190 horsepower, 190 ft/lbs of torque, a five-speed manual, a central differential, and unlike most other cars from the last twenty or so years whose lineage came back to rally racing, the spoilers and over-aggressive looks are restrained in. This is a 1988 Toyota Celica Turbo All-Trac, one of the few American-market signs that Toyota was actually doing really well in rally racing before the infamous 1995 WRC ban for a turbocharger cheat so ingenious that even the FIA inspectors were astonished. That’s all and good, and yes, it’s a very interesting car with some potential, but what is it doing on BangShift? Because it isn’t the typical Subaru or Mitsubishi EVO, but it is a homologation rally machine that is well under the Rough Start budget that doesn’t appear to need much of anything to drive away from the deal on, that’s why.
I have some experience with this generation of Celica. They are comfortable cruisers for two passengers and the handling, at least for the front-drive GT version, was plenty good enough to keep the Celica in sporty company at the start of the 1990s. Putting a turbocharger onto the 2.0L and hooking it to the All-Trac system, a viscous coupling 50/50 split drive system gave it grip. Lots of grip. This is the kind of car that makes for a great daily driver, because you can stay out of the boost and pull decent economy numbers, or you can go down to your nearest dirt lot, kick the clutch and learn the fine art of four-wheel-drive donuts.
Currently, this Celica is up for grabsl for $3,500 and we see nothing that is an emergency issue. You can stop there and pocket $1,500 if you want, or you can get to work on some upgrades if you must. Either way, if you’re just starting off and want Toyota reliability with a bit of fun, you can’t go wrong here. And you won’t have to worry about an inspector looking down the throat of your turbo.
Craigslist Link: 1988 Toyota Celica Turbo All-Trac (ST165)
Cool rally inspired All-Trac and not a bad price. Oh and on a side note I’ve been across that bridge. Not that anybody cares?
Weirdly (who was expecting that) I’d rather have the rarer Camry All-Trac just because I want a 4dr or more correctly I’d canibalize it for putting into a wagon.
Anyway still a cool car