You really can’t knock Toyota for copying American musclecars of the day. They were selling and Japanese manufacturers were looking for any kind of inroad into the American market. Datsun went after the sports car crowd with the Z-car and struck gold, Mazda was betting on the rotary powertrain to be a hit (being fair, lots of companies hyped up the Wankel engine as the wave of the future), and Toyota emulated quite a bit of the Ford Mustang and hoped for the best. For the first generation, it worked like a charm. The second generation started to find some more middle ground between Asian roots and American tastes, but by the third generation, only the long hood/short deck layout and rear drive remained. After that, it was a neat little two-door coupe and a two-door liftback, your preference, hooked up to a list of four-cylinder engines that ranged from economical little units to sporty little units.
What’s under the hood of this Celica is a unit of a different measurement altogether. The biggest displacement four cylinder the Celica got new was the 22R, which displaced 2.4 liters. The engine in here? It displaces 7.2 liters…or, for a translation guide, four hundred and forty cubic inches of heavy menace, courtesy of the Chrysler Corporation, that was shoehorned into the engine bay with the help of enough lard to make Paula Deen smile wide. And to be truthful, even that figure is incorrect…the correct figure is 452 cubic inches after a .060 overbore. The rear axle isn’t stock either…that’s a Dana 60 back there with widened wheels on board.
Just once, I’d like to see how quickly this thing moves. Punching it from a dead stop has to be a riot…or maybe it’s a puckering experience. Either way, I’m intrigued.
The only saving grace this stinking four wheeled abortion has is that’s not a Chevy motor under the hood – but there again what did a poor 442 Mopar do to end up there?
Talk about a butch job!
So badass! This would be a fun and quirky car. A little of something for everyone!
I gotta agree with the previous commenters.
Why? Just… WHY???
Step#1 – Remove engine
Step#2 – Crush car
Nice.
I have a 1980 with only 34K mi and only one driver/owner, no
rust, etc. Any good?
Just glad to see some interest again in Toyota Celicas, even if I don\’t agree with this one!
78 to 81 weren’t as popular as the earlier or later bodies…but I still like them! I have a 78 coupe with a 1uz VVTI swap and retro rally paint scheme. LOVE THEM
I had a 83 GT a few years back. I wanted to swap a j2z to in it. Until it got impounded. Lol.
I had a 83 GT a few years back. I wanted to swap a j2z to in it. Until it got impounded. Lol.