My first post, for my first car! I don't know much about cars, but I am interested.

I am on the process of buying a Toyota Celica 2001 GT (69,000 miles) from a private party for $7,500 (blue book value of $8,680). The car drives well, exterior is good, interior is not too bad, engine is clean, but the check engine light is on. So I took the car to a Toyota dealership for a full inspection. The dealer said that the car's O2 sensor needs to be replaced and rear Axle seal is leaking.

What might have caused these problems? What do these problems tell me about how the car was treated? Are these serious problems that should make me nervous? Should I buy the car? How smart is it to buy a Celica with a check engine light on?

I would really appreciate if you can give me some advice before I make my final decision.

i3bex

my celica has had the engine light on for quite some time now, it is a 90 model though. a new o2 sensor should be no big deal idk about the axle leak. the 2000+celicas are not as reliable as the older ones but still a pretty reliable car.

the o2 is no biggie, but the axle means the previous driver drove the shit out of the car and probably hit a big pot hole in the process, a piece of advise to you is to go and get yourself a celica gt-s from somewhere else instead of that gt.

the price is good on that car though. an o2 sensor is cheap, and you can do it yourself. the axle leak i dont know.

as far as gt vs gts. what trans does it have. are you looking for a fast car? what kind of driving do you do (city/highway)

i bought a 2000 gt and test drove an 01 gts. the gts was fast once you got to the right powerband, but the gt felt better at lower speeds. also if it is a manual transmission, the gt tranny is better than the gts.

i chose the gt BTW, i dont need the speed and the extra "s" was going to add another $30/mnth to my ins.

First, Thanks for responding for my post.

The car has a 5 speed transmission. I don't need additional $30 per month on my car insurance bill either. I don't really care about speed. I am looking for a reliable and stylish car. I took the car on a hilly rode. It did not lose speed like my dad's 1992 Sentra. My only disappointment so far is the blind spot; it will take time getting used to. For right now, I will be driving it to work and back only (4 miles total a day). If I move to another city, I will not know.

As all of you have said, the O2 Sensor is not a big deal, but you do not know much about the axle seal leak. I guess I will have to go to a mechanic and see what their input on this is.

What do you think about the sludge or gelling issue with this model? As far as I understand, the seller does not have any maintenance records (i.e. Oil change).

I will have to call and let him know my decision by tommorow (Saturday). I would really really appreciate your sincere effort to help me more than ever :).

Thanks,


i3bex

the price is good on that car though. an o2 sensor is cheap, and you can do it yourself. the axle leak i dont know.

as far as gt vs gts. what trans does it have. are you looking for a fast car? what kind of driving do you do (city/highway)

i bought a 2000 gt and test drove an 01 gts. the gts was fast once you got to the right powerband, but the gt felt better at lower speeds. also if it is a manual transmission, the gt tranny is better than the gts.

i chose the gt BTW, i dont need the speed and the extra "s" was going to add another $30/mnth to my ins.

The extra $30/month is worth it to shave over a second off in the 1/4. :) Also, the GT tranny is not superior to the GT-S tranny.

The extra $30/month is worth it to shave over a second off in the 1/4. :) Also, the GT tranny is not superior to the GT-S tranny.


i meant that the gt 5-spd will work better if you go with a turbo than the 6spd. i guess that is my measurement of better.

@ most, a new axle could cost $300 to replace, I know bc I replaced mine.

id say go ahead and get it. its a damn good price and you will definetly save money even if you replace the axle.

if it came down to it id pay the additional 30/month, u wont be sorry