NHTSA Complaint #11588225 — 2023 TOYOTA GR COROLLA

I was driving my car at about 25 mph and I was not able to switch gears (manual transmission). I sent the car to the dealer and they told me that the clutch was burnt and I also needed to change the flywheel for a total cost of over USD 6,300. The repair was not covered by the warranty and the car was only under 5,500 miles and under a year of bought. I have read similar cases in the web and I am pretty sure that this is a manufacturing problem. The car is a GR Corolla, which is advertised as a sports car, but the dealer is saying that the car was abused, without providing any proof. I am an experienced driving, never abused of the car, and only drove it in streets. I am amazed this happened. I filed a claim to Toyota and received the following answer "According to your Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) [XXX] , the warranty for the part you are inquiring is 5 years or 60,000 miles whichever comes first starting from the vehicle's in-service date: [XXX]. Vehicle component failures that are not caused by a manufacturer's defect are not covered under factory warranties. We have communicated with Fred Haas Toyota Country dealer personnel and confirmed your vehicle clutch and flywheel concerns were not as a result of a manufacturer's defect, but due to outside influence. Therefore, we apologize, we must decline your request for vehicle repair reimbursement assistance. While there are situations where we gladly look into out of warranty financial assistance requests, we are simply unable to offer any assistance as the vehicle clutch, flywheel concerns are not covered by the factory warranty. We know this is not the response you were hoping to receive, and understand the reasons for bringing this request to us. The experience you have had with your 2023 Toyota GR Corolla Circuit is important to Toyota, and the information has been documented under your reference number." INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)