Toyota entered the American car market in 1957 with its Crown model. To a large extent, these early cars were treated as something of a novelty, but it didn’t take the world very long to realize that Toyota was serious about selling quality cars in large volumes. It also didn’t take long for Toyota to become an industry leader in quality standards in all aspects of production, and this drove the company to eventually assume the mantle of the world’s largest vehicle manufacturer. This 1972 Corona is a pretty sad and sorry sight, but digging below the substantial layer of dust, you begin to truly understand why Toyota is so successful. You will find this Corona Mark II listed for sale here on Craigslist. It is located in Youngstown, Ohio, and is being offered for sale with a clean title. The owner of the Corona has set a sale price of $700 for the car.
There’s no doubt that this poor old Corona is not a pretty sight. It definitely hasn’t seen active duty for a while. However, take a really close look. It has obviously been parked for a very long time, but when you look below that layer of dirt, there is virtually no rust or rot through to be seen anywhere. I will admit that the photos aren’t the greatest quality, but if this car was given a wash, I wouldn’t be surprised if it was found to be virtually rust-free. That doesn’t mean that it has escaped that curse completely. The gas tank is rusted out, and the owner believes that this was the reason why the car was parked in the first place.
Now we get to the interior, and I have to tell you that I’m glad that we can’t smell what’s going on in there! It appears that many small and furry creatures have made this Toyota their home over the years, and that’s bad news on a number of fronts. Obviously, it’s going to smell less than pleasant in there. Additionally, rodents have an amazing digestive system. Seat padding and the insulation off electrical wiring is an entree to them, so there will almost certainly be some issues there. There are a number of interior components and trim items that could be used on other projects, but if you were buying this one to return it to the road, then you will need to replace a lot of the trim and upholstery or buy shares in a company that manufactures air freshener.
Things in the back seat don’t look a whole lot better than they do in the front. In fact, in this shot, you can see that the headliner is really seriously shredded. The door trims look to also be pretty sad, as does the upholstery on the seats. A nice bonus is the VCR sitting on the back seat. I wonder if that comes with the car. If you are reading this and don’t know what a VCR is, then you need to ask an older person.
Apart from their reputation for fit and finish of body and trim, another area where Toyota cemented a solid reputation revolved around the strength and durability of their mechanical components. Their engines will survive some of the most horrifying levels of neglect, while their transmissions (especially the manual ones) will handle extraordinary amounts of horsepower reliably. This Corona is fitted with the 1900cc engine, which is backed by a 3-speed automatic transmission. We don’t have any information on the condition of the engine. However, even though the car has been dormant for many years, it is entirely possible that the engine could be revived with very little work.
Okay, this is not a highly desirable “must have” project car. It is an interesting insight into the evolution of Japanese automobile design and manufacturing. I’m pretty sure that I’m not alone when I say that this isn’t the car for me, but if someone has one that is a project car, then this car, at $700, could be the source of a lot of good parts. Of course, it is also possible that once it is given a good clean, that it might be able to be transformed into a viable daily driver for very little money.
“If you wash it….they will come.” And maybe give you a little more money.
For some reason, I am inclined to believe that’s a Sony Betamax sitting in the back
You’d have to ask an older, older person if it’s a Betamax.
Obviously a rodent condominium for quite a while….
And the listing is pulled, so someone must not have minded!
I’d love a Toyota Corona Mark II, but not in this condition.
My folks had one like this painted a rather
plain shade of tan. Great little cars! Mom drove the tires off it and it never left
her stranded. Gee, I wonder if Scotty saw
this one.
Not much else to add that aint been said….oh …its a top loading VHS player
This brings back a lot of memories. If it was red, even more. My mother thought a compact car like a Corona would be a great little commuter car. My father was NOT interested at all but Mom loved it. It turned out to be a better vehicle than my ’71 HiLux pickup. For one thing it didn’t detonate like a diesel, and it could live on regular gas. But it wasn’t long before it started marking its spot in red on the garage floor. Turned out, after about five trips to the shop, that the transmission case was porous. It took a year to get a new case then when the job was done, the company refused warranty because it was over a year old. Major peeing contest with Dad finally reverting back into his ‘SAILOR’ persona to get any satisfaction. I think that the dealer just decided to eat the bill because Toyota kept going on like a stuck record about the time for warranty being expired–it didn’t seem to matter that the parts shortage was on their dime (yen?). Shortly after that, Mom had a parking lot dent which broke the plastic headlight door ($500.00 damage ?!?!) and put a tiny bonk in the sheet metal which you had to search for. My sister ended up rolling it when she took a speed corner a little too fast (that car was rather top-heavy).
I too owned a red one of these. Polished to perfection with two sporty teardrop fender mirrors mounted and Gates foam steering wheel. The previous owner had the hood held down with a bungee cord as it was folded in half. No front bumper either. I tossed that ten year old car around my senior year in high school then sold it to my sister when the clutch went out. I seem to recall it was temperamental in rain because of the poor location for the distributor and cap. Used to dry it out when I got stuck in the parking lot after band practice.
These are definitely not ‘rust prone’ cars due to the manufacturer’s due diligence in manufacturing.
My aunt and uncle had one in the 70’s that they used as a second car to haul us 5 kids around in. When he traded it in for a Honda accord, the dealer told him that when he put it on the lift the car had split across the middle due to all the rust.
Buyer beware.
My old 75 had more rust than car. And it was my daily driver in the late 80s. Floor pan had a big hole in it. The bottoms of all the doors and where the top and bottom skins of the hood met were gone from rust. The vertical part of the trunk lid didn’t exist. Gone. I drove it legally too. Those were the days. Perhaps in its defence, this was in Auckland, NZ, famous for high salt content being west and east of the ocean. Still….
Lordy. Waaay back in the day, my friend Troy and I shoehorned a 302 into a Corona he had sitting out in the woods, ostensibly just to get the motor into the school auto shop, where we’d pull it out and drop it in his ’69 Mustang. Maybe one break, 3 doors, no hood. We screamed around the back roads for a while, and ended up blowing the doors off of Jamie Jones’ 78 Trans Am. There’s something righteous about smoking some dude with a painted up street rod with traction bars and the works with a blue sh*t-box Toyota that shouldn’t even be on the road.
Let it rust…
I bought a 1972 Chevy Nova, that I’ve mentioned here. That was just a few months before I got married and my bride-to-be decided I needed a new car. I had a friend who’d owned a Toyota Corolla of this era, not sure what year it was but it seemed fun to ride in and drive.
When we went looking at cars, the Corona was one under consideration but we ended up deciding on the Nova. Don’t remember the exact reason, but a good part of it may have been her WWII dad, who so detested Japanese cars (and everything) for those reasons that seem kind of odd now.
As a youngster my parents had one of these in the late 70s, Was a great little car. I decided it was time to join the motoring public so would sneak it out when no one was home for joy rides.
One day while driving ran into a kid I knew who’s parents indulged him more than mine indulged me. He had one of these new Mazda RX7s and thought he was cool. So, we decided to race. Country roads DID NOT take me home, I was doing great and leading, He couldnt get around me. I was doing 2 wheel and some 4 wheel drifts around corners and holding my lines.
Then suddenly the car went crazy and all control went away. I learned from witnesses that while cornering the sidewall rolled on the tires and went flat,, THAT IS WHY it suddenly spun and crossed the center line and thru a yard and rolled over into some peoples garden. I did all I could with adrenaline trying to refill the tires and the homeowner happily helped tow the car with his tractor out to the road. But I had to go home and fess up what I had done.
That was my entry into bodywork. I bought a Peterson publishing “How to do bodywork” Book and cans of bondo, primer and tools and TRIED to fix it. Mom eventually sold it off.
Like all Toyotas – a car for people who hate cars, and hate themselves for having a car.
I’m talking about Camrys & Corollas here, not the MR2 or the Supra.
Not worth saving. Unless you need a toploader VCR.
Only good for shotgun target practice.I just spent 2mins of my life that I’ll never get back.Really don’t think B F can stoop any lower.Please don’t try.
I disagree 1stgear, While the seller was lame for not washing it and poorly presented, the car itself is a time capsule of what were VERY popular cars in their day. I have had a 30 yr love affair with Datsuns and especially 510s, But cars like this one represent a time period for many of us. Can be powerful,, One of the most commented and popular postings on BFs was a garage sale with a huge collection of Hot wheels toy cars. EVERYONE had a hot wheels comment or story.
My wife and I had NEVER purchased a new car before, but we BOUGHT a new 2004 Toyota based on our youth experiences in the 70s with Toyotas. My wifes family had “Ol Yeller” a 1977 Toyota wagon that last I saw of it was on engine #3 and over a million plus miles on it. Everyone in her family drove or owned it over the years included extended family relations. It was stolen 3x and recovered. We still see it from time to time so its still on the road. Powerful memories!
Now,,, would I recommend a modern Toyota based on our experience? NO….. That 2004 was a POS and endless problems with it. But everyone remembers these old cars and fun to see one barn fresh, Albeit this seller was lame in presentation.
(A clean car is a happy car!)