2003 Toyota Celica GT. Click image to enlarge

Manufacturer’s web site Toyota Canada Join CanadianDriver’s Facebook group Follow CanadianDriver on Twitter

By Chris Chase

Find this vehicle in CanadianDriver’s Classified Ads

Toyota’s not a car company that tends to attract many enthusiasts. The Celica is one of only a handful of sporty cars the company has ever produced (the MR2, Supra and the vaunted 2000GT are the others), but it wasn’t until 1988 – two years after a drastic redesign from a rear-wheel-drive platform to a more modern front-drive layout – that the Celica truly captured the hearts of speed freaks with the All-Trac Turbo model. It combined a 200-horsepower turbocharged engine with all-wheel drive, which was a rare enough feature for the day, let alone on a small sports car. The All-Trac was dropped after 1993, however, and a redesigned 1994 model made do with a rather tame 135-hp engine as the only choice.

True performance wouldn’t return to the Celica lineup until 2000, when Toyota reinvigorated this respected nameplate and attached it to a new edgy and wedgy body. Using a modified Corolla platform, the seventh-generation Celica was offered in GT and GT-S forms. Both were powered by a 1.8-litre four-cylinder engine – also borrowed from the Corolla – that made 140 horsepower in the GT (10 more than the Corolla) and was tuned to produce 180 high-revving horses in the GT-S.

2002 Toyota Celica GT-S. Click image to enlarge

The Celica’s transmission choices were five- and six-speed manuals in GT and GT-S models, respectively, and a four-speed auto was the option. Automatic GT-S versions got a manual shift function.

Suddenly, Toyota had a competitor for Acura’s Integra/RSX, which had basically had the top end of the sporty compact import market to itself since it was introduced in the mid-1990s. While the Celica’s styling was more polarizing than that of the Acura, it certainly was more distinctive, which appealed to many enthusiasts, and the new Celica quickly gained popularity as a “tuner” car. While the GT-S was more powerful, its extra power came mainly at high revs; driven sedately, its performance advantage was less obvious. Note that both GT and GT-S models had variable valve timing. While the GT’s version of the system, VVT-i only control valve timing, the GT-S VVTL-i setup also increased valve lift at high engine speeds, which, as mentioned, is where this model’s extra power comes from.

If you’re drawn to the Celica more for its looks than performance, the GT will likely serve your purposes nicely; the 1.8-litre engine is a strong performer even when its power is routed through the Corolla’s tall gearing, and the Celica’s shorter gears only emphasize its power.

Pages: 1 2 3

next >> View full article on one page Share |