The Celica might be thought of as Toyota’s version of the original Ford Mustang, with its sporty long hood/short deck proportions and 2+2 seating. Its name was an iteration of the Latin word “coelica” which meant celestial or heavenly. The car was in production for more than 35 years across seven generations and was quite popular in the U.S. This 1973 edition is the ST model and is presented as a survivor wearing its original paint. Located in Texarkana, Arkansas, this Toyota is available here on eBay where the current bid is $5,501, the reserve is unmet, and the Buy It Now price is $17,500.
Celica’s were based on the Toyota Carina sedan (much like the Mustang had been on the Falcon). But unlike the Falcon, the Carina was not a huge seller in the U.S. market. To get the most bang for their tooling bucks, Toyota also borrowed mechanical components from the Corona (which did sell better in the U.S.). First-generation Celica models arrived in 1971 and were built into 1977. The ST was the base model for those sold over here and in 1973 the car used a 2.0-liter inline-4, and this car likely has a 5-speed manual transmission (no under-the-hood photos are provided).
The seller’s Celica is said to run and drive well, “but is not perfect”. If this is a true survivor, then the engine would have to be getting tired at 189,000 miles and no mention is made of a rebuild. Just before listing the car for sale, the seller performed a tune-up and added new tires to the aftermarket wheels. We’re told it’s a hard-to-find car which we don’t doubt as while they were quite popular when new, they were generally used up and then thrown away.
Physically, the car looks fine though what may be the original yellow paint is scratched and chipped in several places. And the interior looks tired, a reflection of the miles and usage. The seats will need to be redone as will the carpeting. The seller says the car will come with lots of documentation, so it would be interesting to see what may have been done to the auto other than routine maintenance. When was the last time you saw one of these “Japanese pony cars”?
17.5k for this ?
JDM… Just Drink Somemore
I agree 😅😅😂😂😂🤣🤣🤣😭😭😭😭😭
1978, electronic tech school a classmate drove one of these. Most of us had v8 late 60s mid 70’s cars, and picked on him for thinking it was a sports car.
Bet he wishes he still had it.
Way overpriced and it will be a disappointment in person. Tired paint, faded tired interior. Neat, rarely seen any longer, a good one to do a restore but not at that price.
Wow I I the only one that sees an 800$ car tops? What the heck are people bidding on that I’m missing?
Vintage Japanese tin is *in* right now. And the sheet metal on these is thin and rust prone, so there’s not many left.
I like these cars but, I’ll slid right on by this bad boy. Where do people come up with their prices? I guess some people think they have a gold mine in some of these cars.
The car is rare and solid that’s why. In an era of 55mph limits and gas rationing these cars were sports alternatives to pintos and Vegas. Great styling , reliability , and handling. 240z, opal manta, ect…..wish I had one.
japnese PONY CAR???? are you serious????
yup, dead serious. The decade B4 they (all JDM co.s) were copyin da Brit/Italian lill speed-sters. Nxt was some merican innovation so we were nxt.
Got near identical in back of garage just moved out to a truck body storage. St/strip version: door crds, rug, etc all restored & oem (new handmade seat covers), no cage but… a 2.4 has been efi-ed, turboed, transmission may B different. Last items were a fuel cell instal inc plumbed. It runs ! Now back till more time later. Been in this 34 y/o’s possession since he was 13…
And you can work on them with a handful of spanners and 2-3 screwdrivers. As easy to work on as peeing the bed.
Thrashed and not worth that price. I prefer the next gen Celica, 78-81.
I bought a 78 coupe in 1981 at 16 years old. My oldest brother had bought a liftback in 78 new for $6500 and he could not break it!
I raced a lot of cars stoplight to stoplight and did not get beat much.
A Datsun 510 shut me down but that was freeway driving. A Mazda RX3 is the one I remember in town and a V8 Vega in the mountains. With a header and a weber the car was quick. I would wind the 20R to 4 grand and dump the clutch and it would never go up in smoke because lack of big cubes and the next light was right there. Race over
Pissed a lot of guys off. Great times
78 were bulbous and bot as sleek
You are not thinking of a 78 COUPE. Bulbous? As I recall it was car of the year and as a 16 year old I beat the living snot out of mine and it just asked for more
One too many zeros at the end of that price?!!
Bought my ‘76 GT for $750 in 1985. Still miss that car, but never would I pay $17K for this. $3-4K tops considering all the $$ that needs to be put into it.
I did a nut and bolt resto on one of these back in the 1980s. Simple as hell to work on and this looks like a real solid car. If I were in the US, I’d be all over it. 1973 would be the first year of production if I am not mistaken.
First year was 1971
$17,500 for this? Bartender I would like what ever the seller is drinking please, the car is fairly clean looks to of had a poorly painted repair on the right rear quarter panel and the odometer has rolled at least once
Good Sillycars are starting to get silly money, especially such an early one that is still a bog standard rust free survivor. I restored one years ago and they are so easy to work on. This one could be brought back to pristine show car for very little money. So it’s had a ding and respray and has some miles. It’s 50 years old. Just saying.
1971 in Japan was first year of production. 1972 for NA. Have had many and now just a 72 going for its third engine transplant. 72 did not have the big rubber bumper bullets which I did not like as much. If it sells for reserve I’m happy as mine will be worth a bit also, finally.
I had a 72 with a all aluminum 215ci V8, Toyota 5 speed and custom exhaust. It was lots of fun.
I had a ’71 Corona MkII and a ’74 Celica GT. Used either the 8-RC or 18-RC OHC engine. Weak link was the pair of double-roller timing chains, Went through several sets on both cars. Fun cars though, until the rust claims them.
This car is probably a 4-speed. Also, it;s missing the center console that sits astride the shifter & on down the tunnel. Good luck finding one.
cool car but having owned many I can say 5 speed wasn’t available until late in 1974 production run and only on GT model. JDM fans may know there is a factory twin cam head available that boosts power significantly but the added chain noise to the 1.8 litre engine is a song at higher ram. Oh yeah 2.0 lithe not available until 1975 model