What do you think of new model celica?

My daughter will be getting her license soon and wants a 2000-2003 model Celica. Personaly I think there are very few cars in the world uglier than the new celica, but if that is what she wants......
Does anyone have any good/bad comments about them... have they developed any major mechanical problems, or are they a sound vehicle like other Toyotas?
Thanks in advance for any advice..

As with all japanese cars they are pretty much bullet proof, but, they are powerfull cars for someone who has just passed their test I would think carefully about buying an inexperienced driver such a car.

are you serious???? you really think they are powerful.....you of all people should know that they arent, you own an all-trac....they dont even compare to a GT or GT-S ....they only have 120-136 ft.lbs or torque...i think its a good car to get her.

Edit: the GT and GTS dont even compare to the All-trac.

my bad, there is a typo above

I dont think that they are powerfull cars as cars go, but for a first car!! I think its powerfull. maybe things work different in the States than here. In the UK most (99%) of frist time drivers get small engined, easy to handle cars that are insurance friendly. Dont get me wrong, I`d have hacked my own arm off and given away a kidney to get a new Celica when I passed my test. but would I get my daughter one with no previous driving experience, no way, I`d worry about her too much. I`ve seen too many inexperienced drivers get behind the wheel of a sporty car and crash it, often with devistating results.
My advise is to start small and work up when you know how to drive properly, but thats just me, each to there own.
You cant really compare me to a new driver, I have 14 years driving experince plus race driving instruction.

wanna buy me one :) i got $100 bux on her totaling it within 3 months :)

Thanks for the advice... but I consider the Celica to be a small unpowerful car, that she will not have any problem driving. I have let her dirve my vehicles on country roads for ten years. Starting when she was four, sitting on my lap and steering. Now she drives my pickup (350+ HP) without any problems. That's the advantage of having access to country roads, and open fields to let her learn. She could run wild without hitting anything. Figure 8's in a muddy field can improve anyones' driving ability..
There is no way I would let her loose on our city streets without knowing that she was capble of handling the car. Hell, I am scared when my wife drives. A small car will be easy for my daughter to handle in town, but I know it won't take long for her to complain about the lack of power. (a 4 cylinder is fine for Europeans and Asians, but Americans NEED V8's)

In that case, the Celica will offer no problems what so ever and will be reliable and relitavely easy to maintain, but dont under estimate the new Celicas, they may not have massive HP but they know how to transfer it to the road.
Running around in fields is a bit of a sore point for me, imagine the scene, 20 acres of open field, nothing to hit for miles, apart from one single solitary strudy Oak tree. need I say anymore?

id advise getting her a gt then, a gt-s would be too powerfull for her...id never let a 16 year old kid get soemthing as powerfull as that withought at least some driving experience...

gt-140 Hp mid 16 1/4 mile
gts-180 Hp mid 15 1/4 mile

the gts is fine for a 16 yr old....its not that fast and looks good......she would appreciate the extra little bit of power it has when getting on the freeway or passing some granny on an open country road, the gt would dissappoint im sure of it! and make her learn to drive a stick, get her the 6 speed.......

i dont understand this too powerfull stuff everyone is talking about... yes the gts has 180hp but when? only when you hit high rpms and when your driving on the street most people dont red line it when they are heading towards the market... usually they shift arround 5k which is b4 the vvtl even kicks in... before you hit the lift it is a pretty underpowered car and its not like it has any handling problems as some might say like the mr2 with its rear swinging out...

imo it wouldnt be more likely for her to get in an accident in a celica gt or gts then it would be in a civic

wanna buy me one :) i got $100 bux on her totaling it within 3 months :)

That's a smart bet.

dont compare celicas to civics becuase we all know whats better... im stating that shes a 16 year old kid...180 Hp isnt smart to give to someone like that, give her the 140 gt becuase SHE IS A KDI, shes gunna fuck around and try to hit vvtL-i and be stupid and show off to her friends...id put $100 down, paypal, if you take pics of her car as she buys it, and in one year post up pics if it still looks brand new if she gets a gt-s

im not saying dont get a gt-s becuase there hella better, just watch her closely and dont let her fuck around in it cuz that alot of power for a kid, and for a girl

and WTF are u talking about peoiple usually shift around 5, is shift at under 3000 the whole time...granted my car is a lot faster than it was stock

KIDS CAN DRIVE GOD DAMMIT!! lol.. when i was 16 my mom bought me a Eclipse GST *as shown below* and for u celica owners this car can whoop ass w/ its 210hp turbo engine. Get her a Celica GT-S because i drove that car once and it was pretty fun.(get her stick) DO NOT get her a civic.. u wouldnt want her friends to laugh at her now would u? if u do get her the celica add the action package to it. A Supra would be too much for a 16year old to handle.

KIDS CAN DRIVE GOD DAMMIT!! lol.. when i was 16 my mom bought me a Eclipse GST *as shown below* and for u celica owners this car can whoop ass w/ its 210hp turbo engine. Get her a Celica GT-S because i drove that car once and it was pretty fun.(get her stick) DO NOT get her a civic.. u wouldnt want her friends to laugh at her now would u? if u do get her the celica add the action package to it. A Supra would be too much for a 16year old to handle.

Kids can drive in theory, i`ll give you that one, but they have no experience on the roads and no matter what you guys say 180BHP is alot of HP for someone with no experience, remember its not just yourself you have to look out for, its the other idiots on the road too.

And for you "Eclipse GST" owners the only ass part of me you`ll get, is the view of the "ass end" of my car disapearing away from you from my 260hp Turbo Celica *as shown below*

Happy Xmas everyone in this Celica forum, its been a good year debating stuff and gaining some good knowledge and tips. I plan to spend the rest of the year blindingly drunk. YEY

I think the GT (auto) would be a great beginner car. A GT-S (auto) would be good too, but not worth the extra cash really. The auto GT-S is actually slower than the auto GT because of lack of torque and the shift points land out of the powerband.

yea i say a GT auto would be fine. I got a LS astro for my first car (hand me down) and that thing was too fast for it's size, weighing close to 4400 lbs it's faster than a V6 mustang (yea i know it's not much) and that thing led me to crazy driving before i decided to wise up. And my friend has a GT auto, it's a good beginer's car.

DAMN YOU GM, DON'T DISCONTINUE THE ASTROS!!!