2002 Tire Rotation

Took the 2002 to Discount Tire in Austin for a tire rotation (about 15k miles overdue). It is at 124755 miles now. The mechanic found a slightly bent wheel so I replaced the steel wheels with aluminum (normal-looking) ones. One of the studs was frozen so they had to break it and sent me to the nearby Brake Specialist Plus to have it repaired. Unfortunately, they could see my car at 2:30 pm. So much for my Wednesday off. Should've driven to Houston and not taken the car in for a tire rotation. Next time I'll know. Total damage: $335

2002 Trunk Latch and Front Struts

About a week ago I took the 2002 Corolla to replace the broken trunk latch. That weekend I took the car to Top Tech Auto in Houston to replace the front struts. Edward said the growling noise is due to broken motor mounts and it is not a safety issue.

1998 Corolla Front Right Tire

Finally took the car to Discount Tire to fix that slow leak. Turned out to be a nail in the tire.

Ignition Tumbler

I forgot to note the day the 2002 Corolla ignition wouldn't turn, had to be towed to Precision Tune Auto, and had its ignition tumbler replaced--July 23, 2010. That was another expensive ordeal to make 2010 the year I started regretting keeping aging cars. 2002 isn't even really old--especially in Corolla years! I spent over $2000 on a supposedly-reliable econobox. My friend spent $5000 on his 1996 LS 400 but $5000/$60000 is much less than $2000/$15000! I don't know how some people can buy super old cars and stay happy...

2002 Corolla Low Growling Noise

According to the Corolland forums, this noise may be due to a bad wheel bearing and hub. I may take the car into the shop in Austin this week instead of waiting for Saturday in Houston. I also noticed the fuel efficiency is worse. Very annoyed with this 2002 Corolla. Would I have such problems with the 1998 Corolla we bought new? Too bad the Prius V comes out in 2012 but then it wouldn't be a disposable, worryfree car like our cheap Corollas...

Tire Rotation on 2002

Took the 2002 in for a tire rotation in late June 2011. Forgot to note it here.

Deep Scratching Noise

The 2002 Corolla has a new noise--a deep scratching noise similar to the 2001. It was a problem we never got resolved so I am not too hopeful about fixing the issue on the 2002. Sigh. I spent $2000+ on maintenance and repairs for the 2002 last year. It's been holding up well so far. I really want to keep the Corollas for at least 20 years each. :(

Its transmission fluid is red. I will take it into Top Tech on Saturday for its 100,000 mileage maintenance and also to diagnose the cause of the deep scratching noise.