Buying a toyota 121 Luxel....

Anuradha bandara · October 22, 2020

Hello every one,

I am new to this forum and We are about to purchase our first car for our home use.

Our maximum budget is 3 million. And we are looking to go for a toyota one.

We saw a 121 luxel of year 2001 for sale with milage of 180000km for 29 laks.

So may i know whether is this price is reasonable or not and please inform me about this car, things like fuel consumption, maintenance, repairs, parts availability & etc. Because it says as 1800cc. And will it be difficult to sell again ?

And please suggest me if you guys have different good options instead of buying a 121. Because we do not have much knowledge about cars.

Any help will be appreciated.

Thank you.

iRage · October 23, 2020

Welcome to the forum @Anuradha bandara

Okay..so the Luxel is actually ZZE122 (not 121) because it has a 1ZZ-FE 1.8L engine. But in Sri Lanka everything of that model is called 121...which makes no sense.

You are looking at a 20 year old car. Whether the price of a car is worth it or not ultimately depends on the condition of the car (how well it has been taken care of, proper service records, no shady fix ups, gets a good result in inspections with age related wear and tear, all the paper work like the CR book, emission certificates, etc...are all in proper order). So a 121 X (which is the lowest grade) can actually be worth than the G grade most people go after.

The Luxel is much much different and nicer than the usual X or G grade 121. The interior seat material and color combinations and even the optional wood grain paneling options offered is much nicer than the X and G grades. Also, the Luxel has better sound proofing so it feels quieter (which makes it feel more smoother as there is less road fatigue). Being a 2001 I suppose you are looking at the first pre-facelift model of the 121. The facelift model is even nicer. Also, the luxel comes with more standard features than the G (the usual model Sri Lankans crave for). The Luxel came with Vehicle Stability Control and few other extras like extra airbags as options. However these were offered as standard in the Alpha editions along with few other extras. Do you know if the Luxel is a Luxel Alpha or a Luxel Premium edition ? There was also a Navi edition which was just the standard Luxel with a Navigation package.

The 1.8L engine is much more powerful....when new the 1.5L variant had only about 105ish horsepower and the 1.8L came with 130hp. So it is much nicer and smoother to drive. Fuel economy wise...when new the 1.8L was rated at 15kmpl and the 1.5L at 16kmpl..on a 50% highway 50% city use cycle. In reality it probably would have gotten about 9ish on average and the 1.5L 10ish on average (typically even in Japan real world figures are 70% of what the manufacturer claims). Again..this is a 20 year old car..so the actual fuel figures will depend on the condition of the car as well as YOUR driving patterns (someone who gets stuck for 1 hour in slow moving traffic will obviously get lower gas mileage than someone who can drive the same distance in just 20mins; someone who accelerates and dives hard will get less gas mileage than someone ho drives with a lighter foot). Bottom line is..the 1.8L engine will not be too much lower than a 1.5L variant. It will be slightly less (1ish kmpl or so) but the benefit you get from having the 1.8L will be far greater than the 1kmpl you will save with the 1.5L. In fact the 1.8L will give you better fuel economy if you travel a lot of the highway or even in hill country.

As I said before the Luxel comes with a 1.8L 1ZZ-FE engine. This engine has been used in many other Toyota models and has been very reliable. In fact the 1ZZ-FE is the same engine that comes in the 1.8L 240 Allion/Premio. I would not expect parts to be of a big problem because it is shared with many other Toyota models.

So...from a personal point of view...for me..the Luxel with the 1.8L engine is a much nicer car than the 1.5L/1.3L based Corolla 121 G or X grades. However, it ALL depends on the condition of the car you are looking at and how honest it is.

Now the not so nice parts...the not so nice parts has nothing to do with the car. The bad points with the 1.8L is the same as the bad points with the 1.5L. So where the mechanical and body aspects are concerned the 1.8L is the same as the 1.5L. The issue is with Sri Lankan people. Sri Lankan people falsely believe that any car that has an engine larger than 1.5L is a fuel wasting bad car. Why ? Because they believe stupid stories made up by other people. In Sri Lanka, typical Corolla, Allion/Premio, Sunny owners lie about fuel economy. In fact, at times, the fuel economies they claim are even greater than what the manufacturer says it does. There are plenty of Corolla/Allion/Premio buyers who buy these 1.5L cars to get these high fuel figures and then message asking what is wrong with their car because it gets only 9-12 kmpl (of course these are done in private messages because posting about it in public will make them look stupid for not living everyone else's lie). So because of this people will talk bad about the 1.8L engine (so..ust learn to shut down your brain and ears around service station boys and the guys who own that G grade 1.5L 121 that gets 20kmpl).

However, there are always people who will buy it and selling a 1.8L Luxel won't be any different than trying to sell a 1.5L G grade. There are plenty of 1.5L G Corolla 121s that have been stuck without getting sold for months. So...as long as the car is honest (no hidden repairs, no dirty and quick accident repairs, you maintain it properly) you will sell it even if it is a 1.8L or a 1.5L.

The above is the only downside for the car in Sri Lanka and it has nothing to do with the car..nor is it a downside. Because of the stupid things SL beleive, you are more likely to find a 1.8L in better condition with lesser number of owners (you will be surprised at the number of 1.5L variants, especially the G grades, that are fake...with fake badges, etc...). Also, because not many people run for the price of the 1.8L is relatively lower than the 1.5L X and G grades...so you will be getting a lot more car for a lesser price. Interestingly a few days ago I saw a Luxel being advertised in the quicksite (it looked dirty and crap) but they had fixed G bagdes all over the place.

So....I would say...first and foremost

1. Check the model code on the ID plate and see if it is an actual Luxel (or identify what the actual Luxel type is)

2. Do a pre-lim assessment, test drive, check document, service history, etc...

3. Get an extensive inspection...

and move forward from that point...

As for different options....well there are Lancers and Axelas. But those have the same issue as the 1.8L Luxel...the "market naha" stories. So if you are concerned about this..then sadly you are going to have to stick to the Corolla/Premio/Allions. The issue is the 1.5L variants of these cars have passed through many users (most of who were cheap as they bought the car to run cheaply so they never maintained it properly) so finding a good car is going to be a very hard thing to do these days (good ones hardly get sold as people hold on to them and when they do get advertised gets sold really fast).

But again, ironically, Lancers and Axelas actually do get sold and sometimes a lot faster than the "market" models Sri Lankans talk about.

Edited October 23, 2020 by iRage

iRage · October 23, 2020

*****

Edited October 23, 2020 by iRage

Anuradha bandara · October 23, 2020

"iRage" Thanx a lot for your reply and very useful informations and i think those infos are invaluble.So thanx again for your reply.

And we are not yet decided to go for that luxel but we were looking for 121 manual cars as well because price seems to be lesser than auto ones on some famous websites. And these manual cars of around year 2006 have 1300cc engine. Are these cars do fuel than 1500cc ones or are there any issues with that ?

Some times it seems 121 cars are over priced as well and is there a good reason for that ?

And as you guys think will this current price hike will go down in near future due to current situation in sri lanka ?

Thank you.

Ruslan · October 24, 2020

We had a Luxel back in the day with Family. Much nicer refined drive than average Corollas. It was always a pleasant to drive with more horses under it. Auto box is reliable and smooth, no judderings or whatsoever. As iRage mentioned car came with additional features like chrome trim accents like Gated shifter, chrome tail garnish etc.

as for cons and niggles, look for Chain tensioner leakage at back of the engine. This is not going to stop unless tensioner replaced with redesigned part which Toyota Lanka has. Overall look for a better maintained car. These engines (including 1.5 1NZ-FE) tend to sludging if not for proper oil changes.

As fo the 1300 Models, mostly were imported for Company fleets. some of them even didn't had ABS as standard. it should do more on fuel as its coupled with Manual transmission.

Edited October 24, 2020 by Ruslan

Magnum · October 24, 2020

I have been a passenger in a 122 Luxel, overall the car felt much more smoother than the 1.5L variants. The engine was relaxed even with 5 adults on-board.

Anuradha bandara · October 24, 2020

Thanx for your replies..

On 10/24/2020 at 2:55 AM, Ruslan said:

As fo the 1300 Models, mostly were imported for Company fleets. some of them even didn't had ABS as standard. it should do more on fuel as its coupled with Manual transmission.

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But i saw a post on this forum & one guy had mentioned that 1300cc is under powered hence fuel consumption is high.

Is this true ? Experts please help us to figure this out. Because there are much newer 1300cc manual 121 cars for lesser prices than 1500cc old auto ones.

I really need to know if we compare1500cc auto & 1300cc manual 121 car then how will be the fuel consumption, which one will get the upper hand ?

Any help will be highly appreciated.

Thanx.

iRage · October 24, 2020

On 10/24/2020 at 10:58 AM, Anuradha bandara said:

Thanx for your replies..

But i saw a post on this forum & one guy had mentioned that 1300cc is under powered hence fuel consumption is high.

Is this true ? Experts please help us to figure this out. Because there are much newer 1300cc manual 121 cars for lesser prices than 1500cc old auto ones.

I really need to know if we compare1500cc auto & 1300cc manual 121 car then how will be the fuel consumption, which one will get the upper hand ?

Any help will be highly appreciated.

Thanx.

Expand

Yes...the 1300cc cars (in all sedans) do tend to do less on fuel. It will do good on fuel if all you are doing is sitting in traffic with an empty car...but it is going to be under powered...when driving outstation or with 4 adults the engine will be working so hard that it will consume a lot of fuel.

About the tensioner....that is going to be something common with all Z series engines to be honest...the later variants got a few updates that made it a bit more stronger.

As for the price of the 121s...it is just the stupid myths in the market that makes prices all over the place. People are crazy about limited badges and G badges that any piece of junk with these shiny items automatically go up in price. This is also the reason why there are so many fake G grades and Limited grades (people buy cheap Chinese accessories and put them on). So ALWAYS check the model code and see what the true grade is.

Anuradha bandara · October 25, 2020

"iRage" Thanx a lor for your infos & advices.

May i know one thing as well, i found out a car that is 121 G limited one it comprise with a 1600cc.is this car has good market than normal G grade and is there a big diffetence of fuel consumption when it compares with 1500cc ones ?

And is there an easy way to check whether is this a original G limited one ?

Thank you.

iRage · October 26, 2020

If it is a 1600cc then it is an export model. So it is a car that was either purchased by Toyota Lanka as a brand new car or a used car imported from Singapore/Malaysia/Thailand. For Sri Lanka the export models I believe came as XL and GL and for Singapore/Thailand as J,G,X, etc. Again, do not trust the badges on the body because people stick random badges. Also, some will say to look for certain accessoris/options to be present for each of the grades, again, people fix aftermarket parts and also the accessoris/features are not always consistant with grades and between export models and Japanese local market models.

There is an ID plate on the car with chassis number (frame number/VIN number), engine type, color code, etc..on that...there is a code that says model code it will look like NZE121R-AEMDK (I just made this one up as an example). Take that code and then check what that code is on parts website or online catalog site.

Devinda_Z · October 26, 2020

@Anuradha bandara you seem very focused on fuel economy.

May I please know what sort of mileage you do per month usually?

The reason I ask is that often we find ourselves chasing false economy

As @iRage has mentioned in great detail, @Ruslan has given first hand experience, cars like the 121 are widely accepted as popular choice in the local market as solid cars but no car that old is without it's issues

How much of a fuel saving are you looking at in rupee terms by owning a vehicle which will in theory do 1 kmpl more, over the course of a month or year? Also how much will it cost you if you need to spend on a large repair like an engine rebuild or consumables like new tires, shocks etc etc. Is there a net benefit to you when you put all the costs together?

Might I also suggest even considering a 2C diesel equipped newer Corolla 141 if you're looking for something economical to use

MaleCortana · October 26, 2020

On 10/26/2020 at 7:27 AM, iRage said:

There is an ID plate on the car with chassis number (frame number/VIN number), engine type, color code, etc..on that...there is a code that says model code it will look like NZE121R-AEMDK (I just made this one up as an example). Take that code and then check what that code is on parts website or online catalog site.

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Since you're looking at Toyotas, run the chassis code on ToyotaDIY.com, it will tell you the car trim, model, engine, gearbox, color it originally left the factory in. (People like to do what is called Upbadge their cars)

As for the Luxel vs 121 debate I've only been in a 121 so I can't say much