RoadVitals

1984 Toyota Corolla

Recalls, owner-reported complaints, investigations and safety data

Data refreshed

Owner complaintsComplaints are reports submitted to NHTSA by owners and drivers. NHTSA does not verify most reports before publishing them, and a complaint does not establish that a defect exists. Volume is influenced by how many of a vehicle were sold, how long it has been on the road, and how much attention an issue has received.
6
Latest May 31, 2004
Safety recallsA safety recall is issued when a manufacturer or NHTSA determines that a vehicle has a safety-related defect or does not comply with a federal motor vehicle safety standard. Recall repairs are free. Whether a specific vehicle is covered depends on its VIN — a recall listed for a model year does not necessarily apply to every vehicle of that year.
2
Latest Feb 28, 1990
InvestigationsNHTSA opens an investigation to examine whether a safety defect may exist. An open investigation is not a determination that a defect exists, and many investigations close without a recall. Investigations can, however, lead to one.
1
Crash or fire reportedComplaints whose submitter recorded that a crash or a fire occurred. These are the reporter's own answers on the NHTSA form, not verified findings.
1

Overview

Our database contains 6 NHTSA owner-reported complaints for the 1984 Toyota Corolla, most frequently naming the seat belts, driver assistance and electrical categories. 2 safety recalls have been issued covering this model year; 1 NHTSA investigation names it; and 17 manufacturer communications are on file.

Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.

What owners report

Complaints grouped by the component NHTSA recorded

  • Seat belts450.0%
  • Driver assistance112.5%
  • Electrical112.5%
  • Fuel system112.5%
  • Transmission112.5%

Percentages are of component mentions. A single complaint can name more than one component, so these do not sum to the total complaint count.

Safety recalls

2 campaigns cover this model year

Recalls apply to specific vehicles, not to every vehicle of a model year. Check your VIN with NHTSA or your manufacturer's dealer to confirm whether a recall affects your vehicle.

Check a VIN on NHTSA.gov
90V040000

VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL

Feb 28, 1990
121,389 units potentially affected
The defect: CRUISE CONTROL COMPUTER MALFUNCTION COULD OCCUR UPON SHUTTING OFF THE CONTROL AFTER CONTINUOUS USE FOLLOWED BY COLD AMBIENT TEMPERATURES.
The risk: THERMAL SHOCK TO THE CRUISE CONTROL COMPUTER COULD RESULT IN ENGINE RACING IF THE ENGINE IS RESTARTED WITH THE MAIN CONTROL SWITCH IN THE 'ON' POSITION. THIS COULD CAUSE LOSS OF CONTROL AND AN ACCIDENT IF THIS IS PERFORMED IN NORMAL TRAFFIC CONDITIONS.
The remedy: REPLACE COMPUTER WITH ONE OF IMPROVED DESIGN.
TOYOTA MOTOR CO., LTD.View on NHTSA.gov
83V133000

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:ALTERNATOR/GENERATOR/REGULATOR

Dec 8, 1983
48,737 units potentially affected
The defect: VOLTAGE REGULATOR WHICH CONTROLS THE AMOUNT OF FLOW IN THE ELECTRICAL SYSTEM BETWEEN THE BATTERY AND THE ALTERNATOR, MAY HAVE MANUFACTURING ERRORS IN AN INTEGRATED CIRCUIT. THE REGULATOR MAY OVERCHARGE THE BATTERY.
The remedy: DEALER WILL REPLACE THE VOLTAGE REGULATOR AT NO CHARGE.
TOYOTA MOTOR CO., LTD.View on NHTSA.gov

Safety investigations

NHTSA inquiries naming this vehicle. An investigation is not a finding of a defect.

PE87057ClosedPreliminary Evaluation

IGNITER ASSEMBLY FAILURE

Opened Sep 10, 1987
Closed Mar 30, 1988

SUMMARY: TOYOTA RECOVERED SOME FAILED IGNITION CONTROL MODULES FROM THEFIELD. INVESTIGATION SHOWED THAT A SOLDER JOINT IN THE POWER TRANSISTOROF THE MODULE WAS SUBJECT TO FAILURE. BECAUSE THE PART IS AN EMISSIONRELATED COMPONENT A VOLUNTARY EMISSIONS RECALL CAMPAIGN WAS CONDUCTED.THE PREDOMINANT MODE OF FAILURE IS AN INABILITY TO START THE ENGINE,ALTHOUGH A STALLED CONDITION CAN OCCUR WHILE THE ENGINE IS RUNNING.SINCE THE REPORTED OCCURENCE OF ACCIDENTS AND INJURIES IS SMALL, AND THEREPAIR IS BEING CONDUCTED UNDER THE EMISSIONS RECALL CAMPAIGN, THELIKLEHOOD OF FURTHER ACCIDENTS AND INJURIES IS REMOTE.===

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

Recent owner complaints

Reports submitted to NHTSA, shown in the owner's own words

Seat belts
Filed May 31, 2004

WE RECENTLY INSTALLED A CHILD SEAT IN THE LEFT BACK SEAT OF OUR TOYOTA COROLLA AND I NOTICED THAT THERE IS A TWIST IN THE BELT WHEN IT IS BUCKLED. BY COMPARING IT TO THE OTHER SEAT BELTS, I TRACED THE PROBLEM TO THE BUCKLE, WHICH WAS SITTING ON THE BELT IN A REVERSE POSITION. I TRIED TO REVERSE THE BUCKLE BY FOLDING THE SEAT BELT STRAP IN THE SLOT. HOWEVER, THE SLOT WIDTH IS ONLY NARROW ENOUGH TO ALLOW A SINGLE SEAT BELT STRAP TO BE THREADED THROUGH IT. I THEREFORE CONCLUDED THAT IT WAS INSTALLED IN THIS POSITION AT THE FACTORY. I REQUESTED OUR TOYOTA DEALER FIX IT WITHOUT CHARGE AND WAS TOLD THAT SINCE THE CAR WAS 10 YEARS OLD THEY HAD NO WAY OF KNOWING WHETHER IT WAS MANUFACTURED THAT WAY OR WE WERE RESPONSIBLE. WE REQUESTED THAT AN APPOINTMENT BE SET UP FOR US WITH THE TOYOTA REGIONAL MANAGER TO INSPECT IT. OUR PHONE CALLS HAVE NOT BEEN RETURNED. SINCE WE WERE ASKING FOR ONE SEAT BELT BUCKLE TO BE REPAIRED I ALSO REQUESTED THAT THE SECOND SHOULDER BELT ON THE BACK SEAT BE RETRACTED. THE BELT FAILED TO RETRACT A NUMBER OF YEARS AGO AFTER BEING USED ONLY A HANDFUL OF TIMES. MY GUESS IS THAT IT WAS USED ONLY ONCE OR TWICE PER YEAR WHEN WE TOOK A FRIEND IN THE CAR. I WAS TOLD BY THE SAME TOYOTA DEALER THAT THE BELT CANNOT BE SIMPLY REINSERTED BUT THAT THE WHOLE SEAT BELT ASSEMBLY MUST BE REPLACED. I POINTED OUT TO THE DEALER THAT SINCE WE RARELY USED THE BACK BELT THAT THE SEAT BELT MUST HAVE FAILED TO RETRACT BECAUSE OF AN ORIGINAL MECHANICAL DEFECT. HOWEVER, THE TOYOTA DEALER TOLD US THAT SINCE THE CAR WAS TEN YEARS OLD THEY HAD NO WAY OF KNOWING HOW OFTEN IT WAS REALLY USED. *AK

NHTSA ID
10074536
Incident
May 15, 2004
Mileage
50,000 mi
Seat belts
Filed May 17, 2000

DRIVER SEATBELT WILL NOT PULL OVER ALL TIME ON THE FIRST TRY, SOMETIME IT TAKES 4 TO 5 TUGS TO PULL ACROSS. SHOULDER DRIVER BELT WILL NOT RETRACT.

NHTSA ID
9000800
Transmission
Filed Oct 4, 1997

MANUAL TRANSMISSION FAILED CAUSING VEHICLE TO JUMP OUT OF 5TH GEAR INTO NEUTRAL.

NHTSA ID
604639
Driver assistanceElectricalFuel system
Filed May 7, 1996

ELECTRICAL/IGNITION PROBLEMS.

NHTSA ID
504380
Incident
May 7, 1996
Seat belts
Filed Oct 5, 1995

TAKATA; SEATBELT SYSTEM FAILED TO RELEASE TRAPPING HIM INSIDE THE VEHICLE. TT

NHTSA ID
972963
Incident
Sep 29, 1995
Seat belts
Filed Sep 5, 1995
Crash reported

CONSUMER WAS IN AN ACCIDENT REAR ENDED THE DRIVER SHOULDER BELT DIDN'T RESTRAIN CONSUMER HIT THE STEERING WHEEL . TT

NHTSA ID
971673
Incident
Aug 15, 1995

Manufacturer communications

A bulletin sent by a manufacturer to its dealers. Not a recall, and repairs are not necessarily free.

TSB003220

AIR BAGS; EQUIPMENT; VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL

TSB: Replacement certification labels (the vinyl label installed on the driver door or door post) and VIN plates (the metal plate riveted to dashboard) (see Figure 1) for most 1979 ? 2023 model year vehicles may be available provided the requests meet the criteria listed in this Service Bulletin. Follow the Procurement Procedure in this bulletin to request a replacement certification label or VIN plate.

Toyota PRO19-02

EQUIPMENT:OTHER:OWNERS/SERVICE/OTHER MANUAL; TIRES; WHEELS

POL: This consolidated Tire Warranty Guide contains the complete warranty terms for all brands of ground and spare tires currently in use by Toyota. This information must be kept near the point of vehicle sale and be available to any customer that requests it. Customers can find this information on the Owner?s section of Toyota.com. Dealers can locate a copy of this guide on the Claims Processing & Resource Center in Dealer Daily as well.

T-SB-0032-20 Rev

EQUIPMENT

TSB: Replacement certification labels (the vinyl label installed on the driver door or door post) and VIN plates (the metal plate riveted to dashboard) (see Figure 1) for most 1979 ? 2021 model year vehicles may be available provided the requests meet the criteria listed in this Service Bulletin. Follow the Procurement Procedure in this bulletin to request a replacement certification label or VIN plate.

T-SB-0304-17 Obs

EQUIPMENT

TSB: OBSOLETE NOTICE April 07, 2020: This bulletin is now obsolete. Please see T-SB-0032-20. Replacement Certification Labels and VIN Plates

T-SB-0032-20

EQUIPMENT

TSB: SUPERSESSION NOTICE The information contained in this bulletin supersedes Service Bulletin Nos. PG021-88, PG015-89, PG0015-90, PG002-91, PG002-93, PG005-97, PG007-01, PG007-07, PG006-01, PG004-97, T-SB-0144-08, and T-SB-0304-17. The aforementioned bulletins are obsolete, and any printed versions should be discarded. Replacement certification labels (the vinyl label installed on the driver door or door post) and VIN plates (the metal plate riveted to dashboard) (see Figure 1) for most 1979 ? 2020 model year vehicles may be available provided the requests meet the criteria listed in this Service Bulletin. Follow the Procurement Procedure in this bulletin to request a replacement certification label or VIN plate.

PG004-97-Obsolet

EQUIPMENT; EQUIPMENT:OTHER:LABELS

Technical Service Bulletin: OBSOLETE NOTICE: July 31, 2018: This bulletin is now obsolete. Please see T-SB-0304-17.

Manufacturers file copies of the bulletins they send to dealers with NHTSA. These often describe diagnostic or repair procedures for a known condition. They are not recalls: repairs described in a bulletin are usually only free if the vehicle is still under warranty or the manufacturer has extended coverage.

Compare model years

Complaint and recall counts across every year of this model

Toyota Corolla by model year
YearComplaintsRecallsInvestigationsIssue Index
2027000—
2026151063.7
2025270058.1
2024612060.5
2023723057.9
2022950049.1
20211841052.4
20203043055.6
20192005165.8
20181333266.1
20171773267.9
20162121260.9
20152191261.0
20142672263.8
20132015266.5
20124455264.2
20115849262.2
20101,24217365.7
20091,45913364.8
20083136467.4
20078366366.0
200683910466.8
200585310467.3
200447713466.9
200372013467.0
20021175162.0
20011334058.0
20001455056.7
19991554055.4
19982254056.3
19971356059.0
19961296167.4
19951767269.8
19941728169.7
19931306167.7
1992632053.5
1991711047.2
1990271043.3
1989232056.7
1988261054.8
1987140133.0
1986301—
1985301—
1984Viewing621—
1983102—
1982500—
1981300—
1980210—
1979210—
1978010—
1977110—
1976101—
1975000—
1974000—
1973100—
1972000—
1971021—
1970010—
1969020—

Higher-selling and older vehicles accumulate more reports. Counts are not failure rates and are not directly comparable between vehicles that sold in very different numbers. Older model years have had longer for reports to accumulate.