I’m taking my bi-annual restorative trip to the great southwest this month. It’s a great place to take stock, clear your head and…spot cars. West of the 100th meridian, the air is drier, and cars last longer in running condition if the owner doesn’t get bored with them. All too frequently the driver/owner of an entry level car invents an excuse to junk them at the first sign of trouble. I always spot a few models out here that are simply non existent on the roads back in my part of the south.
That’s why my heart skipped a beat this week in the dusty northern New Mexico town of Belen. Thats where I spotted not one, but a pair of rust free Toyotas from my misspent youth being lovingly preserved and restored by their twenty-something owners. These guys hadn’t even been born when these cars came down the assembly line halfway across the globe, but they knew just what these rust free time capsules need to make sure they stay on the road for another 20 years or more.
This ’81 Tercel has the typical bulletproof Toyota history- It shows 311,000 miles on the clock and runs like a sewing machine. The polite and courteous young owner told me that he and his father redid the 1.5 L engine about 85,000 miles ago and swapped the factory issue 4 speed for a 5 cog from another Toyo. He’s also searching for some 14 inch wheels and tires that will fit in the confined wheel wells to squeeze a few more miles from each gallon of regular.
Toyota borrowed the Corolla name for its Tercel to take advantage of the former models’ already sterling reputation for economy and reliability. It’s hard to think of a Corolla as a “halo” car today, but the world was in a different place in 1981.The Tercel was the first front driver for Big T, and as such, buyers needed all of the reassurance they could get.
Toyota picked a great engine to introduce drivers to FWD-The 1492 CC straight 4. It has been used in one form or another in literally millions of Toyo products worldwide. Its lineal successors are still being built in China to this day. The first two generation Tercels had the motor in a somewhat unusual north-south arrangement, for a fwd car. The third gen Tercel would remedy that and put the motor in its “proper” transverse configuration.
Not to be outdone, the Tercel owners friend gave me the low down scoop on this cherry ’78 Celica. With just over 85,000 miles showing, this car has many years of life left in its 2.2 L 20R engine.The 3 speed automatic still shifts just like it was designed to when Jimmy Carter was in the White House and the paint makes the car look like it fell through a crack in time outside a multiplex showing Grease.
It’s always fun to spot the unusual, the well preserved, but its’ even better to see the next generation understanding the significance of these rigs. We spent a good part of the (hot) afternoon talking, swapping tales and feeling the love for these well preserved machines that are disappearing at an alarming rate. It was fun to drive away and realize that these pieces of our auto heritage are in good hands.
Back in the mid 80s, a young married couple I was friends with asked me to check out a 78 Celica liftback that they wanted to buy. A white 4 speed, it was a mighty sweet driving little car that got my seal of approval. They bought it and were happy with it until they eventually traded it on something new. I have not seen one of them in forever here in the midwest.
A similar late-’70s Celica was my cousin’s first car–I think she kept it through college until she got married, and then traded it on a Honda CRV. Not exactly exciting but of course very dependable.
I’ve always been fond of the Tercel’s RWD predecessor (and I think they sold side by side for a while), the Starlet–nothing fancy but a good bulletproof no-frills car. Haven’t seen one in a very long time, though.
Yes the Starlet was sold along side the Tercel and Corolla for it’s US run. My dad had a Starlet, I talked him into it instead of the Tercel. The RWD should have been, and proved to be, cheaper to maintain and repair. My now wife had a Tercel when I met her a few year later. CV boots and joints of that time were no where near as durable as those today. On the plus side the longitudinal arrangement of the Tercel made for a clutch that was easier to do than bulk of the transverse FWD cars of the time.
Both would get 50+ with a light load on the freeway. Put 4 people in either though, and you would see the MPG drop, at least with the terrain around here, about 2 MPG.
Gobs of these old Tercels around here, and quite a few Celicas too. Can’t kill them, if the rust doesn’t get them.
Interesting-
We went on a week-long tour of Kyushu Island in Japan in early August. When on the coach between attractions, or out on the streets, I was in car -spotting mode. Unfortunately, anything interesting was either stationary with the bus passing by, or driving down the street while I was on the sidewalk, or I would have shot it.. There’s almost nothing really old on the road there, although I spotted a couple of Skyline GTRs, one an old R32, and one R34. Stringent inspections and high road taxes conspire to keep oldies off the road.
If you want to run old iron, it had better be mint.
Such cosmetic pecadillos as faded paint and surface rust will result in failure
of the “Shakan”(Inspection process), never mind mechanical defects, which can even include things like tires and brake pads at 50 percent, or slightly looser than spec ball joints.
So there I was standing on the curb in front of a supermarket in Nagasaki when a 1980-ish 4 door Corolla rolls by. Bright white paint, with low-profile tires and alloys. Considering what the person must have spent
to stand-out (and risk getting pounded down, as they say here) and keep it legal, now, there’s a true keeper of the flame.
A few minutes later, a mint early 80s Isuzu I-Mark ambled by, same flawless white paint and bodywork, requesite alloys and modern tires. Looked great, as great as one of those can be. It was great.
Nice finds. I really like the ’78 Celica. For whatever reason that dual, round sealed beam front end speaks to be more than the later versions.
Wow well preserved Toyotas the dreaded tin worm has consumed most of the Celicas here and NZ has a 6 monthly inspection process that regularly sends cars to the crusher no rust permitted not as rigorous as Japan but they try to remove all the old cars. Yes, that was the original mission statement. Did it work? NO not a snowballs chance in hell, I cruise about here looking for parts for my toy it amazes me just what is parked up waiting to be revived
Nice Celica. I remember seeing a Toyota ad for the car boasting about the “aerodynamic” spherical side glass … The front door glass is curved both top to bottom and front to rear.
The Japanese factory workers in the ad wore white gloves.
This generation Celica is one of the best styled Toyotas of the era.
I remember the Car & Driver write-up of the Tercel when it came out…at the time I was intrigued with FWD but I was loathe to throw good money after bad with another VW product. The Japanese cars of those years were mostly conventional, RWD…and prone to rusting, but what wasn’t?
C/D was critical of the longitudal layout…their take on it was that enabled Toyota to use as many parts as they could off the shelves, including a differential with offset hypoid gears. This, they condemned as a complete waste of efficiency; the lowered input gear meant nothing in that layout; and it cost, according to Don Sherman, about eight percent power loss.
They were probably right, too…but for all of that, toyota got most of the pieces right. The proof is parked at the curb, thirty years later.
I liked the previous generation Celica better. Why? It was a hardtop (of course!).
‘CV boots and joints of that time were no where near as durable as those today.”
Extremely true.
At the yard of wrecking FWD axles saved. Handed over to local chap who refurbished them for X amount per plus parts cost (if needed).
Stocked in back room and most did not sit long.
Sold locally and shipped nation-wide.
Good steady income stream and bloke rebuilt them well.
Over time, demand dried up to the point that plan fell to the wayside.
A newly rebuilt cleaned-up FWD axle shaft was a thing of beauty.
As was my new hydraulic bottle jack. Machining, casting, all of its made and assembled in the USA self.
Compared to the China-built garbage the raw, intrinsic beauty of a well-crafted hydro-mechanical device was obvious.
Kinda’ akin to me… Born in the USA!!!!
And going broke in the USA.
We’re number 50!!!!!!!
See yah’ at the dumpster for dinner.
Will work for money.