The tenth Toyota Corola Altis was released in the Philippine market in 2008. The Corolla which means little crown in latin, is Toyota's version of the people's car and classified as a compact family sedan. The all new Corolla sports the latest in automotive technological wonder like Dual Variable Valve Timing with intelligence, Electronic Brakeforce Distribution and Smart Key keyless entry/exit/engine start system. A brand new top of the line Corolla retails for P1,100,000.
Our family, led by my father, the late BoyLac had the opportunity to own 4 generations of Corollas so far and they include the ff:
69 Toyota Corolla Sprinter / Body No. E10 / first generation
81 Toyota Corolla DX / Body No. E70 / fourth generation
92 Toyota Corolla XE / Body No. E90 / sixth generation
98 Toyota Corolla GLi / Body No. E110 / eight generation
Cute Collector's Car
The 69 Corolla Sprinter was bought brand new for my uncle who eventually migrated to the US. Since the early seventies until early nineties, it was the family's primary and then eventually a second car after we got the 81 Corolla DX in '88. In fact, at one point, it was a third car when we got the '89 Mit Lancer GLX in '91 and just before the DX was eventually sold. The 2 door fastback was powered by a model 3K 1.2 liter engine. Mostly stock during the years that we owned it, it was eventually sold to a car enthusiast who converted the car to a slalom car. It now sits in a garage already stripped to the bone and rusting to eternity.
Box Type Nemesis
The 81 Corolla DX was the direct competitor of the second generation Mitsubishi Lancer box type in the eighties. Purchased via Manila Bulletin's Sunday classified ads in '88, we were the second owner and got it in pristine condition. The owner who was Fil-Chinese owed a Caltex gasoline station along Edsa hence the car was well maintained. The beige four door sedan was fuel efficient and an powered by a model 4K 1.2 liter engine. It was our first car with air conditioning, a decent stereo system and mag wheels. I had the chance to use it in Manila while studying in college for a couple of months while we were trying to sell it through Manila Bulletin in the early 90s. We bought it for P135,000, used it for 6 yrs and sold it for the same amount. Last time I heard, the car was sighted in Lipa City, Batangas.
Our 1st Family Car
The 92 Corolla XE Was our perfect first family car. We paid P134,000 in '99 for the light green four door sedan. Your first car purchased from your blood, sweat and tears is always special. While it gave us some headaches typical of a second hand cars, it was our pride and joy for almost 2 years. Like the family's first two corolla's, the car was fuel efficient and powered by 1.3 liter model 2E engine. We sold it for the same price to our Vietnamese neighbor from Angeles City, Pampanga. I think Tam (the Vietnamese) is still using the car. The car was sold for the same amount.
Not exactly our last
One of the more memorable cars is the '98 Corolla GLi purchased by my parents in 2003. We got it through a car swap deal when the dealer was trying to pull one on us but eventually turned the tables. He got our grossly beat up '94 Lancer EL for 10% more than he wanted to pay for it. Lesson learned here is don't assume that you can bully your way with a "kid who knows alot about cars and logical reasoning" to get the better end of the deal. The car was sold last November to car dealer in Tarlac. The last time I saw it was just last weekend.
An adage says "count your blessings" and my family and I are blessed to have driven different cars in our life. In this entry are Toyota Corollas but the family has tried Mitsubishis and Hondas as well. While we have not yet owned any European or American cars, we live in a country where top brands with high resale value include Toyota and Honda hence we're in the right company.
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