Advice On Buying A Toyota Levin

[dakrazyman20]

Hey y'all,

I was driving around Nugegoda area and stumbled on a second hand car dealership. There was a gleaming blue coupe in the forecourt which caught my eye. The moment I got closer to it I saw the emblem on the hood and recognized that it was a Levin(that and the fact that it looked like one lol).

It is a blue AE110 car on a GY plate. Sadly it aint the legendary AE86 "Hachiroku"(go Dori Dori!). Plus it isnt even the hot BZ series with the 4AG engine and SS package it is a simple FZ car with a run of the mill 5A-FE engine producing a 100hp(does a "100ps" mean a hundred hp?) with an auto box plus no alloys, basically a clean slate of a car. It has a good history and looks unabused.

Now i'm no street racer i'm jes looking for a daily driver to put a smile on ma face with a little oomph, do u think this is a worthwhile purchase?

I await your feedback.

Thanks in advance.

[isurujosh]

100 hp means 101.39 ps. click here for more information.

on your question, in my opinion there are few problems with levin as a sensible daily runner.

1) you might find it more difficult to source body parts of it than a normal corolla.

2) may be the suspension tuning is a bit sports biased.

3) i wonder whether it can accomodate 4-5 people as does a normal sedan.

4) not as easy to resell as a normal corolla. if the car is in high demand then it would not be in a car sale in the first place.

beware of cars sold in car sales. they typically have premium prices and nicely conceals exceesive usuage of a vehicle. take the car to toyota lanka for a check b4 u buy it. the money u spend on the checkup will only be small fraction of the cost you would otherwise have to spend on an unexpected repair.

my advice is go for the car after a checkup at toyota lanka provided following two conditions are met.

1) you have to confirm from credible sources that levin body parts are not extremely rare.

2) make sure you spend less than what you would spend on a similar corolla as the resale can be harder.

good luck and keep is informed mate.

[dakrazyman20]

100 hp means 101.39 ps. click here for more information.

on your question, in my opinion there are few problems with levin as a sensible daily runner.

1) you might find it more difficult to source body parts of it than a normal corolla.

2) may be the suspension tuning is a bit sports biased.

3) i wonder whether it can accomodate 4-5 people as does a normal sedan.

4) not as easy to resell as a normal corolla. if the car is in high demand then it would not be in a car sale in the first place.

beware of cars sold in car sales. they typically have premium prices and nicely conceals exceesive usuage of a vehicle. take the car to toyota lanka for a check b4 u buy it. the money u spend on the checkup will only be small fraction of the cost you would otherwise have to spend on an unexpected repair.

my advice is go for the car after a checkup at toyota lanka provided following two conditions are met.

1) you have to confirm from credible sources that levin body parts are not extremely rare.

2) make sure you spend less than what you would spend on a similar corolla as the resale can be harder.

good luck and keep is informed mate.

Hmmm you raise some good points there, regarding space it is certainly not snug at the back it has enough room. The forecourt dealer said it belonged to his nephew and is up for sale coz he is going abroad for studies, the odometer shows a little over 67,000. Regarding power to weight, when i lifted the bonnet it was extremely heavy, concerned whether it has enough power to pull the body and give a little satisfaction as well.

Ne other recommendations as to what could be a more suitable fun daily driver? Anything in the 1-2 mill range? Highest I can stretch my paltry finances is 2.2

I shall look into taking it to Toyota Lanka when I can escape work, how much would an inspection roughly cost?

Thanks again

[Devinda_Z]

Hey y'all,

I was driving around Nugegoda area and stumbled on a second hand car dealership. There was a gleaming blue coupe in the forecourt which caught my eye. The moment I got closer to it I saw the emblem on the hood and recognized that it was a Levin(that and the fact that it looked like one lol).

It is a blue AE110 car on a GY plate. Sadly it aint the legendary AE86 "Hachiroku"(go Dori Dori!). Plus it isnt even the hot BZ series with the 4AG engine and SS package it is a simple FZ car with a run of the mill 5A-FE engine producing a 100hp(does a "100ps" mean a hundred hp?) with an auto box plus no alloys, basically a clean slate of a car. It has a good history and looks unabused.

Now i'm no street racer i'm jes looking for a daily driver to put a smile on ma face with a little oomph, do u think this is a worthwhile purchase?

I await your feedback.

Thanks in advance.

Car was owned (& may be even still is) by an old class mate of mine who is currently overseas

Sale its seen at is on Stanley Thilakaratne Mw right? he's got a connection of sorts to one sale in that area afaik

decent car all in all,but it ain't no rocket ship

whats the asking price?

[xXx]

beware of cars sold in car sales. they typically have premium prices and nicely conceals exceesive usuage of a vehicle.

you don't think private sellers revert to similar tactics and sell at a cost???? with the car market been stagnated for a while some car sale owners are strapped for money therefor you may be able to capitalize on that and get a good deal where as the private sellers may not budge that much unless he's in a hurry.

[dakrazyman20]

Car was owned (& may be even still is) by an old class mate of mine who is currently overseas

Sale its seen at is on Stanley Thilakaratne Mw right? he's got a connection of sorts to one sale in that area afaik

decent car all in all,but it ain't no rocket ship

whats the asking price?

Yup that's the car, a blue Levin was it a daily runner for your classmate? I realise it isnt going to be a rocket ship but do you think the 1.5 engine will have sufficent power and then some? I mean the car weighs close to a ton.

Dealer is asking around 1.6

[Devinda_Z]

It was pretty much that for a number of years 2005-09 i reckon

You may be able to get more oomph than that for that kinda money with an old WRX or one of the conversions around (Evo's & WRX's) - a bit more & even a VRZ may be possible,should you be able to find one - that ought to do nicely as a daily runner - or even an older Carina GT ...& if your into Hatches, there the Starlet GT's..

The Levin in that guise&spec (Auto with a basic engine) is a little bit of a hair dressers car IMO

[isurujosh]

It was pretty much that for a number of years 2005-09 i reckon

You may be able to get more oomph than that for that kinda money with an old WRX or one of the conversions around (Evo's & WRX's) - a bit more & even a VRZ may be possible,should you be able to find one - that ought to do nicely as a daily runner - or even an older Carina GT ...& if your into Hatches, there the Starlet GT's..

The Levin in that guise&spec (Auto with a basic engine) is a little bit of a hair dressers car IMO

which one of those suggested cars by you do you recommend as daily runners?

[charitha19]

go for the starlet GT... but dont bag on carrrying 4 to 5 people in it.. on the other hand the carina GT would be a nice..

[dakrazyman20]

It was pretty much that for a number of years 2005-09 i reckon

You may be able to get more oomph than that for that kinda money with an old WRX or one of the conversions around (Evo's & WRX's) - a bit more & even a VRZ may be possible,should you be able to find one - that ought to do nicely as a daily runner - or even an older Carina GT ...& if your into Hatches, there the Starlet GT's..

The Levin in that guise&spec (Auto with a basic engine) is a little bit of a hair dressers car IMO

Thanks for the tips on alternatives everyone, I do like WRXs but the ones in my price range which i checked had done mileage to the moon and back Plus i'm a huge fan of hot hatches but dont seem to have found the right one, I did look into buying a toyota Runx one time but the price was to much.

[shanX]

which one of those suggested cars by you do you recommend as daily runners?

Carina GT and the VZR

[dakrazyman20]

Carina GT and the VZR

I like the VZRs but they are rarer than the endangered animals in the sri lankan rainforests lol. Plus the ones i saw were in poor states, I picture most driven by execs who cant climb the corporate ladder and have to drive around alot sucking upto their bosses.

But a good car nonetheless.

Does anyone have a lead on any gulp! honda civic type r's up for sale ek9 or later versions??? I'm a sucker for a red head

[Pericles]

I like the VZRs but they are rarer than the endangered animals in the sri lankan rainforests lol. Plus the ones i saw were in poor states, I picture most driven by execs who cant climb the corporate ladder and have to drive around alot sucking upto their bosses.

But a good car nonetheless.

You obviously didn't see mine. Which is more weekend run about than daily driver anyway.

[dakrazyman20]

You obviously didn't see mine. Which is more weekend run about than daily driver anyway.

Is it a black one with an autolanka.com sticker on it???

Anyways everyone thanks for all your input, it has actually made me think twice about buying the Levin. Sigh! back to square one.

[Pericles]

Is it a black one with an autolanka.com sticker on it???

Yes it is. Small sticker on the windshield.

[LaZyBoY]

Is it a black one with an autolanka.com sticker on it???

Anyways everyone thanks for all your input, it has actually made me think twice about buying the Levin. Sigh! back to square one.

A Glanza V (the newer version of the Starlet GT) is another option, if you can find a good one. 1.3L I/C turbo and one of the best looking hot hatches IMO

(Everyone calm down.. I'm NOT SELLING ONE)

[madmax]

I like the VZRs but they are rarer than the endangered animals in the sri lankan rainforests lol. Plus the ones i saw were in poor states, I picture most driven by execs who cant climb

I think you've seen something else then, probably Pulsar SR-v. Both the VzR hatches and almost all the sedans I know of are very well taken care of... Unless you're referring to Peri here as an "exec who can't climb the corporate ladder" ROFTL

Edited February 5, 2010 by madmax

[Devinda_Z]

I like the VZRs but they are rarer than the endangered animals in the sri lankan rainforests lol. Plus the ones i saw were in poor states, I picture most driven by execs who cant climb the corporate ladder and have to drive around alot sucking upto their bosses.

But a good car nonetheless.

Does anyone have a lead on any gulp! honda civic type r's up for sale ek9 or later versions??? I'm a sucker for a red head

i hate to break this to you - but you need to know what you want - all of us will be sure to suggest options if you can settle on what you need : performance car at a budge (Rs.?) or something with just aesthetic value only (read:poser/hairdressers car)

that insinuation seemed unnecessary, unless of course it was a private joke directed at a particular individual , in which case i apologize for even making this remark

[Devinda_Z]

I think you've seen something else then, probably Pulsar SR-v. Both the VzR hatches and almost all the sedans I know of are very well taken care of... Unless you're referring to Peri here as an "exec who can't climb the corporate ladder" ROFTL

+1max

i get the feeling that it the case, as there are 4 VZR's (2 hatches & 2 sedans) running around regularly in town of which two are owned by active AL members & another by an enthusiast..

[isurujosh]

+1max

i get the feeling that it the case, as there are 4 VZR's (2 hatches & 2 sedans) running around regularly in town of which two are owned by active AL members & another by an enthusiast..

my uncle who was down in sri lanka couple of years ago or so for few weeks had accidentally hired a VZR white sunny from some car hiring firm. that is not exactly what you call taking a very good care of a car. but i guess that is a 5th vzr. MRMs and Janak's former being the other 2 sedans.

[isurujosh]

how good is a carina GT on fuel in heavy traffic? what is the going rate of a YOM1997 or so CGT?

[madmax]

I was talking more about the Pulsar VzRs

[Devinda_Z]

my uncle who was down in sri lanka couple of years ago or so for few weeks had accidentally hired a VZR white sunny from some car hiring firm. that is not exactly what you call taking a very good care of a car. but i guess that is a 5th vzr. MRMs and Janak's former being the other 2 sedans.

The latter of two sedans is now with someone known to the AL fraternity as well

i'm referring to PULSAR VZR's

[shanX]

I like the VZRs but they are rarer than the endangered animals in the sri lankan rainforests lol. Plus the ones i saw were in poor states, I picture most driven by execs who cant climb the corporate ladder and have to drive around alot sucking upto their bosses.

But a good car nonetheless.

Does anyone have a lead on any gulp! honda civic type r's up for sale ek9 or later versions??? I'm a sucker for a red head

Hehe were you referring something like mid-life crisis?

Ohh Honda's

I have seen 2 VZR sedans around kandy, white and maroon. And sometime back saw this marron pulsar VZR with the GTi-R badge, dint see recently though...

Edited February 5, 2010 by shanX

[Pericles]

I think you've seen something else then, probably Pulsar SR-v. Both the VzR hatches and almost all the sedans I know of are very well taken care of... Unless you're referring to Peri here as an "exec who can't climb the corporate ladder" ROFTL

Peri has never had to drive around sucking upto any boss.