Celica Forums General Discussion General 2001 Celica GT automatic with only 50k miles. YES or NO?

Hey Celicites. I'm new here and have a serious question for you. I found a 2001 Toyota Celica GT Automatic with only 54k on it and a One Owner Carfax. The Carfax also makes it clear that this was someone's baby (they had rotating basic tune-ups every 6 months for 15 years).

Mechanic says he's never seen anything like it. My brother-in-law says that it's a unicorn. Says I'd be crazy not to buy it.

Silver outside and silver grey inside. The car is immaculate inside. Fauz leather seats. Or real leather. Not sure. Clean. No scratches or dings anywhere that I can tell. New tires. No rust either.

So what's the problem?

They are asking north of $6500. Hard to tell if that's fair or not based on the fluctuations of prices out there. Bluebook values it trades in at 2,500 and puts selling price at around 4500-5500.

Yes, I know its an automatic, but my wife doesn't know how to drive manual and I value our mirage too much to try and teach her. :-)

Also, does anyone have any experience driving the Celica with young kids (not as the main car, but when in a pinch?

Curious as to your thoughts.

Hey, welcome.

Looks like you've found a nice one there. Good work. But, you are correct, that asking price is high. Even given the mileage and condition, it's still an old Toyota with an automatic transmission, an engine known to burn oil at higher miles, and doesn't really have anything that sets it apart. From the pictures, it looks like it has pretty much the just a basic spec, nothing special.

Clean, no doubt, but you can do better. Hopefully the owner is willing to negotiate and understands that at the end of the day, nothing makes it too special.

Thanks!

What do you think a good price would be?

For sure! Given the fact that it is the most common spec (auto GT), I would pay $4500 to $5000 max, based only on the information you've provided. You can tell the owner that the routine maintenance is great and that it's appreciated, but at the end of the day, it is just that- routine maintenance. It is a standard expectation of car ownership.

But if you do get it, you very well may have the cleanest example stock Celica in the world to be honest lol.