well 5.5 lack i will advise you go for Suzuki cultus
reasons : it has a suzuki tag and it will retain its value in next 4,5 years
you will get a 2004/2005 cultus in good condition rather then a bad 1988--2001 corolla (its very difficult to find 1998-2001 corolla in
good condition within your price range)
maintenance and parts of cultus are cheaper then 1988-2001 corolla
fuel/CNG cost of cultus is more economical then 1988-2001 corolla
1988 -2000 corolla i don;t think so there parts are cheaper now
as you have no experience with cars you have higher chances of falling into traps /scams like when converting engine from 2.0d to petrol cng , corolla is a really good car ,good market value . but old car will be a nightmare for you (mechanics ,workshops) unless you find a really well kept car which i don't believe
either get cultus if you want a comparatively newer car for family or if you want corolla anyway then go for petrol/cng 1988 corolla
i don't think you will get 1998-2001 2.0d in good condition ....hope this will help you
Thanks