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1998 Toyota Corolla Recalls & Complaints

4

open safety recalls on record

Serious

278 owner complaints filed · Severity Index 0.95 · updated 2026-08-07

The recalls

Serious08E050000

Exterior Lighting:Headlights

WITHOUT THE AMBER SIDE REFLEX REFLECTORS, THE LIGHTING VISIBILITY MAY BE AFFECTED, POSSIBLY RESULTING IN A VEHICLE CRASH.

Remedy & full details

K2 MOTOR WILL NOTIFY OWNERS AND OFFER A FULL REFUND. THE RECALL BEGAN ON DECEMEBER 17, 2008. OWNERS MAY CONTACT K2 MOTOR AT 1-909-839-2992.

K2 MOTOR IS RECALLING 1,921 AFTERMARKET HEADLAMPS OF VARIOUS MODELS SOLD FOR USE ON THE ABOVE LISTED VEHICLES. THESE HEADLAMPS ARE MISSING THE AMBER SIDE REFLEX REFLECTOR WHICH FAILS TO CONFORM WITH THE REQUIREMENTS OF FEDERAL MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY STANDARD NO. 108, "LAMPS, REFLECTIVE DEVICES, AND ASSOCIATED EQUIPMENT."

Serious09E012000

Exterior Lighting

DECREASED LIGHTING VISIBILITY MAY RESULT IN A VEHICLE CRASH.

Remedy & full details

SABERSPORT WILL NOTIFY OWNERS AND OFFER A FULL REFUND FOR THE NONCOMPLIANT COMBINATION LAMPS. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON MAY 11, 2009. OWNERS MAY CONTACT SABERSPORT AT 1-909-598-7589.

SABERSPORT IS RECALLING 16,270 COMBINATION CORNER AND BUMPER LAMP ASSEMBLIES OF VARIOUS PART NUMBERS SOLD FOR USE AS AFTERMARKET EQUIPMENT FOR VARIOUS PASSENGER VEHICLES. THESE HEADLAMPS FAIL TO CONFORM TO THE REQUIREMENTS OF FEDERAL MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY STANDARD NO. 108, "LAMPS, REFLECTIVE DEVICES, AND ASSOCIATED EQUIPMENT." THESE LAMPS DO NOT CONTAIN THE REQUIRED AMBER SIDE REFLECTORS.

Serious06E065000

Exterior Lighting

LACK OF AMBER SIDE REFLECTORS IN THE LAMPS WILL DECREASE LIGHTING VISIBILITY TO OTHER DRIVERS AND MAY POSSIBLY RESULT IN A VEHICLE CRASH.

Remedy & full details

AJ MOTORSPORT WILL NOTIFY OWNERS AND OFFER REIMBURSEMENT FOR THE LAMPS. THE RECALL BEGAN ON JULY 31, 2006. OWNERS MAY CONTACT AJ MOTORSPORT AT 626-618-2026.

CERTAIN AJ MOTORSPORT COMBINATION LAMPS SOLD AS REPLACEMENT LAMPS FOR USE ON THE ABOVE LISTED PASSENGER VEHICLES. COMBINATION LAMPS NOT EQUIPPED WITH AMBER SIDE REFLECTORS FAIL TO CONFORM WITH THE REQUIREMENTS OF FEDERAL MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY STANDARD NO. 108, LAMPS, REFLECTIVE DEVICES, AND ASSOCIATED EQUIPMENT.

Serious06E026000

Exterior Lighting

WITHOUT THE AMBER REFLECTORS, THE VEHICLE WILL BE POORLY ILLUMINATED, POSSIBLY RESULTING IN A VEHICLE CRASH WITHOUT WARNING.

Remedy & full details

PRO-A MOTORS WILL NOTIFY OWNERS AND OFFER TO REPURCHASE THE LAMPS. THE RECALL BEGAN ON APRIL 3, 2006. OWNERS MAY CONTACT PRO-A MOTORS AT 323-838-2988.

CERTAIN PRO-A MOTORS CORNER LAMPS, TURN SIGNALS, AND HEADLIGHTS SOLD AS REPLACEMENT LAMPS FOR USE ON CERTAIN PASSENGER VEHICLES LISTED ABOVE. SOME COMBINATION LAMPS THAT ARE NOT EQUIPPED WITH AMBER SIDE REFLECTORS FAIL TO CONFORM TO FEDERAL MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY STANDARD NO. 108, LAMPS, REFLECTIVE DEVICES, AND ASSOCIATED EQUIPMENT.

Complaint volume

278 this model-year 8 median, same year

Volume alone is not a fault rate — popular vehicles attract more reports. Read it next to the severity mix below.

What owners reported happened

45Crashes
9Fires
37Injuries
0Deaths

Across 278 complaints. Severity Index 0.95.

Severity Index weights each complaint's reported outcome (death ×10, injury ×4, fire ×3, crash ×2) and divides by total complaints. It measures how severe reports are, not how often faults occur.

What owners report most

Air Bags34 · 12%Air Bags · Frontal18 · 6%Structure · Body · Door14 · 5%Vehicle Speed Control12 · 4%Tires8 · 3%Engine And Engine Cooling…7 · 3%Seat Belts7 · 3%Power Train · Automatic T…6
  1. Air Bags — 34 reports
  2. Air Bags:Frontal — 18 reports
  3. Structure:Body:Door — 14 reports
  4. Vehicle Speed Control — 12 reports
  5. Tires — 8 reports
  6. Engine And Engine Cooling:Engine — 7 reports
  7. Seat Belts — 7 reports
  8. Power Train:Automatic Transmission — 6 reports
  9. Air Bags:Frontal:Sensor/Control Module — 6 reports
  10. Service Brakes, Hydraulic:Antilock/Traction Control/Electronic Limited Slip — 6 reports

What to do

  1. Find your 17-character VIN on the driver's door jamb or the base of the windscreen.
  2. Check it against NHTSA's official lookup at nhtsa.gov/recalls — the authoritative record for your exact car.
  3. Book the repair with any franchised dealer. Safety recall work is free, with no time limit and regardless of who owns the car now.

Other model years

1995 (7) · 1996 (6) · 1997 (6) · 1998 · 1999 (4) · 2000 (5) · 2001 (4) · 2002 (5) · 2003 (13) · 2004 (13) · 2005 (10) · 2006 (10) · 2007 (6) · 2008 (6) · 2009 (13) · 2010 (17) · 2011 (9) · 2012 (5) · 2013 (5) · 2014 (2) · 2015 (1) · 2016 (1) · 2017 (3) · 2018 (3) · 2019 (5) · 2020 (3) · 2021 (1) · 2022 · 2023 (3) · 2024 (2) · 2025 · 2026 (1)

Numbers in brackets are open recall campaigns for that year.

Questions

Does an open recall mean the car is unsafe to drive?

Not usually. NHTSA issues a "do not drive" or "park outside" advisory when a defect is dangerous enough to keep you out of the car — those are flagged Critical above. Everything else should be repaired promptly but is not an immediate stop-driving order.

Do I pay for recall repairs?

No. Federal law requires the manufacturer to fix a safety recall free of charge, including parts and labour, whether or not you are the original owner.

Why are there complaints but no recalls?

Complaints are unverified reports filed by owners. They can prompt an investigation, but many never become recalls — either the fault isn't safety-related or it isn't widespread.