Leighcm

They don't bend if you flat out refuse to put the front plates on! I like the work you've done with the lights....looks great!

Welcome to our forum!

Good point...that's definitely the way to go. Don't do the fix-it-yourself thing while it's under warranty.

Good looking truck!

Welcome! You'll love the Toyotas...very high quality and reliable. How many miles do you have on your new car?

Congrats on the new car!! What's wrong with it that you need to get repaired? Check the obvious...make sure brakes & tires are decent, no leaks (at least not major ones) from underneath, hopefully the a/c blows cold, and the car doesn't overheat. If not running great, when was the last tune-up?

I'm going to give you a wild guess of about $6-7k as a retail value. On the one hand, it's pretty much a new car, on the other hand, it's an old car, not old enough to be a collector piece, and it's been sitting for most of the last 17 years. It will need most likely need some belts, hoses, tires, etc. because that stuff will get dry rot. Interesting find, though.

Nice! You must live in that thing to get that kind of miles...lots of driving.

Does it have an alarm?

Starter?

Have you done your scheduled maintenances? You're probably due for a tune-up.

I used to have one exactly like that...brings back old memories! :) Welcome!

You're trying to just remove the bulbs? You should be able to pull them out from the back of the headlight case...open the hood and look at the back of one of them. If they are actually HIDs, do not touch the bulb with your skin as you can cause them to burn out sooner.

Does your car come with synthetic oil? Toyota and Lexus are in the beginning stages of converting from 5k oil change intervals with regular oil to 10k intervals with a special synthetic blend (0w20, I think, with some sort of additive proprietary to Toyota). If you have regular oil, go with the 5k intervals; if you have synthetic, go with the 10k intervals. That does not mean you don't have a service every 5k, it just means that those in-between services aren't much more than a tire rotation and a checkup. Your salesperson may not have realized that your car was one of the few that has already been converted to a 10k service schedule, because Toyota has been on a 5k service schedule for a long, long time, and this has only happened in the last few months. You'll want to verify with the service department to see if yours has synthetic or regular oil.

Hmm...not necessarily. It was made in Brazil, and Corollas for US consumption are not made in Brazil. Check for a label under the hood that says something about OBD, emissions, etc. Of course, that label could be a US thing too...

If you buy a key on eBay, etc., you will at a minimum have to pay to cut the metal portion of the key, plus programming, most likely at the dealer (if it even works...and I have also heard it both ways, so perhaps some smart keys are reprogrammable, some not), and you'll probably add at least another $100-150 for that. Something to think about: you might want to get that new key somewhere very, very soon, because if you lose the second one too, you'll need a new computer plus 2 new keys in your car, and that's several thousand bucks.

Welcome. We appreciate your expertise!

Is it just my browser? Or are there no comments with the copies of the posts made earlier?

You have to realize that the manufacturer will install a tire that is designed to minimize noise and give a smooth ride and optimum performance. For that sort of tire, 34k miles is actually a bit above average, so you've done well. For example, I'm at 21k on my car, and at last check, I had 4/32 left on my tires, so I will need new ones in the next few thousand miles. What is your goal with your new tires? Are you interested exclusively in longevity? Why the width change?

I probably sound like a broken record on this one, but have you checked to see if there's a TRD exhaust for your car? Anything from TRD will be more expensive, but it will also be good quality, fit perfectly, not void your warranty, and be covered under warranty itself.

I've been thinking about this, and have no good ideas...except perhaps there's an actual problem with the security system/light. I'd get it checked out when you take the car in for your next service as it should be under warranty. Doesn't sound like anything really bad, just annoying, maybe a short or something.

I can tell you that it's probably not sold by the letter...it's probably one part through Toyota, and may be even one kit for the whole car because that was a pretty rare care. You could possibly still order it from a Toyota dealer, shouldn't be too expensive.

No, the only thing in my trunk is a cargo net...my car is pretty much back and forth to work, and I try not to keep much stuff in the car at all, just some CDs, sunglasses, and registration/insurance docs. I hate having stuff roll around in the car, and when you drive like I do, that happens a lot. Electric (and other alternative powertrains) will take off as soon as the range restrictions and part availability issues are resolved. I'd drive a Tesla now, but $100k is a bit steep for a electric Lotus.

I can do that too...push the hidden button inside my glove box that turns off all trunk releases, lock the glove box, and I'm good to go. No fold down seat, and I can lock the little pass-through door to the trunk. My mirrors move down when in reverse, the steering wheel moves up and out of the way automatically when I turn the car off, no key required, just push the start button as long as I have the smart key with me. Not that I ever use the trunk, or the back seat for that matter, but I could...

You know, if someone really wants into your trunk, a crowbar will take car of that locked trunk pretty easily...a little determined brute force could get anyone into just about any vehicle.