1977 Toyota Celica GT Liftback review from North America

Nothing has gone wrong. The only maintenance during the year that I've owned the car were done within the first week and were past due routine items not performed by the previous owner such as changing the PCV (positive crankcase ventilation) valve and grommet for $7, changing the air filter for $5, changing the spark plugs for $8 and changing the thermostat for $7. I performed the maintenance myself so there was no labor cost.

I searched for almost 10 years to find this car and was lucky enough to find a one owner model. It was driven for 30 years as the only vehicle the previous owner had. The owner finally bought a new Toyota in 2007 and sold this one. I flew out to pick it up and drove it across several states back to my home without any problems other than that is was running too cool for needing a new thermostat. The one I removed looked like, based on the shape of the components, it was the original from 1977.

I could never say enough great things about the styling, performance and reliability of this outstanding car. It is so unfortunate that Toyota introduced the Liftback only two model years before introducing the second generation Celica in 1978. For that reason this body style, the best looking of all the Celicas, was only available for two years, 1976 when it was the import car of the year and 1977. This makes them very difficult to find. I would be happy if I never drove anything else.