[Closed] 52 plate Toyota corolla only 11k miles.. Would you?

I bought a really low mileage Corolla years ago, it had been sat a lot, think I did brakes as they were seized, new battery and radiator was a bit rotten so I changed that out, then ran it for 3 years with just oil changes, scrapped it in the end as the exhaust fell off and the wings were rusty

Depends on price but probably yes.

Looks like it's been garaged from what I can see, think I'll go and take a look tomorrow they want £1650

Four stamps in the book, so I need to find out if belts and water pumps have been done, anything else that I will need to ask?

Anything rubber will need looking at

Houns

I think it failed its last MOT on cracked tyres, so I'm guessing it's now on some Chinese ditch finders or similar, I'll check over all the bushes/mounts shocks etc

If I was in the market for a horrid little car then yeah I'd look at it

I'd ignore the milage and buy on condition - rust killed these. Garage isn't always a good thing as few people have heated/climate controlled garages and so they rot all the same

Budget for a belt and a pump and full service early doors.

1650 seems steep also for a 17 year old car that isn't a desirable classic

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Price: £ 1,650

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Hmm I may leave it for a while and save up to get something less horrid 😂 just thought it could well be worth a punt. If anyone else wants it crack on.
Cheers DB

Not at that price.

That's about twice as much as I'd be willing to pay for a runaround of that vintage.

Maybe the first digit is some sort of key stroke error.

Personally wouldn't go near it. I'd sooner buy a high mileage barge that's buzzed up and down the motorway all week being serviced on the dot than something that's done short runs all its life, never got warmed up or had the oil circulate properly and is a Toyota Corolla.

You can get a lot of car for £1500 if you don't mind rolling the dice.

£500 tops.

£1650 is hardly bangernomics.

I bought a relatively low mileage 1992 AXGTi in 2001 with 21k miles.

Brake line soon rotted through, guess the fluid was original. She was a minter otherwise though.

Just seen the advert.

4 stamps on an 11 year old car is not full service history

52 plate is a little more than 11 years old, but yeah, not FSH

Low mileage old cars are rarely a good idea. Don't waste your time.

JP

Not with 4 stamps. It's done short trips and will have been stewing in acidic oil for years. Thats a service every 4 and a bit years.

Knock a £1000 off for lack of servicing and another £200 to fix the dent in the wheel arch!

Thanks for the advice
I shall run away with big strides

Mate has recently sold a 2001 Micra with 16k, he'd done 3k of those in the last couple of months after he inherited it, genuinely good car, no problems whatsoever in the time he ran it but far too small for him.
So, they're not all bad but you have to.picky. Can't remember what he sold it for but mid-three figures

Toyota rust bucket?
Have an Avensis 99 liftback lying in drive, no rust starts 1st time, 2 years off road reluctant to scrap as it has the tandem rack. 115000 on the clock and everything works, 4 new seals for lower windows, another mot ( passed every one) and back on the road if needed.

Nissan here 51 plate but over 130k miles (still low). I'd be worried about the mileage TBH, lots of standing, possible internal corrosion. It's also expensive for the age. Test drive it, check under the engine. If it runs fine, then it will be fine.

My Nissan didn't like being left un-used - I was cycle commuting for many years and it started running rough on occasions due to lack of use. It's been fine since I've had to start commuting and doing miles in it again (4 years). I've had my car since 2003, so know it's history. Get a torch and go inspect under etc etc. Not the best colour though.

Just got rid of an 02 Corolla so that shape. We had it for 12 years and it was bomb proof. Used as a skip for two house renovations, used abused and wasnt serviced over the last few years. Just kept on passing it's MOT first time. Could have sold it 20 times over when we got rid. Seems there a big export market to Africa.

Not sure where the rust comment above came from. Ours didn't suffer and there's still loads on the road. May not be interesting to drive but as bangernomics goes I'd buy one without question. Not the one in your advert, find one with higher mileage for £600 that's been looked after and it'll see you right I reckon.

 Test drive it, check under the engine. If it runs fine, then it will be fine.

I've always followed this rule and its served me well. 11,500 miles is so unusual its hard to put a price on this car. If its solid and there's no reason it shouldn't be, you could get 10yrs out of it with normal use. It's local to me and if mrstaxi needed a car I'd certainly look at it.

The rust comment is because Round where I live you don't see them on the road because when you did last see them on the road they were rotten rusty horror fests. Much like most older Toyota's you see round here tbh.

Old corollas are great but not at that price. We’ve had several over the years as reliable uncool workhorses used by all the family, no rust issues, total reliability. Last one was a £200 n reg 1.3 which would have kept until one son wrote it off, current one is 52 reg 1.4 bought 2 years ago for £500, 58k miles, just keeps going and passes mot no problem with no work. Daughter has just got an old Yaris too, fingers crossed it’s as reliable.

A large percentage of taxis round where I live are old Toyotas, there has to be a reason for that. Yours sounds a good grand overpriced but, price excepted, I wouldn't otherwise turn my nose up.

I bought a really low mileage Corolla years ago ... scrapped it in the end as the exhaust fell off...

Short journeys tend to leave water in the exhaust and they rot from the inside out. There are numerous reasons not to buy a car that has spent it's life driving 300 yards down the road.

But, 11k miles is very low. Most cars that have done 100k up and down the motorway probably still have a 11k miles worth of plodding along to the shops in them. Personally I would go look at the condition. If it's been garaged for 17 years and routinely serviced, it could be worth a punt. Some items will still perish with age but you'll have niggles with any used car.

Prices rise astronomically on low mileage vehicles though. I wouldn't spend that much on a 17 year old civic unless it was truly mint. Especially the older models using old tech.

If the car runs ok and you can check under it for rust (park it half up a kerb and crawl under) then it could be worth a look but only if you are able to do DIY servicing and you want to keep it until it dies. If all the hoses and brakes need changing then it's not a big deal doing it yourself, but in a garage it wouldn't be economically viable. With little use I would bank on it breaking down a few times after it's put back into regular use while you find the gremlins. At that price it's about condition, not the model of car. I've bought cars slightly over the odds in the past because the condition was worth it and that has paid off.

we bought our 03 plate corolla a couple of years ago, it'd done 30k, having been run about for the last year as a second car.
It's chassis is a bit rusty, but it's not really getting worse.
it surprised me as it's actually quite a nice car to drive, feels quite 'on the road'.
We've put about 30k on it, mostly running about, but several long journeys including a 1500mile holiday run.

However, if it had been stood and not ran before I got it, I'd not have touched it.