ABS on Corolla CE

It is important to understand if the ABS option is available on the Corolla (generally) or the Corolla CE (specifically). I think this is where you are getting confused. As a general rule, ABS is an upscale option, that is it may be available on the product line, but not on a particular model. An example might be Cruise Control, you can get Cruise on many products, but you might have to move up-market from the base model to get it.

Having said that, the official Toyota Website

says that ABS is an availableoption on the car you are interested in,4-wheel Anti-lock Brake System (ABS) with Electronic Brake-forceDistribution (EBD) and Tire Pressure Monitor System [2] O O S O(The Os and the S at the end signify Optional or Standard equipment for thevarious trim levels, ABS is standard on the XRS, the models listed are CE, S, XRS and LE, respectively.)

There is some fine print at the bottom of the page that may be affecting your car buying experience.

Please remember, Toyota vehicles are built with popular option combinations. Not all options are available separately and some options and accessories may not be available in all regions of the country. So please contact your Toyota dealer, who can help locate the vehicle that's right for you.

I am also buying a 2005 CE for my daughter in a couple weeks. Yes, the ABS option is there, but in reality, you will be hard pressed finding a car with that option. I can't tell you about the LE either. The CE is an entry level model and based on dealer inventories I have seen, they are ALL the same....other than an automatic trans and floor mats, I have seen no other CE models with ANY other optional equipment. I'm sure this is meant to keep the cost down, as it would further dilute any pricing differences between that and the LE model. FWIW, I am getting my car in SoCal for $11,995 (auto trans model) + tax/license.

OP here.

Thanks for the info Larry. Just out of curiosity. The dealer invoice for the 2005 Corolla CE (auto trans model) is $13,484 plus $540 destination charge. How did you arrange to get one for $11,995?

The invoice is $300 (SoCal)-$500 (NorCal) lower due to an ongoing rebate, which reduces the invoice by the same amount. I can't accurately answer the the balance other than mfg incentives to the dealership and not dealing with commissioned sales people (I always deal with salaried employees such as new car sales managers or fleet managers), who are an additional income/expense stream to the transaction, give the dealership additional pricing leverage. In 2001 I bought a new Honda CR-V at approx $700 below invoice as well. In both cases, the fleet/internet sales manager VERBALLY gave me their pricing right out of the chute. Yeah...there might be an extra couple hundred bucks left....but I'm just looking for a very good deal without battling them for every last cent of profit, which they do need to make. I also don't play games with them either and they seem to know that as I can speak their language (I'm not in the car busines, but I know enough on how a dealership operates and can talk intelligently with them). Lastly, it takes buying a car in a major metopolitan market to make such a low deal work as there a dozens of Toyota dealers within 50 miles and maybe just a little luck too. Good luck to you on your search as well.