The Corona was a long-running Toyota product in Japan, from 1967 to 2001. It had a briefer run in the U.S. though it was named Road Test Import Car of the Year in 1969. It was followed by the Camry which would be more successful and is still around today. Possibly a low-mileage survivor, this ’67 Corona is in solid condition and may spend much of its time in the garage. Formerly located in Colorado, it’s in Chicago, Illinois now and is available here on Facebook Marketplace for $9,800. Thanks, Paul D Smith, for finding this tip for us!
In the Toyota pecking order back in the day, the Corona was positioned between the smaller Corolla and larger Crown and would be one of the earliest models brought to the U.S. But Toyota’s first run at the American market was not a success. At first, they called themselves Toyopet before withdrawing from the scene to regroup. When they came back in the mid-1960s, Toyota sales would pick up and slowly grew thanks in part to the positive reception of the Corona.
We’re not told a lot about the seller’s car other than it runs and drives well and the odometer reading is under 20,000 miles. Under the hood should be a 1,900-cc inline-4 that’s paired with a 3-speed manual transmission, which should be peppy enough for the size of the auto. The interior is more than passable with a CB radio tucked in under the dashboard (“Breaker, Breaker, 1-9”!). The seller says the body is good and the turquoise paint looks presentable and could even be original. In today’s Toyota fan gatherings, this one should create a little buzz even though it’s an ordinary 4-door sedan.
This was my parents first car. I remember hearing my dad had purchased it from a traveling salesman when it had well over 100K miles. I always thought theirs was a 1965 model but if 67 was the first year then so be it. I do remember it had the small circle trim on the taillights and later ones had a square. Ours was the 2-speed Toyoglide and I do remember when we moved to Texas in 69 speed limits on the highway around San Antonio were 70mph and this car sounded like it was going to grenade. Never did though. I do remember my dad having brake problems and asking the neighbor mechanic to help him. I was standing off to the side watching. The mechanic cracked the brake line at the master cylinder and asked my dad to pump the pedal. A stream of brake fluid hit me right in the eye. I was rushed off and ended up no worse for the wear.
Maybe that is why whenever I see one I have soft spot to buy it. It’s those fond memories we have as kids that stick with us. I find the styling pleasing to the eye. All the lines slant back from the front to the rake of the greenhouse and even the door shut lines follow the same form. A car for the OCD? Yeah that’s what it is.
Nice car, but not something that would typically be roaming the neighborhoods of Pittsburgh back in the day. Like many in the region, my dad worked for US Steel when I was a kid, so a car like this was taboo for our family. Dad used to tell stories about how guys would come to work in a Toyota like this and find the tires slashed at the end of the day, and that was at the Research and Development complex, not at one of the mills. I don’t know how much of that is true, but when he bought a well-used VW Squareback as a second car, he *never* drove it to work.
CCFisher, i wonder if EUROPEAN imports were “treated the same way”, back in the day at US Steel.
You might fool them tho with a ’71 “Plymouth” Cricket. lol
Could never understand why Honda of all cars still had a 2 speed auto trans in the late 70s on Accords, i believe!
Yes, and and on some websites, a GM car with a two speed in the late 1970s would be crucified, yet Honda and Toyota get a free pass.
This was on ebay a couple of weeks ago in Colorado- looks like someone is just trying to flip it for a quick profit…. not that there’s anything wrong with that
Had one exactly like it back in 1979 and I paid $500.00 for it. Only problem I ever had was when I shifted, if I tried to go from third to first, the linkage would hang up. Then I had to raise the hood and pull up on the linkage. Not a serious problem, just inconvenient. Otherwise, never had a problem with the car.
Back in the day between 1999 and 2001 I sold cars at Oakbrook Toyota in Westmont, Illinois. They had an exact copy of this car on the showroom floor. This may even be the same car as it appears identical. It was not really for sale, just all shined up and looking like new. The story was an old man bought it new and traded it in on a whim and regretted having sold it. That car had dealer documentation for all service and repairs. If memory serves… it had 31,000 on it.
This must be the same car as I remember. Just noticed the AAA bumper sticker on left rear side. Mileage is under 20k and I knew it was super low for what was a 32 year old car at the time.
That’s what I thought!
Oak brook Toyota, in Westmont!
R.I.P. Mr. R.
I just bought a 1995 Corona – I didn’t know they existed until I found my RHD JDM example in Tucson. Apparently also sold in Australia and Russia back in the 90s.
I had one much like this; it was a 1970 model Corona. Good little car except it had valve problems & rather poor brakes. I think there was a recall on the valve problem. Bought a ’72 Corona 2 years later & they had gone to disc brakes by then. It had a different engine which also developed some problems. Later models had solved both of these problems. The build quality was generally good on both cars though.
Knew a guy who swore by Buicks. His brother in law had a car just like this. One day he pulls up with the Toyota raving about it.
This is a well-preserved car. I had a 1968 Corona fastback, Royal blue with a white vinyl roof, 4-speed and, drumroll please, in-dash 8-track tape player. I’ve since lost count of how many Toyotas I’ve owned through the years. All solid and reliable.