May purchase a '96 Corolla.

At 151k it should have had the timing belt replaced once already. There should be a sticker under the hood somewhere indicating time and km when placed. Other than that, have the usual tires, brakes, engine, trans, etc. checked.

The timing belt will eventually break. It is a lot more convenient to do it at a scheduled visit than on the road. In the U.S., the interval is every

Uhhh... Ray, the stretching of the 60K miles has not worked out well for me. In years past, I (actually, my wife) has stopped dead on three occassions in two different Camrys which I (God help me) let go more than 60,000 miles. All went less than 10,000 miles beyond the 60. Have I learned my lesson? I have a 2000 Avalon. Its belt should be changed at 90K. It has 65K on it now. I'm thinking I should be able to hit 100K before giving it a second thought. jor

Wow! Yours is the first time I have heard of a T-belt failing so soon. I did not do any of my personal vehicles until after 90k miles, mainly because I'm a procrastinator.

Most Nissans are Interference engines, meaning when the timing is lost, the valves and the pistons try to occupy the sam space at the same time. Most Toyota Twin-Cam engines are Non-Iterference, which means when the belt breaks or loses a couple teeth (I have never had a belt 'break', generally what happens is a few of the teeth wear off) you'll be calling a tow truck for a lift to a repair facility. So, in addition to the $179-259 for replacing the belt, add $65-120 for the tow!

Karma, I guess. I lead a better life now. (too old to endure my excesses) jor

i procrastinated so long that my '95 Geo Prizm was at 115K before i ever changed it.

I waited to 103K before I did my '95 Geo Prizm. I don't feel so bad now.