Well, it’s not exactly a ten foot tall fart cannon, like those seen on serious Japanese Bosozoku-style cars. But it’s a start, and the young owner of this recently acquired 1978 or so Cressida wagon that has lived in my neighborhood has big plans for it. Since he still lives nearby, maybe I’ll document the evolution of this ratty but pretty rare old car from brougham-style to bosozoku style.
Somewhat surprisingly (or not), there’s two of these brown Cressida woody wagons in town; the other one was written up by Tom Klockau here. This one had been getting quite neglected, and not used much in the last year or two. But now that’s in the hands of its new owner, it’s getting a serious working over.
Maybe “gutting” would be the more accurate term. The owner said it was gross, and that mice had been in the carpeting, so that got tossed out, along with a few other things. When I first saw the interior, I thought maybe he was going for some minimalist look, but supposedly, it will be put together again, in some fashion.
The big change will be air bags at all four wheels, so that it can be lowered for that pavement-scraping look, a major component of bosozoku-style. That work on the rear window has to do with dealing with some surface rust issue from where the window seal trapped some moisture there. Rust? What’s that?
I’m looking forward to the transformation. And I’ll post updates as they occur.
CC 1978 Cressida Woody Wagon: I Love What You Do For Me, Mini-Cordoba Wagon by Tom Klockau
Bosozoku Style by Don Andreina
Bosozoku Style: Fart Cannons, Bazooka Size by Paul N.
Talk about a stripper model 🙂
I remember when the Toyota Cressida looked like this. This is my favourite generation for the Cressida. I’d buy the wagon if I could find one in nicer condition. 🙂
How do you get around in this car without ending up in the slammer?
Simple. As long as you’re not trying to import something newer than 25 years, anything goes*
*May vary by state
These were sold new in the US. I kinda thought the original question about how do you get around in this without attracting the attention of the law had more to do with its absence of basic equipment like a speedometer, and possibly turn signals.
You must be kidding !
With that exhaust pipe one could easily slice up pedestriants.
I agree. I’m not a fan of the exhaust extensions myself. They not only look awful, but they do look like they could slice someone in half if he’s not careful.
What do you mean? America is the land of the free! 🙂
Seriously, here in Oregon we have zero inspections of any kind (except for smog in some high-density areas). The police here don’t care. As long as all four wheels are still on….
I agree. While New York has more cars that rust to death Oregon has more cars overall that stall out in random spots, spew clouds of various colors, sound dangerous, and look dangerous. I find it kind of amusing since I am not used to living in a place without state wide safety and emissions inspections.
We don’t have them in Nebraska either, thank God.
As far as I’m concerned, it just makes life harder for the less fortunate and/or HS and college kids. Back in the day, the cars I had were not perfect but completely serviceable. Actually, I just got rid of an Impala that was my wife’s that we kept driving while we paid off the new car. The speedometer went out on but still worked fine otherwise. It would have sucked to have to waste the money to fix honestly non-essential things just for them to pass “inspection”.
Even without inspections, I very very rarely see cars I’d consider truly dangerous.
Some places have odd restrictions. For example, in VA you fail the safety inspection if your driver’s side window is inoperative. I suppose that’s a safety issue if you get pulled over, as the officer clearly does *not* want you to open the door, but that’s not part of the inspection in North Carolina so it caught me off guard.
I fear inspection is about to cost me a lot of money. Mine is overdue for renewal and I have a check engine light on, plus an intermittent ABS light. The check engine is not a safety issue but the car is *just* new enough to be subject to emissions, and any CEL is an insta-fail.
Interesting to say the least .
-Nate
I like the idea of leaving the faded brown paint and mostly-gone dinoc intact, but lowered and with some appropriate wheels. I don’t particularly care for this generation of Cressida to start with, so I like the incongruity of taking it in a different direction.
I miss my 84 shakotan styled Cressida, too bad it spun a bearing.
* Would be nice if this kid’s wagon evolves somewhat as nice as this Mark II(jdm Cressida).
I actually saw this CC when I was staying in the Whiteaker area last week with my fiancé! We were on a road trip from CA and I was coming back from a drug store with some toiletries when this guy pulled up next to me. I thought it might be a Pinto at first from the profile, and then I spied that strange looking tailpipe and the missing back window. I remember thinking that this was an unusual looking beater and that it seemed miraculous that it was indeed on the road. I might have even subconsciously noted that this would make a good CC write-up, but there were so many awesome CCs to choose from in Eugene, that this one was just another of many. Glad Paul found this one, and I’m excited that I finally got to see one of the featured CCs in person!
If you stayed in the Whit, you undoubtedly saw a few CCs!
I don’t remember if the U.S. got the 2 door version or not, but that is the model of this generation of Cressida that I would want to own.
That said, from some angles the 4 door sedan and wagon suffer badly from the Japanese laws that restricted a car’s width….as does the 2 door.
If we are talking late 70s Japanese 6 cylinder wagons, make mine a Datsun 810.
It’s too bad the Cressida was never available in two door coupe. Four door sedan and station wagon are good vehicles, but I think a two door coupe would’ve offered people something different.
Sad. Amazing what some people will do to a car. Should have been left alone and allowed to have dignified death.
I’m sure the owner will tire of it eventually, not easy finding ’78 Toyota interior parts.
You were never young, I guess 🙂
+ 1
Spoken like an open minded dad.
Lowering this thing only means rusty exhaust bits will fly off, VERY fun for the driver behind that gets his front bumper cracked up.
Imo I think it’ll stay like this for eternity, then it’ll be scrapped when rust chews it up.
Rust? What’s that?
It had a bit of minor surface rust where the rear window seals trapped some water; that’s after almost 40 years. At that rate, in Oregon, it would take another 100 years for rust to chew it up. 🙂
That’s why I want a car from Oregon or Washington state.
I dated a girl from Lakewood, WA who told me you guys never use salt on your roads… Unlike us poor mofos in New England. Sucks
While, everyone wants a rust-free car from Cali, the sellers charge more just because of that, “It’s from California”… So, the price goes up.
I’d rather get a mint, original rust-free car from Oregon or WA, and save me money on the overhyped price of California.
Me and a friend want to go to Oregon or WA, and pick up some rust-free classics. I want a vintage Toyota or Datsun, he wants a classic VW Bug. 🙂
I don’t mind surface rust if *that’s all* it is. That’s easier to take care of than severe rust, that goes straight through the metal, exposing everything that’s not protected.
for a car of that vintage, if there’s rust you can see, there’s even more rust you can’t see.
I don’t mind the patina, as long as the body is solid, no holes that allow rain and salt into the car. I don’t mind modifications as long as it improves its performance. But Lowering the car until it scrapes the pavement is hardly my idea of acceptable improvements.
I think it would look awesome tastefully lowered and with the right rims also. Although I generally love the rat rod look (maybe because I’m always broke and can’t afford a paint job), I think this wagon would look sweet with straight panels and a shiny paint job!
I do not get why anyone would want their car to be “pavement scraping” low. It looks ridiculous IMO and is completely unpractical.
I had an MK3 Jetta and all those guys were constantly telling me I needed to lower it. Just don’t get it.
Tastefully lowered to me would be a slight lowering job- not so low that it actually scrapes, although I kinda like that look also. It makes the car or truck look tougher and aggressive, like a race car with a lower center of gravity. Just my opinion!
Interesting project. If it were mine I’d be tempted to convert it to a pickup/ute given the ratty interior and missing windows. Attached is a crude mockup.
The windows were removed to do a bit of repair work.But, yes it would make a good Cressidamino.
The tail pipe wouldnt get past an alert traffic cop here I watched a Honda get pulled and pinkstickered for the same thing, the mornings entertainment while doing a delivery, I left just as the tow truck arrived.
That all varies by locale. Like Paul stated, it’s no big thing where he is and it’s about the same where I live. We have a safety inspection every one to two years in order to renew license plates, but it’s pretty much making sure you have brakes on the car and all the lights work.
Lose the tailpipe. Add a little bit of brown paint and some windows. I’ll take it.
Not a fan of the boso exhaust pipe, I’d go with a slight drop on some Watanabes (in silver, not black) or paint the steelies a nice creamy yellow to complement a fresh coat of That ’70s Brown and new Di-Noc.
Ever since the last Cressida story I’ve been on the lookout for Cressidas on CL. To my surprise I’ve only found two in the last few weeks. The two had rather high asking prices and had been modified extensively. Who knew!
I’m not a fan of tailpipe extensions. They look awful, and it’s not much fun to have exhaust smoke in your face when you’re standing behind the car while it’s running.
I look forward to seeing how this Toyota turns out and hope they are able to find interior bits. At least with the air bags the car can be a pavement scraper then more practical when need be.
What is that white Art Deco building in the background across from the paint store?
Looks like a giant Pinto wagon. Toyota’s styling back then sure was, er, derivative.
Late here, but a cool find, and I’d love to see its progress if you see it around again Paul!