WHAT IS IT?
The Toyota Starlet was a subcompact car sold by Toyota through the 1970s and early 1980s but only sold in the US from 1981 to 1984. It appears to have been mostly forgotten as an abandoned nameplate, but it was later replaced in the Toyota lineup by the Echo and Yaris. It was a small affordable car with simple styling focused on being cheap reliable transportation. Sporting a 1.3 Liter 4 cylinder engine with around 58 HP and a 5-speed manual transmission, this sort of simple economy car simply doesn’t exist new in 2025. These were reliable and economical, reporting upwards of 55 mpg in the day (albeit without any of the weight of modern safety equipment).
WHY THIS ONE HAS “BEST ONE ON THE PLANET” CHOPS
First, simply finding one of these in drivable condition is a rarity. This appears to have been well-loved, driven in sunny Arizona and California since new, has pretty low miles at only 84,000 miles (though the listing mentioned it was used as a tow/dinghy vehicle behind an RV) and even had what appears to be a quality repaint in its original refrigerator white at some point in the past. The interior has a bit of flash in its clean two-tone vinyl seats showing that even inexpensive cars could have a bit of style. The three-door hatchback was practical, easy to live with, and even the steel wheels with trim rings look fantastic. We love the placement of the car in the show photo parked next to an original Mazda Cosmo, sharing the love of Japanese cars with the masses.
The three-door hatchback was practical, easy to live with, and even the steel wheels with trim rings look fantastic.
The asking price of $17,500 may be optimistic given what else that would buy on the market, but as the saying goes, “find a better one.”
https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/1133091521199472/
