Toyota Celica Review - The Last Economic Sports Car

[@SpreadEagleRL]

I bought my Celica in 2001 and still have it. It will surely survive me.

[@ianinkster2261]

How many miles/

[@SpreadEagleRL]

@@ianinkster2261 287 000 km

[@KyushaStyleTuning]

I have gen 7 celica as a daily driver. It's a very underrated car. Reliable. Great fuel economy and excellent handling.

[@FinalFlashhGaming]

is the oil thing true? I just got a 04 celica automatic last week, changed the oil right away with full synthetic and was curious how long that would last me

[@KyushaStyleTuning]

@@FinalFlashhGaming The pre 02 1zz had the oil burning issue. Toyota fixed it in the later models I don't believe the 2zz had any issues at all. I've got a 04 1zz and haven't had any issues. regular maintenance and checks is the key. Im at nearly 200k miles.😛

[@nicojuro]

@@FinalFlashhGaming Hows yours holding up a year later? 230k mile 1zz 02 owne here, and she sips oil but the engine still healthy

[@FinalFlashhGaming]

@@nicojuro same here actually, approaching 200k. Funny enough she burns through 1 quart every 1k miles, so not a big deal. Also this engine is TOUGH. Put a cold air intake in the wheel well, drove it through about a foot of water during a down pour that caught me off guard after work, made the engine break down after a mile. Thought it was done for but she started up after 2 days and I was able to drive it to a hobby shop were I gave it a triple oil change, fuel cleaner, and shot the water out of the spark plugs ports. She runs as if that never happened now which is amazing for having water go into the engine. Old Toyotas are just enduring lol.

[@nicojuro]

@@FinalFlashhGaming Thats so nice to hear. I love these old machines. Went out and did some cleaning in mine today since it was a nice day out. This thing might just outlive me!

[@theninethrees8044]

This Celica was the sleekest cheap sports coupe you could buy at the time. Its a unique look with an underrated 2ZZ engine.

[@cogitationescaecae1125]

2zz wasn't any good

[@theninethrees8044]

@@cogitationescaecae1125 You don’t have any experience with a 2ZZ then. It revs higher than most Civic Si’s and has a higher compression ratio than the K series.

[@cryaesthetic3603]

​@@cogitationescaecae1125the 2zz was a fantastic little engine, problem was people overloading them causing oil starvation and morons money shifting them and putting the engine at like 10k rom which was easily fixed by replacing the oil pan with the one from the 1zz (Which is also a brilliant little engine!!) And not shifting like a muppet

[@hobbymanx9200]

And that’s still accurate to this day

[@aptkeyboard3173]

My 2003 Celica GT-S stickered for $25k, accounting for inflation that amounts to $43,659 today. Really not so cheap

[@BlackLines]

I have a 2004 Celica, just the 143bhp 1ZZ version - but I really enjoy driving it. It's lowered 30mm which helps the handling and while it doesn't have the power of my daily (Audi A6 3.0 TDI V6 stage 1 w/ 295bhp) it's a lot more fun and involving to drive on the twisty roads. I agree they're underrated little things.

[@rushnerd]

Pretty much any Toyota is not going to have the power of a luxury performance German car such as the Audi, but you can bet your life on it being cheap and easy to work on and outliving them all haha!

[@atom608]

as a GTS owner the 2zz version should of came lowered. Even with bigger rims/wheels it still sits a lil bit too high stock. Next mod for me is slightly lower stiffer springs which should help the high speed corner sketchyness since it gets unsettled if you go around corners 140kmph+ with a slightly bumpy road

[@rushnerd]

@@atom608 Well they did give the TRD a very mild lower, but you're absolutely right, the rear end sits up way too high and you end up with horrible fender gaps. Mine is actually just fine in the front which I assume means the springs up there are tired and sunken in. My plan is to get KYB struts and TEIN H springs. They only lower an inch, but it shouldn't ruin the ride quality and SHOULD level out the car so it doesn't look as awful as it does right now. Just put 17" wheels and 225/40 tires on, they look pretty huge for the car lol, especially in the back, but I love the look. That and a plain silver upper grill made a huge difference.

[@NoReply28]

@@rushnerd You need to do more research on Toyota dude... There a handful of Toyota that outperform Audi.

[@rushnerd]

@@NoReply28 I meant more Toyota than Lexus. They are rather conservative on their stock numbers either way. Of course some of the engines are built so well that you can easily extract a monster amount of power out of some of them. I also mentioned German lux cars in general. Lexus does NOT go down the path that benz does with the crazy power figures and massive engines. Correct me if I'm wrong, I'm no expert.

[@123PSPs]

I've owned my 2zz Celica for 12 years , never has let me down.

[@vladixpp]

Got a gts as a project car! Owned a 1zz corolla but any recommendations for taking care of a 2zz with 6 speed

[@rushnerd]

Really glad to hear that, Prodigious. I just bought my 01' GT-S last week. Any tips for a new owner? I've already bought new lift bolts and plan to do the valve gasket as well among other LED things. People seem to try to scare people off the 2ZZ, but getting with the community, I have found most issues to be false and very good maintenance should see these beautiful cars last for a VERY long time.

[@DimoS...]

@rushnerd full synthetic oil 0w40 5w40 5w50 if go often in 8.000+ rpm and protects camshaft wear Fluid change with gl4 I use mt90 75w90 redline full synthetic too Bkr6eix-11 or Bkr7eix-11 iridium spark plugs Toyota pink coolant every 5 years Good warm up in engine before hit the gas Check the compression psi in the cylinders should be 175-205 psi Generally the 2zzge and generally this cars is very reliable mate

[@rushnerd]

​@@DimoS... Thanks, Dimos! I"ll keep Red Line (50304) MT-90 75W-90 GL-4 in mind for flushing the trans fluid, but I know you need a lot of fluid to do that so not sure how cost effective it will be? The coolant in it is already pink/red, I assume it's Toyota, So I'll stick with that. My bottle of Asian PEAK coolant is green so probably best to go with Toyota, just like my Supra had. I plan to get her condensation issue taken care of, all her motor mounts, and the liftbolt extraction done as soon as I can. It will probably total half the value of the car, but these babies need to be taken care of!

[@arcanevoid9199]

@@rushnerd you only need 2.3 litres to change the gearbox oil (dont need to flush), and yea only use pink or red coolant in it. also recommended flushing the power steering fluid as no one seems to know about it, redline power steering fluid is the best option for it

[@eemeli6706]

i really cant think of another sports car that is as reliable, cheap and practical while being fun to drive and good looking

[@Losgarrotales4520]

Civic mb6 b18 muy superior en cualquier aspecto y más barato incluso en mantenimiento muy superior en fiabilidad y prestaciones y también muy superior en poder sacarle potencia y agradecido cosas que el 2zzge no puede si eso es una basura

[@rushnerd]

Just bought a 01' GT-S with 140K miles last week. My only reference points are my current 94' Camry and 88' Supra compared to it. What an amazing LITTLE car. Makes others seem like giants. Yeah it's honestly a lot cheaper inside and I can see where they cut costs, but despite it all, I'm extremely happy with the car. I bought it almost KNOWING the GT-S was a major problem that needed a ton of work to NOT blow up, but it's completely untrue. With proper maintenance , this baby will last as long as a Camry while being X3 as fun. I love this car.

[@captainjosue]

This is by far the funnest car I have ever driven. Now, I own 2 Celicas and love them!!!!

[@teme5529]

Heck, it's so much fun. You're right! I drive a Celica T-Sport, runs on Ethanol. 190Nm and 192hp from that spicy 1.8 litre feels good, that's plenty for a lightweight car!

[@josebriseno4670]

Toyota Needs to Bring it back like this.

[@Vexonia_Music]

I got a 2000 GT-S at 50k Miles and I absolutely love the thing. I got it to learn how to drive Manual and it was a great car to learn on. Have had to do some work on it and have put on 10K miles since getting it but it's been extremely rewarding. I'm keeping the thing till either it dies or I die (and hopefully not at the same time LOL)

[@rushnerd]

So while the problem years for this Celica are 00-02', as far as I can tell, the GT-S model does NOT suffer from the oil burn. Mine at 142K miles certainly does not. Unfortunately during these years of GT-S, the liftbolts witch actually give you the trademark GT-S valve lift at 6.2K RPM and beyond break and mine were. Was about $1,000 to fix that, but she is all sorted now and hitting valve lift is absolutely mind bending. After lowering her, changing out all the lights/wheels/tires/suspension it's an extremely impressive car even today. And it sure as hell looks better than most.

[@veroyoung6194]

Nice video! I have a 5th gen GTI and before that I had a 1zz 7th gen, both great cards.

[@Al8lack]

The 2ZZ doesn't burn oil, that issue only affects the 1ZZ.

[@drivecore2021]

Yes, I believe you're right!

[@idkman886]

Nope lol 2zz run through oil too lol

[@Al8lack]

@@idkman886 I've owned a 2ZZ Celica for 18 years now, and never had to top up the oil even once. Love the car and the engine, and have no intention of ever getting rid However, I also had a Corrola with the 1ZZ (in the end I swapped it for a Civic), and that lasted only 7 years before the engine began to drink oil. Just saying, that's my personal experience of the 2 engines.

[@idkman886]

@@Al8lack you may be lucky cause in my experience theyve always been firsty af lol, I've got a celica 2zzmodel my brother has had 2 corolla sportivos (has A 2zzge) in it aswell and my 2 best mates also both have sportivos lol and I can confirm all of us are regularly topping up oil lmao.

[@Al8lack]

Sounds like I have been lucky! Still amazing engines. 18 years on and 'lift' still makes me grin like a lunatic!

[@mancubus_gaming3411]

I have a 2003 gt. Love it! She comes Alive at 3k rpm’s

[@SnubBarracuda]

I'd love to see the Celica come back strong maybe in a GR form with a couple of Yamaha electric motors in the rear making it an AWD monster.

[@hobbymanx9200]

The new CEO once mentioned that before. He was looking forward to bringing it back during his tenure.

[@SafeerJ]

I had a '92 GT-S with the 5S-FE and a 2000 GT-S with the 2ZZ. I miss those cars. The 2ZZ was such a lively engine.

[@carringtonpageiv6210]

ive had a lil 2002 GT for about a year and some change now! watching videos to stop me from buying another car and appreciate my current one more and it definitely has! also, mine has the automatic lights but they never turn off if its night so its like lol. also the back works for most people if the person in front is under 5'10" i found. also, ive had people just about slam their heads into that back glass when going over potholes. crazy tbh. if i feel like going down the parkway and my partner wants to go w me along w a friend they can both go in comfort if the friend lays down in the back and the have a pillow for the bucket seats. also mine doesnt burn oil so knock on wood

[@atrothe]

Change your rear shocks man. They do not normally slam people into the roof even on the roughest roads here in Australia. Get your shock absorbers checked.

[@raymondlim-gz9hl]

I have a 2001 zr bought new. It is now 22 years. Never had any mechanical fault.

[@peterm1033]

I bought a new Celica Red back in 2004 and sold it in 2018 and despite 136k miles on the clock everything still worked. Brakes were never good enough (reinforced brake hoses to the front helped a lot) for the car but that really was my only complaint

[@TDF2004]

I want to get one as my first car, don't really care about the passengers space, but as long as it's possible to fit 4 people should be good. I wanna do some rally mods to it aswell, and do a kind of safari/rally build.

[@byrondutel1439]

I have a generation 7 like in the video, it has 117,000 miles and runs great. It has never used oil, I just put new tires on it so I'm ready to run more miles on it. Also its black and shines and still turns heads.

[@XurikenCreador]

7th are just perfect, I'll never sold mine

[@magmatri-studios]

Technically the last economic sports car would be either the Tiburon or the Eclipse (if it counts) as they went on to 2008 and 2011 respectively.

[@drivecore2021]

You're right. Those do count as economic and yet were still decent vehicles. They just didn't get the spotlight like the Celica did.

[@magmatri-studios]

​@@drivecore2021 It's really interesting how that entire segment of cars just vanished in a couple years. We went from having the Celica, Tiburon, RSX, Eclipse, Prelude, Ford Puma, and all sorts of cars like that to none now. The BRZ/GR86 is the closest thing and you could say they're better, but they are still missing a couple things like those massive trunks the FWD Sporty Coupes used to have. I actually have a 2008 Tiburon still, we've taken good care of it, and it's a lot of fun to drive. My dad had bought it new back in 2009 for a good bit less than MSRP.

[@drivecore2021]

I have driven a Tiburon before with the 2.0L and manual. It wasn't a bad vehicle for the price. Maybe I'll get to review one someday.

[@j.alonsogonzalez277]

I’m rebuilding a 2000 GTS with 109k miles ;) looking great!

[@gtcelica5164]

Only 1zz celica been awarded in magazines and regarded as best handling fwd sportscar ever. 4wd celicas are overrated, they didn't beat the competition, evo, sti. While 1zz celica defeated its competition (integra dc5 type s,r) on track like ebisu and other japanese tracks. You can find it online, test by keiichi tsuchiya and best motoring. 1zz model is most reliable platform of all celicas ever, and its best platform for turbo builds. Even scotty kilmer said that 1zz is best zz engine for reliability. Why kids are so toxic about overrated 90s cars and hate on anything 2000s. How is this car still underrated idk...

[@arcanevoid9199]

where is the source for any of this? only people with 1zz have to come up with stuff like this, 2zzge is a much better engine

[@rushnerd]

I'm pretty sure you meant the 2ZZ. It was incredible for the time and REALLY leans into speed with the valve lift. It's the one you really want in these cars and is totally a track car.

[@9392388886]

This is the best comprehensive review available on KZbin to date. Loved it. Just one suggestion, while measuring the seating comfort, its better to specify your height so that it would be easier for us to speculate how it would be for us. Awesome video.

[@drivecore2021]

Thanks for the lovely comment. Yes, I may have forgotten to mention that part 😅

[@atrothe]

My Celica has done 340k kilometres and drives like new. It is a fantastic car. It had everything you need. Air conditioning cruise control. I like the interior it has no sun damage despite being parked outside year round. Handling is fantastic. 6 speed manual feels great. Super light clutch. Easy to get in out of the front seats. Rides beautifully on even the roughest roads.

[@DimoS...]

2zzge? Or 1zzfe?

[@joshuaw9610]

I bought a 2002 Celica SX with only 106,500km on it just last week! It’s such a fun car to drive

[@drivecore2021]

Wow! I bet it's in mint shape. Take good care of it!! 😃

[@forza3212]

where are you in australia?

[@joshuaw9610]

@@forza3212 brisbane :)

[@izzacdagoon]

I bought my 01 celica gt for $200 it has over 200k in miles but still runs like a champ

[@cyberswiper6317]

I have a 2004 celica with only 27,000 miles I plan to keep it going until petrol is no longer used anymore…

[@rushnerd]

Can't imagine HOW you found that, but I'm really curious about the price. My 02' GT-S at 142K was one of the lowest I could find.

[@rumcoke9123]

Just bought a 2003 Celica. Payed 4000 CAD. Car had 130k kms, and never winter driven. id say almost perfect condition. I have to say, the look is still very modern and a head turner...oh...its a manual transmition!!

[@j.wllls_]

Bro that is so good, what a deal

[@rumcoke9123]

small caveat.,..it was my brother who sold it to me, so it was below market.

[@Knightlord1]

When you said it doesn't have automatic headlights you'd be wrong. My headlights on my Celica always turn on automatically when it's dark enough.

[@rushnerd]

Yeah, I've never owned a car so far that did that! I noticed the huge light sensor in the dash (which is too bad, because they made the defrosting vents quite small probably to save costs, but it ends where the sensor is.) It's a cool feature even though I'm used to doing everything manually on a car. Not sure if they shut off automatically though, maybe just in auto mode. Freakin' love this car.

[@dinono10]

Are you sure about that? Because the dash lights up automatically . This fooled me when I first bought the car and was driving home in the dark on the motorway and everyone was flashing me. Turns out I hadn't actually turned the headlights on, but because the dashboard was lit up automatically I thought the lights had also come on which they haven't. It is standard in every celica

[@rushnerd]

@@dinono10 Yeah, when you put it in drive at night, the headlights come on. I always just turn them on anyway, especially because I have HIDs and they need to warm up a bit.

[@bonzai4159]

Love those cars

[@static_Tricolor_camry]

The side view always impresses me with the Rear quarter panel window and door, it's long and looks like what a coupe should look like. I'm gonna be buying another car for a Winter beater and as a secondary car. My choice is an 04-05 Celica GT-S, or an 03-08 Corolla with a Manual Transmission.

[@richardgarrison986]

I have a 1997 GT 2 2 ltr, , 5 speed, Fiesta Blue, 103k miles, Celica, original owner. Getting ready to sell, at shop new struts and power steering pump.

[@kevinjones3900]

If you want a fwd car if you want 4wd car if you want rwd car Toyota catering for all . If you want 4wd and rwd and you choose Honda you have to make it yourself.

[@chrisprice4658]

It's extremely hard to find a good looking coupé that is cheap, economical, and functional ....... One day Toyota will make it rwb....! 💜💙

[@ianjenkins4641]

What about the GT86!?

[@techhpro]

It's uglier than the 7th gen Celica in my opinion.

[@tonyaulet7220]

Bring it back with a 100% Japanese made motor, not a BMW or a Subaru.

[@thekrimsonchin6023]

You know that's physically impossible, however we can hope.

[@shinobusensui9395]

Bring it back, but nobody buys it... Consumers are actually the problem. They want a utility more than an experience

[@Wolfen_Argent]

Subaru is Japanese…😂

[@jmlalbalooshi6726]

proud owner of 2 celicas,😎

[@tyreksimmons4167]

I have a 2000 toyota celica gts with the 6 speed manual. I can atest to its amazing fuel economy as i can get 300+ miles of range on 93 octane while usually revving 2.5 to 3 thousand rpm. I i drove more fuel efficiently (via skipping gears) i could muster mabey 350 max.

[@kotymccallister5150]

The 2zz wasn't an oil burner. The 1zz had really small oil drain holes under the oil control ring on the pistons. That's the root cause of the oil burning

[@rushnerd]

It's true. The misinformation around the GT-S is enough for people to be scared away from it as I initially was with the whole oil sump g-force thing. It's really a non-issue and they are incredibly well made engines/cars.

[@kotymccallister5150]

@@rushnerd the oil pan thing for the GTS is kinda true though. You take a corner hard enough in lift and there goes your engine. They're fragile little bulletproof engines. A fraction of a second of oil starvation kills them. To be fair though, taking really hard turns at high rpm can kill any engine. Fairly positive that's what did my h23 prelude in

[@kotymccallister5150]

@@rushnerd but it's not as big a deal as everyone makes it. Just throw the 1zz oil pan on and it fixes the problem. Other than that you can literally beat on these engines all day and they'll laugh at you

[@razor6031tv]

Just flush your engine and use correct oils they just stop burning oil. I have one celica and this is how I fixed this problem, oil burning never come back to this day ( castrol 5w30 synethic start stop ) before this i used half synetic castrol magnetic10w40. Dont forget to warm up engine before driving on high rpm and give her sometimes some revs thats keeping this engines healty too

[@arcanevoid9199]

may have worked for you but flushing your engine and using different oils isnt going to fix the piston design flaw

[@razor6031tv]

@@arcanevoid9199? The issue are clagged drain holes in Pistols. Its easy to remove sometimes

[@arcanevoid9199]

@@razor6031tv thats still a temporary fix, there is a reason toyota updated the piston and rings for the 1zzfe

[@razor6031tv]

@@arcanevoid9199 Yes but there is no many Celica for sale in the world we didnt have much choice 😁

[@smalltownMainer]

i have had a few vehicles, one of them being an 01 celica gt stick shift. but my current car is the 2012 sonic hatch with the 1.8l 5 sp stick. i prefer the sonic.

[@phollow174]

Well well I still have my 00 Celica GTS with 148K miles but now i drive a German M6 gas guzzler most of the time now:((

[@TheMuzikall]

If you look closely at the LFA it looks like an enlarged bespoke Celica

[@shadowsgaming125]

I have a 415k km 1zz celica on LPG and it works great :)

[@j.wllls_]

Wow that's some kms to it, does it still run perfectly fine?

[@shadowsgaming125]

@@j.wllls_ pretty much, just a P0420 from the catalytic converter that I'm changing this week and a small power steering fluid leak, but otherwise I put 5k on it and didn't have any issues at all

[@TimBorg]

I agree this is the best sports car ever made

[@rekviemforadreamer2738]

100% true!!

[@TimBorg]

I have a series of videos about this Celica on my channel too

[@techhpro]

Best looking bodystyle except for lambos.

[@omarawilson2853]

Great review. I own a GT myself

[@drivecore2021]

Thanks! It's a great little car. I hope it lasts you a long time 😃

[@alexvieira7945]

I love my 2zz ge .. With 225k miles.. Ill drive it until it dies.

[@JooshDontKnow]

honestly i kinda want people to sleep on these to keep them cheap. i don't want the idiots of the JDM community to pick these up and destroy them. we're already down one bc of a honda that caused my accident in July.

[@benmarley3086]

I want one but I’m poor :( so it will have to wait until 2024 probably (I’m 18 years old new driver so insurance is kinda insane even for my 1.2L which does only 69HP. £2000 for the whole year ☠️ But when I do get enough money I’ll possibly get this or a 6th gen

[@rushnerd]

You'll get there. I hear the GT's in UK are WAY cheaper than over here. I paid $7,500 for my 142K GT-S, but with the payment plan it's more like $10K and it needed $1,440 work on top of that. You should easily be able to pick up a high miles GT one at a fair price and it's a great first car.

[@johntate5050]

6:03 Good review but one criticism. Instead of looking at your face, it'd be better to be looking at the car. We want to hear your voice but we want to look at the car. Thanks.

[@Jekker1435]

toyota is revving the celica line

[@petrselic3235]

Poor Celica on those steelies😵‍💫

[@biyrx]

its the exact same as the 2000 celica

[@kalucity309]

Owner of both 1zz and 2zz......still have no interest in any other car

[@raymondgreen5261]

I have got a t sports. Don 220000.2004 lovely car 👍

[@DMEBiller]

Not pronounced Sa-LEEK-ah. Correct pronunciation is CELL-uh-kah :)

[@irishredcrypto]

You could have found a better example 😅

[@MrLukaszcu]

6 speed transmission..

[@morrisgavhure176]

Scotty Kilmer 😂

[@rushnerd]

Scotty would have a freakin' heart attack if you rolled up with a GT-S in front of him lol.

[@josesantiagomaldonado5657]

Yo tuve el gts rojo en el 2001 6 speed y ahora tengo uno gt gris aut. Y uno negro std... Son muy buenos y económicos

[@Losgarrotales4520]

El último deportivo económico menuda estupidez el Hyundai es igual entonces

[@meta0269]

You'd think you'd clean the interior before filming it, its filthy.

[@drivecore2021]

Believe me, it was much worse 😆

[@OkiNaWaa]

Worst Celica imo

[@teme5529]

Still faster than the heavier AWD on dry roads, its the most fun I've ever had. I found it meh too until I drove one.

[@rushnerd]

In America? No sir. The fancy turbo or AWD Celicas are for Euro or Japan only. The 2ZZ Celica is the best you are going to get ever. Look, I was on the fence about the last gen Celica too, but IMO it's pretty much a brand new car and one Toyota doesn't make anymore, it's seriously a reliable gem that's EXTREMELY fun to drive with power to back it up.

[@teme5529]

@@rushnerd Yes, well to be honest, I had my doubts too. But once I drove it in real life, I realised what the car is about.

[@gtcelica5164]

Only 1zz celica been awarded in magazines and regarded as best handling fwd sportscar ever, wtf you talking about? Best celica ever for corners = 1zz celica. 4wd celicas are overrated, they didn't beat the competition, evo, sti. While 1zz celica defeated its competition (integra dc5 type s,r) on track like ebisu and other japanese tracks. You can find it online, test by keiichi tsuchiya and best motoring. 1zz model is best platform and most reliable platform of all celicas ever, and its best platform for turbo builds. Why kids are so toxic about overrated 90s cars and hate on anything 2000s. Your opinion is wrong.

[@onvamdimon2224]

You wrong.