Looking at an ECHO. Do I buy or pass?
 

Hello all!

I really need all the help I can get. I cant make up my mind, really on the fence with this one...

Im hunting for that 5sp echo that I can mod to 50mpg


Looked at a 2003 echo 5sp with only 40,000 miles today!

Car runs and shifts great. It has an R title and I saw the pics prior to the repair. it was struck with a tree branch damaging the roof and windshield, not even any other glass was damaged so considering the damage and the repair to cut the roof and replace it, I'm really not concerned moving forward and I want to keep the car for at least one year but if I go to sell the car, i know its really going to be hard to do so...(who knows gas could be $5 a gallon next year and then all bets are off).........I think he will take 4k for the car......hes asking close to 5k

What do u think?

My opinion: If you're comfortable with the reconstruction I'd go for it. It sounds like a great deal, even if you do get rid of it in a year. 4k for an Echo with 40k miles is a great buy. Being that it's a Toyota, it's just broken in.

I think you'll probably want to hang on to this car anyway, unless some manufacturer starts selling flashy cars that get 50MPG for under $5k brand new with leather interiors.

Out of curiosity: why are you worrying about selling a car you haven't even bought yet? What's going to happen in one year?

A relatively cheap to buy, cheap to maintain, low miles, high mpg, reliable used car is the best kind of vehicle purchase you can make. You'll want to keep this thing for years and years! No?

It won't take much modding to get 50 in a manual Echo. My concern would be why did they cut the roof off instead of a repair, and if they just sawed the rood off the car, there may be issues with the integrity of the repairs.
I would do some research on the reputation of the shop to make sure they have a history of customer satisfaction and a good (preferably great) reputation. The miles are fantastic and $4k would be a decent price.
Selling salvage vehicles will definitely limit your potential purchaser pool. If I found an nice later Echo with that kind of miles I would not consider selling it before it had 100k miles at the very least. After the 100k mark the salvage title would mean much less.

regards
Mech

good point about the scructural integrity, old mech.

...

in my experience, anything that seems too good to be true usually is.

Buy it and keep it for a few years. Really, if you find a good car why are you thinking about selling it?

I will echo the other opinions. yuk, yuk.

Inspect the reroofing welds. If it looks good, buy it and drive it till the wheels fall off.

If you are looking for a quick flip, look elsewhere.

Echo update
 

I must say that you guys are great, thanks so much for the reply's., keep them coming.

Heres the twist.........

I ran the vin number using a service that charges me $4.50 but it takes up to 10 hours to get it back.

The car shows previous salvage history in addition to the recent salvage history. That usually means it was totaled prior to the last repair!

It also shows a medium to moderate front impact 2 years prior to the previous salvage history. i would think it refers to that accident.

I inspected the roof welds and they were fine. Its easier and more professional to cut the roof off and replace than to repair, so that I understand. The car drove well and looked good overall and the guy has not called me back but I have a gut feeling he will after a few days have passed. He was going to buy a truck today so he will be more motivated to sell..........

Call me cheap but Im still interested for the right price so I guess when he calls me back., Whats the right price for the car $3500? or is he stuck with it? I worry about it falling apart to some extent, like the welds but what can u buy for $3500/$4000? Im temped to buy it and drive it to the ground

Update
 

Its about 2 weeks gone by and the guy still has the car...Ive decided to pass...Flying back home today and looking at a 2008 manual yaris base hatch with 100k on it for $5250......

Car has a good carfax.....I really want this car, have been looking for a manual echo or yaris or even an XA for about a year now...but I have to check out the obvious before I plop down over 5k (engine/transmission/clutch/engine light emissions/tires/body damage/excessive wear)

Im starting to see the yaris market coming off a bit with gasoline backing off from $4 to $3.50...Also starting to see more reasonable prices on higher mileage cars. some that were in the 7k range are now in the 6k range....

Oh lol. I thought you meant the yard tool brand when i first saw it.