1980 Toyota Celica RA40 2.0L from Australia and New Zealand

Summary:

Boring as bog stock, but great done up!!

Faults:

I have not had much go wrong with the car since I've owned it, But I have had to add a NOS interior including seats, carpets and dash because of sun damage.

There is a fair amount of rust which I am hoping to get cut out during a respray if I continue to spend $$$ on it.

Also the clutch fluid holder under the bonnet near the firewall does leak.

And it has started to make a screaming noise when it has a low battery or when I turn on the Fan/air con.

General Comments:

I am pleased with its off the line pick up. I think That the extractors and 4inch exhaust system have helped.

The car is lowered, it has; mag wheels, new windscreen, new interior, woodgrain steering wheel, momo titanium pedals, new carpets and a red respray.

It also has a pioneer CD/DVD player with touchscreen LCD screen, Play-station 2, Twin sub woofers, two amplifiers and four fusion 3way speakers.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 27th April, 2006

1980 Toyota Celica GT Liftback 2.2 Litre Gas, 20 R from North America

Summary:

Great car, I will never sell it!

Faults:

Paint has faded.

Paint has peeled.

Sheet metal rusts badly, under body rust is not too bad.

Front bucket seats are sagging and worn.

Excessive noise from the drive line.

Doors hinges sag, causing doors to be hard to close (you have to lift them in place).

General Comments:

Very Reliable.

Inexpensive to own.

Quick acceleration and high top speed.

Car feels stable at high speed.

Corners and handles excellent.

Strong brakes.

Powerful engine.

Reasonable gas mileage of 22 miles per gallon in the city and up to 32 miles per gallon on the highway.

Nice dash layout.

Smooth shifting manual transmission.

Good headlights.

Easy to resell, I get people asking me all the time if I want to sell it.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 15th July, 2005

26th Sep 2005, 14:20

I had a '80 Celica ST coupe and it was awesome. I loved the car for the whole time I had it and only had minor problems with it like the thermostat, fuel pump and exhaust. It got rear-ended once and had little damage and then shortly after that it got side swiped by a dump truck while parked which took out the drivers rear quarter. It was really nice before that. It was a fast and smooth runner (used to cruise at 90 on the highway and it would turn 4,000 RPM's in 5th all day long). I actually beat a Mustang Cobra II way back when, but I think I was just out shifting the other driver! I could spin the tires into second gear pretty easily though. I traded it for a brand new 5.0 Mustang so I didn't miss it for long!!

1980 Toyota Celica RA40 2.0 Carby from Australia and New Zealand

Summary:

80's Is Back!!

Faults:

Nothing has gone wrong since I've had it, but there are some things that are wrong with it.

These things came with the car.

The rear bumper bar has been taken off, although it came with the car.

It was taken off because the back end needs straightening and there is a crack in the back end of it as well, just below the hatch.

The car also makes a very weird "Chzzt Chzzt" sound, my step dad believes this could be due to a fraying timing belt or something.

Also, the center piece of the steering wheel has been taken off, and I can't get it back on.

One of the center pieces of one of the wheels is missing as well.

General Comments:

Well, I've had the car for a few days now and I have to admit I love it already.

I've loved the 2nd generation Celicas for a very long time, and I'm proud to say I own one now.

And at just 17 years of age!

The car handles really well for a car that hasn't been looked after too well.

The car definately needs a new paint job, as the current paint job (yellow and grey) looks really disgusting.

I'm thinking along the lines of something black.

The car looks really good aswell.

What I mean by this is that the car is definately not ugly.

I love the doors, they are nice and long and have no window frame for that extra sporty feeling.

Another thing I like about the doors is where the door lock is, it's obvious too see the car has been planned and created pretty well.

I'm amazed at how heavy the bonnet on the car is, it's got a bit of weight in it, that's for sure.

I was quite happy to see the car had very little rust, of course, this may change after the car has been sanded back for a paint job though, as there could be rust I'm yet to find out about.

When you sit in the car, you feel very low to the ground, I was amazed at how weird it felt to sit in at first, but I've already gotten used to that.

It's definately better than my old rusted out Mitsubishi Colt heap.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 8th November, 2004

10th Nov 2004, 17:53

Mine is probably in better condition than his.

The frame-less windows go fully up, so I can wash it without worrying about water getting in.

My car needs roughly $1200 including roadworthy and registering fees, so probably about $700 in repairs.

7th Feb 2006, 02:46

Hey Simon from Australia here. I know what you mean about these cars. I have had mine (‘78’ LT lift-back) since about November ‘05’. I got it for $275 from the wreckers because it was going to cost the owners too much to do up. Only the week before this my mate had given me his 79 coupe cause it had a heap of rust and he couldn’t sell it. So when I found this 78 I decided to go for it. You’ll have to send me some pictures of it.

Trust me on this, don’t get your Celica painted black. I saw a picture of a ‘78’ painted black, a professional job too, and it looked terrible. They have such a beautiful shape and it just gets lost when they are black. I’ll try to post the picture. I wanted to do that myself, but after seeing it I decided not too.

Hey some good spots to make sure you check for rust (might be a little diff then my 79 but seems to be basically same body set out)

• Side window sills

• Door pillars

• Exterior roof pillar (plastic cover)

• Edge of front window inside.

12th Jan 2007, 07:12

Hi Simon, I'm also from Australia. I'm 17 and I'm looking for a Celica of this vintage to restore/do up. You were saying that black looked bad on a Celica; I know that they say that you lose the shape of the car with dark colors, but I saw this black one and I reckon it looks very cool. I don't know about the gold rims though; I think 'deep-set' rims look good.

http://www.celicas.org/members/akolenda/frtang1.JPG

PS, I also love the shape of the 80's-ish Celicas.

Here is the main page:

http://www.celicas.org/members/akolenda/akolenda.html

Cheers.

Felix.

9th Oct 2007, 21:01

Hi Tiph from Phoenix here. My uncle just gave me a 1980 Toyota Celica Liftback. I love love love it; it will need some work, but the interior is in amazing condition and it only needs minor body work from an accident with a previous owner.

The car hasn't been too much trouble so far; just basic stuff. I am going to paint it black in January. Saw a pic of a black one... same year, looked amazing.