Need new gearbox

mutley74

My 2005 Toyota Corolla stopped today. I could not move the gears at all and could not move the car in neutral.

Mechanic had a look to see if he could tow, and said the gear box had gone. Said a new one is approx £500 and used parts approx £300. Got the car recovered, and next week the garage will have a more detailed look at the damage.

However, both the mechanic and recovery chap were suprised to see a Toyota gearbox fail. Car only has 77k miles on the clock.

DAK think its better to get used or new parts? ( i was thinking of changing the car sometime this year, which is a shame as its been no trouble so far )

marksandsparx

I would get 2nd hand, it is rare for the toyota unit to let go.

mutley74

marksandsparx wrote: »

I would get 2nd hand, it is rare for the toyota unit to let go.

any reason why a gearbox would fail at what i would perceive as low mileage at 77k miles?? (car has been regulary serviced etc).

colino

Unfortunately they are not as bombproof as you might expect and its certainly not the first Toyota I've seen with a gearbox knackered well before its due date. Do you have any oil drips on the drive and have you noticed a bit of extra noise from it?
If you are footing the bill yourself, find out if you have a gearbox repairer nearby and get a quote. Failing that get s/h but with a decent warranty and pay for it with your CC.

jase1

Does the car have FTSH? If it does it might be worth speaking to a dealer as it wouldn't be the first time Toyota have contributed to the cost of large replacement parts.

Gearboxes are a bit of a lottery, some do fail and they have traditionally been a bit of a weak spot on some Japanese cars. That's not to say that they all blow up at 80,000 miles, 'cos they don't, but it isn't unheard of.

spiro

A quick google brings up loads saying Corolla/Verso gearbox failed around 50k.
http://www.honestjohn.co.uk/carbycar/toyota/corolla-and-verso-2002/?section=owners-reviews

mutley74

Thanks for replies.
0,Car has been serviced each year. Not noticed any oil drips on drive. Did a 55min drive the night before and not noticed problems with car at all. The oil was topped up a few weeks ago by the local garage for me. This failure is a complete shock as i enjoyed the smooth ride and previous reliability of the toyota.

i have asked a chap at my local garage whom i have used for over 10 years to fix my car. he only takes cash so will not get an official warranty. Although he sometimes does not charge much for minor repairs etc.
Will see what the garage says on Monday when they should be able to take the car and have a proper look for me.

Kilty_2

Where's the servicing been done?

If it's been into a Toyota main dealer for every service then as said, Toyota may contribute to a repair.

jase1

Actually sometimes Toyota will even contribute when the car hasn't been serviced at Toyota every year. They are very pro-active with stuff like this, and the service life of the gearbox is less than expected. I think as long as a fair proportion of the services were done at Toyota they may well be prepared to help -- they are far better than some manufacturers in situations like this.

mutley74

Kilty wrote: »

Where's the servicing been done?

If it's been into a Toyota main dealer for every service then as said, Toyota may contribute to a repair.

Firs year car was serviced by Toyota before i bought it in 2006. After that i had one dealer service, rest by the same local independant garage. Service book is stamped, and they are VAT registered.
Do i just write a letter/email to Toyota UK HQ CS?

jase1

Can't hurt. Depends on what actually has failed with the box of course -- if it can be traced back to lubricant you're stuffed basically (as this should have been regularly checked/replaced), but if it's a manufacturing defect Toyota may well help you out.