OT: Should Dale buy a 2003 Toyota Echo?

[OutOfBreath]

Actually, there are a couple of just slightly more important questions

1) How did it do in crash tests?

Well, depends! Is he buying the car to crash it or to play whistle and drive?

Hmmm, wouldn't the latter greatly increase the chances of the former?

[glauber]

How about that electric/gas hybrid Toyota, has anyone tried it?

g

[Paul]

Yeah, those are supposed to be pretty nice.

[Paul]

On second thought, Dale, I have something with your name on it here...



Now, the mileage isn't quite as good as the Echo but it makes up for it in other ways.

[Lorenzo]

I should have checked with you first!

[Dale]

On second thought, Dale, I have something with your name on it here...



Now, the mileage isn't quite as good as the Echo but it makes up for it in other ways.

Thanks for the great research and for the hilarious photo. Take my name off of it! :]

Dale

[Paul]

My pleasure, Dale. I hope it helps with your decision. Just let me know if you change your mind about the Viper.

[Redwolf]

How about that electric/gas hybrid Toyota, has anyone tried it?

g

I have a friend that has a Prius. Her verdict is "It's OK." You only get the incredible mileage if you do a lot of freeway driving, because that's what it takes for the electric motor to kick in. It's kind of clunky handling too. I like the idea of hybrids, but I think they need to do some work on them before they're a viable idea for people who don't do major freeway commutes.

My Tercel's seats self destructed very early on too. I bought it in 1996 and by 1997 the driver's seat was in shreds. The other problem I had was I made the mistake of buying the red one (the lot had two identical Tercels for sale...one red and one white), and the paint oxidized badly within a year of my buying the car. We had it detailed once or twice, which brought back the luster, but it never stayed for long. We found out later that Toyota's red paint is worse than most for oxidation. So, if I had it to do over, much as I like red, I'd pick another color. Other than that, however, it's been a wonderful little car.

I keep hoping Toyota will come up with a station wagon with jump seats in the back, as Ford, Volvo and Audi have. Because I drive for car pools, I really need a wagon with jump seats (I will not drive a van up here...they're just not stable enough for our mountain roads, and I see them turned on their sides all the time), and when my 99 Sable dies, I'd love to replace it with a Camry.

Redwolf

[herbivore12]

I have a friend that has a Prius. Her verdict is "It's OK." You only get the incredible mileage if you do a lot of freeway driving, because that's what it takes for the electric motor to kick in. It's kind of clunky handling too. I like the idea of hybrids, but I think they need to do some work on them before they're a viable idea for people who don't do major freeway commutes.

Hm. I've a Honda Civic hybrid, and don't have any of the problems your friend's Prius apparently does. Handles just like, well, a Civic, and the worst mileage we've gotten, in terrible conditions, was just under 40 mpg. Drives pretty much just like my previous car, which happened to be a Civic (gas-powered). A few weeks ago we took a trip to San Luis Obispo from our place in Marin, and drove a fair bit around the SLO region: we didn't stop for gas until almost home on the return trip! That was pretty nice. . .

Doesn't accelerate like a Porsche, of course, but no problems with freeway merging and the like, either.

The Prius has a bunch of problems: lousy tires that make you feel every bump and handle poorly, lousy interior design, etc. I think Honda, who decided to build a "real" car (just a Civic with a different motor, essentially) took the wiser route. The Prius sort of felt like a toy car when we tested it, and the dash display was *really* annoying and distracting.

Dale, on the Echo:
Here's the Car Talk guys' take. Sounds like a reliable, decent economy car:
http://cartalk.cars.com/Info/Testdrive/ ... -2000.html

[bpetkau]

Delurking here...

Dale, I have owned an Echo for about 2 1/2 years and am very pleased with the car. When we were first doing our research, I went to www.careview.com and read reviews from many owners about their cars. What I was struck with was the consistency of favorable opinions. Many other models had some good reviews as well but there were bad reviews mixed in. Kind of like "If you get a good one, it's great but watch out if its a lemon". Kind of similar to Generation whistles.

The Echo, on the other hand had only good reviews with the occasional negative that was a bit unrealistic. E.G. "It lacked power to pull my 3000 lb trailer, It's ugly,..."

The good stuff:
-Great gas mileage (40MPG in city driving Canadian gallon) Best mileage was 58.6 MPG (backwind and gentle slope for over 500 miles)
-Great storage in the interior. A Generation Eb fits perfectly in the cubby hole under the steering wheel. Several D whistles fit nicely between the front seats. As well, you can fit a 48 CD CaseLogic case in that same cubby hole under the steering wheel.
- The trunk is very large, over 14 cubic feet, and when we arrive at our destination, it is like the amazing clowns when I start pulling out the suitcases.
- The center console is great in that you don't have to strain to see through the steering wheel to see your speed, etc. It takes all of 1/2 hour to get used to it and it's real frustrating when you get into a conventional vehicle.
- great 6 speaker CD sound system.

bad stuff:
- maybe a bit more road noise than a full size luxury car.
- when behind a semi, the dirty air (turbulence) can shake a little.
- none others as far as I can recall.

We have taken this car across the country many times and have two younger children and have been very happy.

If you have any specific questions let me know.

Brent

[bpetkau]

Sorry, the web site was typed wrong.

www.carreview.com

Brent

[atarango]

Dale,
my boyfriend and I were buying cars not too long ago, and we were looking at the echo. Its a great little car, but a corolla is much safer apparently, once we checked a few things out. You may be able to look around and get a few years old corolla for about the same price. The corrolla is also bigger, you should buy a car that you can be okay with size-wise. I found the Echo cute but too small. If you buy a used car from a dealer MAKE SURE it is a Certified Used Car- because they have extensive warrenties. Don't buy a used car with a shorter warrenty, like a 3 or 6 month warrenty. I learned that lesson the hard way when I bought my used Mazda 626. It broke down like the week after the warrenty expired and required $1000 worth of labor and new parts.

Safety to me is the most important- go on the internet and see how it stacks up in crash tests against other comperable car. A few years ago a friend of mine bought this older, ugly (like gold-green) Volvo because she liked their safty ratings. Well everyone made fun of that car because it was just UGLY. However one day while driving home from college she lost control of the car and flew over the size of the freeway and rolled hundreds of feet into a gravel ditch. She rolled so many times she lost count. When the car stopped, the car was mangled. But the steel passenger cage had held and she managed to crawl out her window. She walked away with a broken elbow, but was otherwise okay. The police told her that if she hadn't been driving a Volvo she probably would have died.

Point being: you need a safe car. Check out the safty ratings.
-Angela

[Dale]

Well, I went back to the lot to look at the Echo and it had been sold minutes before. So, we went to another Toyota dealership and looked at 2 more used Echos but neither had power steering. Not a problem for me, because I have the upper body strength of ten ordinary men, but a problem for my youngest daughter, who will likely have this car passed down to her when she reaches driving age in a few (short) years. By the time we test-drove the Echos, however, we were kinda hooked. So, I bought a new 2003.

Thanks for all your help. It never ceases to amaze me what solid advice one can get on just about any subject from people on this board.

Dale

[madguy]

With the mess George W. has our economy in, I'd say buy American. But then, my stepson works for GMC, building Saturns.

~Larry

[Dalberon]

I cannot speak for the echo, but I currently own my first toyota (a 2000 celica gt) and couldnt say enough good about it. Its definitely the best car I have ever owned. I put a lot of miles on a car and this car is like the energizer bunny.