Sometimes interesting cars appear in unlikely places. My wife snapped these pictures while chaperoning our daughter’s band trip in Salem, Massachusetts. She knew the car was interesting, but wow – this is a car I haven’t seen in decades, and rust-prone New England isn’t where I’d imagine one to be driving down a city street. A one-in-a-million encounter… in more ways than one.
Interestingly, Salem once played a bit part in Toyota’s history. In 1972 – around the time our featured car was new – a Salem Toyota dealer sold a red Corolla wagon to a local couple. What seemed like an ordinary transaction, though, was made more interesting because Toyota declared that car to be the company’s one millionth US sale. The lucky couple were treated to a ceremony, as well as engraved watches and a free London vacation. But Toyota itself was the real winner. The company had made it big. And the Corona Mark II was part of that success.
Toyota began exporting vehicles to the United States in 1958. Unfortunately, the Toyopet was poorly matched to the US market. Within a few years, Toyota suspended US passenger car sales for several years (though Land Cruisers remained). In hindsight this was an effective strategic retreat.
In 1965, Toyota returned, this time with the Corona, a better vehicle, and one developed in large part to American tastes. Coronas sold much better than the Toyopet, and Toyota sought to build on that success by expanding into a wide range of cars – à la American brands. The Corolla debuted as their small model – meanwhile the Corona Mark II edged Toyota into the burgeoning “intermediate size” market.
A bit larger, flashier and better appointed than Toyota’s other products, the Mark II brought the qualities that consumers noticed in the smaller Corona to a larger car that could accommodate a family, or even a full load of adults in relative comfort. Few would have guessed at the time, but this car set the stage for generations of Toyota’s mid-market descendants.
Performance was respectable as well. Power came from a 108-hp, 1.9-liter four-cylinder engine that was able to move the 2,300-lb. Toyota to 60mph in about 14 seconds. While not stellar by today’s standards, as Road & Track noted in a 1970 road test, the Mark II was “in a dead match with its competitors for performance.” Numerical performance, however, told only part of the story. The Mark II’s engine was blissfully quiet, its shifter smooth and handling responsive. In short, a prelude for Toyotas to come.
Another Corona Mark II attribute was value. The five-passenger Mark II came standard with reclining bucket seats, full carpeting… and numerous little details that Toyota became famous for. Amusingly, when Road & Track tested the Mark II, they griped that some of the trim was “a bit pretentious.” Toyota didn’t want to be accused of being too soulless, so there were a few ’70s-style flourishes inside and out. Most buyers weren’t put off by them. Overall, Toyota struck a good balance between style and functionality.
Customers found this a compelling package. While early US Toyota sales are not available broken down by model, total US sales increased from 72,000 in 1967 to 295,000 in 1972 – increasing fourfold over the first-generation Mark II’s model run. Mark II’s weren’t the only reason for this success: Corollas, Coronas, Celicas and others all played a part. In retrospect, the Mark II is perhaps most interesting because in later decades Toyota mastered the art of selling mid-size cars to North Americans. The Mark II provided a successful start.
R&T did suggest that the Mark II’s 13-inch tires were undersized – something this owner took care of by replacing them with 14” 1980s-era Supra wheels. It’s a complimentary look that emphasizes the car’s sportiness. Incidentally, this isn’t the first Mark II with Supra wheels to appear at Curbside Classic, as this green sedan written up ten years ago sported the same look.
I’m glad to have these fleeting pictures of such a rare survivor. The Corona Mark II was a stylish, well-built car that offered customers a solid value. Its main legacy, however, was setting the stage for Toyota to achieve great success with future products. That one millionth Toyota sold in Salem 50+ years ago was a milestone, but to put that in perspective, the company now achieves more than 2 million US sales annually. Those legions of Camrys, Priuses and others owe a debt of gratitude to the Corona Mark II.
Photographed in Salem, Massachusetts in April, 2024. Many thanks to my wife for taking these photos.
Related Reading:
1970 Toyota Corona Mark II: Stodgy, Thy Name Is Toyota Paul Niedermeyer
1970 Toyota Corona Mark II: Heritage For Sale Perry Shoar
1971 Toyota Corona Mark II: Some Things Never Change Paul Niedermeyer
Congrats to your wife for this indeed rare catch. I can only imagine that there’s some kind of interesting story behind that particular car as you’re absolutely right about how it would definitely not have survived here in New England if it had been anywhere near regularly driven for the past 52 years.
Although if something this odd were going to show up here in Massachusetts, Salem would be the place. Strange things happen in Salem. 🙂
Are those guys climbing rope ladders on that brick building?
Actually, yes.
I looked that up as soon as she sent me the pictures, and the building in the background is the New England Pirate Museum. Here’s a webfind picture of the mural:
Ah, now I see! It’s a painting!
The wall mural reminds me of Chicago’s first greatest hits album.
While the Corona, reminds me of the 1968 Dodge Charger.
Haven’t seen one of these in a very long time myself. I think the rear marker light takes the prize for the largest rear side marker ever.
Removable carpet! Pure genius.
Re the 13″ tires, IIRC the phrasing was, “The potential for handling isn’t realized because of the cheesy little bias-ply tires.”
Nice to see a survivor in good shape .
-Nate
One of my GF’s parents in Iowa City in 1971-1972 had one, and I drove it a couple of times. A nice drive; definitely a step up from the mostly low end Japanese cars at the time.
This 4-cyl gen1 MkII (in the US) sold quite decently, but the somewhat bigger, heavier and more expensive 6 cylinder version that followed it did not. Americans were not quite ready to step up that far yet. That would take a while yet.
This 4-cyl gen1 MkII (in the US) sold quite decently
This may be a surprise to some, but this generation of Mark II that ran from 1969-1972 in the US actually outsold the Corona over the same period, and was Toyota’s #2 seller behind the Corolla each year from 1970-1972. The drop in popularity that came with the redesigned 1973 model was drastic.
That’s very interesting – thanks!
Which makes sense, for two reasons:
The Corona being sold when the MkII came out was the US gen1 version, and looked decidedly out of date by 1969-1970. And the Corolla was also fresher, and hoovering up many of the Toyota buyers looking for the lowest price, which had previously been the Corona. The elderly Corona was sandwiched between two younger and more appealing cars.
The new Corona that came out in 1970 still didn’t seem to sell all that well until the MkII went upscale in 1973. This MkII hit the sweet spot; a slightly better Corona.
Perhaps folks weren’t too crazy about the styling of the new Mark ll or maybe the Carina siphoned off a few Corona sales.
I wonder if the arrival of the Celica might have also attracted some possible Mark II buyers?
I had a couple of 70s MK2 Coronas 73 & 74 that had the bigger body and Crown 6 plus a 71 1600 AMI built 4 banger Corona, Handle? NO not well at all, Toyota was criticised for their numb dead steering and poor handling for decades here, Chris Amon chief among them was allowed by Toyota to redo the Kiwi Coronas, they got 4Wdiscs larger diameter wider tyres different springs shox and ball joints and galvanised at the plant, nobody else got them, I had one, great Toyota. A blast on a twisty road.
Perhaps folks weren’t too crazy about the styling of the new Mark ll or maybe the Carina siphoned off a few Corona sales.
I love a nice 2 door hardtop, and really like the lines on this one. This would have been a winning choice for someone who wanted a sporty but reliable car. These were starting to be seen in the midwestern US when they were in showrooms, but Toyota still had a ways to go before they had really wide acceptance there.
What a sweet looking coupe! I really hadn’t appreciated how nicely designed these were.
Salem is on my list to visit in in the Ghia this year, so maybe I’ll see this Toyota…
Haha,*everything** pre-1980 with 4×114.3 stud pattern ends up on “Iron Cross” rims eventually!
My dad, in a leap of faith, bought a Corona Mark II, 4 door sedan in August 1970 for me to commute to college in. $2250, financed for three years. To my knowledge, our Toyota was the second Japanese car in our small Northwestern Ohio town. The head gasket blew at about 30,000 miles, the repair was $250 or so. I wrecked it in Southeastern Ohio and it got a complete new paint job and rechromed bumpers. It had 75,000 miles when I traded it in 1974. Top speed was about 93 mph, normal around town MPG was 20, got 30-35 on the freeway. Didn’t have a radio, I had a AM Silvertone radio I kept under the driver’s seat.
What a killer find! I had one of these, a 1970, that I drove in high school, ’81-84. BF Goodrich Radial T/A,s took care of the tire problem, while a Holley/Weber carb swap and a custom built exhaust system allowed it to show its taillights to most of the Chevelles and Camaros in the said high school parking lot. Yes, I was into Japanese car performance before it was cool. My classmates with the Camaros and Chevelle’s hated me. I miss my Mark II to this day! Just a shame we didn’t get the twin carb 8R-B engine.
Kind of funny, 1.9L engines are kind of a oddball. I have had two, the one in the Mark II and in my 1996 Saturn SL2. And just a note, the ’72 Mark II got the 2.0L 18R-C engine.