Buying A Vvti, Advice Please

[tuxy]

I have been looking at buying a gen 7 vvti celica. I don't have a lot of cash to spend so it will probably have to be a pre-facelift model.

The thing is I have been reading here about the oil consumption problem with this model.

What should I do when looking at cars, how can I tell if it has this problem?

[gazbrown]

I have been looking at buying a gen 7 vvti celica. I don't have a lot of cash to spend so it will probably have to be a pre-facelift model.

The thing is I have been reading here about the oil consumption problem with this model.

What should I do when looking at cars, how can I tell if it has this problem?

I own a pre facelift model with a bad oil consumption and have just had to buy a new catalytic convertor as the engine was throwing so much oil down the exhaust it destroyed it. Mr T wants £750 just for the part. So my advice to you is don't do it. I'm sure alot of people will disagree with me on this but is it really worth the chance and a £1000 bill for a new engine ??

If you are going to go ahead with it then things to look for are a full service history, any smoke coming from the exhaust and on the MOT emission slip look for a high levels i.e close to the allowed limit, in particular hydrocarbons. All of these ar signs of oil burning. The only way to know for sure is to a compression test. Its a quick and simple test which will take about 20 min and you can even buy a compression gauge from eBay for about £10. Check out the attachment below on how to perfrom the test (sorry about the quality but if you zoom in you can read it ok).

Not sure if anyone will allow you to perfrom this test on their car tho. You will have a better chance at a garage than a private seller.

Hope this helps and if you do go for one then good luck as they are a fantastic car, just wish i had a post facelift model

[fazzer]

I have been looking at buying a gen 7 vvti celica. I don't have a lot of cash to spend so it will probably have to be a pre-facelift model.

The thing is I have been reading here about the oil consumption problem with this model.

What should I do when looking at cars, how can I tell if it has this problem?

I own a pre facelift model with a bad oil consumption and have just had to buy a new catalytic convertor as the engine was throwing so much oil down the exhaust it destroyed it. Mr T wants £750 just for the part. So my advice to you is don't do it. I'm sure alot of people will disagree with me on this but is it really worth the chance and a £1000 bill for a new engine ??

If you are going to go ahead with it then things to look for are a full service history, any smoke coming from the exhaust and on the MOT emission slip look for a high levels i.e close to the allowed limit, in particular hydrocarbons. All of these ar signs of oil burning. The only way to know for sure is to a compression test. Its a quick and simple test which will take about 20 min and you can even buy a compression gauge from eBay for about £10. Check out the attachment below on how to perfrom the test (sorry about the quality but if you zoom in you can read it ok).

Not sure if anyone will allow you to perfrom this test on their car tho. You will have a better chance at a garage than a private seller.

Hope this helps and if you do go for one then good luck as they are a fantastic car, just wish i had a post facelift model

pm me mate i have 2 for sale,definetly no oil consumption problem here,both engines have been stripped and rebuilt by toyota specialist,will have many trouble free years with these babys

[tuxy]

Thanks for the advice Baz. Yes I was starting to think it's not worth the risk.

Do the early VVTL-I models have the same problem I might be able to stretch my budget to get one of them.

By the way fazzer I live in Ireland so it's probably not worth the hassle of shipping.

[gazbrown]

Thanks for the advice Baz. Yes I was starting to think it's not worth the risk.

Do the early VVTL-I models have the same problem I might be able to stretch my budget to get one of them.

By the way fazzer I live in Ireland so it's probably not worth the hassle of shipping.

As far as i'm aware the 190's are problem free as it a totally different engine. if you can afford one then go for it as it a much better car. the 140 is a little flat to be honest.

[fazzer]

yes the 190s are free from this problem

[ollieatkins1988]

Theres plenty of threads with lost of info on what to do. The oil consumption problem seems to occur with people at around 60 - 65 thousand miles and its the pistons being crappy which cause the problem as they become mishapen. Theres not much you can do but aim for a facelift model.2003 celica should be a good enough price depending on what your budget is. Dont take the risk cause after a month im still 850 quid down and when it comes to selling it il have to show that there is a different engine number. Wait or save :)

[ae102]

yes the 190s are free from this problem

no there not - plenty of VVTL-i's have had a new block replaced by Toyota and many have had complete engines changed after out of warranty. You must be a car salesmen ;)

[tuxy]

Maybe I should look for a celica that has had an engine change by Toyota?

[edwardio]

I've got an 02 plate pre-facelift. Mine's got no signs of the oil problem and it's done 80k. So if you could afford to buy one that's as close to the facelift as possible, you should be ok. So an 02 or 52 would be the minimum to go for.