The Toyota Celica became available in the United States almost immediately after its initial introduction in Japan in December, 1970. At the time, many consumers weren’t considering imports, so it would take years for the Toyota brand to reach the level of desirability it has today in the domestic market. However, in 1976, Motor Trend certainly took notice of the Celica, honoring it with its Import Car of the Year award. This 1976 Toyota Celica here on Craigslist is said to be a one-owner example, and the seller reports that it remains largely original. It’s located in La Habra, California, northeast of Los Angeles, and is listed for $16,500.
Barn Finds reader Jack M. spotted this sleek liftback, and we’d like to thank him for sending us the tip here! Although the Celica debuted as a 1971 model, it was still in its first production generation in 1976, but the car received more updates this year than ever before. The wheelbase was stretched, and the exterior also got a few changes, including the vents becoming incorporated into the hood and a revised front end. The seller reports this one was originally orange, but it was repainted once in the nineties, changing the color to red. The body is said to remain as straight as an arrow, and the sheet metal is claimed to be 100% rust-free.
A peek inside shows an interior that appears about as good as the exterior. The owner describes the condition as great and notes that the seats were also reupholstered in the 1990s, and they still look excellent decades later. However, the dash is original, and the pad and instruments look very good. The factory radio has been upgraded to a more modern unit, but most other parts appear to be factory Toyota components.
Under the hood is Toyota’s 20R engine, a 2.2-liter inline-4 cylinder known for exceptional reliability and longevity. It’s paired with a 5-speed manual transmission, and with just 75,000 original miles, it may still have years of service left for the next owner. It was reportedly parked in a garage in 2012, so most of the driving hasn’t been recent, but the seller says they replaced the fuel pump, cleaned the gas tank, and states the car now runs like new overall. This seems like a fun cruiser for the price range, and I’m guessing it won’t take long to find a new home. What are your thoughts on this 1976 Toyota Celica?
I remember my brother buying this same car except in silver, as his first new car purchase. I always liked the fastback styling. And if the milage claim is true, this one has a lot of miles to go. Very nice looking.
These were really neat cars when they came out and held thier own for years….really nice one and most likely get close to the ask…
I think the designers at Toyoto had just got done looking at pictures of a 1969 FORD Mustang, and they said lets make a car to look like this one. Look at the picture of the right rear quarter panel of the Toyoto. Does anyone else see a 1969/1970 Mustang?
Absolutely, I remember thinking that back in the day. They are often called the Japanese Mustang. Just look at the taillights.
If I remember correctly Toyota bought the rights to use the design and produce the car. Just can’t miss that silhouette going down the road.
I was the owner of a 1976 Toyota Celica GT Metallic Dark Brown which I had over 400,00 miles on it. I would still have the Celica GT but it had its demise at the hands of a 18 Wheeler, rear ended on the Baltimore Beltway. It was Hands down one of the best automobiles I’ve ever owned.
Nice car, i wish Toyota and Nissan would bring back just basic transportation like this i don’t need all the technology junk in cars today
Not going to happen that’s why I still own my 2001honda civic dx with 182000 miles simple car it’s a dx paid 2,200 5 years ago the only thing I’ve done to it is replace the lower suspension and regular maintenance and drives like a dream
not gonna happen when manufacturers can charge you a subscription for heated seats. americans literally rent everything now without realizing they’ve been conned.
Shut up and take my money in exchange for this unicorn. I rebuilt a 75 from a bare body shell to “on the road” in 4 days with a friend back in the late 80s (out of necessity). Lovely bulletproof stylish fun to drive cars.
A Youtuber swapped a Tundra V8 into one of these, recently. Pretty amazing stuff.
That would be Sarah-in-Tune. She has a pretty good channel. she is a bit quirky but then again so is Derek on Vice Grip Garage.
sure, looks clean in and out. i would have repainted the original color instead of resale red.
Hard to tell, but Toyota had an “Orange” and they also had a “Red” that in the right light appeared to have somewhat of an orange to it. My ’77 Celica was that “Red” color and people would say it looked orange.
My buddy had one – great cars. This one is exceptional.
Cars like this are why the Japanese made monumental inroads into the US market at a time when US manufacturers were run by penny-pinching accountants who were determined to sell pure junk to the public under the guise that the public had no other practical choice.
I remember my relative bought a car just like that one time they were driving on a country road and a larger car decided to pass them. It did not have enough room so he just pulled right over and knocked them off the road like it was a “toy”!
It hit a tree with the front right corner. The hood with hinges in the front popped up at the back and totally twisted so the corner of the hood was less than a foot away from going through the windshield and possibly decapitating somebody. I picked all six of them up at the hospital and my big old 65 Cadillac and drove him home.
That would be Southeast of downtown LA, and not that far. I used to ride my bike from LA to La Habra when I lived there. Car is nice and yes, Toyota was inspired by the 1969/1970 Mustang in designing this car.
I owned this same car model year 1977. Absolutely one of the best all around cars ever. Sold it in 1982 for Ernest money on a home. I’d love to have this one. I’m sure somebody will snag this car quickly!
Lovely car. Although I was way too young at the time to drive a car, I’ve known people who have. I find this Celica more attractive than the later version.
Nice car but why hasn’t it been registered since 2012?
With only 75,000 on it they weren’t driving it anyway.
Ok, my age is showing again. Wouldn’t this be the first year of the 20R? I believe that the previous year had the 18R?
Someone please verify or correct me. I was surprised to see the 20R under the hood. The 18R was not a bad engine. But the 20R was for superior. Just keep replacing the exhaust manifold gaskets and the Carburetor AAP diaphragm. And keep on using it!
I think, I think, the 20R showed up in the ’75. But, the ’75 had the smaller body and 13″ wheels. ’76 & ’77 they went to 14″.
I remember these cars making headlines 1974-76. Purchased new they actually gained some value in resale in their 1st year resale. I guess word was out on their quality.
Needs an Alpine deck with the sliding equalizer to really take me back to 1983. Van Halen blasting. Ah, the memories.
Ad shows this was originally Orange. I seem to remember almost all of them were silver or blue.
With the Leno Law now this could have a place in my garage, but would need to make room.
That black dash pad isn’t original. It may be OEM part, but the original would have been the same tan color as the rest.
The shifter boot is also not original. The original was leather.
Sure wish they had painted the engine bay to match.
The first new car I ever purchased was a ’77 Celica GT coupe. The liftbacks tended to have more road noise with the open back area.
The color change is unfortunate, especially with the engine compartment still being orange. ☹️
I like it red and it’s well done, but the original burnt orange would be nice, too.
This car will never be “collectible” (if there is such a thing at this level of the hobby). In the end, it doesn’t really matter all that much to anybody. If it presents well, and runs well, then it’s all good.
So sometimes you just have to go for it and let the chips fall.
Too late. It already is. especially what they are selling for now considering they cost $5000 on the dealer’s lot 50 years ago.
This is my favourite generation Toyota Celica until the 1983 Celica GT and GT-S.
I owned one and would love another liftback but they are hard to find now and a good shape one is too expensive for me here in Canada.
I’d buy one if I knew someone who owned one.
Love it.
I had a good friend with whom I worked at Domino’s delivering pizza back in 1980 who had this same car in yellow. God I loved his car and desperately wanted one for myself, but couldn’t afford it. In 84 I found a 72 Celica for only $139 at a car lot on the bad side of town, it was a rustbucket but ran good, had just over 100,000k miles, and looking in the back of the owners manual I saw that the owner had logged every oil change, 3000 miles apart, for the entire life of this one owner car. I had to replace a cracked head, rebuilt the starter and alternator myself, and drove it nearly 200,000k miles before it finally became impractical to keep up due to the pervasive rust. I replaced it with a 1981 280ZX, which was just as good a car, but much better performance.