The Toyota GR Corolla is a thrilling car, and getting a new one should be a joy. But for one owner, it turned into a nightmare. Charlie Holmblad, the owner, made a mistake while driving and shifted into the wrong gear, causing a lot of damage – $42,180 worth – to his GR Corolla, which had only gone 500 miles.
Holmblad said he was driving home from work and accidentally shifted into third gear instead of fifth. This caused the engine to rev up to 8,900 rpm, way over the safe limit of 6,500 rpm.
According to Toyota’s notes, there were metal pieces in the oil, the valves were bent, and one of the pistons melted and damaged the cylinder walls. When a Toyota technician came to check, they said it wasn’t covered by the warranty. Holmblad knew that his mistake caused the damage, and he wasn’t sure if Toyota would fix it under warranty.
It’s not surprising that Toyota refused to cover the repair. First, $42,180 is a lot of money, and second, warranties usually don’t cover mistakes made by drivers. Although it’s unfortunate that this happened so soon after getting the car, Toyota isn’t obligated to pay for it. However, there have been cases where Toyota covered similar repairs under warranty.
Holmblad is now facing a hefty bill of $42,180. That’s a huge amount, especially considering the GR Corolla’s starting price of $36,800. The repair bill includes replacing parts like the cylinder head, timing cover, turbocharger assembly, short block assembly, and intercooler assembly. The media has asked Toyota USA for more details and will update the article when we get a response.
