2003 Toyota Altezza Gita LX 3.0L petrol from Australia and New Zealand

Summary:

My best car yet, especially with the sunroof open

Faults:

Nothing so far.

General Comments:

This is my first performance car, & I didn't realize until I started driving it how much power it had. It is a Japanese import with factory sunroof. A very nice vehicle.

It is a 3 litre, straight 6 AWD wagon with power to boast. Automatic gearbox with manual, sports & snow modes, & heated wing mirrors. I had the car's factory CD unit taken out & replaced with a Pioneer DVD, iPhone & Bluetooth unit. The car also has a Mongoose alarm with immobilizer & GPS tracker. Also had daytime running lights & reverse camera fitted. It sounds like the car's previous sound system had a sub woofer installed, because the music is one of that that 'you can feel'.

Overall this car is more expensive to run, but it has the power to leave other cars behind, & with the muffler being bigger than usual, the car lets out a roar making heads turn. This is a very nice vehicle.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 16th November, 2014

1999 Toyota Altezza RS200 2.0L petrol from Australia and New Zealand

Summary:

Best model sedan Toyota ever made

Faults:

Nothing has gone wrong, but got few minor things done which is part of general maintenance and the previous owner's neglect - listed below:

- Cam belt and water pump as there was no history.

- Fuel cap had a broken spring when I bought it, so got that fixed.

- One roof rubber was missing, now replaced.

- Changed spark plugs to NGK platinum.

General Comments:

Superbly awesome creation by Toyota.

The GOOD!!

- Looks very smart and sharp for its year.

- Enough power from a family/sport sedan (whatever you wanna call it :P).

- One of the best due to most cool stuff provided from the factory.

- Exceptionally nice interior for the time and year. Speedo is like an expensive watch.

- Solid ride and factory shock provides firm ride quality.

- Great handling with rear wheel drive.

- Top reliability.

- Fuel economy is reasonable for what you get out of that engine (Remember: all efficient cars go through lots of tune ups, so more chance for things to go wrong).

- Even over a decade later, it still looks great, and better than many.

- Seating position is great.

- Lots of power when overtaking.

- Very sporty, unlike the smooth AS200 with less power.

The Bad:

- Road noise.

- Leg room at the back can be limited if the driver or front passenger is tall.

- Fuel economy is moderate (not bad really, but OK).

- Tiptonic/Auto shifts gear a wee bit early sometimes.

- Not uncommon to see the boot leaking.

- Factory CD error is also a common fault.

- Not as smooth as an AS200

Overall, it is an amazing car, but it's getting harder to find a decent RS200 due to boy racers trashing them and highly modifying them. Managed to buy one from a girl who had it since it arrived NZ, and the only mod done to it was a TRD exhaust, so I can live with it.

I would highly recommend this car, even though it's old, but if my budget is under or within 10k - I’d get it in a heartbeat, provided it has been kept factory and was not a trashed sample.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 12th March, 2014

17th Mar 2014, 23:35

Agreed. The RS200 is a great car, but all the boy racer / immature drivers are wrecking this car, hence it's very hard to find original. They still hold their value very well. Many selling on Trademe have done close to 300k over 6k.

In reply to 17th Mar 2014, 23:35

16th Jun 2014, 23:05

I think everyone needs to get over this "It's modified, so it's obviously been thrashed" mentality. Yes, some have been thrashed, but I'm 18 with an AS200 (because everyone has a bad outlook on them, because they have less HP, but there's no difference between the 4 and 6 cylinder engines; in fact the 6 cylinder was used in Europe and beat the BMW etc on the European circuits).

But back to the point; I have Tein coilovers, HKS exhaust, K&N filter, Koya wheels. Just the usual upgrades until I have enough money til I can do better mods, and I have never thrashed my car once, never done skids, raced anyone in it, and it's people like you guys that give young people such a bad name. Young people like myself don't have houses and all that to show off, so we do mods to our cars and we take pride in what we do, and all we get is the police and the media targeting us for doing something we love.

In reply to 16th Jun 2014, 23:05

10th Jul 2014, 04:05

You don't represent the "us" called boy racers my friend. Most are trash and it depends on the level of maturity. You are an exceptional good boy and there are few of those type, but anyone who buys one and gets it checked properly can tell which car has been trashed and which hasn't. Most modded cars I test drove were absolutely trashed. After seeing 19, I managed to pick one up from a lady, which was in very good nick. The ones that had cut springs or lowered with mags - all somewhat had the symptoms you get from being trashed. You don't belong to the boy racers type we hate - but good on ya.

In reply to 10th Jul 2014, 04:05

31st Aug 2014, 04:44

Been looking for a decent one for quite some time in NZ. Most have been trashed by young kids or have been owned by them at one stage. I wish those boy racers were attracted to Hondas... At least we would have seen a lot less half dying Hondas on road ha ha.

2nd Jan 2015, 11:13

Nice review to reflect the current situation. Lots of these cars are gotten into the wrong hands and have been totally destroyed. Very sad.