1995 Toyota Paseo 1.5 from Australia and New Zealand

Summary:

Toyota knows how to build reliable, economy cars that run a long time without expensive maintenance

Faults:

Left rear wheel bearings replaced ($160 NZ). Plastic headlamp covers deteriorating a bit so I used a little Jif cream followed by a plastic polish.

General Comments:

Car is ex Japan and is actually branded as a Toyota Cynos. Paid $5,800 NZ (about $4,000 US) in Oct. 2004. Very nice car, 33 to 36 mpg consistently. Fun to drive especially the sport/manual ECT. 11 gallon fuel tank (45 litres) could be a bit bigger. Petrol in NZ is @ $5.30 NZ/gal (Dec. 2005) so fuel economy is really appreciated. Comfy front seats and decent trunk space. Wish it had cruise control.

Previously owned a 1985 Tercel (US) and it ran 13 years (150,000 miles) on just gas, oil & tyres.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 6th December, 2005

1995 Toyota Paseo Juno 1.5 from Australia and New Zealand

Summary:

Great little performer for the money

Faults:

Has a slight oil leak however is not major and not using any oil either.

General Comments:

Going to this car from a twin turbo car, I wasn't expecting too much performance wise, but was surprised with the up and go this little car has.

Being just under 6 foot, I only just fit in the cabin, hit a bump hard enough and I sometimes bump my head on the roof otherwise it's a comfortable vehicle to drive.

As others have mentioned, the back seat is extremely small, primarily due to the low back window, however when buying a coupe, you're not expecting to take many passengers :)

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 5th May, 2005

1995 Toyota Paseo from North America

Summary:

Don't waste your money

Faults:

At first my Paseo seemed to work great. But when it hit closer to 90,000 miles, everything went wrong. My speedometer broke completely and the local Toyota dealer charged me $1000 for a new one, and it took them 2 months to fix it. Shortly afterward my transmission went bad as well. When I try to accelerate quickly, you hear this horrible rattling noise. I haven't gotten this fixed, however, because I'm poor. My ignition has problems also. Sometimes my keys get stuck and don't come out. When this happens I have to turn on the car again and move it a little, and then try to turn it off again, which usually works. Three months ago my air conditioner broke and water started pouring out from underneath the glove compartment, and all over my friend's feet. We were two hours away so we couldn't do anything about it. This was about $150 to fix. After 90,000, Paseo's fall apart.

General Comments:

The backseat is so small. The back window hits my four-foot, 11-inch mom's head. So basically you need to be about four feet tall to fit in the back. Paseo's are horrible in the snow. I get stuck everywhere. They are also incredibly short. When I go through drive-thru's, I have to get on my knees to reach things.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Don't Know

Review Date: 28th February, 2003

5th Jun 2003, 18:55

The fact that a Paseo will fall apart after 90,000 miles is totally not true. I've had mine for 10 years, and it has almost 250,000 miles on it. It still drives like its brand new, and I can still get 100 MPH out of it. No major repairs, no major hassles, no major problems. This car is very reliable and economic, and it handles great with nice top speed. I don't care about the back window being to low, no one ever sits back there.

9th Apr 2008, 07:27

I don't know about the rear seats, or much of anything about a Paseo. I do know the front seats are horrible IMHO. I replaced the driver's seat in my '95 Tercel with one from a Paseo; I've been in constant pain ever since. Your knees sit considerably higher than your rear end in these seats, which cuts off circulation in your legs and is, literally, a pain in the butt. It might be OK for a 100 lb. asian, but not for me.