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Random # 298: Circa 1980 Toyota Corona Lift-Back


This lovely old Toyota Corona liftback is a perfect example of survivor car meets modder.  Its panels, paint and chrome are in amazingly good nick with just a tiny hint of rust near the fuel filler and a trivial dent on the rear bumper.  The only hint that it's not still with its original owner are the fattish black and chrome D-slot steelies and a Slowasf*ck sticker on the driver's side.

 


Corona sedans and wagons of the same era were Aussie-assembled and shared Holden's poxorific Starfire 4 engine from the four cylinder Torana / Sunbird and Commodore line-ups (yes, there were four cylinder Commodores which I know is a bitter pill for GMH fans to swallow!).  However, the liftback versions of the Corona were fully imported from Japan and featured the 21R 14 motor from the concurrent RA46 Celica coupe and liftback, making for a much more satisfying - if still not awe-inspiring - driving experience. 


The liftback was also beautifully appointed for the time, featuring sumptuous velour upholstery, a soft-feel four spoke steering wheel (possibly adjustable for rake?) and an AM / FM radio / cassette player with four - yes, imagine the luxury! - speakers.  It also came with external rear-view mirrors on both sides, as well as stylish moulded to the car front and rear mudflaps!  They were equipped with a five-speed manual gearbox, as opposed to the sedan and wagon's four, with a three-speed self-shifter as an option.


Probably the greatest accolade for Toyotas of the 60s, 70s and 80s is that there are plenty of them about and those that do still exist are in generally pretty good nick.  There are several examples of Corollas, Coronas, Celicas, Crowns and 'Cruisers scattered about this 'blog, many of them well in excess of forty years old and none of them showing any signs of going the the great wrecking yard in the sky any time soon!







U M P H

(uppermiddlepetrolhead.blogspot.com.au.)

All iPhone images.

Comments

  1. Anonymous17 January 2020 at 11:33

    Shame it doesn't have the venetian blind on the back window.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Unknown19 September 2020 at 03:59

    i need the pair rear tail lights

    ReplyDelete

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