Purchasing advice
 

My car was recently written off and I am looking for a new (used) car.

My short list is:
-e36 (3 series)
-e46 (3 series)
-e39 (5 series)
-Celica GT-S (7th gen)
-Prelude (4th & 5th Gens)
-Volvo turbo (I like several)
-Benz C class
-Audi A4
-RSX
-MR2 (second gen)

Tomorrow I have scheduled a viewing for a private sale of a Celica GT-S, I am typically confident but this one has me wondering a little because of its high mileage and it is owned by a chick (not many chicks maintain their cars well).

Just wanted some input on this Celica, what to look for are the motors good with high K etc... heres the details:

2000 Toyota Celica GTS
Black, sunroof, 6 speed, 231,000km.
New water pump, new serpintine belt, new battery, tune up, always ran synthetic oil
All regular maintenance done, lady driven, runs great, aircared

$4700


http://images.craigslist.org/3K13G73...2ce97c10d2.jpg
http://images.craigslist.org/3K83Gf3...1aad391949.jpg

E36. Last of the fun, compact-sized 3-series! :fullofwin:

230k isn't a lot for a car that's basically 13 years old, to be honest. Probably a bit more than average, but it's still a hell of a lot less than I put on a car every year.

Here's the question for you, though: What do you plan on doing with the car? You've got a mixture of purpose built sport cars, sporty coupes (based off of sedan platforms) and sedans. Do you plan on modifying them? Do you plan on having a family at some point soon? Are you capable of working on your own cars? Etc., etc.

Overall Toyota are pretty reliable. I would look at regular maintenance, gaming belt replacement, clutch replacement, brakes and tires.

I certainly want something with a sporting pedigree. I only drive in the city and very rarely ever drive on the highway or go on long trips. I would like it to last at least a couple of years. I do most repairs myself, I can do suspension, steering, maintenance, little electrical, brakes/pads/rotors etc...I may lightly modify whatever I get, I like stock looking cars with a low stance, so springs/coilover upgrade quite possible as well as rims. No plans for family, single and live alone in a condo :)

Thanks for the tips...What do you guys do to test clutch/tranny, just basically see if it stays in grear r anything specific?

Something is wrong with the front bumper of the Celica in the pic you posted.

Budget of ~5k? Hmm. Perhaps pick up something like:

http://vancouver.en.craigslist.ca/pm...434592380.html
http://vancouver.en.craigslist.ca/va...408496260.html
http://vancouver.en.craigslist.ca/bn...418999308.html

Toyotas of that era are timing chain, so I guess you could listen for noise from worn chain tensioners. Other than that, those engines can take a licking provided it hasn't been beaten to hell and neglected in that 230k.

I noticed that as well. :lol It's got an overbite!

Seriously, though, it looks like the bottom half of the "lip" is missing from the bumper.

Something wrong with the front bumper?

I would pay attention to the car's paint condition, (swirls, scratches, rusts, etc) Not a huge deal, more of a personal or aesthetic thing. Good luck!

For me, that front bumper is a warning sign to look the car over carefully before deciding to purchase it. If the bumper is messed up, what else can be wrong with the car.

http://pictures.topspeed.com/IMG/cro...ica_600x0w.jpg

I'm not too familiar with this car, but usually there is a rad support and a radiator behind the front bumper. How did the bumper lose the lower section and was anything else damaged in the process.

It's not hard to spend $1K on a macco paint job to make the car look shiny so your criteria may land you a crapmobile.

I saw that too but I think it is just the angle, I googled some images and was able to reproduce it:

http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_...0007_large.jpg

Yep 5K give or take...I've never liked Subaru, do not like their aesthetics, they look too busy and bulbous to me but thats personal preference.

Thanks, I was thinking of timing chain too!


Roger that, cheers

Now that i look at it... That front bumper looks photoshopped. Anyone else see the blurry lines were it should of been?

That pic is not the same as the one you posted, It's not the angle of the photo. The bumper is missing the lower section.

Dared3vil0 might be right, but why would someone PS out a section of the bumper?

The car is 13 years old and under $5K. It would be nice if the paint was show quality glassy wet, but if it is stock paint, then it won't be.
Don't let light scratches/swirls sway you to buy or not buy a car. That is just cosmetics. The owner can easily have gotten a $1K macco paint job to make the car all shiny or had someone wax it.
Rust is a given but again, if the price is right, some people will buy the car.

Budget of 5k? Don't buy Audi/BMW/Mercedes. From that list, I'd get a prelude or a Celica, but not that Celica you posted.

Avoid higher mileage cars, imo if it has 200,000kms or more it can make for a future headache because of the unknown history, that's not to say higher kms cars are bad. I personally drive a cars with 347k kms but I've also owned it for 7 years.

As far as actual car goes I once had a E39 525i and current daily is w203 C240 4M.
I'd personally recommend the BMW. It was a bigger car than my C-class and got much better fuel mileage. I was really impressed with the Handling, Reliability and overall daily livability of this car. You can pack all your gear into the car, seat a family comfortably and still have a excellent drivers car. If you have a highway commute then I suggest the bigger engine like the 530i 3.0L or 540i 4.0L V8. The smaller engines are great for power and fuel efficiency.

My last car was a BMW that I paid 4.5k for a few years ago and it was the best all round car I've ever owned in terms of reliability, fun, power, looks, easy to work on, options etc...

I think I was lucky finding one that was gently used though, but that 328is never let me down once, never failed to start and never broke down.

Also you suggest Celica's but not the specific one that I posted, what is the reason, the kilometres?

I looked at a 540i last night and love e39's however in my price range they are typically high KM's or beat on...hopefully I get lucky and some old man dies and his son sells his e39 under-priced on cl :P

:rukidding:

The front bumper is missing the lower fascia, it might be nothing like scraping a parking curb, or it might be more serious such as flying over a curb and destroying the everything underneath in the process.

The 2ZZ in the GT-S generally are not too bad. A few minor things like lift bolts wearing out causing you to not hit "lift" after 6000rpms. Early iterations, like this one has a 9000rpm fuelcut which sometimes caused bent valves. The fuelcut was later revised to 8800 with redline at 8600, or something like that.

I got lucky and came across a single owner, widow it was her husbands, e39 with 150K on the clock and completely immaculate with full service records. Body is straight with zero rust and zero dings and the leather is mint with zero cracking and zero rips...however a couple of the gadgets are wonky (cup holders need replace/fix, ashtray stuck open) Purchased locally in Vancouver and zero accidents. She had it checked out by BMW before sale and it needs a couple of sensors and filters, thats about it.

Its got pretty lame rims and stereo though so time to lower/tint/rims/bluetooth/nav.

1997 BMW 540i
4.4-liter DOHC V8 @282HP & 320ft·lbf torque

http://i.imgur.com/7QPqa.jpg

Are you just looking at it or did you pick it up? Good choice to stick with a bmw if you did. I think coming from a 328is, that celica would have bored you pretty quickly.

Yes, I picked it up earlier today...and you are right I test drove the GT-S and it felt like a tin can. BMW's are tanks.

Nice car, they are great value. Hope you checked for leaky valve covers and typical BMW cooling system issues as both are chronic weak links in the otherwise fairly bulletproof drivetrain.

Mark

Also at 150k be sure to budget for Inspection II and a bunch of other maintenance items coming up soon.

RSX would be my choice from the list. Low maintenance, reliable and styling is still ok.

Congrats! Welcome to the club. I love my e39. Well, I've pretty much given it to my g/f to drive since we have a baby on the way and her old car was a 2 door merc. Anyways, they are indeed tanks. Just bought a complete set of rotors and pads and going to do them myself sometime next week.

If you want some different wheels, I have a set of style 66's that I may be willing to part with. See here: http://www.bmwstylewheels.com/5/E39

FYI - The e39's have a bigger centrebore on the hub than all other BMWs. That means only wheels with the larger e39 centrebore will fit on e39s. So be careful when wheel shopping.. you don't want to buy some e36 wheels only to find they won't clear the hub!!

Cheers,
Rich