Faults:

I bought this car knowing the throw out bearing in the manual transmission was bad. After changing the clutch and throw out bearing, I also had to change the EGR valve, camshaft sensor, rear tail light sensor, both oxygen sensors, and I gave it a tune up.

The previous owner obviously did not keep up with repairs when things would go bad. So I also changed the timing belt, water pump, and pulleys in said area as part of general maintenance. Wouldn't want to risk said belt breaking when driving the car, since if it does, the head for the engine would need to be rebuilt.

Since then I have had minimal issues with the car. In the past 8 years I've changed the front brakes once, alternator (got a used one), front drive axles, a few brakes lines (rust near Chicago), ball joints (twice), tie rod ends, fuel filler neck (also from rust), changed both brake calipers due to one of them sticking, power steering pump, transmission mount (rust again), and changed out a window motor.

Sounds like a lot, but I've had the car for 8 years and it still runs great. Not to mention I only put around $100 a year into repairs with this thing, since I do all the work myself. Being that the car is a 99, the things mentioned that have gone bad are really not out of the ordinary, and it sure beats having a car payment.

If you ever get one of these cars, just make sure the timing belt has been changed. I can't stress that enough. Take care of your car and it will take care of you.

General Comments:

This car is absolutely awesome! A fun little stick shift that is great on gas and doesn't cost much to maintain. I'd say it's very reliable.

The paint still looks good, and it's fairly rust free considering the brakes lines were pretty rusty underneath when I got the car.

Faults:

Thermostat housing blew apart.

General Comments:

I race this car at least 3 times a week. Go at least 100mph every time and still no problems with the engine. Have had it for about 10 month now.

Faults:

The biggest problem is the power in this car. But what can you expect with a small motor like the one in this car. Obviously accelerations to get on the highway or to pass a truck up a hill is more demanding to the car. But we all knew that before purchasing the car.

The only other problem I got with it was the defrost button... There is a wire that made the air come out at the feet instead of at the top to defrost my windshield faster.

It's also not really reassuring to know that there are very few places to have it repaired though. Because in Canada, there are no more dealers.

General Comments:

The previous owner was in my family so I drive this car since my family member bought it. If I hadn't trusted it, I wouldn't have bought it. It's a 1999 and I plan on keeping it for another year or two.

It drives very well and the only reason I want to change is that because in the long run we don't know how it will react to age. It is not a high class car, we can't expect it to last 15 years!

In our rough winters here the car never let me down. I never had to plug it in to make sure that the next morning it would start. And when it's -40C, I'm glad I can trust my car.

Well treated and taken care of, repairs done regularly, etc. this car can be kept and enjoyed many years and never cost much.