I think the reason you come on here and hear so many bad things is because nobody is going to come on here and tell you hey my hatch doesnt rattle and the roof didnt shatter. A few people have a few problems just like any other car. Most are not very common at all.

 

I drove a new Corolla when they were installing the stuff on my tc. It was an 05 with like 7k miles. Biggest piece of ____ I have ever driven. It was slow, shook at all speeds, rattled everywhere. Made my 96 Saturn SC (____ty car?) look like a perfect car. Not every car is perfect even from Toyota. More often than not pretty much every new car made by anyone is a good car. If it came down to me needing a small 4 door car with good milage Id be stupid not to consider a Corolla based on 1 experience. I just think people read too much into forums without doing any real research.

 

My 96 SC1 is still a great car after 170,000 miles, which is why I kept it In all those miles I have replaced the alternator other than routine maintenance. :D Step moms 94 is the same way. They didnt come with a ton of features, but they did very well in economy and reliability

 

You know, a month ago I would have argued with you. Comments like this would have made me almost angry.

But, in light of the garbage I've had to deal with at Tustin Toyota--who are unable to fix very simple interior defects, and have caused more damage than they've repaired--Yeah. Um.

Dealerships DO give us a hard time for warranty claims. I'm not sure that's just because we own Scions, or if all Toyota owners are treated just as poorly, but it makes me upset. I've actually sent letters to Toyota corporate over this.

At 12,000 miles, I now have the same weird creaking noise from the hatch, and he sunroof creaks at times.

Toyota needs to keep more of an eye on their dealerships, especially with the recent ad campaign they're running, advertising how wonderfully reliable their cars are.

Although, I suppose that says nothing about how the interiors of Toyota cars might fall to pieces as the actual car continues to run fine...

 

Sorry to hear about all your problems...better you than me. j/k

 

Haha its funny because when I first got my tC, like you, I was very defensive on this forum of anyone who said anything bad about the tC...until I got creaks and rattles myself. Now, I am just trying to convince myself that I would still pick the tC over the other cars models I was considering at the time. But thats an uphill battle at the moment....

I'm taking my car in for toyota's second attempt at fixing the hatch rattle. I hope they fix it for good this time so I can start enjoying the rides in my new car again.

 

After buying our box, it gave me a chance to see what Scion was all about. No problems at all withthe xB after a year...so i bought a tC and haven't had any of the problems a very small % of other tC onwers have had. IMO, some peeps drive the F*** outta their cars and expect them to run like the day they drove them off the lot. I am sorry to hear about all your problems w/ your tC bro.

 

Im usually very unbiased. Just because I have a tC, im not going to be the one defending it as if it were some sorta ____ing match, but honestly...ive had mine since febuary, and the ONLY problem, if you could even call it that, is the rattle in the rear hatch. Other then that, I just dont see any other problems.
Well, besides the fact that the front sway bar was a nightmare to put on.

 

I think people are going to automatically become defensive when the guy who starts the thread calls it "TC a crappy car?"

Geez, that's like going to a Republican website and starting a thread called "Bush a crappy Prez?" or a Latino/a website and writing "Mexicans crappy people?"

Tact. Use it.

 

I used to have a focus. P.O.S. This car was released in europe b4 it came here and I still had 5 recalls in the first 3 years! someone tell me how many recalls the Tc has had. Please. I don't know of one. My car is beautiful. Bulletproof and flawless. (aside from debris stuck in the paint) I am disgusted that anyone would diss the Tc in any way shape or form. you don't like the car you bought, wmfw. I'm sorry if anyone feels flamed.

 

Tell it like it is! I have two Scions and would back up the quality of both cars...

 

carpet is fixed, newer design on the driver side.

 

Well I'm sorry if you don't keep up with the news, but the spar between owners and toyota was widely publicized, and toyota ended up relenting and extending the engine warranties on the 1MZ V-6 and 5SFE in line 4 engines.

Read more here : http://yotarepair.com/Automotive_News.html

Here's another article detailing the production changes they made indicating there was in fact a design flaw: http://www.autonews.com/article.cms?articleId=38921


The number of people is small, but that's not the point. 3000 people still faced incredible hassles due to denials by Toyota.

 

Yes, I did keep up, and Toyota did offer to re-imburse if the owners could simply prove that the oil and filter were replaced at recommended intervals. As I said... right about then people were all jumping on the long change interval, not to mention that many people never change their oil anyway. The design "flaw" was that engine could not take the negligence of these users. So the primary cause of user negligence was never ruled out. And that is apparent in the artice you posted above. Now, as for the 100 owners that say they showed proof of oil changes and were not re-imbursed, they were obvioulsy screwed by their dealerships and that should have been taken care of.

I am not saying toyota is an angel, but that instance was a perfect example of a company having to design around user abuse.

 

Those things were so crappy. The gf had one too. It got recalled every few months and it wasnt small stuff either. Way to go Ford. Build a nice car in Europe and figure its good lets get all new American suppliers build it in a new American and Mexican plant and not do a proper launch. If everything is made by different people and companies dont you think you should maybe launch it like a new model which it pretty much is?
My 96 SC1 never had to be repaired either other than new brakes every 25k miles and a quart of oil every 1k. Never did break down though but it rattled everywhere. Bring the new oil and you can go anywhere.

 

sad..............................

 

I don't think we need to stoop so low as to compare the tC to a Ford $^%us.

I do feel flamed. The major problems I've been having with my tC, at least, are with the inside trim.

Specifically, the 'technician' at Tustin Toyota jamming my dashboard trim and A-pillar back together with the buisness end of a screwdriver. Repeatedly.

My issue with Toyota is their reluctance to lay some serious smack-down on the jokers they let their dealerships employ.

I shouldn't have to spend 4 months getting a skeezy dealership to fix the mistakes and damage they did to my car, and I should have met with a Factory Service Rep and a Factory Service Tech long before a week ago.

As far as 'driving the crap out of my car,' I keep my tC under 3k RPM's for most driving, and sometimes it might even go up to 4 when I'm avoiding an accident.

And at 12,000 miles, my hatch has begun creaking, and my sunroof as well. Admittedly, I remember accusing other Scion Life members of 'Hitting speedbumps at 80 and wondering why their car makes funny sounds.'

My mistake. I was wrong.

I don't think it's fair to blame every problem had with a car on the owner of that car. That is not how you run a buisness, with any product. And I think it's even more ridiculous to hear owners of a product denying that any problems are or will ever be present in the particular product or products they own.

Don't get me wrong. I still love my tC. Take this statement as an example: Toyota is cheap with their paint. I also remember making fun of another member on here for his lawsuit against Toyota, because paint was peeling, flaking, and bubbling off his car.

I'm at 12,000 miles, and I have chips gradually multiplying on my front bumper, and the sides of my car. And yet, Toyota--their dealerships, and even their factory reps--claim 'oh, it's because your car is low to the ground,' or 'oh, that's because you drive on the freeway, and the freeway will chip your paint.'

No. Toyota uses cheap, crappy paint. They apply one thin coat of it, maybe sprinkle on a clear-coat if they feel like it, then call it a day.

Nonetheless, I will still get in my tC tomorrow morning, and I will enjoy my drive to work. Because I love my car.

I'm just realistic enough to admit it's flaws.

 

The paint issues are not totally unique to Toyota. I have a friend that works at a body shop and they assure me that it's ALL new cars that have crappy paint. Some might be less crappy than others, but nothing from the factory is hard like old paint used to be.

I have a few squeeks and rattles, but I had a few in my 1997 Toyota Corolla. I don't have any that I am overly concerned with or feel like taking to the dealer every week to bug them about. I DO feel some of the complaints on here are, well frankly, frivilous. Plastic parts in the center of the dash will squeek when you rest your leg against them. Things in the hatch that hit eachother are amplified by the glass and appear to be the hatch rattling. I do notice the hatch doesn't always shut flush, and that's probably producing most of the rattles. I think someone on here said Toyota is now issuing longer rubber stoppers to fix this problem.

I don't think the tC is a crappy car, if it was it WOULD NOT HAVE WON THE JD POWER AWARD FOR BEST SPORTY CAR. It does have some MINOR issues, and from what I can tell it appears Scion is trying their best to get this remidied.

You guys that have to deal with shoddy dealers, if you can, take your care elsewhere. Don't give them ANY of your business and be sure to explain to them that since they have treated you crappy, you will be sure to tell all of your friends and family to never bring their cars there. Hit them in the wallet and they might actually try to be helpful. I know I feel lucky to have a non-Scion Toyota dealer in my town who has been very helpful and friendly in servicing my car and doing some warranty work. They might be a little slow on the service, but they have taken care of every issue (like when a service tech scarred my rims during a tire rotation) quickly and professionally. They obviously know that after my last Scion warranty oil change is performed that I will probably still bring them my business since they have been great. Some dealers don't understand this, so I wouldnt take my car to a dealer that jerked me around and caused more damage fixing a problem than they should.

 

^^ Good point on the paint. Everyone needs to take a look at other cars. The paint sucks on all of them to some extent. Many manufacturers have had paint recalls. If you search google about it you will see. It doesnt make it all better to hear that, but it does show that it is not just the manufacturer.

I also had issues with the service dept messing up my car. They broke stuff installing the options, and then something else everytime they tried to fix the previous mistake. 5 times in total. Since then that tech is no longer there that I have seen, and the service manager has changed. During all of that I worked through my salesperson who ensured they made up for it. I ended up getting TRD springs installed for barely more than the cost of the springs to make up for it, and the service dept has been good since then. So try talking to different people if the ones you are speaking with arent helping.

 

All the praises and head turning factor i get from THE GIRLS make it worth while IMO