In the summer of 1980, at age 19, my dad drove home a brand-new Toyota Celica notchback coupe from Dahle Toyota in Logan, Utah. This was a picture he proudly took in the driveway of his new ride.
The Celica was one heck of a car for a teenager! It had a $6,909 sticker price (the equivalent of about $28,000 in 2026). Dad’s ownership experience was short-lived, but he still talks fondly about that Celica. After all, the nameplate was well-known for not only its stylish looks, but also for its reliability and value. While some of the competing import sports coupes from the segment, such as the Honda Prelude, used front-wheel drive, the Celica retained its rear-drive engineering all the way up until the 1986 model year.
On display at the Kyusha Club show in Phoenix on April 19 was a tidy-looking 1977 Celica GT liftback. It was from the generation before my dad’s, but it still had somewhat similar lines.
The first Celica came to North America in 1971; up until that point, its closest predecessor would have been a Corona coupe. The first-generation Celica (produced through 1977 with some design and engineering changes along the way) went by the RA29 chassis code, and it was characterized by an available Ford Mustang-inspired fastback rear end on specific years and models. Some even called it a Japanese pony car; the triple taillights were an unmistakable derivative from Ford’s iconic game-changer.
Exterior features seen here included thick U.S.-specification bumpers (federally mandated), quad headlights, dual side mirrors, and body side moldings. Check out those window louvers — something we just recently talked about when discussing retro automotive accessories. In addition to having the liftback body style, all GT models came with styled steel wheels and chrome trim rings. Those wheels, of course, have been replaced by an aftermarket setup here.
The saddle-colored upholstery looked immaculate. GT models received interior niceties like a tachometer, AM/FM radio, and center console. This one also had woodgrain trim adorning the cabin.
Under the hood of the ’77 Celica GT was a two-barrel-carbureted 20R 2.2-liter SOHC inline-four (not pictured) that was rated at about 96 horsepower and 120 lb-ft of torque. A W-50 five-speed manual transmission sent power to the rear wheels, and a three-speed automatic was optional. The Celica’s suspension used MacPherson struts with coil springs up front, combined with a four-link system with a live axle and coil springs in the rear. All in all, it made for a tight-handling package for a car that only weighed about 2,200 pounds.
It’s nice to see some well-kept early Celica models still strutting their stuff at car shows, and it’s fun to reminisce about Toyota engineers’ quests to chase after the Mustang. Who could blame them, anyway?
Now, if only my dad had kept that hot red ’80 coupe…
