Following a legend is not an enviable task. The AE86, marketed domestically as the Sprinter Trueno or the Corolla Levin between 1983 and 1987, was perhaps the definitive cheap sporty Toyota. More affordable than the Celica, more plebeian and practical than the MR2, it used the modest bones of the last RWD Corolla and made them move like they were made by Alfa Romeo. The next generation AE92 Levin / Trueno was going to have to measure up to that exacting standard. By some measures, it did even better.
Since the early ‘70s, the Levin / Trueno twin set (same car, different sales channels) was a great way for Toyota to extract a few additional sales and a lot of halo effect from the Corolla’s well-proven mechanicals. Then, a strange discrepancy between the sporty coupés and the mass-market saloons and hatchbacks appeared: from 1983, the four-door Corolla transitioned to FWD, while the Levin / Trueno kept the RWD layout for extra innings.
It wasn’t terribly logical, but it didn’t matter that much: both the front-drive E80 saloons (top left) and the rear-drive hatchback (top right) / notchback (bottom right) AE86 coupés sold very well. They weren’t the only holdout, either: Corolla vans and wagons (middle left) also kept the RWD layout through to 1987. But by that point in time, the transitional period was over: the E90 Corolla (bottom left) re-synchronized the range and FWD became the universal norm by the summer of ’87.
The Levin / Trueno AE92 had reinvented itself as (and was deliberately styled to look like) a 7/8th scale Soarer, the red-hot Toyota coupé at the time on the JDM. The emphasis was less on pure performance and more on affordable luxury aimed at younger men. The fashionable term in those days was to call it a “date car” – this term was used for the AE92, but also for the contemporary Honda Integra coupé or the Nissan S13 Silvia. In some of the less recommendable parts of Great Britain, I have heard the term “pussy magnet” used in a similar way. Ah, the potent and poetic imagery of the language of Shakespeare…
The only body style on offer was the notchback this time, though the Sprinter Trueno variant kept its distinctive nose with popup headlights. As with the previous generation, two engines were available: the low-spec AE91 had the 94hp 1.5 litre SOHC mill (the “Lime” and “G” trim cars above); higher-spec AE92s had variously-tuned versions of the 1.6 DOHC. The supercharged GT-Z was the sportiest of the bunch, with 145hp on tap. The GT Apex was less powerful, but packed more goodies inside our fancy date car.
Everything is relative, of course. To our eyes, this may not seem like the definition of a den of luxury (and/or debauchery), but we must cast our minds back to a different time. Striped grey upholstery was probably sexy as hell and power windows were still a novelty to many, at least in ‘80s/’90s Japan. CC does not kink-shame.
Word to the wise, though: double dates are not recommended with the Levin. Unless the other couple are particularly small or are into bonding / restraint (again, no judgment…), the rear seat is best used as an extra cargo area.
Our particular Levin is a later model, post the mid-1989 facelift. This is a desirable thing, in the small world of AE92 aficionados, as early model GT Apexes only had 125hp to play with, but late ones packed 138hp. Some early cars up for sale are advertised as having a late-model engine. This one has the advantage of being stock, which is always a bonus.
The AE86 set the bar high, with a shade over 100k units made. The AE92, though it abandoned its predecessor’s drift car characteristics, almost equalled its sales tally: over 95k cars made between 1987 and 1991. Japanese sources say, though, that far fewer survive nowadays: AE86s are the subject of cult-like worship, whereas AE92s arrived at the tail end of the Bubble Economy and lost a lot of value very quickly. Most were either exported second-hand to other Asia-Pacific markets or just ended up facing the crusher.
After 35 years on the dating scene, our little AE92 Levin is starting to look a little tired. Still, it managed to score big, not just for its lucky single owners, but also for its maker. It kept the niche warm for another five years, which was no mean feat. And it’s more than can be said about the AE101 that came after. This and the AE86 were the apex indeed.
Related post:
COAL: 1989 Toyota Corolla SR5–Flying By You, by Jim Grey
The AE85/6 get all the love due to being RWD, but I like these more. The styling cues of the coupe carried over to the 4/5 door Toyota Sprinter (and Geo Prizm in the US).
I see shades of MR2 and Celica in that.
I’d totally forgotten its existence – 86s abound.
Toyota’s company history is pretty upfront about why they delayed switching the coupes and hardtops to FWD: They wanted to spread out the plant conversion expense over a longer period of time, starting with the four- and five-door models because those were more apt to become a commercial liability if they were still RWD.
We did actually get the AE92 coupe in the U.S., as the Toyota Corolla Sport coupe. Ours was based on the Sprinter Trueno, with popup headlights, and skipped some of the gadgets (no TEMS adjustable shocks, no superchargers), but the GT-S coupe did get four-wheel discs, some version of the GT APEX suspension, and the 4A-GE engine, initially with 115 hp and later 130 hp. It ended up not selling very well because it was pricey (and probably because Toyota Motor Sales decided they didn’t want to combine the 4A-GE engine and automatic). Toyota pulled it from the U.S before the end of the generation.
Geo got a five-door Prizm with the same powertrain (the GSi, which was very rare), but not the coupe.
I believe the AE86 wasn’t fully appreciated until it was gone for quite some time, at least in the States (and Initial D didn’t come out until the mid 90s which has a lot to do with the continuing fervor.) At the time there seemed to be a sense that much of Toyota’s sport/performance lineup would stay RWD, after all, the MR2 was still a very recent thing and the Celica didn’t go FWD until ’86. There was also the Supra of course. Then, one day, AE86 production stopped and this replaced it, at first a logical progression until the realization that it too had gone FWD with lots of similar competition around and somewhat overshadowed by the slightly larger Celica, 240SX, 2nd generation Integra and the Diamond-Star contingent amongst others. And it never really took off, its own merits notwithstanding, but not really anything to singularly distinguish it although viewed just as a “car” it is very likely far better than the AE86.
I think today it would sell based purely on the richness of the seat fabric though. That era was Peak Cloth.
My only connection to this car is a fraternity brother who received an inheritance when his grandmother died: He bought one of these and rented a really nice apartment near campus. Other than that, I never really saw many of them around. Like most Corollas and Prizms (Sprinters) of this generation, they all seem to have rusted away.
Weird me always wanted the 5-door Prizm GSi with the then-trendy wrap-around glass.
The Corolla Sprinter Cielo version! My favorite of this generation as well, styled well above its station.
Back about 25 years ago, one of the pastors at my then-church bought a 1990 GT Apex, identical to the feature car except for aftermarket 17” alloys and an exhaust large enough to lose a cat up. It wasn’t his preference, but he’d needed a car in a hurry and it was all that was available locally.
I was friends with one of his sons, so drove it a couple of times. Wasn’t my cup of tea as it didn’t feel particularly substantial, but I could see the great engine, gearbox, and go-kart-like handling would appeal to plenty of folks.
Like most JDM imports of the time, it had a loud and annoying alarm bell that went off above 105km/h, so passing anything was accompanied by a frantic dingdongdingdongdingdongding. One day I mentioned I’d deactivated the alarm from my parents’ Toyota, and was asked to do the same to the Levin. I duly deactivated it, did a couple of fast drives along their straight rural road to check it was deactivated, and returned it. The pastor asked why I broke the law with the quick drives, I asked why they wanted an alarm removed that only kicked in above the speed limit. A satisfying stalemate was the conclusion!