ignatz (06/10/82)
I first ran into the Toy Celica when a friend had a '76 that took all the punishment we could give it. I bought a new GT Liftback in '78, and just traded it in this spring with 100,000 miles on it (I live in Chicago, but commute to the suburbs on contracts. A lot.). In all that time, the ONLY defect to surface was a badly welded gear in the transmission, which Toyota paid for (labor and parts). I NEVER had trouble with the car, and the only time I spent under the hood was normal maintenance, which I followed religiously. I just bought the '82 Celica S-package. This is basically a Celica with some external goodies (wide tires, some body mods), the Supra interior--seats, radio, etc. minus the digital dash. It priced out at 14,000, but I got it for ~8500 after the screaming was done with. I picked it up on Feb. 28th, and am just turning over 10,000 miles. So far--NO DEFECTS WHATSOEVER. The only problem was that the dealer forgot to charge the air conditioner with freon. I've had, in order, a '64 Ford Falcon (nice auto to learn mechanics on), a '69 Coronet, a '70 Mark Donohue Javelin, and a '78 Celica. Except for the last, I had to earn my marks as a major mechanic on each car. Internal design--convenience for the mechanic, accessability of parts for maintenance or repair, etc.--was, without fail, abominable. Even after 10 years, I was finding manufacturing defects in the Detroit cars. And, as we all know, (shadetree) mechanics end up spending up even more time on FRIEND'S cars, so I've worked on just about all the models Detroit, Japan, and Germany can toss up. To close, then, the thrust of my flame (I didn't realize it was going to be one till I got here) is that, I can take or leave the Celica body design. But, until this one zonks out on me, I can't find a car yet that gives me the reliable, uninterrupted service of this one. I have a couple of friends who just bought Detroit iron--one, a Buick Skylark; after two weeks, he's found 10 manufacturing defects of varying degrees of severity; the other, a Chevy Cavalier; the jury's still out on this one, as he just got it. When Detroit can give me the same quality and reliability as the Celica, I'll buy it. But until then, I recommend this car to anyone. Dave Ihnat Analysts International Corporation contracted at BTL ihuxl!ignatz
bob (06/11/82)
I was looking into a Toyota Celica back in '81. It was late in the year
and the dealer advised me that the new model would be out soon and the
selection would be better. As my present car, a '72 Celica, was running just
fine I descided to wait. I was disappointed with the '82 model. I don't like
the lines but then I judge a car from the inside and under the hood. The
inside looked cheap when compared to the '81 interior. I was in to have the
timing chain replaced and the dealer drove me to the train. I was thinking
that, 'The Corolla interior wasn't too bad but nothing like a Celica' when
the dealer asked me how I liked the new Celica.
Well to conclude, my '72 is running just fine at 122,000 miles and the
timing chain is the only major engine repair the car has had. Some other
parts are giving way like the radiator but after 10 years of salt and snow
it can be expected. As far as I am concerned Toyota makes the best cars on
the market, in the under $20K range. If my car does give out I would have no
objections to buying an '82 but I'll hold out for an '83 in hopes that the
design is better.
Bob Lawson (U of Toronto Computing Services)