A60 Toyota Celica, Celica XX and Celica Supra (MkII)

For the longest time, there has been one ‘80s Japanese sportscar that I really liked. Wedge shape, liftback body style, pop-ups, etc. I wouldn’t complain if it had a digital dash. And that car was… the Z31 Nissan 300ZX Turbo. Growing up, there were two around my neighborhood and plenty of them could still be found on the streets. The second in line to my heart was the Isuzu Impulse, because we had one in the family for a while, in red, no less. Third in line was the Chrysler Conquest, a Mitsubishi Starion captive import, because my Toyota MR2-driving uncle briefly used to own a couple. But what about the Supra, specifically the one whose generation has come to be known as the MkII on most markets? Unfortunately, I had no exposure to it; they weren’t that common when compared to the aforementioned Z31.

As I grew up and the Supra namesake became a holy word among gearheads, I began to casually familiarize myself with the platform. You should’ve seen my reaction when I saw a Mk1 Supra for the first time. But unlike the time I learned about Lamborghini LM002 and its ancestor the Cheetah, I don’t remember when I set eyes on the MkII Supra, but it inevitably became a favorite when I did. Eventually I found out about the Celica, perhaps because one of the school staff had one. It was far and away a different animal to the sharp and swoopy FWD cars that were still in production at the time. I was unsure if I knew of the Celica/Supra lineage at the time, but I’d much prefer the staff’s Celica. Plus, those pop-ups! Oh, and the stories…

 

In my country, I’ve heard more about the series’ codename A60’s bucket seats -particularly the Supra’s- than the car’s performance. I’ve heard a story how one group used to scour junkyards to purchase them and sell them on for a profit. Heck, I helped a guy install a set in his AE-series Toyota Corolla notchback!

Funny story: one of mom’s church friends talked about how he got to drive an A60 Celica (you could tell he dug the car by his narrative), but while leaving it unattended in a little peaceful town, he came back to find the doors open! Nothing was stolen, but it was disconcerting that in a place where there was virtually zero crime, someone would just help themselves to do more than just peek through the windows. Moral of the story: the A60 had the power to bring out the worst in people. It’s those bucket seats, I tell ya!

Supra vs. Supra, from Motor Trend, February 1982.

During college, I started to fully immerse myself in the platform. Somehow it didn’t register with me that the name ‘Celica’ is a word of Latin origins meaning ‘Celestial’. I didn’t even bother to look up the term ‘Supra’ until I began writing this post, which by the way, is also a word of Latin origins meaning ‘above’. I think they were going for ‘above and beyond’. Suddenly, that Japanese commercial featuring ELO makes a little more sense…

The biggest shock while doing my research was the A60’s release date: 1981. Think about it: the Mitsubishi Starion and Isuzu Impulse haven’t arrived anywhere outside Japan yet (Starion: 1982, export-market Impulse: 1983), and Datsun’s –not yet Nissan- Z-car was the 280ZX with a mid-cycle refresh. Then out comes Toyota with these clean-slate designs. I’m convinced that the public must’ve been blown away! I would have.

Toyota reaped the rewards of their partnership with Lotus. Mr. Chapman himself appeared in the commercials as well, even posing with one Celica XX. From ’81-’83, A60s had fender-mounted mirrors before switching to door-mounted units, among other revisions.

Toyota and Lotus have had an interesting relationship for years, starting around the time the previous Celica/Celica Supra/Celica XX – the chassis-code A40- was about to be succeeded by the A60, not just when it came time for the former to provide engines for the latter’s Lotus Elise sportscar, which was the first time I’ve heard of this union. Lotus gave Toyota some engineering tips and tricks for the A60, while Toyota -who owned some shares from them- gave Lotus bits and pieces that helped ‘em build their Excel.

The results were night and day, particularly in the case of the A60 Celica XX/Supra in comparison to the outgoing model. More powerful, better handling, far more sophisticated, obviously modern. It was also bigger and, because of this, heavier (Lotus must’ve shaken their head), but due to the overall package being so brilliant, the weight issue barely registered as an inconvenience. Now, those that felt that the Supra was lacking in horsepower either went with a 280ZX Turbo or something far more expensive, or added a turbocharging kit to their Supra. HKS built some well-thought-out kits, as did Blitz in Japan.

Pretty much the only manga/anime that I know of that prominently features an A60 Toyota is the most excellent Yoroshiku Mechadoc (disclaimer: I’ve only seen the Italian dub anime, called A Tutto Gas), where a scrappy little garage salvage and rebuild a Celica XX 2800GT for a big and influential clandestine race. It quickly became the face car of the franchise despite only appearing for a couple of episodes and the intro. You can get model kits of it. Yes, that’s the A60’s digital dash on the volume 3 pic. I checked.

Honorable mention of an A60’s manga/anime (brief) appearance: Wangan Midnight.

While researching Japanese Domestic Market vehicles, it never ceases to amaze me how such a tiny country could offer so much variety for themselves, regardless if it’s an econo-car or a luxo-barge, with some of them having twins under the same company (ex. Nissan Cedric/Gloria clones). From what I was able to gather, the Celica –now in its third generation- had over 20+ variations for both LB (liftback) and Coupe (coupe) in Japan alone, with those numbers increasing/decreasing throughout the A60’s run:

• SV – (SA60) 100HP SOHC 1.8L LASRE (Lightweight Advanced Super Response Engine) 1S-U inline-4. Solid rear axle and smaller diameter wheels.
• ST – (SA60) 100HP SOHC 1.8L LASRE 1S-U inline-4. Solid rear axle and smaller diameter wheels.
• 1800ST-EFI – (TA63) 105HP SOHC and EFI 1.8L 3T-EU inline-4.
• 1800SX – (TA63) 105HP SOHC and EFI 1.8L 3T-EU inline-4.
• 1600GT – (TA61) 115HP DOHC and EFI 1.6L 2T-GEU inline-4. Said to have gotten the new (AA63) 4A-G engine after the ’84 model year refresh.
• 1600GT-Rally – (TA61) 115HP DOHC and EFI 2T-GEU inline-4.
• 1600GT-R – (AA63) 120-125HP twincam 1.6L 4A-G inline-4. Substitute for the 2T-GEU, debuted for the ’84 model year refresh.
• 1800GT-T – (TA63) 160HP twincam, twin-spark, turbocharged 1.8L 3T-GTEU inline-4.
• GT-TR – (TA63) 160HP twincam, twin-spark, turbocharged 1.8L 3T-GTEU inline-4. Debuted for the ’84 model year refresh.
• GT-TS – (TA64) 180HP twincam, twin-spark, turbocharged 1.8L 4T-GTEU inline-4. Very factory-looking rally homologation special based on the GT-T. 225 units produced. Extremely rare.
• 2000GT – (RA63) 135HP DOHC 2.0L 18R-GEU inline-4. The biggest naturally aspirated engine you could get in the Celica in Japan. Unable to confirm its availability.

 

Disclaimer: Aside from squinting at incomplete brochure web collections, most information on the JDM Celicas comes from a digital excerpt from Toyota Celica & Supra: The Book of Toyota’s Sports Coupes by Brian Long, which is out-of-print and the few copies on sale are overpriced… unless you get the digital copy.

The Celica XX (pronounced ‘Double-X’ rather than ‘X-X’) had 7 variations. That alone is reason enough why it’s mentioned exclusively in the opening title rather than just lump it all under ‘Supra’:

• 2800GT – 170HP 2.8L twincam and EFI 5M-GEU inline-6.
• 2000GT- 160HP 2.0L twincam and EFI LASRE 1G-GEU (a Yamaha-massaged 1G-EU) inline-6. New for ’82. Were available in Black Limited and White Limited special editions. No automatic trans until its final year.
• 2000G – 125+HP 2.0L twincam and EFI LASRE 1G-EU inline-6 engine.
• 2000G Turbo – 145HP-160HP (‘83+ intercooled version) 2.0L Turbo M-TEU inline-6. New for ’82. No manual trans.
• 2000S – 160HP 2.0L twincam and EFI LASRE 1G-EU engine. S version was cheaper than the G.
• 2000S Turbo – 145HP-160HP (‘83+ intercooled version) 2.0L Turbo M-TEU inline-6. New for ’82. Like their naturally aspirated counterparts, S version was cheaper than the G. No manual trans.
• 2000L – 125HP SOHC LASRE 1G-EU inline-6. The relatively basic XX. I say that because not only did it have the most basic engine, I’ve found out it didn’t even have power steering! Dropped after ’83 model year.

Confession: I couldn’t have compiled the Celica XX info without the available information from http://www.celicasupra.com, specifically this thread. They have even more info, like transmission codes, gear ratios, differences between Euro and American versions and such. And pics, too. If only there was such information for the Celica readily available on the web, instead of an overpriced, out-of-print book… unless you get the digital copy.

If you wanted more wind in your hair than the factory sunroof could provide on the Supra, Pacific T-Top Inc. (aka Pacific Auto Accessories) was there to help. Have a taste of what they did in their brochure, found here.

North America kept it simple with engine choices (for better or worse) on their A60s, as they got the 22R/22R-E/22R-EC SOHC 2.4L inline-4 (‘E’ for electronic fuel injection, C for the California special snowflake version) and the 5M-GEU DOHC 2.8L inline-6 for their Celicas and Supra, respectively, though the latter made due with 145HP-160HP instead of 170+HP for Japanese/UK/Euro cars. Even when it came to pick a Supra, the North American market had it simple: the L-type was the more luxury-oriented and understated version; the P-type was the performance -and slightly more expensive- version. The rest of the market had a little more choice in spec’ing out their Celicas and Supras, though some markets like Australia –in the case of the Supra- received only one model with a bit of both types.

More on U.S.-spec Celicas: they were available in the base ST (coupe only), the reasonably equipped GT (coupe and liftback) and the sports-oriented GT-S (coupe and liftback) trim packages. Aside from borrowing clothes from the Supra’s closet, the GT-S also offered the Supra’s rear independent rear suspension (that’s right, Celicas came with a solid axle) a year after its introduction.

Aside from the Supra, UK and Europe had the Celica coupe called the Celica 1600 LT with the 1.6L engine (automobile catalogue.com says that two 1.6L were offered, one more powerful than the other. I think it means it to be the same engine but with different engine codes: engine family 2T-B/2T-G’s engine codes are TA60/TA61, respectively). I did find a road test of a UK-spec notchback Celica, called the ST 2.0 Coupe, and that one had the (RA60/61) 21R SOHC 2.0L inline-4 (despite some niggles with the controls and comparing it with the top-of-the-line Supra, Motor Sport magazine –November 1982- liked it).

The liftback was called the Celica XT and it came with the 21R SOHC 2.0L inline-4 and 2000 GT with the (RA63) 18R-G SOHC 2.0L inline-4. Germany had the Coupe GT. Information on European A60s is hard to come by.

Downshift was part of a trio of mail-order promo for Generation 1 Transformers called Omnibots.

When the 1980s got going, the decade became an amazing yet unforgiving time for sports machinery (it was a veritable bloodbath in the sportsbike world). But even with a couple of years under its beltline, the A60 Supra was still a darling of car magazine testers -even with newer machinery coming out- the fact was that the Supra was more of a well-built, well-equipped all-arounder for its price rather than a compromised, single-minded performer. It didn’t hurt that the Supra got yearly improvements and I’m not just talking subtle exterior tweaks, like badging and graphics; performance updates include the addition of a 130mph speedo to yearly power hikes and changes in rear gearing -depending on transmission choice- among others. Fansites will help pointing out the year-to-year updates.

The A60 Supra had motorsports recognition, which is pretty much a given. But the A60 Celica served as the basis for Toyota’s Group B rallying efforts. It was called the (TA64) Celica Twin Cam Turbo. While neither insane (ex. Metro 6R4) nor innovative (ex. Audi Quattro) as most entries in that near-mythical class, much less purpose built for it (Ford RS200), the Celica’s mechanical straightforwardness helped it with long-distance races, earning it victories. Not bad for a RWD car in a mostly AWD-dominated field.

Here, have a commercial.

One thing that the Celica had over the XX/Supra it was the availability of a notchback body style. You could get it all flared up if you went for the right trim: the GT-S for the USDM market. As stated earlier, the GT-S was originally a trim package that later became its own model for both coupe and a little later the liftback as well. The only drawback was that you didn’t get the XX/Supra engine choices, among other things.

Convertible courtesy of American Specialty Company. While these are the more numerous when compared to other conversion companies, all convertible Celicas are rare and command a premium because of it.

For those that desired fun under the sun, the Celica won over the Supra because it could be had as a convertible (it’s easier to convert a notchback into a convertible than a liftback), thanks to folks from Matrix, Schwan, Avon Coachwork, Sunchaser, SparlingCo., American Sunroof Corporation (ASC), American Specialty Company (also ASC, later called American Specialty Cars), Convertible Specialists (they could turn the Celica’s roof into a targa top if you wished) among others. Of course, there have been Supra front-end swaps done on those convertible Celicas.

The choice is up to you: the top dog Celica Supra gives you all the bells and whistles plus the more desirable powertrain and drivetrain. The Celica may give up a couple of cylinders, but you’ll still get a lot of car, plus the added choice of notchback, liftback and convertible, with trim packages that will get your Celica closer to Celica Supra’s looks and performance (particularly after 1983), if you so desire. Who knows, maybe you’ll find one of the ultra-rare ‘rally-homologation’ specials. But don’t take too long thinking over your choices: many classic Japanese machines have skyrocketed in value, many deservedly so. While not to the extent of Nissan 260Zs or Mitsubishi 3000GT VR-4s, certain trim packages of both the Celica and Celica Supras have started to move in that direction as well. Get one before their prices live up to the model name meanings of above and beyond and celestial.

 

–Tigerstrypes

 

References:

Supra vs. Supra: www.celicasupra.com

Celica GT interior beauty shots: http://www.japanorder.com

Celica XX ad: www.autoneuroticfixation.com

Convertible Celica: www.hemmings.com . It’s perhaps the best ‘vert Celica pic on the web.

Omnibot Downshift: http://tfwiki.net

Toyota Celica TwinCam Turbo (TA64) Group B rally car: Pinterest

intro pic, Pacific T-Top Inc. ad and Celica pop-ups: Tumblr

Yoroshiku Mechadoc images: http://japanesenostalgiccar.com (manga covers) and http://supra70.com (manga thumbnail).