There are several ways to start this entry, all in the form of a question. For example; what’s it like to be around when a car legend appears? Particularly one that comes from a place you didn’t expect it to? And also, remember when DOHC engines were rare and had an exotic vibe to them? When 4-valves per cylinder sounded just soooo sexy? And finally, remember when variable intake systems were the new thing? Ready to tame the exotic, and make high-revving engines docile for daily life?
All of these questions are at the center of today’s vintage car review: The legendary 1985 Corolla GT-S.
The Corolla GT-S with its 16-valve DOHC engine has become a legend in its own right. In many ways, part of a tradition of accessible and reliable cars that become the basis of a performance-minded vehicle. The model was to be the last of the RWD Corolla coupes (sedans had gone FWD), and with the new DOHC powerplant, it went out with a bang. Drifters and the like now revere the whole AE86 line, as any (non-too-abused) sample can be souped-up. But that aside, it’s the DOHC powerplant that is perched at the top of the AE86 lore.
To put it in context, in the mid-’80s Toyota fixed with high-tech what everyone was solving through turbos and superchargers. And being a hot new number, R&T devoted much text to the engine’s origins and technology:
“This is the 1985 Corolla GT-S, a conventional rear-drive Corolla outfitted with a remarkable dual overhead cam, 16-valve 1.6-liter engine, plus enough suspension, brake and interior changes to keep the engine from overpowering the car… That’s a tall order, because this is an overpowering engine.”
“At the heart of this engine is (Toyota’s) cast iron A-series block, a cylinder block mostly notable for exceptionally light weight. To handle a 60 percent increase in power the twincam engine gets a heavy-duty block with additional stiffening ridges, plus a forged steel crank with eight counterweights.” All necessary upgrades to control noise and vibration on an engine with a 7500-rpm redline.
Of course, the cylinder head was the big news on the GT-S because that’s what made the powerplant’s 7500-rpm redline possible; with the 4-valves per cylinder arrangement providing quick combustion, better breathing, low emissions, and more power.
Meanwhile, Toyota’s new Variable Induction System (T-VIS) controlled the multi-valve engine’s low-end performance. It accomplished this by playing with various electronic components to turn the beast into a tractable daily driver.
“The result of all this cleverness is an engine that puts out 112bhp at 6600 rpm and 97 lb-ft of torque at 4800 rpm… It starts instantly hot or cold, pulls smoothly from idle to redline, and gets 25-real-world mpg. So who needs a turbocharger?”
While some of those numbers don’t sound so hot nowadays, let’s keep matters in perspective; as explained in our previous Corolla GT-S post: “In 1984, the Corvette mustered all of 205 hp out of 5.7 liters, and the Mustang GT managed 175 hp from its 5 liter V8. 112 eager horses from 1.6 liters was a feat at the time…”
While straight-line acceleration wasn’t what reviewers expected (10.5 secs. in 0-60), “… the way the engine works more than makes up for it… There are few engines around like this; it just loves to rev, and rev and rev some more.”
More praise for the GT-S appeared through the review. “The gearbox has a solid, easy-to-use feeling. Gear spacing is correct for keeping the engine in the best part of the powerband…” Meanwhile, suspension updates were minor, with the car’s springs being 19 percent stiffer and the rear anti-roll bar gaining a 14 percent increase in diameter. The result was “a taut, businesslike ride, well controlled at all times, but not harsh. Just firm.”
And previewing its future fame in drifting, R&T reviewers noted: “For the driver who enjoys flinging out the tail of a car, the Corolla is a gem. It responds quickly and predictably.”
In the end, Toyota had installed on the Corolla GT-S “… what may be the best running 4-cylinder engine made today… The (car’s) excitement comes from an engine that raises the high-water mark of performance, and does it without sacrificing economy or driveability.”
Related CC reading:
Curbside Classic: 1985 Toyota Corolla GT-S – The Legendary EA86
These are sweet,sweet cars. Toyota did use turbos, you could one on the 22R in a pickup no less. Co-worker of mine bought one brand new. Beautiful truck! Toyota was really on their A-game back then
And the rarest thing in the world today is an unmodified one.
The four-wheeled equivalent of a Harley-Davidson with the stock exhaust.
Lightning in a bottle, especially given that RWD didn’t have the cachet it did then and it would’ve been perfectly logical for Toyota to launch the new engine with the new driveline in a Corolla sport sedan alongside the coming FX hot hatch, and hold it out for the coupes until they too went FWD with the 90-series.
Wasn’t it possible to get the same engine in the FWD NUMMI FX16 GT-S and Nova Twin-Cam?
IOW, if you wanted the same engine in a sedan, you could get the Nova, or a smaller ‘pocket rocket’, it would be the FX16.
Not in 1985, though. This was the debut model for the engine – the FX16 didn’t appear until ’86 and iirc midyear at that, the Twin Cam not until ’88 by which time the Corolla sedans and coupes had moved on to the 90-series so it was quickly followed by the Geo Prizm GSi for ’89.
Some interesting choices for the same, good engine.
For the most fun, though, can’t much argue that the RWD Corolla GT-S would be the one to have.
The 4A-GE was also in the MR2 for ’85, which made the Fiero’s engine look even worse…
“In 1984, the Corvette mustered all of 205 hp out of 5.7 liters, and the Mustang GT managed 175 hp from its 5 liter V8. 112 eager horses from 1.6 liters was a feat at the time…”
I see what they did there, that sleight of hand. They used 1984 models as comparisons against an ’85 Corolla. The 1985 Corvette and Mustang GTs horsepower(s) were 230 and 210 respectively.
It’s not really slight of hand. This was in the September 1984 issue, so they tested and wrote this several months earlier, before the 1985 Corvette and Mustang were released.
An important bit of context that is interesting to note that RT failed to mention was that full-series production of the 4A-GE (in the home market) began in May 1983, when 4 valves per cylinder up to that point in time had been almost exclusively the domain of high end exotica or homologation specials. Toyota blew the door wide open for mass adoption, and by the time this article was written, 4A-GE motors could be found under a whole slew of Toyota hoods in Japan; Corollas, Carinas, Coronas, Celicas, and the MR2. The 3S-GE went on to do the same revolution in the 2000cc class exactly a year later in May of 1984 in the first front-wheel drive Camry.
I was a big Toyota and VW fine in this era, but I found their 16v engines impractical. Yes, if you rung them out and drove around at 4-5,000 rpm+ they were fun for those moments, but in everyday driving the lack of low-end torque was almost dangerous. The power below 3,000rpm was just completely unacceptable compared to a lower powered 8v engine, which had considerably more torque down low. And, while most vehicles of the time finally had 5 speed transmissions, these already needed a 6 speed as they were geared so tight…see that 3,500rpm at 60…not pleasant on longer runs. Great quality cars, but count me among those who were happier with an 8v SR-5 or GTI.
Keep getting my coments deleted. Posted earlier this morning and its gone.
Anyways r&t’s times seem slow to me. An MR2 with the same engine would do 0-60 in 8 seconds flat, maybe a smidge under. That was straight hauling for that era, the Miata that came out 5 years later with a smidge more power was over a second slower to 60.
What I did not realize is how rare the “AE-86” was in usdm spec. One year only and they didnt sell very many. $12,000 as tested was A TON of $$$ back then, probably double what a base spec no a/c corolla went for.
Toyota then and today gave you good value for $$$ if you stuck with base trim or just a few options. At least for double the price of a base Corolla you got a pretty bespoke car with an exotic engine. $15k more for a Rav4 hybrid limited vs a base SE as today’s example feels like you are getting ripped off. 15mpg increase, well that $15k buys A LOT of gasoline. And Toyotas hybrid tech is the same thing they have been selling for 20 years now. And the hybrid is not all that fun to drive IMO, unlike that nasty, snarling 8000rpm screamer bolted to a great shifting manual. 1st gen MR2 with built 4A-GE, individual throttle bodies is a bucket list car of mine. I wouldnt turn down a non-molested AE-86 either, but I dont think such a thing exists unless you want to treat it to a $100,000 restoration.
AE86 Corolla GT-S was sold for three years in the US – ’85-’87, not just one. But if someone just wanted the styling and RWD they could save a bunch by opting for the AE85, i.e. the Corolla SR5, same body but a 70hp engine and, crucially for the US, available as an automatic.
The AE86 base price is about $1,000 more than an ’85 MkII VW GTI so it kind of lines up, the GTI had 100hp that year so it’s about right. Although in ’85 smaller cars with FWD performance were what was taking off, further explaining the relatively low sales.
There’s nothing comparable between the regular FWD Corolla in ’85 and this one, they are pretty much unrelated and could easily have been named something completely different, it’s not just an “optioned-up” base Corolla, far different than a base RAV4 and a loaded Limited in hybrid form. The difference between a base RAV4 LE and a base Hybrid RAV4 LE is about $3000, btw. Options cost money.
I bought a used ’88 GT-S Coupe (AE92?) as a second car for our family. I’d leave the van at home with my wife to ferry the kids around and take the little rice rocket on my 1 hour commute from White Rock to Vancouver every day. Not quite the same car as the featured ’85 but still great car and a fun ride. Loved rowing the tight standard shift winding my way through the other crazy commuters. All 3 kids learned to drive stick on this car and it served us well for many years until our oldest daughter managed to wreck to poor car in a minor rear ender – too old to repair so a write off. Fun while it lasted.
WOW, how times have changed. A 2450# car with a 1.6 liter motor was porky? Now days a CUV weighing in at 4000+# with a turbo1.3 liter 3 banger is normal. Looking at you GM and Nissan among others. Has transportation really progressed??? I remember when these first hit the local Toyota dealership. I was perplexed. A Corolla with flip up lights? Oh so 80’s wonderful
I lived in Toronto back then, and remember a lot of TV commercials about this car. But it was not as hype as its today status. The press did mention about the significance of 4-valve and twin cam setups, claiming that Toyota had solved the problems that troubled Jaguar and other car companies for years with Japanese technology — note Japan was in bubble economy and whole country was viewed as a giant hi-tech machine not unlike today’s Silicon Valley. My cousins had good jobs with good paid in Bay Street banking sectors. They didn’t brother this car at all, they all wanted to own Prelude, Celica, 200SX, Siraricco, Audi GT, BMW 318i and 190E.
I think this car gained its novelty and popularity later because Japanese youths started the drifting, this car was a ironic vehicle for them.
I am not familiar with the engine technology in details, but I noticed Toyota passenger car engines have been using 4-valve and twin-cam since 90s. My beat-up 2004 Matrix has a same setup with 140 bhp output. Strangely, Honda has been holding up this set-up, mostly staying with 3-valve on Honda car and adding twin-cam on Acura car in US. But Honda in 90s did introduce a variable valve technology, the first in the industry. VW/Audi bought in 5-valve, twin-cam, turbo charged in mid-90s and eventually direct fuel injection. That is the trend of today’s advanced engine setup even Japanese automakers are forced to adopt. Toyota these days has 4-cylinder turbo direct fuel injection engine to replace its famous 6-cylinder engine. But the world moves toward to electric vehicles, Somewhat US for political reasons now has second thoughts about EV, Biden administration wants to plug-in hybrid and move to hydrogen fuel cell later, a strategic approach outlined by Toyota.
“But Honda in 90s did introduce a variable valve technology, the first in the industry.”
Honda wasn’t first in this respect, Alfa Romeo patented and had Variable Valve Timing by the early 1980s on production vehicles in the U.S. and elsewhere.
Sorry I forgot to mention the significance of Toyota hybrid technology introduced in early 90s. Hybrid is gaining popularity in Southern California after the initial hype of EV mostly Tesla, LA drivers gradually realized for their own economic benefit and practicality, gasoline engine hybrid is the vehicle to own. If I were in charge, I would mandate the engine size and power output to reduce the carbon emissions, rather than pushing for zero emission as Biden original plan to stop the production of fossil fuel engine by 2035?
“Hybrid is gaining popularity in Southern California”
Hybrids became popular in SoCal (and all of CA) the day that the carpool lanes were opened to hybrids with single occupants more then two decades ago now and remained popular ever since due to the fuel economy benefits in a high gasoline price market. EVs became immediately popular in SoCal (all of CA) once they were allowed to use carpool lanes as well. The CA carpool rules did as much to get people to try hybrids and EVs as much (or perhaps more) than anything else that’s been done, easily shaving off close to an hour of a typical Bay Area commute for example if any bridge is involved. The percentage of EVs sold is higher in CA than anywhere else in the US and perhaps the world if I am not mistaken, it is significant, the main thing keeping hybrids in the game is their (generally) lower starting price and nowadays general lack of compromises vs normal ICE cars.
Norway (81%) and Sweden (38%), Netherlands (23%) and China (22%) are ahead of CA, with 21.4% (pure EVs).
https://cleantechnica.com/2024/03/22/ev-market-share-in-17-countries-usa-china-15-european-countries/
I’ve had the pleasure of owning not one, but two ’85 Corolla GTS models, one hatch, one coupe. Talk all you want about horsepower to weight ratio, acceleration times, etc. These cars are an absolute blast to drive! They were also super reliable, and cheap and easy to maintain.