There are 16 owner-reported body & structure complaints for the 1998 Toyota Corollain NHTSA's database. These are unverified consumer reports and may not reflect confirmed defects.
The contact's wife owns a 1998 Toyota Corolla. The contact stated while his wife was taking items out of the trunk of the vehicle, the trunk lid closed abruptly. The contact later noticed that the trunk lid driver’s side hinge was fractured. The contact's wife did not sustain any injuries. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the trunk lid hinges needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure but provided no assistance. The manufacturer referred the contact to the NHTSA. The failure mileage was approximately 106,000.
TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 1998 TOYOTA COROLLA. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE CEILING INSIDE THE PASSENGER COMPARTMENT WAS FALLING DOWN. THE FAILURE WORSENS BY THE DAY. THE MANUFACTURER STATED THAT NOTHING COULD BE DONE. THE DEALER REFUSES TO MAKE ANY REPAIRS. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 94,000.
THE FRONT PASSENGER DOOR WON'T OPEN BOTH FROM INSIDE AND OUTSIDE THE VEHICLE. I TOOK IT THE TOYOTA DEALER AND WAS TOLD THE PROBLEM IS DUE TO MALFUNCTION OF THE LATCH IN DOOR. THE DRIVER SIDE DOOR IS STARTING TO SHOW THE SAME PROBLEM. THE PROBLEM WAS OCCURRED SOME 2 YEARS AGO. IT WOULD CAUSE SERIOUS CONSEQUENCE WHEN THE OCCUPANT(S) NEED TO BE EVACUATED FROM THE VEHICLE SHOULD SOMETHING HAPPEN IN EMERGENCY, E.G. FIRE, ROAD HAZARD, CRUSH, ETC. *TR
A PART IN THE DOOR OF MY 1998 TOYOTA COROLLA BROKE ABOUT TWO YEARS AGO. I COULD NOT OPEN THE DRIVER'S DOOR FROM THE OUTSIDE. I GOT IT FIXED AT THE DEALER FOR ABOUT $300. A FEW MONTHS AGO, SOMETHING IN THE SAME DOOR MALFUNCTIONED. I AM NOW UNABLE TO OPEN THE DOOR FROM THE INSIDE. A FEW DAYS AGO, THE ORIGINAL PROBLEM OCCURRED AGAIN. I AM NOW UNABLE TO OPEN THE DRIVER'S DOOR. *TR
THE DOOR FAILED TO OPENED. *JB THE INSIDE DOOR HANDLE BROKE OFF THE VEHICLE WHICH MEANT THAT THE DOOR COULD NOT BE CLOSED FROM THE INSIDE. *NM
INTERIOR DOOR HANDLES HAVE CRACKED RESULTING IN THE INABILITY TO EXIT THE VEHICLE. *TR
THE CD DOOR ON THE INTERIOR OF THE CAR FELL OFF FOR NO REASON. SAFETY HAZARD. *JB
THE DOOR HANDLE STRUCTURE BROKE. THIS WAS SAID TO BE COMMON IN THIS TYPE OF VEHICLE. THIS IS A SAFETY RISK. *JB
AFTER THE LONG HARD RAIN WE HAD IN CINCINNATI YESTERDAY LABOR DAY SEPT 1, HERE WAS APPROXIMATELY 1-2 INCHES OF RAIN SETTING IN THE DRIVERS SIDE FLOOR OF MY CAR. THE SIDES OF THE FLOOR WERE NOT DAMP AS IF IT CAME FROM BELOW BUT I AM NOT SURE. *AK
THE SUN VISOR FLIPPED IN THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION, WHICH CAUSED THE SUN TO SHINE INSIDE THE VEHICLE. TS *JB
MOLDING ALONG ALL FOUR DOORS IS FALLING OFF. IT LOOKS LIKE MOLDING SHRUNK AND GLUE DID NOT HOLD. ONCE MOLDING STARTED COMING OFF IT BECAME BRITTLE AND FELL APART. ALMOST EVERY '98 COROLLA WE HAVE SEEN HAS HAD THIS PROBLEM, INCLUDING ONES BEING SOLD ON TOYOTA DEALERSHIPS.*AK
EVERYTIME IT RAINS ALL 4 DOORS LEAK. CONTACT DEALER, AND NOTHING THEY COULD DO. VEHICLE IS SMELLING MOLDY.*AK
ALL FOUR DOORS LET IN WATER WHEN IT RAINS. YH
THERE IS NO INSIDE TRUNK RELEASE SEPARATE FROM THE KEY.
WHEN TRYING TO EXIT VEHICLE DOOR HANDLES ON DRIVERS AND PASSENGERS SIDE WILL NOT OPEN, CAN BE OPENED FROM OUTSIDE USING A KEY TO LOCK AND UNLOCK. HAD NOT TAKEN VEHICLE TO DEALERSHIP.*AK
LEFT FRONT DOOR SCUFF PLATE.
Complaints are unverified consumer reports submitted to NHTSA. A high complaint count may reflect vehicle popularity, not defect severity. Data sourced from NHTSA public records.
Data synced from NHTSA on May 4, 2026