Complaint volume
300 consumer-submitted complaints are matched to this model year. Treat the count as a research signal, then read the actual summaries for repeated symptoms.
Complaint records
2020 Toyota Corolla Complaints
300 consumer-submitted complaints on record for the 2020 Toyota Corolla, grouped by component category.
300 Total complaints
22 Crash reports
1 Fire reports
15 Injury reports
Complaint data reflects consumer-submitted reports. A complaint is not proof
of a defect, recall, or manufacturer fault. Enriched severity fields come
from official bulk records when the complaint can be matched by ODI number.
Buyer interpretation
How to use these complaints before buying
Complaint records are most useful when they turn into inspection points, seller questions, and comparison checks against nearby model years.
Pattern to inspect
The most common categories are engine, unknown or other, power train. Use those categories as a test-drive checklist instead of judging the vehicle from the total count alone.
Severity flags
Enriched records include 22 crash reports, 1 fire report, 15 injury reports, and 1 fatality report. These fields come from complaint records and should be read in context.
Mileage clue
Mileage is available on 68 complaints, with an average reported failure mileage of 26,107 miles. Compare that with the mileage on the listing.
Questions to ask the seller
- Have you had any problems related to engine, unknown or other, power train?
- Can I see recent maintenance and repair records?
- Has the vehicle ever been towed, involved in a crash, or repaired for the same issue twice?
- Can we also check the recall record for this 2020 Toyota Corolla?
Used-car checklist
Use these complaints before the test drive.
Build a buyer checklist to turn these issues into questions and inspection points.
2020 Toyota Corolla
Build buyer checklist Compare with other years Sends year, make, and model to pre-fill your checklist.
How severe are the 2020 Toyota Corolla complaints?
22 Crash
1 Fire
15 Injury
1 Fatality
19 Towed
9 Medical attention
What are the most common 2020 Toyota Corolla complaint categories?
ENGINE 81
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 55
POWER TRAIN 19
AIR BAGS 13
VISIBILITY/WIPER 13
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 10
UNKNOWN OR OTHER,ENGINE 9
SERVICE BRAKES 8
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 7
STRUCTURE 6
300 total complaints on record
Latest complaints
| Date | Component | Summary | Severity | Mileage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 2023 | ENGINE | Coolant bypass valve problem. Engine maintenance required light has come on. This part affects several other components of the vehicle. Toyota dealership wants to charge $800 to fix it. It is a very common issue faced by many customers of 2020+ Corollas and 2019+ Rav4s. All dealerships with service departments are aware of this issue. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| May 2023 | SEAT BELTS | The contact owns a 2020 Toyota Corolla. The contact stated that the front driver's side seat belt buckle failed to lock as needed. The contact stated that the vehicle was taken to the dealer however, the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 19V877000 (Seat Belts) however, the VIN was not included in the recall. The failure mileage was 74,500. | Crash: No Fire: No | 74,500 |
| May 2023 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,STRUCTURE | I was driving on the road and I heard something like an explosion, I turned the emergency lights on and stopped to find out what had happened. I saw the sunroof completely broken, fortunately I didn’t get hurt but I got so scared and I don’t know if I will feel comfortable driving my car again. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| May 2023 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | Driving regularly from work and sunroof exploded and glass went everywhere. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Apr 2023 | ENGINE | Coolant leak due to engine defect from manufacture. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Apr 2023 | SEAT BELTS | The contact owns a 2020 Toyota Corolla. The contact stated while driving 60 MPH, the contact stopped and the seat belt failed to restrain as designed, causing the contact to lunge forward. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and the dealer stated that no failure was found. The manufacturer was contacted but provided no assistance. The contact was referred to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was 5,000. The VIN was not available. | Crash: No Fire: No | 5,000 |
| Mar 2023 | Carry Handle, Shell, Base,Tether, Lower Anchor (on car seat or vehicle) | The car seat base does not install properly with the seat belt method nor the anchor method. The edge of the base still flips up if the part secured by the seat belt is properly tightened. No level infication | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Mar 2023 | VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | I was going to work on 12/15/2022. There was a stop sign and I needed to take a right turn in order to join the freeway-10 east highway to head on to work. it was about 6: 40 am approximate time. There were too many cars ahead of me at the stop sign. My brakes failed to hold on while I waited for my turn. There were at least 3-4 cars ahead of me. Therefore I did not want to hurt anyone or any other car ahead of me. Therefore I veered off to my right-hand side where there was some space and tried to stop the car but it did not do so. Therefore, My car had to hit the high-way pole to come to a stop. The airbags deployed and hit me more to my right side. The car got totaled as per California casualty insurance information. I am glad to be alive. I went later to the hospital as there were no direct visible injuries. | Crash: Yes Fire: No Injuries: 1 Towed Medical attention | Unknown |
| Feb 2023 | SERVICE BRAKES | The contact owns a 2020 Toyota Corolla. The contact stated while driving 20 MPH and making a right turn, while depressing the brake pedal, the vehicle failed to stop. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact stated that she shifted to park(P) and heard an abnormal noise. The contact stated that the vehicle continued to move forward until reaching the curb. The contact stated she had experienced the failure two times. The vehicle was not drivable. The contact towed the vehicle to her residence. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. A dealer was not contacted. The manufacturer had not been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 36,000. | Crash: No Fire: No Towed | 36,000 |
| Feb 2023 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | There was a recall for vehicle shutting down when driving it was suppose to be taking care of back in October of 2022 and it continued to happen once in a while now it is happening more often and it is dangerous in the middle of traffic the engine just shut off with no warning now they are saying nothing is wrong and it out of warranty it is dangerous to drive there is going to be a accident | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Feb 2023 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | The latch around the front passenger tire was off when I bought the car and findley Toyota would not fix it and stated every time I wen in that there was a rattle on the front passsenger tire. They knew there was a problem and they wouldn't fix it and told me that it wouddl cast me $2,500 | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jan 2023 | SERVICE BRAKES,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM | While operating our 2020 Toyota Corolla hybrid at a slow speed in a parking lot, we began to apply the brakes as we pulled into a parking stall. As the brakes were applied , the vehicle suddenly lunged forward with abrupt force. Both tires left acceleration marks on the painted concrete curb and the vehicle struck a large concrete pillar with such force that the pillar was partially dislodged from the ground. The vehicle was brought to a Toyota dealership and the sales management was notified of the incident. We also filed complaint with the Toyota Corporation. We were contacted by a Toyota Corporation representative and were told that they would conduct the vehicle inspection. Several weeks later we received a letter from the Toyota Corporation legal department which informed us of their findings. The letter conveyed that no defect was discovered and the incident had not been captured in the vehicle's computer. We informed the Toyota dealership of the results. The only assistance offered was their willingness to sell the vehicle at auction, which we adamantly declined. At this time we are making arrangements to have the vehicle towed to a recycling lot for destruction. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Dec 2022 | POWER TRAIN,ENGINE,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM | I have only had the car for a year and a half, and I have already had to replace the battery which was less than 2 years old, all 4 tires (2 at 40000 miles and 2 at 48000), and now the engine wiring harness somehow got severed and has to be replaced which is almost $6k repair! | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Dec 2022 | WHEELS | I have a manufacturer defect on my car. The piece of the car's body which goes around the tire and connects to the bumper does not connect right because there is not connector on the bottom of this piece, like there is on the rest of this piece. It often comes lose and it separates, which is very scary when I get out of my car and see that I have a piece of my cars' body separated from the body of the car. I'm scared when I take the freeway or bit a bump on the road. Please help me with this problem. Respectfully, [XXX] INFORMATION Redacted PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6). | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Dec 2022 | POWER TRAIN,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | 1. First problem I had with my 2020 Toyota Corolla Hatchback SE: SAFETY RECALL 20TA07 (Backup LampsMay Become Inoperative) - 10.29.2020 2. Second problem was with the software draining the battery way too rapidly, which made me unable to start my car. I had to have a tow truck come by and he was able to recharge the battery (he knew to do that with my car instead of towing it away, because he was seeing this type of issue with this type of car a lot). I took it to my local toyota dealership and had them inspect it. They told me that they need to update the software of the vehicle and that I should not be having this problem again after. *EL1934 FIRMWARE UPDATE (5.21.2021)* 3. Third problem I had was with the temperature gauge. The needle pointer in the dash did not go up and stay in the middle between C & H. It stayed closer to C (cold). It took longer than it should have to heat up the interior of the car when I turn the heat on in the morning. I took it to my local toyota dealership and after they inspected this issue, they told me that they needed to replace the thermostat unit. *MA001 THERMOSTAT ASSEMBLY* (3.19.22) 4. Fourth problem is with the transmission. I felt jerking motions from the car when accelerating and when braking-coming to a stop. **26312 CAR JERKING UPON ACCELERATION /FOUND TRNSMISSION CODE /NEED NEW TRANS ASSY UPON INSPECTION AND HEATLH CHFCK FOUND CODE P07457F AND PO7757F SOLENOID A B BOTH STUCK OFF /REST MEMORY /NO CHANGED /FOUND NEED NEW TRANS MISSION ASSY /REMOVE AND REPLACE TRANMISSION ASSY AND PERFORM RESET AND INITIALIZATION/PERFORM HYDRULIC AND ELECTRICAL TEST /NO PROBLEM FOUND /PROBLEM AT THE TRANSMISSION ITSELF CAR JECKING UPON ACCELERATION** Transmission, Automatic - Replace* (12.10.2022) I found out online that the transmission problem was known for 2018-2020 corolla hatchbacks, but Toyota did not replace it immediately. There should be a general recall for the transmissions for these vehicles ASAP! | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Nov 2022 | STEERING | The steering makes a thumping noise. The car also veers off to the left or right while driving. I had a front-end alignment performed by the dealer. It still does the same thing. I did take it to the Dealer, twice and they claimed there was no issue. I've never heard a thumping noise in any other car that I've owned. I have not had an accident but there is something going on with the steering of the car. I'm not sure if the steering column was broken or attempted to be stolen. There are scratches around the ignition switch that were there when I bought the car. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Nov 2022 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | RE: Front bumper issue Toyota case The car comes with a front bumper that is not good for CA road conditions When I purchased the new car, and tried to leave the dealership, its front bumper came off slightly, a man stopped me and told me, I asked the selling man, who put it back and told me "its design for easy way, you can put back.". I also showed him there is no tight lock, both sides missed two locks too, the selling man said that is the way. About 200 miles, this happened again, I put it back. It happened again and again. Finally I felt this is not right. I contacted Toyota for warranty service 2021. Toyota sent me to a dealership. They did not have any body shop, but a service dept. He put it back for me, and said "you got a scratch that made it". The CA driveway always have curve, the tiny scratch is common. It will not make the bumper off. I showed him two cars in the dealership with more serious scratch but bumper is not off at all. This now happened to my other side, I contacted Toyota again, They sent me to dealership again, the service man said "Your scratch made it. " I told that I showed two body shops and both told "This kind car comes with this issue, not good for design and for CA road conditions". I gave body shop numbers to him, he did not call and ask me to get a letter from them, and said :"We are service, not good for body". Then I asked :How can you say the scratch made it if you are not the body shop, and not good at that? The car was just 9500 miles now. I got 5 new Honda, one was 2012 now, they got the similar scratch and bumper is good. The Honda was 39000 miles now. This car design is not good for CA road conditions, and a tiny scratch will make the front bumper off, in fact its back bumper also up and down, I need put too. All above happened in the local driving. If it is on the highway, it is not safe. Also if Toyota put this information on ads, who will buy this kind car? Thanks, | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Nov 2022 | STRUCTURE | I’ve owned my 2020 Toyota Corolla since April of 2019. Around June of 2022 I noticed a sloshing/ swooshing sound. I didn’t think much of it, but it kept doing/ hearing it. Finally I got tired of hearing the noise, and started to look for where the noise was coming from. I then realized there was water in my rear doors. I didn’t know what to do since once I realized what was happening or how it was happening, my warranty period had just passed, since at this point I have owned the vehicle for over 3 years. I kept researching and found the article attached in pdf. I was able to complete the work myself. At this point I am now worried the interior will have rust, since the water would sit there for days/ weeks after it rains. I think this resolves the issue of getting the water to exit the doors, but I don’t believe it resolves how the water is entering the vehicle. I truly believe this car will rust out from the inside, and will be left paying for the bad manufacturing of Toyota, with regards to this vehicle, and possibly a dangerous vehicle issue, as the rust will compromise the integrity of the vehicle. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Oct 2022 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,STRUCTURE,LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES | The contact owns a 2020 Toyota Corolla. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle emitted an abnormal slushing sound. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact stated that upon parking and inspecting the vehicle, he noticed that the abnormal sound was coming from the front driver's side door. The contact then moved each door of the vehicle from side to side and noticed that the failure occurred on the front passenger's side door and the front and rear driver's side doors. The vehicle was taken to the dealer on several occasions and the water was drained from the doors; however, the vehicle was not diagnosed. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that they would cover the repair of the vehicle. The contact stated that it had been two months and the vehicle had not been diagnosed or repaired. The contact stated that he was concerned for his safety as he was a disabled veteran. The failure mileage was approximately 85,000. | Crash: No Fire: No | 85,000 |
| Oct 2022 | SERVICE BRAKES | Front passenger side brake caliper was rusted and seized. At the time of this issue the car is two years old and had 40k miles. The car has lived its entire life in western North Carolina with me being its only owner. It has never been driven in salty conditions other than twice to the beach. The dealership refused to fix this safety issue under the platinum warranty I purchased because it is "Enviromental". This is a major safety concern. I have a 1997 suburban which gets drove in salty conditions every winter and has never one had an issue with its calipers or any operational part rusting. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Sep 2022 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | Battery and alternator died causing power steering to fail and wheels to lock up. Should not happen on a car this new, brought to dealer and charged me $740 to fix it. | Crash: No Fire: No | 60,000 |
| Sep 2022 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,STRUCTURE | DOORS FILL UP WITH RAIN WATER AND WATER IS SLOSHING AROUND INSIDE DOOR FRAME. NEED DOORS REPLACED DUE TO ELECTRICAL COMPONENTS BEING DAMAGED BY MOISTURE CORROSION. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Sep 2022 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | While driving I heard water sound in my car like a wave and checked the car and finally realized that passenger side door in front is holding water . When moving the door back and forth you can hear it. I have heard it before and the noise stop it’s been raining and The wave back again. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Aug 2022 | POWER TRAIN,UNKNOWN OR OTHER,BACK OVER PREVENTION | I am not sure what the component is but I am driving and as I accelerate the gas my car will lose power to increase speed. If I am at the stop sign or stop light and I proceed to go the car will stall and not get going once I place my foot on the gas. I have reached out to the dealer by phone and when I have obtained service I am being advised that it's nothing. But I have experienced it on multiple occasions and even had an accident and nothing is being done to resolve the issue. I know that it can't be normal for the vehicle to do that and I am tired of getting the run around in regards to it. I was able to see that there has been a recall but do not see that it is in regard to me vin number. Can you please assist me with this matter. I should not be in the middle of driving or at a stop light and not able to accelerate my vehicle to a regular speed. I would like to have this matter looked into by a different Toyota dealer. Also it happens randomly and when I take to the dealership nothing is ever done and the issue is constantly being ignored. I am being told that due to no check engine light being on that my car is fine and its not. I don't want to lose my life due to the fact that I have purchased a faulty car and have not been made aware of any issues to protect my safety. | Crash: Yes Fire: No Injuries: 3 Medical attention | Unknown |
| Aug 2022 | SERVICE BRAKES | 2020 Toyota Corolla EPB (Electronic Parking Brake) Issue. The message "EPB Shift Interlock Function Activated" is being shown since last few months. This message never appeared in the past 2.5 yrs since I purchased the car, started showing up up only now. I took it to the dealership and they asked to keep brakes pressed while starting the car. I now keep my brakes pressed and start the car, and still I keep getting this error message. I have documented this issue and is available at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bTXosvPffMo Please help Toyota help address this issue. Not sure something is not working as expected in the car or if something is started to fail in the car with EPB and so it's showing up the message. The message looks like information message and looks like harmless message, but why its showing up now, i.e after 2.5 yrs of use and never before. So, that's needs to be investigated, if there is any long term impact. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |