1993 Toyota Starlet S review from UK and Ireland

General wear and tear, nothing mechanical.

1 x rear wheel bearing.

1 x tyre.

1 x service (including brake pad replacement).

All issues have been standard wear and tear except for the electric window.

Ahhhh my lovely little Starlet :) Never thought I'd own a Japanese car that had a soul, but this one definitely does.

I bought the car just over 2 years ago and have loved every moment with this car. It's a 1.3 16v Japanese import, having been owned by some young fellow previously (the Toyota stickers that were all over the car gave it away :) ).

Fortunately the engine was left alone and is stock standard, and boy can it shift. I leave most other cars in behind with ease, but as per usual, when you're in a Starlet the corners will see the German cars passing you by... But up until that point my car is untouchable.

I think a guy on the net put it best when he said that Japanese cars float above the road whereas German cars are attached to it (Obviously this is not true of the more expensive cars like the Skyline, Subaru etc) Revving happily to the redline with no complaints, this car is a joy to drive, even though this grandpa is 16 years old!

Being a fairly old car and a Toyota, it does chew up a pint of oil every couple of months, but does not blow any smoke. I really do enjoy driving this car every day to work and back, and of course taking a spin on the weekends.

If you're used to driving budget vehicles ie Corsa, Polo etc then you're going to want to get your hands on one of these if you're looking for cheap reliable performance fun. This car effortlessly still hits the 180kph limit on the speedo along a flat, and I have to regularly check that I am not speeding.

Sadly the amount I will need to spend on it does not justify what I could sell it for in a couple of years time, so I am going to go with something newer. However I can only hope a mechanic or someone that has a love of cars gets hold of it and doesn't junk it.