1982 Toyota Tercel User Reviews

Built Like A Tank And Great Gas Mileage. Cute Car In An Ugly Way. — I liked everything about it for a 16-18 year old person. I miss it and that's why twenty years later I'm reviewing it. This was my first car back in 1991. It had 150,000 miles on it already. My mom surprised me and bought it ($1800) with my savings (from child support, technically her money anyway). I came home from school and was so angry I didn't drive it for two days. However, once I did I fell in love with it. It was a front-wheel drive, 4 speed wonder. I plowed through 24" snow drifts, drove it through mud, creeks, and sped down rough unpaved roads. I could change the oil while laying under the car (clearance was exceptional) with much room to work. It carried a keg of beer in the trunk with four of my friends (we weren't drinking and driving) as passengers. I'm from KY and drove that little car to FL and back on two different occasions and once to Buffalo, WY and back. It was a hoot to drive.

Old Ass Car — it was a beater and it was ugly. it was great in the snow and for its age it was a decent amount of power. I really enjoyed the car. I was surprised at how long the car had lasted it. I'm really hard on vehicles and that car was able to take all the abuse I put it through.

Primary Use: Commuting to work

One Of The Best Built Cars On The Road — I love this car! It's mileage is insane, and at 154k miles I haven't had one break down. This thing is probably going to run forever. It's fun to drive, especailly since you can squeeze in where other cars can't to make a right, since it's so tiny. It can't go very fast, but it took me to kentucky on $10 worth of gas.

My First Car — Great little runabout. Not overly powerful, but at 1960 pounds, it was light. Good air conditioning. In hindsight it was nice. At the time, I would definitely have preferred a Lamborghini