Great sporty, reliable Toyota

My g/f and I just purchased a 97 Celica GT Convertible w/ ~50k miles. We actually weren't looking for another impractical car (I have an 89 Supra Turbo) when we went to the dealership but this car just stood out and begged us to take it home.

It has all the standard creature comforts that are expected these days; A/C, power windows, power locks, 3-disc in-dash CD changer, leather interior, 5-spoke alloy rims, 5S-FE engine (the inline 4 2.2L), and best of all, a roof that can be made to disappear. I never considered owning a convertible mostly because of the chassis flex factor and the lack of an airtight seal. Well, Toyota and its engineers have designed an excellent product. The top raises and lowers in less than 20 seconds and it's 99.9% automatic (you do have to physically unlatch the top first). With the top up or down you don't notice much chassis flex when going over uneven surfaces.

Even with only 135HP and 145lb/ft of torque the car has pretty good acceleration and top speed. Because the car is somewhat light, it feels very nimble in the twisties, but not squirrely. You won't win any drag racing awards but for the average Joe the 2.2L does just fine. It also gets relatively good gas mileage (24/30), considering the type of car it is.

All in all I'm very satisfied with our purchase. Toyota makes a very sound vehicle and backs it with excellent service. Now if only the sales people weren't so persistent.... ;)