Welcome to the Corolla Forum! :clap::thumbsup:
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I'm generally not a big fan of extended warranties, unless we're talking about a car that has noted problems, i.e. a lemon, which a Corolla certainly is not.
For the amount of money we have to shell out for an extended warranty, there would have to be some serious problems with the car to make an extended warranty worth it. Again, we're talking about non-lemon cars here and if you have a lemon, it's probably a good idea to sell it anyway. Extended warranties don't cover normal wear and tear items like spark plugs, any and all fluids, belts, hoses, brake pads/shoes, tires of course or struts/shocks. If the engine blows up or the transmission falls out of the car, that extended warranty sure comes in handy though...except, honestly, how often does that happen with a Toyota Corolla? Maybe .00000000001% of the time?
With only 40,000 miles traveled in seven years, that works out to about 5,700 miles a year, which is very low mileage. The car isn't being worked hard at all. So I see no reason to spend big money on an extended warranty.
Even with the low mileage, after seven years all the fluids should at least be checked to see if they are in decent shape or not, (they probably are).
Refer to the owners manual for the car for the recommended maintenance schedule and that will be a rock solid guide you can count on.
One thing I can strongly recommend to take a close look at is the battery, because if it's the original battery, that's a very long time for a battery to last and it could fail on you at any time. Generally, I replace batteries about every 4-5 years or so.
Another commonly neglected item is the cabin air filter, which filters the air coming into the interior of the car. It will filter out dust, dirt, pollen, etc. It's a filter for your own health so it's important. A plugged cabin air filter also puts additional stress and strain on the air conditioning system, so that's another good reason to make sure they are periodically replaced.
If the tires are the original equipment tires after seven years, dry rot cracking in the sidewall of the tires can cause a blowout. So have the tires closely looked at. Small surface cracking is normal, but if there are deeper cracks than that, say that you can put a dime into the crack, or you can see chord through the crack, the tires should be replaced. If a four wheel alignment has never been done, it's very likely to need doing. Have an alignment check done to find out for sure.
After 40,000 miles, the front brake pads are very likely to be very worn down and close to needing replacing. Have them checked.
The air filter should be checked and replaced if needed. The way to check an air filter is to hold it up to a strong light to see if you can see the light through the filtration media. If you can, the air filter is good to go. If not, or it looks partially blocked, a new air filter is usually only about $10-$15.
The brake fluid should be tested with a Strip-Dip brake fluid test strip to see if it has become contaminated after seven years, (not uncommon). Call around to see which auto centers have the Strip-Dip test strips, as many don't. Also refer to the owners manual and see if there is a recommended mileage to replace the brake fluid. This is a commonly neglected item in a car, which is unfortunate because proper functioning brakes are a huge safety item of course.
The garfunkulator bearing will almost certainly need lubing with blinker fluid....I'm just kidding.:blink:
You can take the car to any competent auto center and they can do a courtesy inspection for you and let you know what the car needs, but please, be careful because more often than not there are dishonest auto centers out there that will make recommendations for items that aren't needed, or overcharge you. Get second and third opinions. After you have the car looked over, get back with us here and we can advise you. There are quite a few very experienced and knowledgeable people here when it comes to automotive maintenance and repair, so please feel free to ask for assistance and we'll be glad to help you out.
If you look in the
Toyota Corolla Maintenance section here, you will find a plethora of articles and videos on maintenance for your Corolla. Enjoy.
Again, welcome to the Corolla Forum! :thumbsup:
