[hserus]

Probably answered several times on the Toyota Corolla mega thread, but that is massive and has multiple conflicting opinions. So here goes.

What is the optimum age / usage for a Corolla or Corolla Altis? The 1.8 petrol not 1.4 diesel as I want a car that's a decent highway cruiser + occasional local ride. I have an Amaze but that gives me horrible back pain on long drives thanks to the seats being thin, narrow and not having an integrated headrest. Probably give that to my wife with a driver

I'm not quite inclined to buy a newer Corolla as I keep hearing horror stories about the old build quality having gone to the dogs (eg: in the Innova Crysta thread). Also - maybe not a 1 lakh ++ km vehicle as a highway cruiser, or is that OK?

Something like a 2012..13 model with under 50k on the clock might be ideal I guess (though I see people saying just buy the older ones, corollas last forever)? What is the sweet spot on price / ease of maintenance and reliability for a corolla?

[ChupaRustam]

- look at the tyres closely and verify the date of manufacturing on them. A set of tyres lasts easily 50K km. If the mileage is correct, the current tyres should have been manufactured 2-4 months prior to the car and should have been fairly well worn out.
- Remember that most companies give warranty of 50K + KMS. In fact most cars, especially such C segment ones, will go 70K Km without major replacements except say tyres/battery changes. My guess is this car could have gone 80K Kms if it is not misused.
- If the mileage is true, then the car probably underwent violent abuse by the owner. Also, so many car components don't need replacement in such a short time.
- Overall I suggest you closely examine the true condition of a car with the help of a mechanic and then decide the price. pay close attention to rest of the components which may be needing changes in short run - these could cost a fortune. Odometers are hilariously easy to manipulate, so not a good indicator.

Personally I would have stayed away from this car. But having said that, every car has some market. Happy car hunting.

Originally Posted by singleton

I am getting a Linea TJet 2012 model in Bangalore for 4.5L (40K driven). Owner seems genuine, and the car looks very well maintained (yet to do mechanic inspection).

Service records says clutch, brake pads, Front suspension, battery changed in the last 1 year. Seems low usage to get this changed - is that normal for Linea Tjet ?

What are the things that I should look out in the Tjet before I close the deal?

Are the service cost very high compared to a ford fiesta petrol (old model which is my current drive) ?

[ChupaRustam]

I suggest follow these steps for Alto:
1. Go to Maruti Truevalue and Mahindra first choice and ask for their quote. Add 25K to it. Let us call this Price A
2. Now go to car sales websites and get the price for a few cars of your variant. reduce 25K from this. Lets call this Price B.
3. Most probable sale price is the average of A and B ie (A+B)/2. here both you and the buyer are in a win-win situation.
Any price between A and B should be fairly possible price. If you are willing to wait out for 3-4 months, you might even get price B if the car feels almost new to drive. But note that most prospective buyers will also haggle to get lowest price. Also a lot of buyers will waste your time by taking test drive followed by lot of questions, but not buying the car eventually.

Note: you might want to consider selling to Maruti or Mahindra guys because it is free of risk and tension free sale. You basically sign a simple receipt and can completely forget about what happens to your car after that. Quite useful if you don't want to worry about the identity of the buyer, transfer of RC, etc, etc.

Originally Posted by dailydriver

As a buyer, I would be extremely happy to get a car of this vintage at any of the aforementioned prices.

As a seller, I would be expecting around ₹2.75lakhs and would happily part with it for ₹2.5lakhs.

Don't let it go for anything less than ₹2.25lakhs. I think even TruValue will easily offer you this price.

[carbookie]

Planning to sell my 2004 Santro - 87000 KM - First owner.
Excellent condition, regularly serviced.

Just thinking how much will the car fetch on resale.

[Geo_Ipe]

Originally Posted by carbookie

Planning to sell my 2004 Santro - 87000 KM - First owner.
Excellent condition, regularly serviced.

Just thinking how much will the car fetch on resale.

Santro's have pretty good resale value from my limited experience. My 2005 Xing with similar mileage got quotes between 1.3 - 1.4 lac.

[rajinibm]

How much can I expect on my Wagon R VXI - May 2014 - odo at 92000 kms . Entire service done as per schedule. All new four tyres ,new battery , timing belt etc changed at 80k. What would be a realistic price to look at. First owner . TN registered.

[dhruvritzed]

Originally Posted by rajinibm

How much can I expect on my Wagon R VXI - May 2014 - odo at 92000 kms . Entire service done as per schedule. All new four tyres ,new battery , timing belt etc changed at 80k. What would be a realistic price to look at. First owner . TN registered.

Around 1.5 Lacs I'd say

[thepilot]

I am interested to buy a 2010 Linea 1.3 MJD Emotion pack run 85k km. Its a first owner vehicle located in Hyderabad. Owner is from the army and car seems well kept.
Full service history checked in showroom and all services were done as per schedule. Vehicle still running on original suspension and Fiat mechanic says its good.
Quoted price is 3.4 lakh. Any pointers on the actual price?
I am planning to quote around 3 lakh.

Mechanic says front alloys wheels have wobble. Wheels may require shimming or replacement.
I went through most of the linea ownership threads. They seem to be well built and reliability seems decent.
1. What are the usual service costs?
2. General parts availability is okay I think (99 rpm). Any other issues?
3. Fiat service quality ?
4. Any niggling issues?
5. Considering a remap. Either Wolf's switchable maps or TOT custom remap. Is it worth?

[jetsetgo08]

Originally Posted by thepilot

I am interested to buy a 2010 Linea 1.3 MJD Emotion pack run 85k km. Its a first owner vehicle located in Hyderabad. Owner is from the army and car seems well kept.

Try quoting around 2.7-2.8L, it should be worth it. But, I doubt the owner would budge considering he maintained the car in mint condition. If the negotiation fails for the first time, ask him for sometime and then revert with a better quote as per your budget/worked math.

[hiren.mistry]

Originally Posted by hserus

I'm not quite inclined to buy a newer Corolla ....

Something like a 2012..13 model with under 50k on the clock might be ideal I guess (though I see people saying just buy the older ones, corollas last forever)? What is the sweet spot on price / ease of maintenance and reliability for a corolla?

Hi there,
That's a very sensible choice. IIRC, the 2012-13 Corolla Altis are the mildly facelifted ones. The petrol has a 6 speed manual too. I've kept this model on my radar too. In Bombay they are going for around 7.5-8.0L price range.
Do keep us posted on what you decide.

Regards

[hserus]

Originally Posted by hiren.mistry

Hi there,
That's a very sensible choice. IIRC, the 2012-13 Corolla Altis are the mildly facelifted ones. The petrol has a 6 speed manual too. I've kept this model on my radar too. In Bombay they are going for around 7.5-8.0L price range.
Do keep us posted on what you decide.

Regards

The trouble is such Corollas are quite rare on the market (unless someone gets a sudden foreign posting and has to sell it). Usual corollas on the market are venerable old antiques with > 1.2 lakh km on the clock.

[hamster]

Planning to sell my 2 year, 4 months old (2015 Feb) Xcent-Petrol-Top End (SX(0)).
26K Kms in ODO and insurance paid till 2018.
I have relocated to Chennai and the car is KA regd. Also, planning to shift to an automatic hence the sale option .
What could be the best price if I have to exchange it in Chennai itself or if I sell it in Bangalore.

[thepilot]

Originally Posted by jetsetgo08

Try quoting around 2.7-2.8L, it should be worth it. But, I doubt the owner would budge considering he maintained the car in mint condition. If the negotiation fails for the first time, ask him for sometime and then revert with a better quote as per your budget/worked math.

Any idea on the niggling issues?
And average maintenance costs?

[hserus]

Originally Posted by hamster

Planning to sell my 2 year, 4 months old (2015 Feb) Xcent-Petrol-Top End (SX(0)).
26K Kms in ODO and insurance paid till 2018.
I have relocated to Chennai and the car is KA regd. Also, planning to shift to an automatic hence the sale option .
What could be the best price if I have to exchange it in Chennai itself or if I sell it in Bangalore.

Keep the xcent, you will lose a lot of money selling it.

People rarely bother you for karnataka numbers in Chennai - unlike the KA cops (which is why I converted my Chennai registered Amaze to a Bangalore number and got the Chennai road tax refunded .. then found myself back in Chennai - so still using the KA registered car there)

Just take the car occasionally over to Bangalore eg to visit relatives etc, once a month or so. You can safely tell a cop stuff like "Sir my family is here and my job is in Bangalore so I keep commuting back and forth). Have a fastag toll sticker so you can show them that instead of toll receipts. As long as your Tamil is good they'll usually accept you're a local and maybe charge a bit more than the going rate in "chai paani" type money

[hamster]

Originally Posted by hserus

Keep the xcent, you will lose a lot of money selling it.

People rarely bother you for karnataka numbers in Chennai - unlike the KA cops

Agreed, have been using it for more than a year now and have never been stopped so far.

Thought of re-registering, but the cost was on a higher side, when enquired with a trustworthy person who has contacts in RTO. Unfortunately, my visits to Bangalore is very infrequent now and also the primary idea was to shift to an automatic for multiple other reasons.