Buying a corolla

i have come across a 2005 Toyota Corolla, 93k miles, for 6000 dollars. One owner , impeccable service record. After fees and everything, about 6600. Is it worth it? Should I join the Corolla family with this particular one? Any insight is appreciated.

Welcome to the forum!

Just going to ask some basic information, because I'm not sure what you have/have not done:

• Have you taken it for a test drive?
• Do they have the maintenance records in writing (i.e. receipts or other recorded info)?
• Have you checked carfax or equivalent?
• Private sale or from a dealership?

Not sure how mechanically inclined you are but here are some relatively easy items to check for:

• Check the condition of the tires and look for abnormal wear.
• Check the engine oil level.
• Check all doors, hood, bumpers and trunk for small Toyota tag that also has the VIN number printed on it. This tells you if any of these items has been replaced (perhaps from an unreported accident).

If you are more mechanically inclined, I can list quite a number of other items to check over. Perhaps even some that could help drop the price Just let me know if you want me to do that. Good luck!

I have test driven it, it is from a dealership, it has an amazing service record, one previous owner. All of the service was done at the dealership that I would be buying it from.

I am slightly mechanically inclined and already did check all of those. I am new to toyotas so I can only check so much.

That all sounds good. With dealerships it generally is difficult to get them to negotiate or drop the price. Anyway, some Corolla specific items to look for are:

• Timing chain tensioner leak - this is a very common issue with Corollas, but is super easy to fix.
• Timing chain cover gasket leak - the item above can look like this, but if it is a timing chain cover leak, that is much more expensive to fix.
• Valve cover gasket leak - a pretty standard one to check for, but somewhat common in older Corollas.
• Loose or worn stabilizer links.
• Exhaust rust or corrosion and rotting/failing exhaust rubber hangers.. Also look underneath for a very dirty charcoal canister.
• Use a code reader to see if there are any pending engine codes

Hope this info is helpful.

What trim level?

I noticed mine doesn't have power windows, but I did not notice the lack of cruise control. I paid $5500 for a 2003 with 83k miles and crap tires. The one you're looking at sounds like a pretty reasonable deal, considering it's from a dealership.

Take it to your own mechanic and have him or her look at 'consumable' items like brake pad/shoe life, etc.

I completely replaced the brakes (including calipers) on mind, and its age is showing. the exhaust shield rusted out and was rattling (resting on the muffler). I had a rear wheel bearing go bad that required replacing the entire hub. Stuff like that is going to be an issue on any car that's 10+ years old, but your mechanic should be able to tell you right away if yours was garaged, or if it sat in the driveway.

Mine was parked a lot more than it was driven. In its first 11 years of life, it was driven 83k. I have put 64k on it in the (less than) 3 years I've owned it. I've also kept it in a garage. It's probably in better condition now than it was before I bought it.