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10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
6 / 1
Injuries / Deaths:
4 / 0
Average Mileage:
86,419 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.

So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.

2006 Toyota Corolla brakes problems

brakes problem

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2006 Toyota Corolla Owner Comments

problem #18

Oct 202023

Corolla

  • miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

On my way to work when the I hit the brakes... brakes locked up causing me to be unable to come to a complete stop.. Driver side airbag deployed but the passenger side airbag caused the dash to explode causing a fire in the dash. With the dash exploding and the passenger side airbag not deploying correctly it cause the passenger to hit windshield! Unknown Unknown Just a check engine light for knock sensor.

- Kittrell , NC, USA

problem #17

Mar 052020

Corolla

  • miles
I purchased a Toyota three years ago, immediately I complained about the brakes scrubbing and squeaky sounds, the dealer denied anything was wrong with the brakes. After paying the last payment the other day, now the brake pedal is stiff as a board and takes alot of pressure to stop, which is a safety hazzard to all. Also there have been no warning lights come on notification of any problems. I've also noticed Electrical problems like the dash lights going off and on the clock works when it takes a notion.

- Weaverville, NC, USA

problem #16

Jan 312019

Corolla

  • 42,000 miles
The contact's mother owns a 2006 Toyota Corolla. The contact stated while reversing out of a parking space and as she shifted the vehicle into drive, the vehicle surged forward. The contact's mother lost control of the vehicle and crashed into several vehicles and then a curb and turned the vehicle ignition off. The contact's mother stated she had no brakes. The contact sustained bruises to her left and right legs by the knees and both wrists were bruised. Additionally, the contact had pain in her left and right shoulders. The contact did not seek medical attention. The other vehicles were not occupied. The contact stated she did not notice any warning lights were illuminated. The police were on the scene and filed a report. The contact's mother had the vehicle towed to her residence and then later towed to a dealer. The dealer did not inspect the vehicle, however, the manufacturer had an independent mechanic inspect the vehicle brakes. The mechanic determined that there were no mechanical problems with the brakes. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer had been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 42,000.

- Tuscaloosa, AL, USA

problem #15

Jan 312020

Corolla

  • miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

My mother-??s car suddenly went out of control in the parking lot of the local power company. The car was out of control like a wild horse and crashed several cars. This is not a driver error. The car mileage reading is ~40,000. I found that there are recalls on the Toyota cars (with problems such as cars went of control and accelerated uncontrollably), but not this particular car/VIN #. (The car-??s airbag was on the recall list, but when we stopped at the local Toyota dealership-??s service department, the assistant manager always tell us that they are busy, come back next time. It happened more than 3 times.) After contacting Toyota Corporate, Toyota sent out a third party to do an inspection on the car. The 3rd party inspector downloaded a whole bunch data. Based on the 3rd party-??s findings, Toyota Corporate states that no evidence that the incident was the result of the defect in [this] vehicle. My mother maintains the car accordingly to the instructions of the local Toyota dealership-??s service department. One strange thing was that the 3rd party inspector told Toyota Corporation that there were a lot fire ants presented in the car at the time of his inspection. This seems impossible. My family members and the tow truck driver did not find any fire ants before and after the 3rd party-??s inspection. The vehicle-??s parked at the local Toyota dealership-??s parking lot at the time of inspection. There must be a problem with car when it went out of control. Please advise, thanks!

- Tuscaloosa , AL, USA

problem #14

Oct 172020

Corolla

  • 239,450 miles
The contact owns a 2006 Toyota Corolla. The contact stated that while parking the vehicle at an angle, without the parking brake set, after exiting the vehicle to check his mailbox, the vehicle rolled backwards. The contact stated he replaced the bushing on his own. The vehicle was not diagnosed. A dealer was not contacted. The manufacturer had not been informed of failure. The failure mileage was approximately 239,450.

- Cedar Park, TX, USA

problem #13

Feb 022020

Corolla

  • 160,000 miles
Driving on the freeway, my car engine shut-off and breaks locked. Car will not start on the move so I have to bring it to a stop. The process of transitioning lanes without breaks was very scary. After the car was brought to a full stop the car was able to start.

- San Jose, CA, USA

problem #12

Dec 162018

Corolla 4-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 43,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The contact owns a 2006 Toyota Corolla. While driving at an unknown speed, the vehicle decelerated and simultaneously accelerated to 80 mph without warning, failure occurred several times. The vehicle was towed to an unknown dealer for diagnostic testing, but a failure code could not be located. The dealer also test drove the vehicle and was unable to duplicate the failure. The manufacturer was not contacted. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 43,000. Consumer was told by NHTSA to contact attorney general of pa.

- Camp Hill, PA, USA

problem #11

Nov 222017

Corolla

  • 140,000 miles
On November 22, 2017 close to 3 P.M., I was driving a 2006 Toyota Corolla in the passing lane on I-90 East near syracuse, NY. There was a white Ford pickup truck driving in front of me. There was a police car's flashing lights ahead of us in the left side of the highway. Both the pickup truck and I moved into the right lane. The Ford pickup hit their brakes, at which point I slammed on my brakes. The Corolla slowed down for a split second, and then the brakes gave way. I was pushing down the brake pedal all the way the whole time, but the Corolla continued to go forward at the same speed. The Corolla then hit the rear of the Ford pickup truck. My eyeglasses flew off my face, and my driver's seatbelt caught, but the Corolla front air bags did not deploy. As a result of the accident, the Corolla was totaled. Had the Corolla's brakes functioned properly, I believe I would have come to a full stop and not hit the Ford pick up truck.

- Westford, MA, USA

problem #10

Apr 152009

Corolla

  • 156,000 miles
The engine light won't go out there is a error reading of P0031 on the O2 sensor been replace 7 to 10 times and the light still stays on even resetting.I have problems year after year with my brakes over all I lost total trust in Toyota Corolla plus a lot more problems Toyota takes forever to send out the recall letters. I have 8 recalls but when you go look it up its states no recalls well this is why I lost trust Toyota doesn't care they use to be the best car ever not anymore.

- Tacoma, WA, USA

problem #9

Feb 012008

Corolla 4-cyl

  • 1 miles
After periods of more than about 6 hours, first attempt at breaking does not decelerate car sufficiently to avoid accident. On going problem. I had mountain states Toyota and go Toyota (formerly john elway Toyota) in denver, co look at the problem and they denied anything wrong. I've had breaks replaced since start of complaint, therefore lines have been bled, but problem persists. This is my second notification to NHTSA. First was several years ago. I have temporarily remedied issue by stopping twice in parking lot or neighborhood street before driving at full speed. I have to put break through the floor and car does not have full breaking power on first stop. Vacuum assist checked out ok. Had to use E-break to avoid accident once. [xxx] information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).

- Denver, CO, USA

problem #8

Oct 102010

Corolla

  • miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

On 10-10-2010 (approx). R. front break caliper ceased. Incident almost caused significant accident on I-25 North bound near Santa Fe blvd in denver co. Car suddenly lost acceleration power. Right wheel started smoking and almost caught on fire. Tire was hot to the touch. Toyota extended warranty only replaced caliper, not associated damage. I suggest you contact consumer protection bureau. Please see my other complaints, most submitted today, but I previous complained about breaks. This car is a deathtrap/lemon.

- Denver, CO, USA

problem #7

Jan 312015

Corolla

  • 87,500 miles
I did not use the car the whole Saturday until 8 pm. It was a very cold day in NY. I started driving and the brakes worked fine for the first 4 minutes, but after that I was going downhill and the brakes stopped working (they got hard to press) and the more that I pressed them the RPM became lower, I was only able to stop the vehicle by shifting to neutral, pressing the gas and then the brakes finally worked but then the car turned off by itself. Toyota has a recall for this problem for Corolla's 09/10 but not for 06 so when I called them the refused to help even though I told them I almost killed myself, being able to stop just a few feet away from an intersection.

- Spring Valley, NY, USA

problem #6

Nov 072014

Corolla

  • 95,667 miles
Brakes do not stop vehicle, brakes have to be applied to the floor to stop vehicle. Engine surges while at stop sign or red light. When shifting to drive or reverse vehicle takes off quickly.

- Miami, FL, USA

problem #5

Nov 052014

Corolla

  • 72,245 miles
My wife was coming back home after dropping our 3 year old daughter at the school. At a signal, while making a right turn after a red light stop, the steering wheel got stuck in the right-turned position itself. It could not be brought back to the straight position from the right-turned position. In fact, brakes also didn't work at the same time. As car was very slow (as it happened right after the stop for making the right turn at the red light signal), my wife, even though panicked, quickly hit hard at the steering wheel which released the steering wheel from stuck position. After this she was able to bring the steering wheel back to straight-wheel position and apply the brakes too. We are not sure if we'd run into this situation again so haven't driven the car since then.

- Fremont, CA, USA

problem #4

Oct 082014

Corolla 4-cyl

  • 156,000 miles
I had to replace the brakes on my car almost every 1 year and a half because you could here something wrong with the brakes like they are metal to metal. Also have in side dome light problems the light will not come on when the doors are open the switch works when the doors are closed and on all the time. Clock has a short comes on for 10 minutes then goes out for months then maybe come on the off for months. Very up happy with Toyota Corolla le 2006 should not have problems with a car that is 6 years old now I had it 8 years and still have problems with the 0-2 sensors.

- Tacoma, WA, USA

problem #3

Sep 242014

Corolla 4-cyl

  • 169,000 miles
I was pulling into a parking spot at work (California state university East bay in hayward ca) at approximately 5 mph. I applied the brake pedal to stop the vehicle, but instead of stopping, it went over the curb, crossed the walkway, broke through and knocked over a large bush, rolled down an incline for 3-4 yards, and stopped when it struck a tree. I believe the incident appears similar to the current investigation under NHTSA action number DP14003.

- Walnut Creek, CA, USA

problem #2

Sep 022012

Corolla 4-cyl

  • 113,000 miles
After driving about an hour on a highway late on a very humid evening, I experienced momentary loss of braking capability while traveling over an uneven road surface (through construction area). This experience occurred repeatedly as I continued my ride along main Suburban roads and eventually into a residential area (at least 4 more times during a 20-minute period). I took the car to the dealer and Toyota corporate, who said that since they couldn't (didn't) replicate the problem, it was as if it never happened. What?!! they won't even look any deeper into my car (even if I'm willing to pay the cost) to see if there are any non-obvious problems for fear of legal liability. I was told that it would cost too much (~$650), and they couldn't guarantee the problem would be corrected. I told them $650 was a small price to pay in comparison to someone's life being put at risk. I am soo concerned that I'm risking my life (and/or others') by driving the car, but I feel that I'm at a loss to get help from those best poised to help me (the manufacturer & dealer). Has anyone else had this problem" can anyone suggest help, or another avenue I should pursue" I am scared to drive the car.

- Randallstown, MD, USA

problem #1

Jun 022012

Corolla 4-cyl

  • 81,680 miles
I was pulling into a parking lot, applied the brakes, and it suddenly accelerated. I hit the brakes hard and it stopped. Later, I put it in reverse, and it accelerated forward. I hit the brakes hard and it stopped. I was driving around steep hills, which I don't do a lot. I wonder if that had anything to do with it?

- Berkeley, CA, USA

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