NHTSA Complaint #10054871 — 2003 TOYOTA COROLLA

MY NEW '03 TOYOTA COROLLA CE (17715 MILES AS OF 01/19/04) HAS SOME SERIOUS DEFECT THAT MAKES IT STALL. AT LEAST 5 TIMES, FROM OCTOBER 20, 2003 TO JANUARY 22, 2004, WE HAD TO BRING IT TO THE DEALERSHIP FOR THE SAME PROBLEM. IT ALREADY HAD TO BE TOWED TWICE, AS IT WOULD SOMETIMES STOP IN TRAFFIC, PUTTING THE LIVES OF MY FAMILY IN DANGER. SO FAR, NONE OF THE TOYOTA DEALERSHIP'S TECHNICIANS HAVE BEN ABLE TO FIND THE PROBLEM. I WAS TOLD THAT DIAGNOSTIC TESTS PERFORMED ON THIS CAR HAVE SHOWN UNUSUAL CODES UNFAMILIAR TO TOYOTA TECHNICIANS. ONE SUCH CODE, THAT THEY ARE UNABLE TO INTERPRET, IS "P1780. THEY THOUGHT THE PROBLEM WAS THE ECU SWITCH. THEY REPLACED IT IN NOVEMBER 2003, AND SINCE THEN THE CAR HAS STOPPED TWICE. ON JANUARY 24, 2004, LESS THAN A WEEK AFTER IT WAS DELIVERED TO US FOLLOWING REPAIR FOR THE SAME PROBLEMS, IT STOPPED AGAIN, BECAME INOPERABLE, AND HAD TO BE TOWED TO THE DEALERSHIP. AT EACH OCCURRENCE, THE ENGINE INDICATOR LIGHT, AND IN SOME CASES THE "LOW ENGINE" PRESSURE LIGHT WOULD STAY ON PERMANENTLY, THE STEERING WHEEL WOULD BECOME VERY HARD TO MANEUVER, AND THEN THE CAR WOULD COME TO A SUDDEN HALT. TO RESTART IT, IT WOULD TAKE TURNING THE IGNITION KEY ON SEVERAL TIMES. MY BIGGEST FEAR IS THAT IT MAY SOMEDAY STOP SUDDENLY (AS IT USUALLY DOES) IN A BUSY INTERSECTION OR ON A HIGHWAY, THEREBY PUTTING AT RISK THE LIVES OF MY WHOLE FAMILY. THIS PROBLEM NEEDS SOME URGENT ATTENTION. *LA