Celica Forums General Discussion General The hunt for my first car - a Celica

Im searching for my first car and the Celica is my first choice, however, its not easy to find where I am from.

The car will be a daily driven car and it will never see a track. The highest speed limit where Im from is 80km/h - top speed and 1/4 mile times are irrelevant, good acceleration is what I think will make the most fun ride.

The perfect celica in my eyes has a nice paint job preferably in black color, sunroof and gts engine. This is what Im scouting for in the market but it is very hard to find in my country and import is really expensive.

The plan is to supercharge the engine and buy coilovers and tires/rims to lower it some.
New large brake discs, street racing clutch and flywheel will be installed as the original parts wear out and need replacement anyway.
Kamanari body kit will be installed, Im going for a clean look.


My dilemma is its easy to find 1zz-ge engine cars that fits my criteria well, but 2zz-ge cars are rare and expensive. Cheapest one is 26,100$ and it does not have any mods, no stereo and no sunroof. I could easily buy a lotus elise for the cost of that car and some mods..
I love Lotus Elise and wish I could afford one as a second car^^


If I could use a GT car and swap engine, or supercharge it or something similar it would be a nice trade off.

There are many possibilities, what would you do?

Where are you from / where are you searching?

You said, "Cheapest one is 26,100$"
Do you mean "2,610"?
What currency, USD, JPY, EUR dollars?

If in UK, have you tried searching https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=used+cars+europe

Try also asking at these sites:
http://www.celicas.eu - Dutch Celica forum
http://www.tccn.nl - Toyota Celica Club Nederland
http://www.gt4oc.net - UK based Celica GT-Four Owners Club

I really meant 26100 us dollars
The GT 140hp models are much cheaper.

Importing is not practical, the price doubles when importing due to taxes.

Some example cars from my area:
Here is one really expensive GT model (T23 in europe)
http://translate.google.no/translate?sl=no&tl=en&js=n&prev=_t&hl=no&ie=UTF-8&u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.finn.no%2Ffinn%2Fcar%2Fused%2Fobject%3Ffinnkode%3D42795430&act=url

This one looks better - far cheaper giving room in budget for mods, just wish it had a sunroof
http://translate.google.no/translate?hl=no&sl=no&tl=en&u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.finn.no%2Ffinn%2Fcar%2Fused%2Fobject%3Ffinnkode%3D42573151

Will check out those websites later, thanks:)

$26,100 USD is more than the original MSRP (Sticker-price)of $22,335 for a 2000-2005 Celica GTS.

As of today, the current KBB price for a 2005 GTS is about $7,000-$9,000 USD.
http://autos.msn.com/research/vip/pricing.aspx?year=2005&make=Toyota&model=Celica&trimid=100003
And even less for a GT or an older Celica.

What country are you in? Are you are looking up USD prices for a NON-USA location? Are you wanting a vehicle shipped from USA to "Norway" (?), but do not want to import one from USA? I'm confused by what you're asking for.

I actually have not thought about importing from the US, Norway has a really high tax level for fast cars.

Take this example, lets say I want to import a 2005 GTS that costs $7,000 - how much do I have to pay in import tax to my government?

Taxes:
$16.236.15* NOK 98,550,00
+ price of car $7000

And the total cost becomes
$23,236.15

This does not include shipping or NOX emission tax. Or the plane tickets/hotel etc to visit the US and have a look at the car, allthough I could just combine it with a vacation.

I would consider importing if the car if I were desperate, for now Im hoping a decent Celica will appear on the market in Norway


What I wish for is to find a GTS in the Norwegian market that was imported from the US by a previous owner, as far as I know only american GT and GTS have sun roofs.


* source: http://toll.no/templates_TAD/RegistrationTax.aspx?id=79&epslanguage=no&step=3#anchorResult
if you want to try it for yourself, select "Personbil", "2500kg eller mindre", in next step enter price, exact weight of vehicle and horsepower. In NOX emissions just enter "00".

thought Id post an update here,

I just got my drivers licence, havent crashed yet and are still in the market for a Celica!

I drove one a few days ago and I really liked it, apart from the price, 14,259$... Too much for a car in that condition without any particular mods.

Im checking the market daily for the right car. Im looking for a T23 140hp in black color with the oil burning problem fixed. GTS/Tsport/facelift/sunroof models are too expensive or rare around here.


Imports are out of the question, our government tax sports car to heaven and back. In cars with strong engines the taxes outcost the car and shipping itself. Except for on electric cars, which receives subsidies and many benefits. No wonder theres so many tesla cars rolling around here already.