I am looking at getting a 2000 to 2005 Toyota Celica GT/GTS for my first car. All I am finding are cars with over 100k miles, some like 150k. How good are these cars in reliability? I am also looking at getting an Automatic if that makes a difference.
I also noticed from these forums that the difference in the GT and GTS is just the engine, the GTS having the performance engine. Is that truly the only difference? I am more towards looks of the interior/exterior of the car and don't care about performance. As long as it runs reliably.
I am looking at getting a 2000 to 2005 Toyota Celica GT/GTS for my first car. All I am finding are cars with over 100k miles, some like 150k. How good are these cars in reliability? I am also looking at getting an Automatic if that makes a difference.
I also noticed from these forums that the difference in the GT and GTS is just the engine, the GTS having the performance engine. Is that truly the only difference? I am more towards looks of the interior/exterior of the car and don't care about performance. As long as it runs reliably.
the only differences between the GT and the GT-S is horse power and appearance in and out of the car....i own a 2002 GT-S automatic....the GT-S come stock 180hp with the VVTL-i engine, while the GT comes with 160hp with the VVT-i engine...the difference in the engines is that in the GT-S theres a lift...that what the L stands for...when the engine hits like 7000rpm the two valves open creates more acceleration and a boost of speed....my car has 86000 miles and it runs great...gas is really good 23city and 32hwy...i also have an ingen air intake so its a little faster and i have an apex-i N1 exhaust...overall the car is great and its a really neat small sports car...i would suggest the GT-S...as far as apperance the GT-S comes with leather seats and a solid 5 spoke star rim....the GT come with cloth seats and a 10 spoke 5 star shaped rim...the GT-S also comes with M-Mode...so you can drive in automatic or a semi manuel using the paddle shifting buttons located on the front and back of the stearing wheel...dude just get the GT-S
Last edited by yescasjonathan; 07-22-2010 at 01:33 AM.
A GT-S is usually a better purchase than a GT, mostly because GTs from the '00-'02 model years are prone to developing oil burning issues early on. You've got the power difference, with the 2ZZ-GE in the GT-S delivering 180 hp high up in the revs (lift kicks in at 6000 rpm and switches to a different cam profile) and the 1ZZ-FE in the GT delivering 140 hp, but with more torque down low. The GT will get better mileage than a GT-S, but with that said I've managed to get 38 mpg out of my GT-S on the highway. If you're going to go auto, a GT will give you better performance because most of its torque is right where you need for a DD, an automatic GT-S will actually be a touch less peppy than the GT because of where it makes power. It's also worth mentioning that the GT-S has improved brakes, with larger front rotors and discs in the rear.
As far as the interior is concerned, they are very similar. The only real difference is that the GT-S came with the option for leather and the premium sound system standard. Technically, the GT-S also came standard with power windows, locks, and cruise control, but almost every GT will have these (although I've seen some without). Based on what you're looking for, I'd recommend a GT, but make sure it doesn't burn oil.
Thanks, that info really helped. I am aiming more for gas mileage but the semi auto, leather seats and premium sound make me like the GT-S a bit more. I think it all goes down to which car I can find at a decent mileage and price.
Now when I buy a used Celica, is there any way I can tell if it's burning oil before I buy? As for Celicas with over 150k miles, should I try to avoid them and get one with under 100k miles?
My optimal choice would be under 100k miles, GT with at least sunroof, color preference is red and a car that'll work without requiring more in repairs than the car is worth down the road.
Basically right now I drive an 2002 Camry LE and I've seen problems, exhaust leaks, occasional sluggish performance, red lining when accelerating, brakes locking up and requiring new roters/pads etc.
I've read somewhere that the Celica's are loud compared to other cars. Is that true?
I would try to avoid ones with over 150k miles, but it's not like those are going to be heaps of junk, Celicas will go well over 200k miles. A little over 100k is great, but if you can find one with under 100k it would be even better. As for checking oil burning, I'd look at the dipstick and see if the level isn't around full, but there's not a good way to check unless you drive it a few days before you buy it. A Celica is louder than most cars in terms of cabin noise, but that's to be expected of a little sporty car.
If the cabin noise is louder, it really doesn't matter but I don't want something that sounds like a car with a bad flex pipe. I drove around my dads Camry like that for about 6 months and it wasn't too bad but it wasn't pleasant either.
About checking with the dipstick, you said:
Quote:
As for checking oil burning, I'd look at the dipstick and see if the level isn't around full, but there's not a good way to check unless you drive it a few days before you buy it.
If it isn't around full then it means that it's burned oil correct? Also fixing a burning oil problem, wouldn't that be just replacing a gasket somewhere? Now I know it won't be cheap but isn't it an easy fix?
The exhaust isn't loud at all, and won't be anything like your Camry's broken exhaust. My recommended method of checking for oil burning relies on the owner not topping the oil off if it burns any, if they top it off you won't be able to tell unless you drive it long enough, but if the level is not around full it probably burns a little bit. Fixing the oil burning issue in the GT is not so easy as replacing a gasket, problems tend to develop with the piston rings and fixing that requires completely disassembling the engine. Keep in mind you don't have to worry about oil burning with any GT-S and in '03+ GTs as Toyota fixed the issue later on.
If anything, I'll buy the car from a dealer so I am hoping that I won't be screwed over even though it's possible that I will be. Finding an 03 or later Celica is going to be hard and also I really don't like the gas mileage of the GT-S though I really love the interior and semi-auto trans. Are there easy mods to make the GT-S gas mileage better like a new fuel filter, air filter etc?
If I'm not mistaken, the 02 Camry's also have oil burning issues. If that's true, I've been quite lucky with my dads which hasn't developed it but it's been to Toyota for regular maintenance. The exhaust, body work and cracked joint on the front right side from skidding in the snow were the only repairs done by 3rd party. I don't think 3rd party is bad but my dad believes in Toyota servicing Toyota cars :/ I doubt there's any difference.
Not every GT-S has a sunroof, but any GT-S with factory leather will have a sunroof as it was a requirement for the leather upgrade. If I were you, I would buy that Celica. The only thing that bothers me about it is the aftermarket security system, but that's not a big deal.
So in other words, that GT-S or any other one I find with leather will have a sunroof.
I cannot get it right now, it'll have to wait until about December but with car sales how they are in NJ, I doubt that will be sold. I'm prettu sure I've seen it there since May.
Tomorrow I should be sealing the deal on a 2005 Celica GT with 54k miles for $9900. MFR warranty is up and I don't think the dealer gives any warranty. Warranty's go:
1yr 12k miles $1500
2yr 24k miles $1650
3yr 36k miles $1800
Are any of these worth it? The car has a single previous owner, no accidents, regular oil changes (2 months for first 2 years, 6 months afterwards) and has an average of 5k miles/year.
From what I've seen, the engine or transmission won't fail within this time frame and all the other little services such as brakes and tires won't be covered anyways. Belts and little parts should be cheap enough. It's also Auto so there will be no issue of bad shifting. I'll basically put 10k miles/year if even that on this car for college and back which is about a 30min drive daily.
So I found this old thread by googling for another problem.
I ended up buying the GT over the GT-S. In some ways, I really wish I had the GT-S but I have the Tsunami Action package on my GT which makes it look better than any stock GT-S. The interior isn't leather but has black and red seats which look amazing in my opinion. The car also stays out on the driveway so I'd rather not have leather.
As for liking the car, I love it. Handling is amazing, sounds really nice, and acceleration is decent. Don't expect to race with it but at about 15MPH onwards, you can floor it and the RPMs will kick up giving you a nice little boost till 6500RPM.
So the breakdown, 2005 Celica GT with 53k miles and Tsunami action package $9900, 4YR 48k mile warranty for $2000.
Work I've done so far (appx 60k miles) is 4 new tires, new front CV joints, and new rear shocks (old one were bad, rear tires were cupped to hell)
So my questions are:
Do you think I just had bad factory shocks? It's surprising that I replaced it at 60k miles.
After having the shocks replaced, I notice a clicking sound from the rear drivers side if I go over a bump. I'm not saying it wasn't there before since it was hard to tell with the noise of the cupped tires but I didn't notice it before. What could it be?
Are these a 4 speed auto or 5 speed auto? I swear at 100MPH I felt the car switch gears.
Thanks and sorry for bringing an old thread back to life.
So I found this old thread by googling for another problem.
I ended up buying the GT over the GT-S. In some ways, I really wish I had the GT-S but I have the Tsunami Action package on my GT which makes it look better than any stock GT-S. The interior isn't leather but has black and red seats which look amazing in my opinion. The car also stays out on the driveway so I'd rather not have leather.
As for liking the car, I love it. Handling is amazing, sounds really nice, and acceleration is decent. Don't expect to race with it but at about 15MPH onwards, you can floor it and the RPMs will kick up giving you a nice little boost till 6500RPM.
So the breakdown, 2005 Celica GT with 53k miles and Tsunami action package $9900, 4YR 48k mile warranty for $2000.
Work I've done so far (appx 60k miles) is 4 new tires, new front CV joints, and new rear shocks (old one were bad, rear tires were cupped to hell)
So my questions are:
Do you think I just had bad factory shocks? It's surprising that I replaced it at 60k miles.
After having the shocks replaced, I notice a clicking sound from the rear drivers side if I go over a bump. I'm not saying it wasn't there before since it was hard to tell with the noise of the cupped tires but I didn't notice it before. What could it be?
Are these a 4 speed auto or 5 speed auto? I swear at 100MPH I felt the car switch gears.
Thanks and sorry for bringing an old thread back to life.
I have a GTS and ran into the same problem. It is only getting worse. It sounds like sandpaper on metal anywhere from 5-15 MPH it quits after that. Did you find any info on the problem?
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