Corolla Ascent 2004.. SA vs JPN

[slacker878]

Hi,

Newbie here.

I read from this forum that the SA made (VIN: AHxxx) corollas are terrible. The brakes give problems? Any other problems that might occur?

Is the terrible build quality standard across the years? Or did they rectify it over the years since my model was superseeded in 2005 by the newer model.

I am asking as the car I am about to buy is SA made, and the car is great until I found out where it was build (I thought the toyotas were all from Japan since its nearer) in and its problem.

Or should I just avoid it like a plague?

Another question, are the corollas from that generation have all wheel disc brakes?

Thanks.

[and1]

Hi,

Newbie here.

I read from this forum that the SA made (VIN: AHxxx) corollas are terrible. The brakes give problems? Any other problems that might occur?

Is the terrible build quality standard across the years? Or did they rectify it over the years since my model was superseeded in 2005 by the newer model.

I am asking as the car I am about to buy is SA made, and the car is great until I found out where it was build (I thought the toyotas were all from Japan since its nearer) in and its problem.

Or should I just avoid it like a plague?

Another question, are the corollas from that generation have all wheel disc brakes?

Thanks.

Nothing wrong with SA corollas. All Sportivos are from SA. It's just little differences. Quality is just a tad lower than the Jap version, but nothing big.

If the one your looking at is in great condition and drives great then get it B)

Yes all ZZE sold in Aus has all wheel discs brakes.

[DemonRolla]

are all the sportivos really SA made? i thought they were from japan??

i have a SA 05 ascent, bought it at 70k kms and not long after that i felt there was a problem with the rear brakes and went to get them checked out. i had to get the rear disc pads replaced, but the guy said the problem with SA models are the the pads wear into the rotors aswell..so they were replaced as well. but overall he said nothing too major between SA and jap models.

Edited April 14, 2010 by DemonRolla

[eviltwin]

if brakes are all you ever worry about with a car your doing preety bloody well!

[DemonRolla]

if brakes are all you ever worry about with a car your doing preety bloody well!

haha really? why? is there anything else i should look out for?

[slacker878]

Any1 else have any comments??? Pls?

[xoom]

yes all sportivo's were built in SA

for the zze122 im not sure what the split is but yeah toyota commissioned its build to occur in japan and in SA to deal with demand as it was moving like 5000+ units a month at one stage from memory.

reality is the jap built stuff is just put together a lot better. The quality control out of SA seems to be a lot looser.

if u have ever had the opportunity to pull apart a jap built zze vs a sa built one ull notice the difference .... clips are firmer fitted ..... bolts n screws are firmer fitted ..... panels seem to be lined up better and the list goes on ......

now over the years i havent seen anything major but when a lot of these little things occur its a pain to get them sorted ..... e.g. internal noises or rattles etc ...... i get nothing but interesting creeks n noises from my car but thankfully i cant hear them any more as the exhaust masks it all ...... lol ..... plus my stiffer suspension i imagine caused some of the issues ..... lol

[DemonRolla]

yes all sportivo's were built in SA

for the zze122 im not sure what the split is but yeah toyota commissioned its build to occur in japan and in SA to deal with demand as it was moving like 5000+ units a month at one stage from memory.

reality is the jap built stuff is just put together a lot better. The quality control out of SA seems to be a lot looser.

if u have ever had the opportunity to pull apart a jap built zze vs a sa built one ull notice the difference .... clips are firmer fitted ..... bolts n screws are firmer fitted ..... panels seem to be lined up better and the list goes on ......

now over the years i havent seen anything major but when a lot of these little things occur its a pain to get them sorted ..... e.g. internal noises or rattles etc ...... i get nothing but interesting creeks n noises from my car but thankfully i cant hear them any more as the exhaust masks it all ...... lol ..... plus my stiffer suspension i imagine caused some of the issues ..... lol

oh ok, yeah ive noticed the thing about the firmer fit and all that between the models, as my friend recently got a Jap built conquest. feels quite different when i compare each drive.

[2zz corolla]

are all the sportivos really SA made? i thought they were from japan??

i have a SA 05 ascent, bought it at 70k kms and not long after that i felt there was a problem with the rear brakes and went to get them checked out. i had to get the rear disc pads replaced, but the guy said the problem with SA models are the the pads wear into the rotors aswell..so they were replaced as well. but overall he said nothing too major between SA and jap models.

What the hell pads wear into the rotors ...... as in they wear the rotors away faster then normal ? is this on the sportivos as well , should i be getting my spanner and replacing my pads asap ;)

[eviltwin]

the rotors are **** ***** weak mine are starting to warp

[slacker878]

So the brakes suck..

Is there any way to inspect them visually? I am buying one off second hand and want to check this.

Also, does anyone know if ABS became standard in 2004 (pre-facelift)

thanks.