Faults:

I only had to replace 2 things when I purchased the car, they were the alternator and the fan belt.

The alternator I picked up from the wreckers and fitted my self, cost me $87 for that and 20 odd bucks for the belt.

The front drivers seat was very saggy, I didn't want to buy a new one so I just swapped the 2 front seats around.

General Comments:

The car is very reliable transport and I recommend it to anyone looking for a cheap first car (i paid $1350 for mine).

The only annoying thing with it is that the fan belt comes loose about every 100km, but I'm working on that.

Fuel economy, handling and comfort are 3 very good points about this car. No air con, power steering and left revision mirror are 3 bad points. The goods are great, the bads are minor.

As far as performance goes it's not bad for a 1.6. Passing other vehicles can be done quickly at 80km/h if you chuck it back to 3rd. Chucking it back to 4th does very little as 4th and 5th gear are very close together.

If you're looking at getting a cheap 2nd hand car you can't go past one of these beauties.

Faults:

The car was burning a ton of oil when I first got it. I had to replace the entire engine beacause it was cheaper that way, it only cost me 180 dollars. After the easy engine swap it ran perfect and still is to this day. This car is the most dependable car I have ever owned. Nothing has since broken or needed replacement except the usual scheduled parts.

General Comments:

This car is the 4 door sedan and not the GT-S hatch version. It is meant for a family on a budget. It has average handling and good power. I would say if you are looking for the ultimate beater this one is hands down "THE" car to get. Just to let you know how dependable this car is, my mother-in-law has one also and it has 290,000 miles on it. She has the original engine and tranny. She hasn't changed her oil in 7 months. Her shocks have been dead for 2 years. The car runs absolutely great! I think the car will run up to 450k miles if everything on her car gets tuned up.

Faults:

There is very bad rust on bottoms of doors and around wheel holes. It can no longer pass Massachusetts safety standards.

I kept all my repair records.

The total repairs cost was $13019 - about 10 cents per mile.

The worst year was 1999 as the car passed the 200K milestone. Major overhaul was needed ($3900) including all brake components, wheel bearings, rebuilt differential, etc.

General Comments:

Purchased for $4000!.

The seller told me that the price was so low because no one else would touch it because of the high mileage!!

The car had every possible option and was wonderfully maintained. The father of the seller owned a Toyota dealership.

It was fun to drive. Up there with my first car, a 1962 Triumph TR3. But the GT-S was warm in the winter.

I got 130K miles over 10 years. and every one was a pleasure. It was such a responsive car. Very adequate power and torque.

Probably I should have junked the car at that point rather than investing more money.

But I loved it and felt that it deserved another chance at life since I was only driving it about 6K miles per year.

I am very sad to see it go.