NHTSA Complaint #10573793 — 2005 TOYOTA COROLLA

IN JANUARY OF 2013 AND AGAIN IN DECEMBER OF 2013, MY "CHECK ENGINE" LIGHT CAME ON. I TOOK THE CAR INTO THE TOYOTA DEALERSHIP IN SAN LUIS OBISPO AND THEY SAID THAT THE O2 SENSOR WAS MALFUNCTIONING, CAUSING THE ENGINE TO RUN TOO LEAN. THE FIRST TIME THIS HAPPENED (JANUARY, 2013) THE SERVICE WRITER GAVE ME AN ESTIMATE TO REPLACE THE "PLENUM GASKET AND O2 SENSOR" BUT SAID THERE WAS NOTHING TO WORRY ABOUT IF I ELECTED NOT TO HAVE THIS REPAIR DONE. WHEN THE "CHECK ENGINE" LIGHT CAME ON AGAIN IN DECEMBER, 2013, I BECAME ALARMED AND TOOK MY 2005 TOYOTA COROLLA TO AN AUTHORIZED TOYOTA REPAIR SHOP (NOT THE SAN LUIS OBISPO DEALERSHIP) AND WAS TOLD THAT THERE WAS HIGH PROBABILITY THAT THE VALVES WOULD BURN OUT IF I DID NOT REPLACE THE O2 SENSOR (BANK ONE, SENSOR ONE) AND PLENUM GASKET. I FELT THIS WAS URGENT AND TOOK IT TO THE SAN LUIS OBISPO TOYOTA DEALER FOR THE REPAIR, COSTING ME OVER $400. NOTE THAT I FOUND A TOYOTA TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN ("M.I.L "ON" DTC PO171 OR P2195", MODELS '05-'06 COROLLA AND MATRIX) DATED NOVEMBER 16, 2005 (WE BOUGHT THE CAR IN MARCH OR APRIL, 2005) WHICH STATED "UNDER CERTAIN DRIVING CONDITIONS, SOME 2005 AND 2006 MODEL YEAR COROLLA AND MATRIX VEHICLES MAY EXHIBIT A MIL "ON" CONDITION WITH AT LEAST ONE OF THE FOLLOWING DTC'S: PO171 (SYSTEM TOO LEAN, BANK 1"). FURTHER, IT STATED "THE AIR FUEL (A/F) SENSOR MANUFACTURING PROCESS HAS BEEN IMPROVED TO CORRECT THIS CONDITION". NOTE THAT I NEVER RECEIVED CORRESPONDENCE OR A NOTICE FROM TOYOTA ABOUT THIS CONDITION. ON 1-2-14 I EMAILED TOYOTA (REF: 140102-000196) TO ASK ABOUT THIS AND TO ASK THEIR CONSIDERATION TO COVER SOME OF THE COST OF THE REPAIR, AND I RECEIVED AN EMAIL BACK FROM A "RENEE T.", TOYOTA CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE STATING "A TSB (TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN) IS NOT A RECALL OR A SPECIAL SERVICE CAMPAIGN" AND THAT TOYOTA AND BASICALLY BRUSHED MY CONCERN ASIDE. *TR