It’s a great learning experience for a European such as yours truly to discover the many older JDM models that crop up randomly around Japan, as many are completely new to me. Take this humble Carina saloon, for instance. These were distributed in Europe back in the day, but I cannot recall ever seeing one before I found this saloon a few weeks ago. Perhaps some of you are discovering it too. As luck would have it, it also happens to be a rather nice car, if you appreciate ‘80s styling.
There was a time when all of Toyota’s car names started with a “C.” Your Crowns, your Coronas, Corollas, Celicas and so on. At the tail end of this alarmingly alliterative period came the Carina, which could be defined as the sedan/coupé/wagon version of the Celica, or a sporty version of the Corona.
The first generation Carina (A10/A30; top line, 1971-78) made it to North America, but only lasted a couple of years there. Carina the second (A40/A50; middle line, 1977-81) was markedly squarer and still shared its platform with the Celica, along with the Supra and the Camry. The third generation (A60; bottom line, 1981-88) was a continuation of the previous two – so much so that the difference between the A60 and its immediate predecessor, irrespective of body style, is pretty hard to make out.
The A60 Carina lasted a long time because the nameplate was transitioning to FWD. For a long while, i.e. five years, the Celica/Supra-based RWD Carina A60 saloon and van/wagon was sold directly alongside the Corona-based front-drive Carina T150 saloon (1984-88). It seems Toyota were doing this slow RWD fade-out in many segments in the ‘80s – the Corolla and the Corona certainly followed the same game plan.
The multiple trim levels available on the A60 were as mind-numbing as anything, but it was noted that the liftback coupé, which was the nameplate’s last foray into the sporty two-door body style, had even more trim options than the saloon. Our feature car wears its “ST” badging proudly, so we’re looking at a fairly high end Carina. Apparently, the ST was fitted with either an OHC 1.5 or a fuel-injected OHV 1.8, on the Japanese market, but which one is in our feature car is unclear.
Let us glance at the 1982 Carina JDM brochure to get at least a partial sense of the model’s various trim levels. There were additional ones available, including the 1600GT with the twin cam found in contemporary AE86s, as well as a 1.8 Diesel. The base-model vans, for their part, made do with a single-carb OHV 1.6. Lucky they didn’t export any of those “STDs” to English-speaking countries, eh?
I think my tastes might be changing, in my old age. As my avatar sort of hints at, I have a thing for the streamline modern era – the automobiles of late ‘30s and ‘40s have a special place in my fantasy garage, followed by the mid-’60s. And in said garage, the square-cut ‘80s boxes do not feature very prominently, if at all. But you know, a well-balanced (if boxy) design is still a good design and can look attractive, especially when it feels unfamiliar.
That said, the unfamiliarity also brings forth comparisons to similar shapes. In the case of this Carina, my first thought went to Talbot – somewhere between the Tagora and the Solara, to be more precise. Particularly that rear end, as well as the greenhouse, give me strong Talbot vibes. On the other hand, later A60 saloons (from spring 1984 onwards) switched to colour-coded bumpers, which would have changed the overall personality of this Carina pretty dramatically and would give it more of a Volvo feel.
The interior, on the other hand, is pretty far from the brittle ‘80s Talbots of my youth. Yet even in this supposed higher trim (not highest trim, though), you still had keep-fit windows and a manual transmission. The houndstooth-like upholstery is very period correct…
Now I know I’m only eyeballing this, that this photo isn’t angled all that well and the seats my well be pulled all the way back for whatever reason, but the rear legroom is downright stingy in this Carina, especially when factoring in the floor hump. But kudos for hitting 40 (soon) and looking this clean inside. Most of us can only look in envy…
These last RWD Carinas are definitely tastier than their bland successors, which still lasted for another four generations, all the way to 2001. It’s designs like this A60 Carina, the X70 Mark II / Cresta / Chaser or the Nissan Cedric / Gloria Y30 that might end up making yours truly reconsider his position vis-à-vis the straight-edge late ‘70s / early ‘80s origami school of automotive styling. Not quite there yet, but one day, as I discover more Carina-like designs, I could see myself folding.
The front end reminds me a great deal of my mid-80s Mazda 626. I loved that car and IMHO it’s aged rather well.
Attractive, if somewhat uninspired, automobile. The things that always floors me about the JDM catalog is the plethora of models available on a specific vehicle. How does anyone keep all those models straight? They must have an incredible amount of salesperson training over there.
I was thinking the same thing. For decades, one of the selling points of Japanese imports to the U.S. was that there were one, maybe two, versions of each car model, “take it or leave it”, with very few options other than one’s choice of colors. Meanwhile, in Japan, there were multiple variants of each car model, and each variant got its own alphanumeric moniker. There has also been a multiplicity of branding in the JDM world, much like the old GM “B-O-P” days.
It must have worked for the JDM, but it sure wasn’t the USDM way of doing things for the Japanese car builders.
Land is expensive in Japan, so I imagine that dealers don’t stick a lot of inventory, and build-to-order (versus “buy off the lot”) is a significant chunk of the market. That leads to options and trim levels becoming a competitive factor between brands. I think the same thing is (or was) true in Europe.
Shipping large batches of finished cars across the Pacific is generally *not* amenable to build-to-order, so the sales organization makes some guesses about desirable configurations, and that’s what the market gets.
This is all conjecture from some Internet rando.
Yers, the Japanese learned very early on that the key to success in the US market was to ship only those models that would have a high volume and then only in limited trim lines and generally well-eqippped.
In Japan they could afford to do what they did, catering to the whims of their buyers and a much more fragmented market.
It’s not really any different than what the Big Three did with their exports, or the Europeans too. It’s just not practical or profitable to export a huge rtange of models.
The Citroen BX is much of that era: sharply creased especially around the window line. But IMHO timeless for all that. This generation of Carina probably looks better now that in did 10 or 15 years ago.
While obviously having a lot of scaled up and scaled down Corolla and Cressida in the design, it just screams 4-door Celica to me, given its size and what it is is, that’s not a surprise I suppose. Still, it’s extremely successful at doing so and ends up looking far better to my eyes than it really has any right to.
It is interesting that the ST was the higher end of this (sedan model), as ST over here at least in Celica terms was always the low end. I wasn’t aware of ST being on any sedans.
We got these edgy creations here as locally-made Coronas in ’84, with differences in set-square panels here and there. Whilst being a large (square) step up from the previous horror Corona, with rack steering and a reasonable OHC 2 litre, they weren’t special, and certainly not roomy. I actually didn’t mind the look of them too much, and some got a 2.4 injection, which was completely over-engined if hassled, but fun. They look like a 1979 US Fairmont, albeit one that was five years late and one size smaller-clothed (and tracks one size underdone). They weren’t the then-scary newfangled FWD, and were in all aspects overwhelmingly…..adequate. Naturally, they ran until the doom of dawnsday.
They did embarass themselves at the press launch, however. “Take ’em!”, said ToyoAus, boastfully “Literally off the production line, and drive them to the middle of the outback. We’ll pay.” Quite few local scribes did just that. Unfortunately, about 5oo miles into a 2000-odd mile jaunt to the rendezvous out in the middle of bugger-all, all said scribes began eyeing-off their co-pilots suspiciously for unseemly behaviours. Soon, windows were down, as blame shifted to the cars, and then, one by one, the cars all broke down.
By some disaster, the wrong oil – not running-in oil, perchance, I forgot – was put into the differentials, which all became hot, then smelly, then whiny, then melted, then dead. Not quite the PR coup intended.
I doubt that this Carinarona in Tokyo was ever driven at 90mph+ for miles on end, so it is unlikely to have issues, but if by chance it had a smelly bottom on the day you snapped it, now you know that you should not have been giving the poor guy just out of shot there those dirty looks.
I don’t have a Carina, but here’s Justy’s Corona.
Absolutely amazing work as always, Peter! Great model choices and colours.
Thanks Daniel! I used leftover touchup paint from my wife’s Corona.
It looks just like the Corona it is but with JDM engine choices the Celica was always a Corona in a sports coat and Carinas were for certain retail outlets on the JDM and export,
of course some have washed up over here used anything with a Toyota badge will sell to someone in this country and it will do sterling duty untill something like a minor accident reveals you have the only one like that in country and no it wont pass a WOF untill you fix it and so your car begins its next journey to become a refrigerator or rebar.
I did not know about this car at all but I do like the angular styling – especially the coupe in the brochure.
It is more crisp and light than a Volvo; I don’t know Talbot cars at all.
There are some hints of Isuzu in the greenhouse and Mitsubishi in the slab sides. There are similarities to Opel Senator and Opel Rekord. The best one of the light, lithe slab sided boxy cars was the Fiat 130 coupe; maybe that was the inspiration?
I am a fan of the Post VW Golf design trend. It is a design that is purposeful and can be designed without looking cheap. It is a minimalist car design, and I enjoy minimalism. Cars of the 1970s were so flamboyant and needlessly bloated. So, when cars needed to reach buyers serious about savings, the minimalist designs like these were perfect.
By 1985, times changed and I was ready for the Ford Aero look. I was a big fan of the Aero-Thunderbird and admired it when it was groundbreaking and new. Today’s cars are cartoonish and over-styled. But then, when everything looks similar, you must stand out in some visual way, right? I am not a fan of the Japanese Pokémon car designs common on most Toyotas. But then, I didn’t grow up playing Pokémon and watching anime like my kids, so it could be a generational thing.
I don’t believe that I am alone in admiring the minimal designs vehicles can offer, because the most sold vehicle is a Ford F-150 which is now more squared up than its earlier generation. There is something about this minimum “box” look that feels efficient, functional and serious. I also like light pick up trucks from GM and Dodge as well. The new Maverick is minimal, while its Hyundai competition screams for attention.
The Citroen BX is much of that era: sharply creased especially around the window line. But IMHO timeless for all that. This generation of Carina probably looks better now that in did 10 or 15 years ago.
Perhaps a bit too generic, towards the Toyota family look at the time.
Interesting find and an unfamiliar. Yes, there is a Talbot vibe, and also a contemporary Datsun/Nissan Bluebird feel.
Yes, STD wouldn’t work too well……back in the 80s the French market Citroen BX TRD was sold in the UK as the DTR
I wouldn’t go so far to say that this is a higher-spec example of an A60. On an early Carina yes, but by the time this car came about, the ST badge on a JDM Toyota was pretty much synonymous for “starting point to sporty”. Even on a Celica, ST was the second to lowest grade of seven total during this time. In 1983, besides the lower grades shown in the brochure above, there was also SE, SE Extra Edition, GT, GT-T, GT-R, and GT-TR grades above this, so this ST 1500 (missing 1.8 badge on the trunk) is solidly lower middle ground. This also highlights the angle Toyota positioned the Carina for the A60 generation; sporty. The performance GT models long outlived the other grades when the FF sedans took hold, the dual overhead cam 1.6 liter 2T-GEU and 4A-GEU, 2.0 liter 18R-GEU, and 1.8 liter 3T-GTEU (Japan’s first turbocharged DOHC EFI engine) were under hoods at different points in this generation, and a turbo powered GT-T coupe was likely the fastest of all the interrelated Celica/Carina/Coronas of this era and up to this point, maybe barring the 5M-GEU powered Celica XX (Supra) 2800GT despite the (small) power difference due to its sheer lack of weight. Underrated cars.
There’s an honesty about straight sided cars from this period. For all their lack of nuance, they don’t pretend to convey an idea of skin stretched over muscle that we have to buy into. Art is contrivance; Michelangelo is beloved for making hard stone convey the pliability of flesh. Cars like this are more like furniture or commercial architecture— maximum usable space per dollar is what they’re selling. That might not put moving through air in its proper place in the equation, and wheels might look jarringly round on them, but they look like a good packaging value.