Still got my 1992 Celica. First and only car i bought all the way back in 2004. 16 Years later and i still enjoy driving it and it's approaching 400,000kms!
My first car was a black ‘92 GT. Had it for 4 years and really wanted to always have it as a spare. However the underside rusted out eventually from Canadian winters and had to sell. I’m completely shocked yours has been your only car. How have you made that work? How’s it drive now compared to 2004?
@@roddydykes7053 It drives great, i still smile when i look at my little celica, and the pop up head lights still do it for me hehe ^_^ But certainly in need of some repairs at the moment, clutch is finally on its way out after 400,000ks and it needs struts all round and some various leaks fixed. Oh and aircon hasnt worked for about 10 years and the boot hasnt opened for about 5 years lol. Been umming and aahing for a while now trying to decide if i finally give up on her and move on to something more "practical" but my heart is having a lot of trouble letting go!
This is the best looking Celica. It seemed like all of the Japanese automakers were making sexiest hatchbacks during the 1990s. Civic, Integra, MX-3, RX-7, 3000GT, Eclipse, Supra, just to name a few.
Bought a 1991 GT for my girlfriend/wife back in 1997 with high miles. The car also handled well in the snow. The 90 probe does not even compare to the Celica, even by 1990 standards. The Probe from 93-98 looked nice, especially if it was a Probe GT.
I had one of these. Same white on blue. Tho later I swapped to a grey '93 leather interior. It was my third Celica and it did not disappoint. What a car. So many memories. There's something about 90's Japanese cars...
I love this generation of the Celica so much!! This car basically jump started a design trend through the 90's with its rounded sculpted body. I want one so bad, but all the ones I see around here are rusted out.
I still have my 1991 GTS in next to mint condition. I'm bought it brand new almost 28 years ago and it is still going strong. youtube video under .... 1991 toyota celica gts st184
The Porsche 928 was really the first with curvy lines and integrated plastic bumpers in 1978. In Europe we had the Ford Sierra in 1982 with it's aerodynamic shape, later described as the "jelly mould". For some reason this type of styling didn't catch on until 1989 where it became the norm for car companies.
Given that today's market is dominated by SUVs and trucks, it's mind-blowing that sporty, affordable cars like this were not just available for sale, but came in so many variations (coupe, liftback, convertible). I miss those days!
What? As opposed to now? What on earth are you talking about? Back in the day the greatest trend was car size reduction and gas economy. Now it seems to be pull toward larger size due to increased fuel economy, plus addition of all the features that correspond to modern technology.
Clumsy? Clumsy??? That real spoiler is the best integrated one in the history of 1990s hatchbacks. It's an incredibly well designed flow that allows the rear quarter fender flares to integrate perfectly with the elliptical tail lights.
Celica really needs to make a comeback. Toss a 240hp engine in it and sell it in the mid 20s and it would sell like hot cakes!!! But, then again, when has Toyota made something you ask for? lol
Since they have the Supra with 6-cylinder, they should make a version called the Celica that's the same car, but with a 4-cylinder and more basic and cheaper than the Supra. But they screwed up with the Supra anyways by making it a BMW engine. I'm sure it's a great engine, but people want Toyota sports car reliability and BMW engines don't exactly say reliability.
I wonder if John watches any of these old videos and cringes at what he said? Probably not on either count, but words like "midget" and "oriental", which was in many retro MW from this period, certainly makes these videos seem very outdated! Even so, as I watch his reviews, it's amazing how the late 80s/early 90s seems like just yesterday with these cars - and I cannot even remember the last time I saw a Celica like this.
Our local Toyota dealership recently took in a red one-owner all original '90 Celica All-Trac with 93k miles. The original window sticker was in the glove box and it had that marvelous old Toyota smell inside. While I got to sit in it, I was not allowed to drive it :( not sure what became of it.
Steve Winwood's first #1 hit, baby!!!!!! He had already been cranking out the classics for The Spencer Davis Group, Blind Faith, Traffic, & as a solo artist for 20 years before hitting it big with that 1986 smash!!!!
Bought one in terrible shape with 177k. 1.6l motor and barely had any maintenance done if at all. ST trim, white on blue but with auto trans. Trans was SHOT. Revved to 6k before it shifted in any gear. Dropped the pan in the middle of February drained every ounce that came out (gravity drain, no torque converter flush) 1 bottle of Lucas and 3 quarts of trans max and it lived to sail another day. A few days actually. Car now sits with 362k miles. Did every experiment that came into my mind in my mid 20s. Kerosene flush the engine, tried a bunch of different things. I remember a friend who was rich at the time made fun of that car to no end. Glad every gm product he’s owned has failed him at under 100k. That makes me feel good 😂 Thank you Toyota. For making a boring product. Instead of filling my brain with problems, you’ve left that empty for me to be creative and learn so much about your products early on in life. Perpetually grateful
I had this car for few years, it had around 200k km and it was still running very well. The engine was strong and no issues with electronics. The only issues I had were cv boots and suspension which is normal given the mileage (it was 17 years old at the time of the purchase).
I think because I see these more often in ST trim and in poor condition, I’ve never enjoyed the look. But the little extra width to the fenders and a clean paint job makes me appreciate this body style. These will appreciate, in good condition, more than the next model with the quad headlights.
"The rear seat fits small children or midgets." Absolutely savage! But I understand times were different then and certain language was still tolerated but still that is surprising to hear now lol
Yeah I know lol I remember language like that in shows like Seinfeld from that time but its just surprising to hear now when you haven't heard it used in over 20 years. It's just interesting how the meaning and weight of a word can change so easily.
I had one of these. One of my favorite cars . Had just over 300k on it. Only work done on it was tires brakes and oil changes. Everything else was never replaced or repaired. Even had the original clutch.Unfortunately after 15 years worth of upstate New York winters the road salt got the best of it.😔 I have an 86 now, hope to get the long life enjoyment from it.
To me, this was most attractive generation of Celicas, especially the wide body GT-S model in this video. However, the All-trac Turbo in black on the bottom left of the screen at 1:07 may be the sexiest car Toyota ever made. Absolutely stunning.
I don't miss my 1991 Celica GTS....... why? Because I still have it. Bought brand new almost 30 years ago. Never selling it, will likely be given to my kids one day.
I have always wanted one of these. I was 13 when they came out in late 1989. My cousins boyfriend had a brand new '91 Celica GT when we were in high school. By this time I was 15-16 years old. I was always envious he had that car and I had a '83 Thunderbird. lol.
The random Potato I bought a ‘92 GT with a mint black paint job back in 2011 in highschool, for $3k Canadian. It was pretty sick but not very fast. Loved the way it looked though, plus it’s reliability.
Wedge 0020 sorry for the late reply, but yes! It’s a Paseo, my profile pic is me with the car at a scenic view in LA. It was my first car and loved that car to death
I had a Medium Blue Pearl Celica ST. It looked just like the one they showed at the 1:09 mark. It cost 13K with a few options like mudgaurds, a cassette player, and A/C. Loved that little car!
Also notice how they describe its curves on the outside and on the interior dashboard. By now it is the standard. Back then it was relatively new style because any cars before the 90s had exact and precise shapes as opposed to curves on the interior or the outside.
Justin Hamilton I agree! Along with 2, 3, 4-door body styles for the corolla GT-S with a high performance, fuel efficient engine (similar to Ford's signature EcoBoost engines, which are nice, reliable) with a very roomy interior & cargo space. Toyota's are reliable and they need to make excitingly fun machines, not "blah-blah-blah" cars.
"Won't get mistaken for anything else on the road" - definitely miss those days. Today there's one car...the Hyundai Sonata, but you can get it in Toyota, Honda, and Nissan trim levels, and they also give you a choice of small, medium, and large. Only one sports car too - the Ford Escape. :-(
How is Escape a sportscar? Its a damn crossover suv... Mustang is he only car and the sport car. Probe was Ford's ewuivalent to celica, but they killed it off long ago.
I still have my 1991 Celica GTS. Love that car. Can't believe he said the 240sx had better styling.... Weren't ready for the round style yet I guess. 5th gen Celica was definitely ahead of it's time for looks.
My mom drove a '92 Celica in metallic gray back when I was a little kid. She was driving a Renault before that, but a man pulled her out of it, beat her, and attempted to steal it before driving it into a light pole. This was back in 1994. I remember riding in this car all the time as a kid, usually near the break of day when she finished her shift as a bartender over at Knickerbockers in Virginia Beach, Virginia. The song "One Headlight" was very popular and I think I heard it at least once on every one of those rides, along with the entirety of the Barenaked Ladies Gordon album.
I had a 90 GTS for years! the 2.2 5sFE is a good motor, but not really enough juice for the chassis, a shame it didn't come with the higher revving 3sGE variants from the rest of the world, styling has aged well I think! a really cool wide body car!
Jdm and european equivalent of GTS, the GT-i had 3s-ge with 156hp with variable intake system, it revved very nicely. Had 1990 Celica GT-i just like this and she was lovely. Miss her so much nowadays...
@@Kacpa2 I also dreamed of the 3sGE in mine! I've looked at importing on from Japan, but alas there are few left, occasional GTR's and All trac Turbos (hard to fix) I miss mine too!
@@Kacpa2 Rumor was the 5sFE was already emmission compliant for California etc and the 3sge was not, so the MR2 and Celica got the small port larger motor instead of the rev master. Its funny, the GTS has a really close ratio transmission and short final drive, you can tell it was really made for the 3sge. I ended up putting a Camry transmission in my 5th Gen with a taller final drive, it was well suited to the 5sfe. OOOh I miss my car!
Had the exact same car, 1990 too. Learned to drive in it, but it had over 300,000 miles on it when I got it. Awesome to see what it was like in its prime
I had a 2005 Celica (purchased it brand new in February of 06, one of the last new Celicas sold in the state of NC). I regret trading it to this day. Young and stupid. A beautiful, dependable car that got me almost 40 mpg on non-stop beach trips. Would love for them to bring them back.
Loved the GTS. Loved the design, inside and out. The 15” wheels. Handled and stopped fantastic. The 5 spd was smooth. Interior layout was phenomenal- especially the gauge arrangement. The only downside, and it was substantial- was the lackluster 2.2L . The turbo 2.0L from the all-trac would’ve been awesome, along with an LSD. Would’ve made the GTS far more competitive with the rival Eclipse/Talon/Laser models, who offered their turbo in both AWD and FWD.
This is my dream car,im a big fan of 90s car and this is my favorite overall,sure it may not be fast but i really just want to cruise in it in the afternoons😎
I have owned numerous cars from old to new… from slow to fast. This car is by far my favorite of all. I will never sell this and keep it going for as long as i can
I have a '92 Celica GT convertible. They're not kidding about the braking distance. It's a great commuter car and it's easy to maintain. The value of these Celicas went up recently. I saw ads in Craigslist for one in very good condition for $5000. Thanks Scotty Kilmer :P
Ryan M. I’ve owned both the 3rd gen prelude (1991 Si) and this gen of Celica (1992 GT) and yeah the Prelude definitely drives better, but I liked the look and interior of the Celica more.
I miss my old Celica! I had a 93 model hatch, top of the range like the one here, although an Australian spec. Still had the same engine and gearbox, although it was a series 2 and had a shorter shifter. Never found it bad on fuel, I used to drive about 150 - 200 km Monday to Friday, and easily got a bit over a 1000 Kms (about 650 miles) per tank, I only had to fill it up once a week..
At the time I remember people always raving about the Probe, but I always thought it looked like an ugly Eclipse, I really never got why people liked it. I will say however that they're so rare to see that you do a double take if you do see them - plus if you put some aftermarket parts on it, and dark tint that huge back glass, it can look really really good. The Celica, as a base model, I'd agree looks better - but you never see one in good shape anymore, they're always ragged out.
This car still looks good today. I wonder why they stop making this car. It was always a good seller. It should have remained in their lineup just like the Camry.
Just bought a 93 ST 5Spd With 330,000. I know im a masochist, but it still runs like a top shifts good. Needs some body work but the undercarrige has almost no rust. good interior and the A/C still blows ice cold! not bad for 1200$
In Germany it initially came as an STi with a 1,6 105hp engine and a Gti with a 2,0 litre 156hp engine. The GT4 had a 2,0 with 204hp but was expensive as hell. A friend had the GTi Cabriolet but it was heavy and acceleration and handling was blunted. The last time I saw one of these is about 15 years ago :(
they had these on display on campus (I was at university at the time) when they came out...the rubenesque tag line was in all their brochures and this is easily the best-looking of the fwd generations
You guys in the US got the crap engine here in UK we got the GTI version 138mph and 159hp 0 to 60 in 7.9 secs. I still have one and it still does those figures today and no rust anywhere.
0:25 i have a 91 gts hatch exactly in this spec, sadly it caught on fire near the firewall and melted anything rubber or plastic. Hope i can get it running again 😔
$20,000 IN 1990. I feel renewed enthusiasm in 2018 for my 1993 GT convertible with 190,000 miles. :-) She is my longest relationship, going on 16 yrs. (-: Far less trouble than human dames.