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Toyota Echo

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Comments

  • kneisl1kneisl1 Member Posts: 1,694

    We have sold my sons ECHO.

    Here are the particulars:

    2000 silver four door bought with 117k on it. Sold with 200k miles after six years. Two trip to Seattle and back from NJ. Paid $3000 sold for $1300. $450 put into it.

    The new owners are taking it to Costa Rica. :'(

    Bye! :'(

  • kreuzerkreuzer Member Posts: 131
    edited June 2014

    I'm not sure if this is the right ECHO blog to post this, but thought this was the most recently viewed blog. I just purchased a 2000 ECHO and have a question regarding removing the sticker decals between the front door and back window (2 door model). Can anyone advise me on the best way to remove these and the sticky glue beneath them? I have removed one so far by taking a hair dryer and peeling the decal off and then using lacquer thinner to remove the glue. This process was time consuming and need to know if there is a more simple way. Any suggestions please? Thanks!

  • kneisl1kneisl1 Member Posts: 1,694

    I think thats the best way to do it. That...or dont remove the sticker at all!

  • kreuzerkreuzer Member Posts: 131

    I ended up using my heat gun on medium setting to peel the sticker off. I then used Goof Off and removed the gummy sticky adhesive. Everything worked out well.

  • kreuzerkreuzer Member Posts: 131

    I do have another question regarding the catalytic converter. I priced the converter and the pipe that runs from the converter to the manifold at Toyota and they wanted $1600.00 for everything. The parts alone was priced at $1200.00! I priced an equivalent part at Autozone and it was only $362.00 and came with a 5 year warranty as opposed to the 1 year warranty from Toyota. Do the after market converters and such work ok or will I continue to have the check engine light stay on? I know the check engine light is also on for the Evap system valve and carbon filter being faulty but understand this really doesn't hurt anything but is a pollution control device. I want to fix this too eventually but will have to wait since this too is an expensive item to repair. Any insight to any of these things from other owners would be appreciated. Thanks!

  • kneisl1kneisl1 Member Posts: 1,694

    Long term I would say go with the Toyota parts if you plan to keep the car a while. But I have no experinence with aftermarket cat stuff. It might be good. Take a look at the parts and use your judgement.

    Good luck and tell us what happens!

  • kreuzerkreuzer Member Posts: 131

    kneisl1, Thanks for your reply. It just seems odd that Autozone would offer a longer warranty if in fact it was inferior to the Toyota part.

  • kneisl1kneisl1 Member Posts: 1,694

    Huh. In that case I would consider the AZ if it looked good...

    I once bought an after market muffler and pipe for $300 and it only lasted a couple of years. The origional lasted ten years...

  • mnmanmnman Member Posts: 36

    I thought fuel emission equipment on cars had a longer warranty than the standard bumper to bumper. I think it was 7 years but that doesn't help you now.

  • kneisl1kneisl1 Member Posts: 1,694
    Yes it does 5 years 60k miles...
  • nippononlynippononly Member Posts: 12,555
    Don't know if kneisl1 is still out there, but if so I wanted to let you know my old '02 Echo 4-door has finally come to the end of the road. I had the car until 162K and then gave it my friend who drove it until 218K without any repairs; unfortunately now both of the front wheel bearings are failing. The shop wants $1600 to replace them with Toyota parts (and plus maintenance like plugs and fluids is now overdue), and after wrestling with it for a day or two he made the decision last night to dump it and go with a newer car (which looks like it will be a used Honda Insight).

    Still, 218K without a single repair is pretty good, it's not every car out there that would deliver that track record!

    For a minute my friend was considering a used Yaris to replace the Echo, but I guess the salesman has wowed him with the hybrid tech the Insight has for about the same price.

    I read an article in the news today that the average age of cars on the road in the U.S. is the highest it has ever been - 11.6 years. This Echo went 14.1 years, so it beat the average. ;-)

    2014 Mini Cooper (stick shift of course), 2016 Camry hybrid, 2009 Outback Sport 5-spd (keeping the stick alive)

  • mnmanmnman Member Posts: 36
    That's unreal, $1600 to replace the bearings! Lol! A mechanic up here did both of mine for $175. My '01 now has 225,000 miles and going strong and using just a little oil now. I change the oil every 6,000 miles with synthetic oil and a good synthetic filter. My goal was to get 300,000 miles out of the car when I bought bought it with 26,000 miles in it and I'm sure I'll get it.
  • mnmanmnman Member Posts: 36
    Oh... I did buy the bearings myself though... so add $50 to that bearing cost.
  • nippononlynippononly Member Posts: 12,555
    Geez, for him the parts alone were about $600 of that as I recall...you got better prices! These cars are amazing, they are the last of the really well-built, last-forever Toyotas I think.

    2014 Mini Cooper (stick shift of course), 2016 Camry hybrid, 2009 Outback Sport 5-spd (keeping the stick alive)

  • mnmanmnman Member Posts: 36
    I don't know if you'll see this after all this time. That $50 bought me good bearings too. I can't recall the name brand but it's 3 letters... and I made the mistake of buying cheaper foreign made bearings and they gave out after only a few thousand miles, terrible! So I did the bearing job twice.
  • mnmanmnman Member Posts: 36
    No ones on here anymore... but I’m still driving my beat up ECHO everyday. It has lots of minor problems that I don’t fix since it’s not worth it but the car is basically sound and the engine runs like it did I when it was new with 254,000 miles on it now but it does use a bit of oil now. I’m hoping I can get a few more years from it and then I might buy another ECHO as there are some with reasonable miles on them available for a very good price it seems.
  • Mr_ShiftrightMr_Shiftright Member Posts: 64,481
    Those were good little cars. I remember helping my friend buy a new one (help with negotiations). He drove that many trouble-free miles. Later he bought a Scion xD.
  • mnmanmnman Member Posts: 36
    Well after 17 years of reliable daily driving my ‘01 Echo finally bit the dust. A suspension part on the front gave way just as I was pulling into my friends service station in out small town and that was the perfect place for it to die as I can leave it there for some time and pull parts off it for my new Echo, a 2002 that’s in great condition as it was a southern car and well taken care of. The old Echo died with 259,000 on the clock and the new one had 198,700 on it when I bought it for $1300 but it runs great and it doesn’t seem to be using any oil so far. The new Echo is a automatic versus my old manual model and it has INTERMITTENT WIPERS! OMFG is that nice! Lol. Drive On!!
  • kyfdxkyfdx Moderator Posts: 236,826
    Good to hear you found another one. That buys you four more years?

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