Hi Would like to hear from anyone who has owned these cars over the years, especially ones with very high mileage on them and their experiences....

I can only relate my experience. I have owned a '93, an '00, and a '02 and will be looking for another in the next 9 months. I would still have that 93 if my son wouldn't have wrecked it. I believe 98's and below have the timing belt that should be changed at 90K. If you live in the north where the roads are full of "obstacles", you can bet that the higher milage cars will have ball joint issues and possibly bearing hub issues. It's a small car and these parts are not very robust. I have never had to change a half shaft. The exhaust should last forever. My 93 was oringinal and it lasted 12 years and I live in the salt belt. These cars are great in the snow. The only way you will get stuck is if you get up on top of the snow off the wheels.

The brakes are somewhat of a weak point on the car. Stay with genuine Toyota pads and rotors for replacement. You will be money ahead. The older models have a peppier engine. I believe that engine was a 1.6 versus the 1.8 that they put in the newer model and the same engine they use now. I have never had a manual transmission so I cannot speak to that.

The above mentioned parts as well as tires, battery, and oil are the only parts I have ever had to change involuntarily. I have owned one since 1993. They are great cars if kept with some reasonable care.

My 2000 CE has 92,000 miles. I've had to change one window motor. I replaced the original battery 2 years ago. Everything else is still original, including the clutch, spark plugs, and the brakes. It has just developed a hesitation that I think is likely due to using cheap Costco gas with low detergent. I suspect dirty injectors. I would suspect spark plugs, but I think they should last 100,000 miles. Mine is fine at high RPM as well, where bad spark plugs generally show their weakness. One day, I'll get the ambition to pull them and look at them.

I'm still driving a 1989 Corolla that I bought new. It has about 315,000 miles, several bad rust spots, a cracked windshield, a faded paint job and a host of other minor problems. But it has never had much maintenance other than oil changes and very rare tuneups. During cold weather it only gets about 30-34 miles per gallon on the highway, but in hot weather it gets better than 40 mpg. I'll drive it until it lays down and dies. If I had taken better care of it, the car would have lasted for 1,000,000.