Why, on earth, is a practical subcompact the apple of an 18-year-old’s eye?
‘My sister showed me her car, and I instantly fell in love. It was like a little go-kart.’
Nick Maltezos, of Whitby, Ont., bought his car before he even had a licence. Unlike many of his friends, he didn’t yearn for a luxury ride or sports car. He hankered for a sensible Toyota Echo.
Why, on earth, is a practical subcompact the apple of an 18year-old’s eye?
“It’s a 2005 Echo — that’s the last year they were made — and I picked it up three years ago for $4,500, when I was 15. I’d been working summer jobs through high school and had saved up the money. I didn’t have a licence, but I was itching to own a car.
My sister has a 2003 Echo that had been my grandmother’s, and when my sister showed me her car, I instantly fell in love. It was like a little go-kart.
Hers is an automatic, but I wanted one with a manual transmission and a bit more pop. I found mine in the Kitchener area, at a used-car dealer’s, after I saw it posted online. It had 280,420 kilometres on it, and I’ve put on 40,000 since. It has four doors, a five-speed manual transmission, a 1.5-litre engine and its colour is Speedway Blue.
My dad, my mom and their friends have similar cars. We’re a full Toyota family. Mom has a 2018 Corolla and Dad has a 2011 Tacoma. They are so reliable, and so good on gas.
I work full time as an assistant manager at Farm Boy in Pickering, and I have my own car detailing business, Durham Detailing. From the outside, you think the Echo is a small car, but it has so much cargo space and so much head space. I have a lot of tall friends. For my business, which is both stationary and mobile, I can fold down the back seats and put all my supplies, including canopies and a pressure washer, in the car.
I didn’t know how to drive stick shift when I got it, but I learned on this vehicle. I put new wheels on it and got it lowered. It’s very planted to the road, the gear box feels amazing, and it’s very well-built. The actual driving experience is very enjoyable and fun. I fill it up once a week for $60 and that lasts me until the next week.
I got my interest in cars from my dad, who has a ’72 Pontiac LeMans Sport. Dad was always taking me to car shows and from that, my interest branched into the category of Toyotas and Japanese cars. A lot of my friends say they want a certain type of car, like a BMW or an Audi, but the Echo has so much character.
I drive it to work, and twice a week I take it to the waterfront in Ajax to meet up with a group at sunrise, and we do cold plunges into Lake Ontario. The farthest I’ve been with the Echo was a four-hour drive to Southampton, Ontario, where my mom grew up and where we go every summer. I took all my luggage in the Echo, and my cats. They loved it. It was a blast to drive it along the waterfront there.
It’s good in winter, as long as you have good tires. Its tires are small. It’s front-wheel drive, so it’s heavy in the front and I haven’t had any problem driving it in snow.
I belong to all of the Echo and Yaris groups on Facebook (the Toyota Yaris replaced the Echo). They are great for sourcing parts, as it can be hard to find some aftermarket parts if you want to do modifications, and for tips and tricks. I do basic oil changes and changed the spark plugs not long ago. I serviced some vehicles with my dad, but I learn a great deal from those groups and from YouTube.
I’ll likely start taking my Echo to some car meetups in this area this
Although I’m super busy right now detailing other cars, my car is always clean, washed and waxed. I may sell it eventually, but for now I want to keep it because it’s so nimble and reliable.
Next year, it will be 20 years old and become a classic car.