2008 Toyota Corolla....school me!

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My neighbor just traded hers for a '19 Civic Sport (outstanding package). Anyway it was mostly reliable. During the time she had it it must've gone through 4 or 5 batteries. Towards the end (150,000) it had a CEL the local mechanic had a tough time keeping at bay.
 
A Camry or Accord is magnitudes better but at this price point($4000ish) Corolla is excellent vehicle.

The best attributes are does not use a lot of fuel and reliable according to 3-4 people I know who have had them as 30k/year commuters.
 
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I don't know that I would pay that much for a car with that many miles on it. Other than that, it's OK.
Picture #2 makes it look like it has a dent in the front door, until you stare at it long enough to realize that it's the wheel in the reflection of another car in the background!
 
All cars seem expensive today. Even old ones.

I'd watch out for additional markup. I didn't see what their fee was but at the moment I bet the out the door price is almost $5k. Which does seem too high. But it makes me think that getting it for $4k is not going to happen. Not unless if it's been sitting a long time.

I never drove that vintage, but I did drive the 2009+. Which supposedly had better NVH at the cost of more dead handling. I had no love for it, and I didn't think the road/wind noise was that low. I think the 2009 might have been worse than my '99 Camry... too long ago to remember. Only stating in case that is of importance.

Before getting serious on it I'd take a quick look underneath, make sure it's a Florida car and not some refugee from up north.
 
I have that exact car (08) and it's been totally reliable....I replaced the OE battery in 2013 as a precaution and it's still on that 2nd battery. I D&R the ATF every 30K and replaced the OE coolant in 2014 with PGL....I replaced that coolant again last fall with PGL. I'm at 117K and I'm certain it could go another 150K if I can keep the rust away. It does have a drain plug on the A/T pan and also a timing chain.

PS: The 2008 was the last year of that generation Corolla and the 2009 was much more problematic according to Carcomplaints....
I also have a 2008 Elantra which is a great car and can be bought a lot cheaper than the Corolla.
 
My sister owns one, rock solid reliable and cheap to operate. The only time it's left her stranded was when the shift cable bushing at the shifter handle fell apart. I made a new bushing an bought a retainer to "fix" hers for about $3. This kit is available, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AiVqKDTvHfc but I didn't have time to wait for it to come in. A quick google search reveals a "unconventional" fix that will last the life of the car!
 
Originally Posted by madRiver
A Camry or Accord is magnitudes better but at this price point($4000ish) Corolla is excellent vehicle.

The best attributes are does not use a lot of fuel and reliable according to 3-4 people I know who have had them as 30k/year commuters.


An Accord in this price range would be a 6th gen (transmission problems) or younger 7th gen (also transmission problems). I actually am not actively searing for a Camry as the 2.4 is a known oil burner.
 
oh that Corolla will run forever; that 1.8 is chain operated chain; all in all, it is Toyota quality and reputability
 
We had an ‘04 that we bought new that was pushing 250k miles before my wife decided she wanted to upgrade last summer to a used 2010 after the ‘04 was going to need some repairs she didn't want to spend $$ on. Never had any major issues other than routine maintenance. I was still getting 40mpg on 2-lane road trips and never once did I have to add a drop of oil between changes. I did one UOA on it with excellent results: ‘04 Corolla UOA
 
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Originally Posted by Rolla07
Originally Posted by E365
Decent appliance, but an absolutely miserable car to drive.


I dont find it to be miserable at all. Its an econobox, not a sports car. Depends what you consider miserable. Rides smooth, and gets me from A to B with minimal cost & repairs. I put 115k miles on mine and I dont recall any moments being miserable. Let me add to that, im 6ft6 and over 300lbs. Maybe im just a simple person though!


I read 'miserable' as 'not exciting'. I feel like my next car should be so completely white bread and boring that I have no temptation to hot rod or beat on it.

Originally Posted by Silverado12
150,000 miles is a lot no matter who makes the car.


I think 150k for an 11-year old car is not bad at all, especially for a younger person to use for a good reliable car. Gone are the days of 100k miles being a death sentence.
 
I had an 07 with a manual. I put was my daily work driver and sold it last year when I retired. It had 170K trouble-free miles and I wouldn't have hesitated to take off on a cross-country trip in it. Not exciting, but it started every time I turned the key.
 
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