There were a lot of parallels to be drawn between Toyota and GM products back in the ‘80s/’90s. The big difference was that GM had several marques to play with, whereas Toyotas were all under the same brand name. But going by nameplate or platform, the two automotive giants were pretty similar. So here’s the story of the T170 Corona, which might be compared to a lower-tier Buick (it certainly looks like 7/8th of one) or, perhaps more accurately, to an Oldsmobile.
Very roughly speaking, and bearing in mind that cars are much smaller in Japan, the ‘80s GM/Toyota mirror image theory goes like this: Chevette = Starlet; Cavalier = Tercel; J-Body = Corolla; Cutlass Supreme / Buick Regal = Corona; Olds 98 / Buick Le Sabre = Mark II / Camry; Cadillac Seville = Crown; Cadillac Fleetwood 75 = Century. Add the sports cars (Camaro = Celica; Corvette = Supra), and it kind of works, if you squint a lot.
It also works because Toyota lacked a corporate logo in those days. Instead, each nameplate had its own grille emblem – a tradition that some models have carried through to this day. Some GM cars had that going on as well, of course, but that was more of a ‘60s thing.
The Corona “Select” we have here is the middle of the range – nothing too fancy, and no AWD drivetrain. The most conservative one, in many ways. I’m not sure what engine is driving those front wheels though, as the T170 platform was used with a pretty wide variety of 4-cyl. mills: seven petrol units could be ordered, ranging from 1.5 to 2 litres, as well as a 2-litre Diesel.
The T170 platform also came in a variety of body styles. Aside from the standard T170 Corona saloon, there was a hatchback (top left) and the usual van/wagon (middle right). A weird stretch variant was also created (top right), only 500 units of which were made. If one preferred more rounded styling, the Carina (middle left) was available as an alternative. Furthermore, the related T180 cars were there to add a touch of class: the Celica (bottom left) and the Corona Exiv hardtop saloon (bottom right).
A veritable little family populated the Corona range, then, with different grilles, names and body styles. Not a million miles from the GM sedans and wagons of the Irv Rybicky era, though the Toyotas were somewhat less cookie-cutterish.
The T170 Corona and Carina were both launched in December 1987 and lasted until early 1992, though wagons made it to the end of that year, when they were replaced by the Caldina. After having lost the coupé with the previous generation, the 9th generation Corona would prove to be the last one with a long-roof variant. As one of Toyota’s oldest nameplate, the Corona was now starting to lose its shine, and would disappear by 2001. The Oldsmobile similitude gets more pronounced…
One clear difference with GM products of the era is how well Toyotas were put together, with pretty decent interiors as well. This one is no garage queen, as the exterior can attest, but there wasn’t much sign of 30 years of use inside – not a claim many well-worn 1990 GM mid-sizers can make.
Then, there is the export aspect. Toyota quit selling Coronas in North America back with the T130 (1978-82), but other markets kept getting them much longer. The T170 was sold in Europe, albeit badged as the “Carina II,” and was assembled in several Asia-Pacific countries. I’m not sure many mid-sized 1990 Olds or Buicks left the States, but it could not have been that many. GM’s European and Australian subsidiaries were far more capable of generating sales. Marques like Pontiac, Oldsmobile or Buick had limited appeal outside their home market, by this point.
Sales for this 9th generation Corona were still healthy: Toyota managed to shift almost half a million of them on the JDM – a very decent score for an increasingly crowded segment. Indeed, this was to be the last one that would sell so well. The follow-up T190 model barely managed half the T170’s tally, and exports all but dried up. For a car that sold so many units, there are surprisingly few of these still around. I suppose most of these, solid though they were, have long since joined the great garage in the sky. That or they were exported second-hand to the Pacific or East Africa. I remember seeing quite a few in Myanmar when I moved there ten years ago – wagons especially.
So does anybody buy my Toyota / GM theory, or am I comparing apples to kumquats here? Maybe it’s all a load of fruit salad. I can’t tell what’s what. Boy, this Corona certainly does a number on the taste buds.
These are terribly under appreciated in Malaysia. They are unwanted by almost everyone. Even the retro crowd don’t collect or mod these.
As boring as can be. I cannot think of anything on or about this car that would make the car worthy of keeping or dare I say collectible.
Ruggedness / dependability / reliability are probably its greatest virtues which are important for most people. Meh.
People would have said exactly the same thing about something like a ’61 Falcon or late ’60s Impala.
Seeing an old car in the sea of modern cars is always a joy, no matter what car. Even cars which were boring back then. I think for me in 10 or 15 years time even a Toyota Carina will be nice to see.
But that would be about it. Nice to see an old face again, but looking too long at it it will bring back the same sensation (boring) I have now.
And the Chevrolet at least is so different compared to modern cars (bulk, length) that it does has some extra virtues. Not so much for the Falcon I am afraid.
But of course, as always, each to their own! It is good that some persons keep these kind of cars, just to remember us what boring cars we had! 🙂
Toyota still used glass headlights back then. 30+ years and zero sign of UV damage to the lens.
Seems like it would have been an ideal taxi cab for many North American cities.
In response to your statements to this story,”Very roughly speaking, and bearing in mind that cars are much smaller in Japan, the ‘80s GM/Toyota mirror image theory goes like this: Chevette = Starlet; Cavalier = Tercel; J-Body = Corolla; Cutlass Supreme / Buick Regal = Corona; Olds 98 / Buick Le Sabre = Mark II / Camry; Cadillac Seville = Crown; Cadillac Fleetwood 75 = Century. Add the sports cars (Camaro = Celica; Corvette = Supra), and it kind of works, if you squint a lot.”
Actually the Cavalier was significantly larger than the Tercel and more like the Corolla in size class. The Chevy Spectrum was more like in the Toyota Starlet class while the Chevette was more like the Tercel. Cavalier and J-Body means the same thing.
It looks very much like a smaller Cressida/Mark II (that’s a good thing), and there was a larger Crown which had this ‘corporate look’ as well. Toyota styling was very professional in those days, a tasteful mix of straight lines with curves, letting neither dominate. Maybe boring, but there was a certain rightness about the look.
In Australia we got the Camry instead of this model – 75mm more wheelbase, 20mm more length. Since both were front drive, (and the Camry at this stage was a massive 5mm wider!) you wonder why they bothered. The 210mm longer “Super Roomy” variant would have had strange proportions, fortunately they only built 500.
The FWD Corona/Carina T platform had a lot of mechanical similarity with the V platform Camry (many of the same engines, same all-strut suspension, etc.), so I suspect that the distinction was about production differentiation: The Camry was sold in Japan, but it was being positioned as primarily an export product, so I think Toyota wanted it to have its own production lines to make it easier to configure it (and build it in the necessary quantities!) for overseas markets.
Speaking of second hand imports to the Pacific, my parents in NZ had a diesel automatic wagon. I drove it on a visit back from the West Island – its performance was very sedate. Replaced by a Mazda Tribute V6.
My father swapped his VL Holden Commodore for one of these and never looked back, after a lifetime of GM products he went Toyota,
I had a 2.0 diesel auto wagon this model ex JDM a well beaten old workhorse but a bloody good car,
I also owned the next model a 93 but the NZ version with Amon suspension upgrades and galvanised bodble to do 200kmh and they actually could.
My Father was the owner of this same 8th Generation Toyota Corona 1.8 Select Saloon G (ST-170) 1991 Model. It’s Engine is 1.8 Litre 4S-FE & it’s Displacement is 1,838 CC with 5 Speed Manual Transmission. My Father bought his Car on 15th January,1997 in Bangladesh 🇧🇩. My Father Drove his Toyota Corona 1.8 Select Saloon G (ST-170) 1991 Model Car from 1997-2020 until his Death. My Father died on 5th June,2020 (Friday).My Father died but left his Car on Earth 🌍🌎. I also Love JDM Cars. I will Drive Japanese Car’s until My End Life. I enjoy Driving Japanese Car’s.
Great Car= Great Nation ❤ Japan 🇯🇵
Greetings from Bangladesh 🇧🇩.