTH OF EUGENE OREGON WHEN WE HAD A BLOWOUT ON OUR REAR PASSENGER-SIDE TIRE. THE WEATHER WAS CLEAR AND WARM AND THE ROADWAY WAS DRY. WE WERE TRAVELING ABOUT 60 MPH AND DID NOT HIT ANY OBJECT, BUMP, OR DEPRESSION PRIOR TO THE BLOWOUT. THERE WAS NO WARNING PRIOR TO THE BLOWOUT. WE WERE DRIVING A 1998 TOYOTA COROLLA. *AK
AIR BAG SENSOR LIGHT COMES ON AND STAYS ON ALLDAY. THIS COULD RESULT IN AIR BAG DEPLOYING PERMATURELY OR NOT DEPLOYING AT ALL.DEALER CONTACTED.*AK
THE CONSUMER'S SON WAS INVOLVED IN AN ACCIDENT IN WHICH HE WAS INJURED BY COLLIDING WITH THE WINDSHIELD AS THE RESULT OF SEAT BELT FAILING, TWO PEOPLE WERE INJURED IN THE ACCIDENT. *YH
AIRBAG LIGHT IS FLASHING, VEHICLE HAS NOT BEEN EXAMINED BY DEALER.*AK
ENGINE IS LEAKING COOLANT/ OIL. NO LIGHTS ILLUMINATED ON THE DASHBOARD AS A WARNING. PROBLEM WAS DIAGNOSED AFTER ROUTINE MAINTENANCE CHECK. DEALER NOTIFIED. PLEASE PROVIDE MORE INFORMATION.*AK
THE HEADLIGHTS ON NEWER CARS ARE TOO BRIGHT AND THE LIGHTS ON SUVS ARE TOO HIGH -- BOTH OF THESE PROBLEMS ARE INTERFERRING WITH MY ABILITY TO SEE WHEN I'M DRIVING AT NIGHT. THESE NEW LIGHTS ARE TOO BRIGHT AND BLIND ME, EVEN WHEN I SWITCH MY REAR VIEW MIRROR TO THE NIGHT POSITION.*AK
Official recalls
0No recalls in this snapshot.
Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗
NHTSA investigations
0No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.