Is this Corolla reliable?

Question

I am looking at a '99 corolla for $5000. It has 59K miles on it. People whom I spoke with said the mileage is low for an old car and they are suspecting tampering with the odometer.
What should I do? Please help.

Answer 1

I would suggest a Carfax, first of all, but if you really suspect that the odometer has been tampered with, the best thing to do is have a trusted mechanic look at it. The mileage, wear and tear, and overall condition of the car should be relevant to its mileage. I wouldn't worry too much about the odometer having been tampered with though. Driven at an average rate of 12,000 miles per year, the car should have 84,000 miles on it, so it's not ridiculously low mileage. If a car has low mileage, it's usually because the owners are elderly and don't drive much, or because the owners are fortunate enough to have more than one car and can share the miles they drive between them all.

Answer 2

59k miles for a 7 year car is not unusual. Cars that come out of lease generally tend to have 60k miles at the end of 5 years. Also cars driven by people who have less than 10 miles of commute (one way) to their work tend to have an average of 10k miles per year.
As per that calculation your car is a very good deal and it infact is one of the most reliable cars in the market with a efficient gas saving engine. Corolla offers great mileage, good transmission for a decent price. You can still see corollas that are 15 years old running strong. So buy it and be happy. Do a car fax report before you buy. It is worth it.

Answer 3

Here's A Page That Might Help You Out With That:
http://someperson688.googlepages.com/helppage

Answer 4

They do seem kinda low for the year! It can be that they had another car. Maybe that one was just for point A to point B, or just for sunday driving.