NHTSA Complaint #10311542 — 2001 TOYOTA COROLLA

WE HAVE A 2001 TOYOTA COROLLA THAT WE PURCHASED IN JULY 2000 FROM DON MCGILL TOYOTA IN HOUSTON. IN NOV 2008 WE NOTICED THAT THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT WOULD COME ON EVERY MONTH AND SO I TOOK THE CAR TO AUTOZONE FOR A FREE DIAGNOSTIC TEST EACH TIME WITH THE RESULT SHOWING THAT THE CAR HAS AN ELECTRIC SHORT CIRCUIT PROBLEM. THIS IS A DEFECT IN THE TIMING CHAIN AND A PART CALLED A CAM. TO FIX THE PROBLEM IT WOULD COST ME AROUND 800 DOLLARS. I REPORTED THE PROBLEM TO THE DEALER DON MCGILL IN HOUSTON AND THEY SIMPLY IGNORED ME. I THEN CALLED UP TOYOTA IN CALIFORNIA AND THEY TOO IGNORED ME. THE RESULT IS I HAVE TO DO AN OIL CHANGE EVERY 1200 MILES AS THERE IS NO OIL IN THE ENGINE AFTER 1200 MILES. NORMALLY ONE WOULD HAVE AN OIL CHANGE DONE EVERY 3000 MILES. SO THE CHECK LIGHT COMES ON EVERY 1000 MILES INTERVALS. THIS PROBLEM HAS BEEN REPORTED BY MANY PEOPLE ON FORUMS ABOUT THE 2001 COROLLA, BUT TOYOTA NEVER BOTHERED FIXING. IN ADDITION TO THIS PROBLEM THE PLASTIC LINING AROUND OUR CAR WINDOWS, ON ALL FOUR DOORS HAS PEELED OFF. I REPORTED THIS TO THE TOYOTA DEALER LAST SPRING. THE ASSISTANT SERVICE MANAGER ACKNOWLEDGED THAT TOYOTA KNOWS ABOUT THIS LINING PROBLEM AND YET THE DEALER IGNORED ME ON THIS. INSTEAD THEY ASKED ME TO COUGH UP $450 TO FIX THE PROBLEM. IF THIS IS NOT A RIPOFF ON THE AMERICAN CITIZENS THEN WHAT IS? HERE ARE SOME URLS OF FORUMS, OF THE CHECK ENGINE PROBLEM ON THE 2001 COROLLA HTTP://WWW.COROLLAND.COM/FORUMS/INDEX.PHP?/TOPIC/18973-2001-COROLLA-CHECK-ENGINE-LIGHT-ISSUE/ HTTP://WWW.FIXYA.COM/CARS/T1082872-CHECK_ENGINE_LIGHT_2001_TOYOTA_COROLLA HTTP://WWW.TUNDRASOLUTIONS.COM/FORUMS/COROLLA-MATRIX/69501-2001-COROLLA-CHECK-ENGINE-P0446/ HTTP://WWW.2CARPROS.COM/FORUM/2001-TOYOTA-COROLLA-CHECK-ENGINE-LIGHT-IS-ON-VT126177.HTML THE SAME PROBLEM OF THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT HAS BEEN REPORTED ON COROLLAS 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003,... WILL THE DEPT. OF TRANSPORTATION ACT AGAINST TOYOTA AND HELP US FIX OUR CARS? *TR