We’re looking at some newer Japanese coupes today, a follow up to an earlier gallery of 1960s-1970s models that I featured recently. ‘Newer’ is relative, of course; we’re still only talking about the 1980s. But there are a variety of styles, some obviously sedan-based, others much less so.
Toyota Corolla Levin
We’re starting with that classic, ‘Hachi-roku’, the Toyota AE86, the famed performance coupe/hardtop/liftback version of the last of the rear-drive Corollas. Popular for modifying, racing and drifting, this generation of Corolla Levin and Sprinter Trueno also featured prominently in manga and anime, notably as Takumi Fujiwara’s ride in the Initial D series. I’m not into that except for the cars, but Fujimi did a whole range of cars from this series. The Aoshima 86 is slightly better proportioned than this older Fujimi kit, which has a too-high roofline.
1979 Toyota Supra
An American company producing a kit of a Japanese car? It happened in the early eighties, when MPC rethought what might make a good kit subject and produced the second-gen Supra. In typical MPC fashion, the kit came with a variety of optional parts, some of which looked a bit cartoonish. With a bit of restraint, it could be built up into a reasonable replica, complete with a detailed engine – something the Tamiya kit didn’t provide. I felt this generation of Supra was a bit overdecorated, so I used a bit more restraint building it.
1986 Toyota Supra
Here’s the next generation Supra, the A70 generation of 1986, and the first one totally unrelated to the Celica. This is a simpler-than-usual Tamiya kit from the late eighties.
1985 Toyota Celica
Meanwhile, the Celica had switched to front-drive, with the 1985 T160 generation – to surprisingly great acclaim, as I remember. Reviewers didn’t seem to expect a competent chassis, nor such good engines. As usual for a Celica, it looked nothing like what had gone before. I built this Tamiya model in the early nineties as a replica of a neighbour’s car.
1989 Toyota Celica
The T180 followed in 1989. Thicker pillars, and smaller rear windows made it seem a bit of a step backwards from the airiness of the previous design. Another Tamiya kit.
1985 Subaru Alcyone
Moving across to Subaru, they had a habit of giving us some strange coupes. Here’s the Alcyone/Vortex/XT from 1985-91, looking unlike anything else on the road – maybe radical enough to make a Citroen badge plausible. This is an early version with the turbo four and all-wheel-drive.
1979 Nissan Bluebird
Here’s a coupe version of the late 70s-early ‘80s Nissan Bluebird, at this stage still a rear-driver. North America got a six-cylinder in the long-nose body as the 810 Maxima; however, this model represents the short-nose two litre Turbo SSS-S, top of the range for Japan. Turbo ones were fun to watch at Bathurst, with the boost turned up to ridiculous levels! They turned some amazing laps before the engines blew. The rest of the range were variously powered by very ordinary L, Z or CA-series fours.
1981 Nissan Silvia RS
This Nissan Silvia (200SX for North America) is from the S110 generation of 1979-83. Powered by a range of L-, Z-(twin-plug) and FJ-(16 valve) series fours, it uses a variant of the Nissan Sunny/Violet platform. As the RS came with the FJ20 engine as a mid-life update, I think this represents the post-facelift form. The box art was a bit vague.
1983 Toyota Corona GT-T
Toyota’s equivalent to the Bluebird was the Corona, here a 1983 RT140 series in GT-T trim (but minus the stripes), with a turbo version of the 3T engine. This was the last rear-drive Corona, but it did get IRS on some models.
1984 Nissan Skyline
Nissan Skyline D30 series – the stylists seemed to have worked all the weird out of their systems. The coupe now looked much more like the sedan than previously.
1983 Nissan Gazelle
This Nissan Gazelle was a variant name for the hatchback version of the Silvia S12. Except in Australia, where both body styles were branded Gazelle. Go figure! Engines were 1.8 or 2 litre CA series, or the mighty DOHC 16-valve FJ20. For the US, some even came with the VG V6.
Okay, I cheated, and put a later SR20DET in mine!
1986 Nissan Skyline GTS
Okay, it’s a 1986 Skyline. They still hadn’t brought back the GT-R (did they have nothing worthy of the name?), but this GTS-R showcased the new RB series six in two litre turbo form with 400hp. Built in limited numbers for Group A touring car racing, Nissan seemed to be back! I suspect this Fujimi kit may actually be the lesser (210hp) GTS.
1987 Nissan Leopard
Nissan’s Leopard had looked quite advanced in 1979, but was looking a bit over-familiar by 1986 (gosh that’s a long model cycle for Japan!), so this new coupe debuted. No sedan this time; guess they had enough elsewhere in the range. Yes, this came to the US as the Infiniti M30, but no matter where you bought it, you didn’t get these 19” wheels, nor such a startling two-tone.
1980 Isuzu Piazza
Courtesy of Giugiaro, Isuzu had a new coupe for the new decade, the Piazza (Impulse for North America). Based on GM T-car mechanicals, it remained in production throughout the eighties. This kits dates from the early eighties, and the body isn’t the best, but it’s all there is. (Ah, Hasegawa-san, zehi go kentō kudasai?)
1987 Honda Prelude
This third-generation Prelude came out for 1987, and refined (almost exaggerated) the previous styling themes. The low hood and cowl and deep windows made it quite distinctive. This is an old Fujimi kit – they nailed the body, but unfortunately put it on a pre-existing motorised chassis, making for what looks like an RWD Prelude! I just don’t turn mine over…..-
1983 Mitsubishi Starion
Produced from 1983 to 89, the confusingly-named Starion replaced the Galant Lambda (aka Scorpion, aka Sapporo) in the range, as a more sporting hatchback, with a wider body variant available from mid- ‘85. This one is converted from a race car model, hence the bigger wheels and low-profile slicks.
That finishes the Eighties coupes. As usual we’ll go somewhere different next time. See you then!
Biggest problem with the Impulse/Piazza kit is that it’s on the “big” side for 1/24 with the MPC Chevette on the “small” side for 1/25 so what would be real kitbashing possiblilites are closed off. Likewise, AMT did the next generation as a Geo Storm but as a promo only so no engine detail.
As a real car apparently its’ issue was that it was developed like a GM car – at launch it was a Chevette in an Armani suit, it picked up a turbo option a couple years later and “Handling by Lotus” a couple years after that so that by the end it finally was the car it was supposed to be all along.
I take your point about the Impulse/Piazza’s development. I suspect that as GM began to realise the magnitude of the hole they had dug themselves into, they took their eyes off Isuzu, allowing them to develop the car unhindered by former corporate constraints. The same sort of thing happened with their front-drive Gemini; as released it was a huge disappointment. Lotus worked over the suspension a few years along.
I hadn’t thought about the relative sizes of the Piazza kit and the Chevette; you’re right, they ought to be closer. I wonder whether Fujimi ‘upsized’ the Piazza becuase it was the prestige car of Isuzu’s range and/or (less likely) MPC ‘downsized’ the Chevette to emphasize that it was a small car?
Love em all! I still have a few I built as a kid….. Impulse, some Celicas, 300ZX, a few others. I need that 3rd gen Supra because it matches the real one I had.
Thanks. That third-gen Supra is an old Tamiya kit, and comparatively simple; dead accurate, but simple. There is a new kit available from Hasegawa that’s reported to be excellent.
The teal ’89 Celica looks almost exactly like a ’92 Celica my ex-cousin-in-law had back then. He bought it new. When it got old, he gave it to his girlfriend. Personally, I thought it was a nice driving car. His had a stick-shift and was a hoot to drive. I think his interior was tan though.
I really like that Nissan Gazelle, but I think we called them a 200-SX IIRC. Maybe a 240-SX? Anyway, nice looking model, Peter.
I got to drive a buddy’s Mitsubishi Starion back in the day, but IIRC, it was a Dodge product. I forget the model name of this captive import though… Daytona maybe? Conquest? I’m probably remembering this wrong, but that was the car. It handled great.
Finally, in the US, we must have been late to the party with some of these. The one you have labeled “1979 Toyota Supra” looks more like what we had in the early to mid-eighties, say, 1984. I always really liked that second gen Surpra. They were nice looking cars.
Thanks for posting Peter… nice looking models as always.
Whoops – you’re right about the Supra, it should have been 1981. Guess you caught me napping!
Yes, the Gazelle would have been a (numerical value)SX for you guys, 200 if that wikithingy can be believed; 240 came later apparently. And the Starion was indeed the Dodge Conquest; good memory! The Daytona name “belonged” to the sporty fastback K-car-derived coupe. You can guess why I put it in quotes…
And ‘my’ ’89 Celica is the same fifth-generation as your relative’s ’92; that model lasted till ’93.
That Celica was even the same color, but then Teal was all the rage in the nineties. I had two teal cars during that era.
As to the “sporty fastback K-car-derived coupe” – I seem to recall a blue and silver one from that time period that sported the “SHELBY” name… Talk about things that DON’T “belong”.
Dodge Conquest… yep, that was it. Neat car. I remember thinking that 4 cylinder cars were not supposed to be that fast… but then I was young and dumb then and had that American attitude that “there’s no replacement for displacement”. Of course we all know that this is BS now. LOL.
Yes, teal was very popular then. I recall Ford Australia had three similar shades, one more bluish, one more greenish, and a third which split the difference. I found it very hard to tell on the road which one I was seeing.
I think the blue and silver ‘Shelby’ you recall was based on the Omnirizon; I recall a model of it (no sale!). Did he have a go at the K-things as well?
That Conquest (great name) must have seemed radical – but then it was a big four with a turbo. Nowadays engines like that are everywhere, with ever more complex highly-stressed smaller engines sytanding in for the big ones we were accustomed to.
Indeed he did:
https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1987-dodge-daytona-shelby-z-5/
Thanks Aaron. I was in college then and wasn’t keeping up with cars so much!
A delectable dish of crisp coupes! Thanks Peter, they certainly brighten the day up. A shame this is a class of car that has all but disappeared now.
Back circa 1990 I bought a 1:80 scale ‘Silhouette’ Toyota Celica XX (Supra) and found, to my surprise, it had a pull back and go mech in it, making it akin to those larger scale motorised kits. Quite why you’d want to power one so that it can fly off and smash itself into the nearest piece of furniture I don’t know though! Well, apart from novelty value. Still, it’s not bad as a model.
Thanks Bernard. A lot of the Japanese models used to have some form of motorisation – for ‘added play value’, I guess. Usually it was the little Mabuchi electric motors, though I have some with tiny clockwork motors – both in my usual scale and down to about 1/60. No pull-backs though!
Ha! You fooled me once more. On a quick glance as I scrolled the day’s topics, I thought this would be a post about a Subaru XT. You know, the one some CC’er found on the street in the lede photo. Good stuff.
An entertaining read. And this time, a car I’ve owned was in your showcase.
That was unintended, I assure you. You didn’t notice it was parked on a wooden table top? Two Subaru XTs aren’t enough to do a story about, I reserve that sort of thing for multiples of Edsels and ’56 Fords.
And now you’ve left me hanging – which car was the one you had?
In my defense, I focused on the background, and my eye/mind connection took it to be a building in an urban setting. The car did the rest. And thank you for asking — a girlfriend persuaded me to buy the new-generation Celica in ’89. A commercial that featured the car blasting through sand dunes was the hook for her. She thought it looked like a Prosche. Box-stock, sky blue w/ a 5-speed. Your model is the same body in a darker shade. It was a terrific little car. I was sad to let it go, as I was the g/f.
I love then all! I’m not sure what sort of perspective wizardry is afoot, but these coupes manage to look overall more realistic than the further scaled down larger cars that you’ve shown as models. Excellent work, Peter.
Thanks Jeff. Hmm, people have commented before, that the smaller cars seem more realistic than the larger ones. There’s no wizardry on my part. I just build them to look as realistic as I can, whatever the size. Could be that I’m more familiar with the smaller cars?
These are all beautiful, and I like that you featured so many generations of Celica and Supra. Your lead shot had me looking for diecasts of Subaru XTs / Alcyones in my free time today. I still also super-love the first-generation Isuzu Piazza / Impulse.
I didn’t love every design direction from Japan in the ’80s, but those I liked, I really liked.
Thanks Joseph. Japanese design in the eighties seemed to be all over the place. Subaru was working the weird out of their system, Nissan replaced their weirdness with boxes, Honda’s cowls got lower and lower, Mitsubishi seemed to try everything and anything, Mazda got progressively cleaner, and Toyota just seemed to keep refining prior designs – except for the Celica, which wasn’t always in step with their other cars.
I built the second XT, the purple one, after seeing one pull in behind the shops one night; I think it was more of a burgundy, but purple is more fun!
Another superb visit to the Wilding Museum.
Yes, that T180 Celica was a letdown. I’ll take that Corona GT-T. Never seen one in person, but I there’s much to like there.
Thanks Paul. And we’re not through yet!
The Corona GT-T sure looks cool, and may go well with the 1.8 litre 3T-GTE, but I hope the suspension is better sorted than the T140 sedans and wagons we got here.
Saw a 82-85 Supra, in driver condition, pass by my face in Reno on Saturday. Happened so fast heading across my path. Same as your model which isn’t the 79 Supra I am familiar with. Now I will take you to task about no Mazda MX-6 GT with their turbo four such as this 88. Probably never made as a model.
Egg-on-face department for that Supra. Can’t think how that got through!
I agree the MX-6 would have been nice, especially as AMT did the mechanically identical but ugly Probe. But alas, it is as you say. On the other hand, I wonder if Mazda might be hard to deal with or something; there’ve been a few great Mazdas we’ve never seen in kit form.
Are there any Capella RE/RX-2 kits? You could make a Bathurst car.
There’s the old Bandai/Entex 1/20 scale one.Think they did an RX-3 as well. I have their RX-5.
No problem just had to needle you a bit which I was just doing on my world affairs board with some other Aussies which side tracked into talking about Midnight Oil.
I see you did a 5-stud hub conversion on the ’83 Gazelle too so it could take the R32 Skyline GTST wheels! That’s dedication to the craft! But on a serious note, fabulous selection as always Peter, thank you 🙂
Thanks Scott.
Ha! I should pay more attention to these things. I just found some take-off Nissan wheels in my spares box and called it good. I should’ve known some Nissan enthusiast would catch me out!
Of course I could’ve bluffed and said the upgrade was to take the SR20DET power… 🙂