Say hello to the... Green Goblin!

[Baltothewolf]

So my dad and I went to go look at a Toyota Echo this morning and it turned out a bust (guy lied about mileage and the car looked like it had been in a front end accident) and on our way back my uncles calls me and tells me that a friend of his that owns a car dealership has a Corolla with 128k miles he will sell me. So my dad and I go look and well, for 2.9k (3.3 after taxes and stuff) I think I did alright. It has power locks, windows and cruise control (I thought only the LE trim had power anything? This is the CE trim). I do have one concern though, is this the 4 speed or 3 speed? I used my butt sensor but I couldn't really tell, it rides so smooth and shifts so well I couldn't tell when it was shifting. Below is a pic of the car + gear selector. It has P N D 2 and L + Overdrive button so that points to the 4 speed but I would just like some 100% verification. The only actual issues are, the front left strut is bad, the alignment is off, but only by a hair (even braking hard doesn't pull you in any direction) and the cruise control doesn't work. It comes on but when I try to engage it, the lit cruise control on the instrument panel just blinks. Any insight on the cruise would be nice to.

[cRiPpLe_rOoStEr]

That's the 4-speed. And yes, it shifts so smoothly that is nearly impossible to figure out when it shifts.

[Baltothewolf]

Originally Posted by cRiPpLe_rOoStEr

That's the 4-speed. And yes, it shifts so smoothly that is nearly impossible to figure out when it shifts.

Yay it's the 4 speed . Thank you! That was my biggest worry as everything else is easily fixable, even the Strut is only 150$ to get fixed.

Also, I really don't like the DTRL's, is it possible to disable this somehow? I don't know if it does anything to MPG but I just don't want that alternator having to work if it doesn't have to...

[nemo]

If your vehicle is equipped with a "DRL OFF" setting, they can be turned off by twisting the headlight control knob to "DRL OFF."

For vehicles listed below equipped with DRL, the system can be disabled by your local Toyota dealership

See
https://toyota.custhelp.com/app/answ...ning-lights%3F

A quick internet search indicates there maybe other methods. Choose at you own risk. On my 06 Grand Prix the body control module must be reprogrammed or they can be manually turned off each time the car is started.

[user removed]

Take out the bulb or disconnect the sub harness. I like the car, had an 06 myself, but it had serious alignement issues which combined with the dealerships pitiful attempts resulted in a trip to a fraame shop to get the rear wheels aligned and front wheels ate thetires up in 14k miles. They even lied and charged me for balancing wheels they did not change the weights on. A freind who was the service manager at another Toyota dealership got it straight and Toyota gave me a set of new tires. Other people with the same generation I talked to over the years had similar problems, built in Canada.

One of the reasons I personally think the Japanese manufacturers have lost most of their "edge" in building cars, like us they have moved most of their manufacturing to other countries and the quality is just not quite the same as those built in Japan.

regards
Mech

[Baltothewolf]

Originally Posted by Old Mechanic

Take out the bulb or disconnect the sub harness. I like the car, had an 06 myself, but it had serious alignement issues which combined with the dealerships pitiful attempts resulted in a trip to a fraame shop to get the rear wheels aligned and front wheels ate thetires up in 14k miles. They even lied and charged me for balancing wheels they did not change the weights on. A freind who was the service manager at another Toyota dealership got it straight and Toyota gave me a set of new tires. Other people with the same generation I talked to over the years had similar problems, built in Canada.

One of the reasons I personally think the Japanese manufacturers have lost most of their "edge" in building cars, like us they have moved most of their manufacturing to other countries and the quality is just not quite the same as those built in Japan.

regards
Mech

The '06 isn't in the same generation though is it? And I agree with the build quality, it just isn't as good as it used to be sadly.

[Baltothewolf]

Guys I could use some help, I'm currently googling but I'm not finding much, does anyone know what year instrument cluster will work with the '00? I want to get a nice looking cluster with a tach and I need to know what years fully work with the '00

[digital rules]

Originally Posted by Baltothewolf

Also, I really don't like the DTRL's, is it possible to disable this somehow?

Yes, I saw a thread in the Toyota Nation forum describing the procedure. Will see if I can find it again & supply a link.

Originally Posted by Old Mechanic

Other people with the same generation I talked to over the years had similar problems, built in Canada.
Mech

Hmm, guess I've been lucky. My Canadian built 05 has been great so far. 95K miles & never had any alignments performed. Been one of my most reliable cars ever Averaging over 43 now with no EOC or real mods.

[digital rules]

Originally Posted by Baltothewolf

The '06 isn't in the same generation though is it?

No, they are different generations.
8th Generation (1998-2002)
9th Generation (2003-2008)

[Baltothewolf]

Originally Posted by digital rules

No, they are different generations.
8th Generation (1998-2002)
9th Generation (2003-2008)

That's what I thought, and 43mpg?????? Is your a manual?

[Edit]: Oh I do see it's a manual, but I never sit in traffic, at most I slow down to 55 on a 'slow' day where there is traffic. I'm really hoping with a simple grill block and sensible driving i can break 40mpg, I would be so, so happy to average 39.9-42mpg.

Also, does anyone know if LRR tires are worth it? I haven't done any research but I can imagine that they cost more. How much MPG on average is seen with LRR tires over normal ones?