Made this video of my 2001 Toyota Corolla just to get some ideas. I do think I already know what all I want to do with this car but I'm still going to put this video out to see what feedback I get. Daniels-Car-... / daniels_cartalk
I got the 1999 Toyota Corolla and I was thinking about putting the mini Cooper factory's the bubble looking ones their 4 lugs would look nice on those "17
It's incredibly simple to get the OEM fog lamps working, you'll just need a relay to go in the driver side kick panel, and a new combination switch (it has the ring on it for the fog lamp control). There are already pigtails behind the bumper cover to connect to the fog lamps themselves. (They prewired the cars for both manufacturing ease (easier to prewire them all than to keep track of which are wired/which are not).) I got mine from an '02 Corolla S at an LKQ Pick Your Part.
Michael Turpen I’ve heard of them doing that but when I checked I couldn’t find them. When I looked it up online they said some Corollas are pre wired, some are not.
I upgraded my 2001 S to LED headlights since they are also the DRLs much better great visibility and clear white not blueish or yellowish tint. Also I upgraded my original black steel wheels to the more sporty tear drop alloys that come with these cars it was the same tire size so all I had to do was swap it over. Added Bluetooth to my factory stereo. Even added a factory map light mirror my car didn’t have. Also added power mirrors. Keep us updated.
LED bulbs in headlamps don't work correctly. If all you want out of a headlamp is for it to light up, but nothing more, then they'll work. If you want to see where you're going at night, then don't use 'em. The HIR1/HIR2 upgrade described in my comment of three months ago is what you want.
Michael Turpen I disagree with your statement LED headlights do work great, depending on quality and aim of headlights. I’ve compared them to HID and regular Halogens. They don’t shoot as for as HIDs but still do disperse a lot of light. I’m happy with how they came out and also since my vehicle uses low beams as DRLs it will last long than the other types of lights.
They don't/can't/won't. Every automotive headlamp is designed after choosing their light source. The optics are then designed around the exact focal point(s) of the light source(s). The light from the drop-ins does not originate from that exact same point that the optics of the lamp are focused on. You can disagree all you want, but facts are not a source of agreement or disagreement. It's true whether you agree with me or not-- your disagreement is based on a fundamental misunderstanding of headlamp design.
I know its a bit late but i have a 2001 corolla le and i wanted to see your opinion on a better bumper or nicer looking and some wheels for my le. Think you can help with some ideas?
I know I’m late too but I too have a 2001 le Corolla, I got some black Konigs black, back bone, 15” with some 195s on, rubs a little in the back when you go too fast over a bump
Ditch those "hyperwhite" toy bulbs for the Volsa HIR2 +30 in your low beams, and the Philips HIR1 in the high beams. Each requires a base modification to fit where the HB4/HB3 went. If you don't want to go the HIRx route, ditch the toy bulbs and get the Philips X-Treme Vision HB4 for the low beam and HB3 for the high.The "hyperwhite" bulbs aren't whiter, they have a blue coating on the bulb which strips quite a bit of useful light and leaves a lot of the useless and glaring blue light behind.I like the wood trim kit for the dash-- and the rest of the car is in surprisingly good shape for a car that age.
Michael Turpen I just might look into that. The stock bulbs Toyota uses just don’t give off a lot of light and I drive on dark country roads a lot so anything that improves visibility is great.
The "stock" as in what came with the car are of a "long life" variety, designed to cut down on customer complaints for burned-out bulbs. Unfortunately, those bulbs exhibit poor focus and lumen maintenance; the filament degrades with dendritic growths and pitting from the halogen cycle, which degrades focus and reduces output. The envelope blackens (particularly on the low beams which are used as the DRLs), further reducing the output. By the time the bulbs burn out, they are nowhere near safe to use. The bulbs just outlive their usefulness. Even "standard" bulbs do that to some extent but will outperform "long life" at every stage. From an objective standpoint, the '01 Corolla's headlamps are excellent, with excellent glare control and good seeing for the driver. The HIRx upgrade capitalizes on that. Of course, proper aim is important. Sadly, it also looks like you're really due for new OEM headlamps. I get most of my Toyota parts from Olathe Toyota. I'll admit, I have a soft spot for the '01/'02-- they are very sharp-looking Corollas. I just have to warn people not to buy a Corolla unless they like driving the same car for the next 20 years.
Michael Turpen yah, the headlights are originals. One thing I will admit I always thought was pretty cool, even at 11 years old when the car was new, the automatic headlight feature. In the late 90’s, early 2000’s that wasn’t something a lot of cars came with unless you really wanted to spend some money on a luxury car. Now even the Yaris is getting ready to have it but in 2000 that was a big bonus. You mentioned you really like the 2001-2002 corollas, do you have one if you don’t mind me asking?
I do, an '01 I got in June '01. It was an ex-rental with less than 8K mi on it. I've since put on another 170K or so. Mostly trouble-free but the oil drain holes on the pistons must be clogging up since it's using oil but not dripping a whole let. Never buy a Corolla unless you want to own the same car for the next 17+ year.
