In this article, a robust numerical solution method for one-dimensional (1-D) cochlear models in the time domain is presented. The method has been designed particularly for models with a cochlear partition having nonlinear and active mechanical properties. The model equations are discretized with respect to the spatial variable by means of the principle of Galerkin to yield a system of ordinary differential equations in the time variable. To solve this system, several numerical integration methods concerning stability and computational performance are compared. The selected algorithm is based on a variable step size fourth-order Runge-Kutta scheme; it is shown to be both more stable and much more efficient than previously published numerical solution techniques.