Water pump at 230000 was replaced including timing belt, tensioner, bearings and seals.
Timing belt tensioner failed 16000km later, causing 8 valves to hit the pistons. The timing belt tensioner was not a genuine item and was deemed faulty. The mechanic that did the original work provided labour for free, and I paid for parts, but it still cost $800, plus the original $800 paid for water pump replacement.
Plastic rocker cover has become brittle with age.
Drivers seat is sagging with age.
Heavy on brakes and front tyres. All brake discs have been replaced, along with numerous pads.
I got the car cheap as it had been involved in a smash and repaired.
The shock absorbers and springs are worn out, and the car handles like a drunken whale.
Engine and trans are still running well, and the car is serviced by me every 7500km. It has been a good car overall, considering the above faults and the high kilometres. I will keep the car until something major fails and wrecks it.
I wouldn't particularly recommend one either. A key thing to know about these cars is timing belts must be replaced every 60000 thousand kilometres; these services are not cheap.
For some reason I have had problems with keeping the wheels aligned on mine, but I will say they are nice cars to drive.
For a 1.8L (mine is manual), they have a lot of get up and go, and handle very well, unlike cheaper alternatives like the Hyundais of a similar age. But otherwise they are OK cars if you don't mind the slightly higher servicing costs.
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