What Kind Of A Person Drives A Corolla?

20, male, white

Got my corolla because I wanted a car that was decently quick for little money, and have a love for toyotas.

White male - 40 - Drove an 89 Mercedes 300SE until I purchased my 05 Corolla.

Spending a great deal less $ at the gas pump.

Had a 72 Corolla SR-5.

4 year B.A Degree

2005 Corolla S

23 - White Male - Recent College grad looking for a cost effective, quality 4 door vehicle(already have a 3door coupe (01 saturn)).

Liked the value of getting a car at dealercost, that has pep, good MPG, and pretty sporty looks.

4(cough...5) yr Electrical and Computer Engineer major.

Had a 89 plymoth minivan before this

45, male, caucasian, college educated, have a 2000 Corolla affectionately named "duh"

The car came as a package with wife, who bought the car used. (Wife is mechanically savvy.)

Needed a dependable, basically indestructible car for my 120 mile per day commute in the metro NYC area. Needed something to drive, not fix, to allow me more time to work on the race car (Spec Miata).

I love this boring little car! It lives up to the Toyota reputation of rouotine maintenance not being much more than adding gasoline.

Lots of prior 'yota experience - '88 Camry with 278,000 miles and still going strong when sold, crewed a '76 SR-5 that was raced with the SCCA and EMRA, worked in a repair shop that specialized in Toyotas for a while, and inherited parents 1969 Crown wagon in the late '70's.

The Corolla is the modern day Model - T Ford. It's a non ego, non look at me car. You need reliable safe transportation with good mileage. You buy a Corolla. Even people who want a little fun in their driving can get a Corolla (XRS) . It is the everymans/womens car. I am 55 and looking at the XRS (I like a little fun) for my next purchase.

Remember that the corolla has been sold more than any other car - 29 million served and still going strong. I beleive the next on the list is the VW golf, then vw beetle. It fits 4 average sized people, their luggage, and can carry said cargo at the legal speed limit with minimal worries.........best thing since sliced bread.

still, there could be improvements, namely to the dynamics..........

we must remember that this forum slants in its readers (most being middle age white males), so this test is mostly defunct.

As far as I know, this forum is open to people of all ages, both sexes, and any ethnic persuasion. We seem to have fairly good representation of younger people here, but not enough females, to be sure. It's hard to tell about one's ethnicity unless they divulge it, but I don't see how that would make any difference in the first place. The common link between us is our enthusiasm for what is arguably the world's most beloved automobile -- the Toyota Corolla.

White male Caucasian, 59, single, word processor.

Just bought a 2003 Corolla LE from Hertz Car Sales. Didn't want to pay new price. First time I ever bought from a rental car company. Worked out great. Hertz sells their cars when they reach between 27K and 30K miles. They take excellent care of them and you know they've been serviced regularly. This car is like new.

Not interested in status, just wanted a reliable, safe, economical car that lasts forever. I'm not fond of small cars, having been in two major car accidents, but the Corolla isn't real small anymore, so I feel comfortable in it. For years I've seen the great ratings of all Toyotas in Consumer Reports and figured one day I'd probably buy one.

I'm hoping to keep it a long time. I had my previous car for 17 years and drove it 285,000 miles (1987 Buick LeSabre). Before that one was a '72 Dodge Dart, which I drove about 280,000 miles over 15 years.

I'm 27, salesperson for a wiring and cable company, and caucasian. It seems this forum is for newer Corollas, but I drive a 1989 Corolla GT-S, I bought it from my brother who upgraded to an '04 Nissan Sentra SE-R SpecV.

This is the first Corolla I ever owned and I am now ruined for ANY other car maker out there....this is the best car I've ever driven and it's 15 years old....I have never had this much fun behind the wheel of any car.....even the big muscle cars my friends and relatives have had...they pass everything but a gas station. My car pAsses everything, even the gas station.....and it still bone stock engine-wise....HEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHE

I am a middle-aged white man who could afford much more car but I consider cars to be an expense, not an investment. Houses are a good investment; cars are a necessity and a pleasure. I have always bought mechanically sound used cars and driven them into the ground, but as I surveyed the used car market, I decided that a new car made sense. I am thrifty and like to do my patriotic bit for fuel conservation (mostly by not commuting too far). And I like Toyotas. I looked at the Prius, and the Camry, which I drove until now in an ’86 5-speed with 130K miles. But I saw better value in a new Corolla. I bargained, not so much hard as resolutely, and the salesman gave me a price $360 under invoice (per Edmunds and Fighting Chance) on an ultrawhite, 5-speed 2005 Corolla CE. It came with one option: floor and cargo mats. It is my first new car.

I love it. I am waxing it, putting on rubber protectants, and pampering it. That will change in time, but I’m enjoying it now.

I found the driving position somewhat uncomfortable during the first week but have adjusted. On my first tank of gas, I got only 26 MPG. But I realize that I was overrevving the engine.

The manual says that the proper shifting speeds are:

1st -> 2nd at 15 mph

2nd to 3rd at 23 mph

3rd -> 4th at 40 mph and

4th -> 5th at 45 mph

For me the most counterintuitive shift is 2nd to 3rd gear at 23 M.P.H. because it seems too early, and usually I’m going at least 25 and often 30 before shifting to 3rd. The second most counterintuitive move is shifting at 45 mph to go into 5th gear. That also seems early. But I can tell that the manual is right: you get fine acceleration and you can hear the engine saving revs and saving gas.

I combine this with a driving style I learned when I was 16 to save gas: when you don't need to accelerate or maintain; just put in the clutch and coast. Don't get me wrong, I'm not one of those people who slows down way before a light (anyway, that's about getting the jump on the competition when the light turns green). I coast a lot but no one can tell because my speed is matched with traffic. I do like to punch it off the line when I'm first at a light so I can have my choice of lanes, and the Corolla 5-speed CE lets me do this effortlessly and it doesn't take all that much gas. Everyone else seems to drive an automatic, which gives them a single input into acceleration and their car essentially decides what happens.

Call me a control freak: I like to decide which gear I'm in. And while automatics always stay in gear, burning gas even while they decelerate, I like to glide along in idle. I don’t down-shift much, unless I’m keeping the brakes cool on a long hill, because it uses up gas, and replacing brake pads is cheaper than a transmission. Okay, coasting to a stop is not quite regenerative braking, but it beats squandering the energy of gasoline to decelerate. That’s “degenerative” braking! (Yeah, it can be fun and safer on ice, too, but I live in California and save my “fun” gas for shutting down knuckleheads at stoplights.)

So I’m looking forward to my second tank of gas and I anticipate getting much better mileage. Until the engine gets broken in, trying to get good mileage is a fun project. After the engine hits a grand, I figure I’ll go nuts for awhile but settle back down to saving gas.

Regrets? Wish I had the automatic door locks, but it is one less thing to break. Also: I parked too close to the garage door, which scratched a deep cut into the back bumper. Now getting that fixed. Ultrawhite isn’t too rewarding a color when you wax to a gleaming finish. Still, white is high albedo and keeps cooler in that warm California sun. So I might have enjoyed another reflective color like mica sand, but ultrawhite is cool. The driving position is a tad upright and arm’s length. I’m convinced it is that way by design: the engineers wanted to keep your face away from the air bag. If the bag saves my skin without breaking my face, I figure it’s worth it.

Since I was born in Pasadena and live in Orange County, I take some pride in knowing my Corolla is a California native, with Toyota design. Looking forward to years of low-cost, high-quality, fun driving in my California Corolla.

My wife and I are both 27 and we wanted to get her something that was more gas efficient than her 96 Chevy Blazer. We decided on the Corolla S and ended up getting a good deal on a 2005 Model. This little car is a blast to drive and does GREAT on gas. We drove from Houston, TX to Austin and back on the same tank of gas ( approx. 300 miles round trip plus driving while in Austin). It beats the hell out of my 02 Tacoma DCab 4x4!! We plan to have this car for many years to come!

uh.... i'm a 20 year old chinese college student and i drive a 99 corolla le that is in pristine condition since it was previously owned by some retired rich guy in the suburbs who i guess used it for business cuz the miles are high

I am the person who started this thread. Obviously a lot of white males drive Corollas, as indicated in the many replies. However, I think that this site is disproportionately used by white males. I don't think my original theory was all that wrong. I would venture a guess that 80 to 90 percent of the users of this site are white males. Am I wrong. Asians, women, please identify yourselves.

I have registered to Corolland just to post to this thread (though I've been lurking since my Corolla purchase last month). I am a 33yo female who bought a 2005 Corolla LE for my new job and its 500m/week commute. It has everything I want except for a hybrid engine. I am a reluctant Corolla owner in that if I could have gotten my hands on a 04/05 Prius without breaking the bank, I would have done so. At the same time, though, the Corolla has a fantastic heritage and I never hesitated before buying this one.

Larry,

While we may disagree about the superiority of Toyota filters, we certainly agree on politics. Remember, though, that we cannot unilaterally decide how much we are going to pay for gasoline, but must rather consult the U.N. and let them decide what price is best. After all, the U.N. is univerally wise, benevolent, all-knowing, and has nothing but the best interests for America heart. Most of the cost of a gallon of gas is state, federal, and local taxes anyway, and we all know Kerry's intentions as far taxation goes. I have no doubt that Kerry & Co will use gas prices to push us all out of our Corollas and herd us onto public transportation, but he will have to pry the keys to my '90 DX out of my cold, dead hand. I also choose to avoid any new technology in the auto world for a few years, just to give them time to work out the bugs and see how vehicles like the hybrids do in the real world. BTW, I am one of the "ubiquitous" white guys on this forum, and I am 30 years old. Regards, Aaron

well, in oz, 60% of new corollas are bought by females, the average age being 50 ish. 60% are automatic, 60% are liftbacks. as i have previously mentioned, this site is dedicated to general auto fanaticism, maintainence etc. I can't imagine too many chicks being interested in that..........

as for the politics in OZ, there is a federal election this weekend; i am Assisting the australian labour party (the aussie equivalent of the democrats) in my local area with campaigning, tho' my local seat is the safest in NSW. I vote ALP 'cos their educational and environmental policies are much more sound and the ALP would be more friendly to my choice of, ahem, lifestyle. oh, and they are withdrawing our troops from iraq.............

Uhh....it's REAGAN. If you are gonna insult the man, please have the courtesy to spell his name right. They are actually considering putting him on our currency here, so he can't be all bad. Your summons to Camp X-Ray must have gotten lost in the mail...I hand-wrote it and licked the stamp myself. It's on the way, 'cuz we Americans don't want you to be no terrorist no more neither! Don't think you will last too long in there, though, cause the only food we allow is snow-white baby harp seals. You have to club them and kill them yourself (no guns allowed, so THAT should make you happy!). We'd let you cook them, but you liberals are kind of sensitive about people chopping down trees so there's no firewood. Keep checking your mail!

I didn't think Aussies lost their spines when the bullets started flying. In fact, I thought that Australia was originally an English colony, not a French one...don't tell me the Aussies are tuning into surrender-monkeys too! Funny how all of the liberal hand-wringing about "human rights" goes out the window whan a strong Republican president actually has the stones to rid the world of one of it's WORST human rights violators. When liberals go to war, they point to the mass graves and suffering of innocent people, and crow about how they are fighting to stop it. When a conservative goes to war, all of a sudden you guys start caring about the soldiers you are normally spitting on, and start whining about combat causalties. Liberals worldwide weren't bleating so bitterly when Bill Clinton went into Bosnia (without U.N. approval, I might add) to stop the genocide by Milosevic's death squads in that region. He promised to have the troops home by Christmas...1995! And we are still there! Hussein was Hitler...believe it. Unfortunately, he isn't as dead as Hitler...yet. Iraqis have human rights too, whether wimpy liberals are willing to let ballsy conservatives fight for them or not. Hope you don't take any of this too seriously, but I like good, clean, political sarcasm! Regards, "Aaron The Mindless, War-Mongering, American Reagan Disciple"