Getting a 97 Corolla w/ 28k miles!

[jon-is-taken]

Hello Everyone - I'm new to the forum.

This weekend we're buying my mother-in-law's 1997 Corolla CE. She literally hasn't driven it in 10 years, as she and her husband are retired and he drives her everywhere in his Camry. He made it a habit to drive her car once a week to the library, where he volunteers, just so the engine would see some regular use.

So this car is 14 years old yet is a few dozen miles shy of 28,000. It really is one of those stories you'd hear from a used car dealer and never believe.


My question is this - what, if anything, would you do to this car when you received it? Several friends have advised replacing belts and hoses since they will have the wear of time even with such low miles.

I prefer to be conservative with maintenance as most of my driving will be on long highway trips to see family, I really don't want to risk a breakdown on I-95 somewhere with my toddler in the back seat.

Thanks in advance,
Jon

[YOGI.CR]

niceee

post some pics of tthat rolla!

[Dirty Dude]

If it's been short-tripped every week, then it hasn't been outright sitting for 10 years. That's encouraging because all the fluids get circulated and gaskets and seals are less prone to dry out. Short trips also tend to load the oil with moisture, so that would be the first thing I changed.

I would change all the other fluids and at least scrutinize all the underhood rubber parts. If you're concerned about reliability on long-distance trips, then go ahead and replace the belts and coolant lines. I don't like to even talk about fix-in-a-bottle, but running some fuel system cleaner through the next tank of gas won't likely do any harm. I would also suggest crawling under the car just to have a look and see if anything needs attention(like CV boots, brakes hoses, etc.).

[bior0003]

I would for sure do Oil and Coolant right away. Also depending on how it was stored (garaged vs not) you may want to look into tires (cracked, glazed, decayed...), belts and hoses. If it was garaged tires are prob fine. What a great buy!

[jon-is-taken]

Thanks for the help, guys.

I'm getting all the fluids and rubber replaced this week, as well as a thorough going over of everything else. The tires are only two years old (which means ~2k miles) but I'm having them rotated. I suggested plugs, but the mechanic (whom I trust) said that probably wouldn't be necessary but he's going to check them out.

[cipher93]

We had a Buick like this... sat for 3-4 years. You'll need to do coolant, oil, probably tires if they are cracked/dry rotted, ours also needed belts and hoses. Have the shocks checked for leaks, and make sure the fuel and brake lines are not rusty. Also do some Lucas or Heet in the fuel tank to help clean out any crap in the gasoline.