Just Joined, Really Tempted By A Cts After A Test Drive!

[Dave567]

Hi everyone,

I currently have a celica gen 7 vvti which i have had for 2 years. I've started looking for a new car. I had previously been looking at a civic type r but when i was at the honda garage the other day there was a grey facelift t-sport. I knew they had the vvtli engine so thought i would try it.

I really liked it, very comfortable lots of standard equiptment and it sounded very nice in lift.

When i got home to check bits like insurance i was surprised its only in grp 14. One thing from looking on parkers etc was the 0-60 of 8.4 seems a bit slow for 190 bhp and if im honest it seemed alot quicker when i drove it.

I think i will get a grey facelift CTS ( love the colour)as you are getting more car than a civic and people seem to be charging silly prices for civic's.

Could people let me know your thoughts on the cts, i no its going to be a bit biased on here but if there are any bad points or things to look out for before buying one i would appreciate it.

Cheers,

Dave

[fisel]

Theres a few niggly things like a squeeky clutch, head unit displacement (never had this problem myself), stiff reverse gear (had this once), standard breaks are a bit weak, some running noises that i dont particularly like but overall it's a sound car. Had mine for almost a year and never had to take it to the garage.

0-60 in 8.4 is wrong, it's around 7.2

[chrisio]

Firstly, welcome to the club Dave

The CTS is a fun car to own and as stated is faster than claimed.

I would say that most are bought and driven for fun so don't expect a 'One careful owner' type of car

They are very reliable and can have some niggles as listed above but this does not apply to all cars.

The main thing is to make sure you get a comprehensive warranty as parts can be pricey ;)

[Ed_Shek]

I've got a 5 year old Corolla T-Sport owned the past 2 years and I've had no problems with it whatsoever! I find it much more comfortable than a CTR and there's not that difference in straightline performance. Sure the CTR will outhandle the CTS on the twisty bits but at least you won't suffer from a numb ***** after driving for an hour or so.

Get one!

[Dave567]

I thought the performance seemed a bit slow i thought its going to be the same as the 190 celica. I have had a insurance quote of 450 for the cts and 800 for ctr, i dont think the ctr is that much better to justify the insurance.

For the money i was looking at spending on a ctr i would have to buy it privately and no aircon, but for the same price i can get a cts from a main dealers with alot less miles, makes sense to got for cts and i really like the look off the face lift

[mac12]

Theres a few niggly things like a squeeky clutch, head unit displacement (never had this problem myself), stiff reverse gear (had this once), standard breaks are a bit weak, some running noises that i dont particularly like but overall it's a sound car. Had mine for almost a year and never had to take it to the garage.

0-60 in 8.4 is wrong, it's around 7.2

I thought 0-60 was in the high 6's...

[fisel]

I thought the performance seemed a bit slow i thought its going to be the same as the 190 celica. I have had a insurance quote of 450 for the cts and 800 for ctr, i dont think the ctr is that much better to justify the insurance.

For the money i was looking at spending on a ctr i would have to buy it privately and no aircon, but for the same price i can get a cts from a main dealers with alot less miles, makes sense to got for cts and i really like the look off the face lift

Driving a CTR now a days is almost like driving a Focus, you see one on every corner.

You’ve made a good choice ;)

[fisel]

Theres a few niggly things like a squeeky clutch, head unit displacement (never had this problem myself), stiff reverse gear (had this once), standard breaks are a bit weak, some running noises that i dont particularly like but overall it's a sound car. Had mine for almost a year and never had to take it to the garage.

0-60 in 8.4 is wrong, it's around 7.2

I thought 0-60 was in the high 6's...

The compressor is, havent heard of anyone in an n/a doing a 6. The 7.2 may be 0-62 though but im not sure.

[Ed_Shek]

I think the 0-60 time of 7.2 is abit more realistic seeing as the T-Sport Celica is quoted at this time and there isn't much difference in the weight of the Corolla T-Sport to the Celica T-Sport.

Toyota specced a high time in order to deter sales of the Corolla to the Celica T-Sport at the time.

[borodaz]

welcome dave, i too was in your situation a month or so back and decided to get a CTS.

type r is faster, but not a very big difference, few car lengths. too comon and terrible in the cold/snow

i may be wrong about this but i think the rolla gets more mpg than the CTR (dont know if petrol is a factor for you)

get one and get a cold air intake and you will be laughing :) i still aint got one :(

[Dave567]

Ye i think they are alot rarer and you get the creature comforts like air con which is hard to find on a civic. I think toyota's are really well made so cant see the cts letting me down.Im used to mid 30 mpgs wiv my celica so petrol shouldnt be a problem. Think im going to wait till after xmas and get a facelift cts.

[Dave567]

one question i have is when i was out in the cts i pressed a few buttons by the stereo and it seemed to show average speed etc but i think it was in km/h. can this be chaged to miles as this could be a usefull feature.

[skyliner34]

Yup you can change it. Cant remember exactly now, I think you push the right knob until you get the km/h to flash, then you turn it to change it to miles.

Something like that anyway :)

[tccom]

I thought the performance seemed a bit slow i thought its going to be the same as the 190 celica. I have had a insurance quote of 450 for the cts and 800 for ctr, i dont think the ctr is that much better to justify the insurance.

For the money i was looking at spending on a ctr i would have to buy it privately and no aircon, but for the same price i can get a cts from a main dealers with alot less miles, makes sense to got for cts and i really like the look off the face lift

hi,i was in the same situation my self,got shut of a troublesome astra sri on a 05 plate.then started looking for a replacement.tyre r was to bland inside and to expensive.so i test drove the t-sport compressor and done the deal,its obviously faster than the type r and spec is much better.to be honest iam not useing anymore petrol than i did with the astra,one problem everybody wants to race the compressor.

[MarcTS]

Think im going to wait till after xmas and get a facelift cts.

Just a little bit of advice for you, I went into the dealers on 22nd December (2 years ago now) and because it was the end of the year, they were desperate to shift any car they could. Basically got the car for a grand cheaper than they were being advertised for at the time plus all the little extras like a years tax and full tank etc. Christmas is an excellent time to buy a 2nd hand car as they desperately want rid of them.

[fisel]

Think im going to wait till after xmas and get a facelift cts.

Just a little bit of advice for you, I went into the dealers on 22nd December (2 years ago now) and because it was the end of the year, they were desperate to shift any car they could. Basically got the car for a grand cheaper than they were being advertised for at the time plus all the little extras like a years tax and full tank etc. Christmas is an excellent time to buy a 2nd hand car as they desperately want rid of them.

January is just as good too. People are broke after Christmas, cars still need to be shifted which = price drop. Got mine in Jan for atleast £1500 cheaper than I would have done 6 month later.

[pezman2007]

Hi Guys,

As you've probably noticed I've just joined the forum. I browsed this forum for a day and now decided to join because the people seem really helpful, and i've gained some good info so far.

I too like the topic starter am thinking about buying a Corolla T Sport. Currently I drive a Corsa (no jokes please) and now I basically want something faster, better looking and reliable. I'm pretty sure you'll say the corolla meets my criteria.

However my budget is around 6k - 7k and the model I seem to like is an the 04 one. Can I buy one in this price range? I've been looking on the toyota dealers websites but they seem to cost somewhat more than my intended budget. Do you think its too low? A couple of people mentioned that the dealers slash their prices around Christmas time so i'm hoping this will help me out.

I'm also not sure if its a face lift model though. I'm assuming the lights etc look different from the others? What years do you get the face lift model.

Cheers

Pezman

[MarcTS]

Hi pezman welcome to the forums :)

OK to clear up the pre/facelift model issue, the facelift model was introduced in 04 but I have seen some 04 registered pre-facelift cars before (they were obviously registered late). The easiest was to tell is to look at the front of the car, as the front bumper on the facelift is a complete unit (including the toyota Badge and front grille) whereas the pre-facelift has a seperate grille and logo. Also in england you will never see a 5 door face-lift t-sport as they decided not to continue making them (although everyone else and their mate around the world does).

I'm sure someone will be able to post up some pictures of the 2 to show the differences.

Regarding price, does the 6-7k include the money you'd get for the corsa or not? What I will say is you would be able to pick up a pre-facelift model from a dealer for that money but I doubt they would drop to that for the facelift model. However £7k for a private sale would more than certainly secure you a face-lift t-sport.

Oh and I would recommend the facelift over the pre because it has a few standard extras that were sorely missing on the pre-facelift, such as a front strut, lowered suspension and rain sensing wipers. I also think that out of the box, the face-lift looks a lot nicer (and I own a pre-facelift btw).

Hope my ramblings have been of some use :)

[pezman2007]

Hi pezman welcome to the forums :)

OK to clear up the pre/facelift model issue, the facelift model was introduced in 04 but I have seen some 04 registered pre-facelift cars before (they were obviously registered late). The easiest was to tell is to look at the front of the car, as the front bumper on the facelift is a complete unit (including the toyota badge and front grille) whereas the pre-facelift has a seperate grille and logo. Also in england you will never see a 5 door face-lift t-sport as they decided not to continue making them (although everyone else and their mate around the world does).

I'm sure someone will be able to post up some pictures of the 2 to show the differences.

Regarding price, does the 6-7k include the money you'd get for the corsa or not? What I will say is you would be able to pick up a pre-facelift model from a dealer for that money but I doubt they would drop to that for the facelift model. However £7k for a private sale would more than certainly secure you a face-lift t-sport.

Oh and I would recommend the facelift over the pre because it has a few standard extras that were sorely missing on the pre-facelift, such as a front strut, lowered suspension and rain sensing wipers. I also think that out of the box, the face-lift looks a lot nicer (and I own a pre-facelift btw).

Hope my ramblings have been of some use :)

Hey thanks very much that, its cleared up the facelift part.

Oh and I didn't even think about the Corsa in my budget, so i'll hope to part exchange my corsa (1.7 di) on top of he 6-7k. I wonder if that will be enough for the facelift 04 plate.

I've also noticed that the prices between a CTR and CTS are not too different. Insurance would kill me though!

Do you have any ideas on the kind of miledge I should be expecting for on car of that age? Also someone mentioned the parts for a CTS been expensive, is that case? I always assumed Toyota parts were relatively cheap.

Thanks for your advice.

[Hogie]

Hi pezman welcome to the forums :)

OK to clear up the pre/facelift model issue, the facelift model was introduced in 04 but I have seen some 04 registered pre-facelift cars before (they were obviously registered late). The easiest was to tell is to look at the front of the car, as the front bumper on the facelift is a complete unit (including the toyota badge and front grille) whereas the pre-facelift has a seperate grille and logo. Also in england you will never see a 5 door face-lift t-sport as they decided not to continue making them (although everyone else and their mate around the world does).

I'm sure someone will be able to post up some pictures of the 2 to show the differences.

Regarding price, does the 6-7k include the money you'd get for the corsa or not? What I will say is you would be able to pick up a pre-facelift model from a dealer for that money but I doubt they would drop to that for the facelift model. However £7k for a private sale would more than certainly secure you a face-lift t-sport.

Oh and I would recommend the facelift over the pre because it has a few standard extras that were sorely missing on the pre-facelift, such as a front strut, lowered suspension and rain sensing wipers. I also think that out of the box, the face-lift looks a lot nicer (and I own a pre-facelift btw).

Hope my ramblings have been of some use :)

Hey thanks very much that, its cleared up the facelift part.

Oh and I didn't even think about the Corsa in my budget, so i'll hope to part exchange my corsa (1.7 di) on top of he 6-7k. I wonder if that will be enough for the facelift 04 plate.

I've also noticed that the prices between a CTR and CTS are not too different. Insurance would kill me though!

Do you have any ideas on the kind of miledge I should be expecting for on car of that age? Also someone mentioned the parts for a CTS been expensive, is that case? I always assumed Toyota parts were relatively cheap.

Thanks for your advice.

Parts are expensive. Ill list a few that i know to my misfortune, 800 euro for ac compressor,secondary air injection pump 800 euro, heater matrix for matrix 400 euro and all before labour which is 80 euro an hour in Ireland,convert to pounds lookin bout £1400 for those 3 as just an example. Moral of the story,make sure it all works before you buy!!! I had to have most of dash out today to get to matrix,290 euro,thats to tell me what was wrong,not even fixed cause cant get the part till next wed.

Not cheap cars to fix,although air flow meters competitive enough,170 euro,bout £115 which i think is average enough.

Hope that hasnt put you off!!!

In fairness they are a nice car on long a journey and good on fuel for the bhp,you'll get near as makes no difference to 40 if driven sensible on long runs ,over 300 to a tank normally with the odd 'lift' now and again! :D

[ae102]

Hi pezman welcome to the forums :)

OK to clear up the pre/facelift model issue, the facelift model was introduced in 04 but I have seen some 04 registered pre-facelift cars before (they were obviously registered late). The easiest was to tell is to look at the front of the car, as the front bumper on the facelift is a complete unit (including the toyota badge and front grille) whereas the pre-facelift has a seperate grille and logo. Also in england you will never see a 5 door face-lift t-sport as they decided not to continue making them (although everyone else and their mate around the world does).

I'm sure someone will be able to post up some pictures of the 2 to show the differences.

Regarding price, does the 6-7k include the money you'd get for the corsa or not? What I will say is you would be able to pick up a pre-facelift model from a dealer for that money but I doubt they would drop to that for the facelift model. However £7k for a private sale would more than certainly secure you a face-lift t-sport.

Oh and I would recommend the facelift over the pre because it has a few standard extras that were sorely missing on the pre-facelift, such as a front strut, lowered suspension and rain sensing wipers. I also think that out of the box, the face-lift looks a lot nicer (and I own a pre-facelift btw).

Hope my ramblings have been of some use :)

i got a pre as i think it looks better and it doesnt cost much for a set of springs and a brace. not too keen on the teardrop lights or the grill on the facelift but the facelift has nicer dials. the other thing that put me off the facelift was no thunder grey which to me is the proper t sport colour.

[borodaz]

hey up welcome to forum, ill give my input now :D

about 1-2 month back i got my 04 facelift from a dealer (not toyota), only had 16k on the clock , black , price was £8500 if i remember rightly.

only bad thing was it had a fair few scratches on it (door handles, boot handle) got it for £8000 to cover the price of these scratches, didnt bother getting scratches coverd up as they arnt that noticable. but paint is very thin so expect a few scratches.

if you have 7k plus money back off your corsa, i think u have a good chance of a facelift rolla, when i was looking they were a few on autotrader between 7.5k and 8k but they wernt black and i wanted black.

if you are expecting to drive it hard, using lift very often dont expect good mpg im averaging 25 at the mo, i just cant resist LIFT :D

[pezman2007]

Thanks for the replys,

I really appreciate it.

I'm away for a few weeks so i'm going to start looking properly when I get back.

Over the weekend I spoke to someone with a T-sport and he said its the best thing ever! lol.

He also said the parts were fairly expensive though.

ae102 mentioned that buying springs and braces were cheaper on the pre-facelift, but too be honest i'm not too familar with individual parts in cars. This is something that i'll have to learn.

If I could get a 04 plate TS for about 8k i'd be happy.

Does anyone know how much it costs for set of 17" alloys and does it really affect the performance of the car?

Thanks again

[MarcTS]

Thanks for the replys,

I really appreciate it.

I'm away for a few weeks so i'm going to start looking properly when I get back.

Over the weekend I spoke to someone with a T-sport and he said its the best thing ever! lol.

He also said the parts were fairly expensive though.

ae102 mentioned that buying springs and braces were cheaper on the pre-facelift, but too be honest i'm not too familar with individual parts in cars. This is something that i'll have to learn.

If I could get a 04 plate TS for about 8k i'd be happy.

Does anyone know how much it costs for set of 17" alloys and does it really affect the performance of the car?

Thanks again

Hi again,

Well a strut brace will cost anywhere between £100 and £250 (fitting is very simple and can be done yourself), new springs are ~£150 and will cost the same again (or a bit more) to have fitted. Obviously these are both standard items on the facelift model. As mentioned, you also get a few other extras such as rain sensing wipers, and from what some people have said, you also get a rear strut brace which is situated along the boot liner level, rather than mounted just below the parcel shelf.

I would imagine you could get a pre-facelift for a decent amount less than the facelift version but then you have to take into account, the age and mileage you'd also be buying with the older car.

Moving onto alloys, I bought mine from alloywheels.com. they were 18" with a tyre upgrade and from memory, ended up costing about £850. 17" will generally be cheaper than this but as always it depends on what you are after, and whether you want to keep the standard rubber they supply with the alloys. I wouldn't have thought going to 17s will do too much to the handling, I do notice that on 18s however, that the car "tramlines" a lot more easily.