Celica Forums General Discussion General New Celica owner/member, requesting suggestions

Just bought a silver 2002 Celica GT-S (automatic, yeah I know, boring) in near immaculate condition with 41,000 miles. Some millionaire died and the dealership bought it from his estate in near pristine condition; the only thing that needs replacing is the struts for the hatchback. The dealer needs another week to get the car ready; changing all fluids, emissions check and paperwork.

Anyway, I'm planning on replacing things as soon as I get the keys next weekend. First on my mind is the stereo, the speakers, and installing a rear-view camera. Since I'm new, I'm requesting suggestions of stuff you recommend. Please note that I'm on a budget; I can't buy a $700 stereo and etc, and truth be told, I'm new to cars because I'm from New York City; bought my first car (2006 Acura TSX) 8 months ago. Please forgive my inexperience. I do plan to keep this car for the rest of my life.

So far, the gear I'm CURRENTLY looking at is:

Boss Audio BV755B (this particular one does not come with camera)
JPP Embedded Rear-View Camera
Kicker 43DSC6504 6 1/2" speakers

I want to replace the radio antenna, but not sure which to get. Additionally, I'm interested in putting a screen in the aux compartment above the stereo, but I'm not sure of its dimensions. Lastly (for now), I'm interested in getting a wood dash kit; I loved it in my Acura and want to replicate that for the Celica; please recommend a good kit.

Any help and/or suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thank you all very much for your time!

First of all, automatic or not, you hit it big with only 40,000 miles! Congrats! I myself am looking for a radio replacement.I’m thinking more of a Walmart brand honestly lol

You got a very good deal.

The OEM rear hatch struts from dealer cost about $300 a pair but they kept going weak and failing after 2 or 3 years. I kept replacing them.

I bought a pair on eBay for $14, installed them in Jan 2020. 18 months later they are stronger than OEM struts and are holding up better:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/171927147788

I have a 2002 GTS auto 330K miles hard driving with lots of neglects and abuses. I still routinely cruise at triple digit on long trips every week. Car still runs smooth and strong, everything works.

I just replaced the squeaking rear 2 bearings and front McPherson strut myself with a spring compression tool borrowed from O'Reilly. It took about 4 hours to figure out how to work the spring compression, but I got it done. That was the hardest repair job I 've ever done on any of my cars.

The Celica GTS is so much fun to drive and so reliable and versatile, It should last the rest of my life and I wanna keep it..

Very jealous that you found such a low mileage 2002 GTS. I have a 2002 Celica, but it’s just a GT, not a GTS. And I thought I was doing great to find a 2002 with just 119k miles.

So far the only mods I’ve done are a new BOSS stereo, and a steering wheel cover. Not sure I would have bought the BOSS if I’d been able to play with it first. It’s a 100% touch screen and not the most responsive. Makes it a pain when you’re trying to crank the volume,