Introduction: The Celica is one of Toyota's oldest names in their entire lineup since inception, almost as old as the Corolla name. Initially the Celica was designed as Japan's answer to cars like the Ford Mustang, eventually the car would produce its own identity as a inexpensive but reasonably fun and somewhat practical coupe rather than be a full out sports car that sacrifices practicality. In 1986 the Celica eventually lost its RWD layout since its original A chassis was instead continued with the Supra while the Celica adpoted the FWD T chassis. Toyota was a participant in the World Rally Championship thus allowing for the design and eventual sale of the Celica GT-Four(All-trac) giving the Celica AWD and a powerful turbo engine. Toyota eventually dropped the Celica as its entry for the WRC and eventually dropped out of the WRC all together leading to the loss of the Celica GT-Four. The final generation the 7th was part of Toyota's Project Genesis which included the Toyota Echo and MR2 which focused on younger drivers, of the Genesis cars only the Celica ended having any success in sales. Sadly Toyota announced the Celica would be dropped from its world lineup with no successor car to take its place other than the Scion tC which is for the United States only. The Celica is also the final car from Toyota to be even considered sporty.
When this version of the Celica came out, I instantly wanted to drive it. The styling was so attractive that I wanted it for a significant portion of my teenager years. Eventually I would drive one, just to make sure its a car that I should work forward to getting. If it drove badly then I can dispel any thoughts of wanting one...if it drove well...it makes me sad I could not buy one new. I was also unsure of whether FWD would affect its handling since I disapprove of understeer.
Performance: The Celica had two options for engines both 1.8L engines. The GT came with the mildy stronger Corolla's 1ZZ engine making 140 hp and 126 lb.ft of torque. The GT-S came with the high revving screamer 2ZZ that made 180 hp and 130 lb.ft of torque. I've only driven the GT and I must say...its a decent engine. Obviously the GT-S is a different experience since its an engine that must be revved to be enjoyed, while the GT does not. If you wanted an automatic transmission, the GT is the choice to have due to the high revving nature of the 2ZZ and it only has a 4-speed automatic meaning its unable to make much use of the power in its peak making it the slowest despite the engine. You choose the GT engine particularly if you don't want to rev the engine nor want to pay premium fuel and for daily driving the regular engine is good enough. It doesn't have the personality you'd expect but it moves the Celica reasonably well.
My Score: 7/10 - A reasonable engine and fairly economical but you can't help but wonder whether the GT-S engine is so much more appropriate for this car.
Handling: This is the big test for this car in my mind, being the last of Toyota's long sports car line it needs to pass this test well. Lately Toyota cars have been considered soft and unathletic and this is actually quite true. First things first, the wheel in the Celica is actually quite heavy, probably the heaviest wheel I've encountered almost beaten by the 1st Ford Focus. The car actually feels great in the corners, it actually wants to go around corners fast and the wheel is perfectly matched for this. This is the most stable Toyota I've driven so far when it comes to approaching corners and taking them without much body roll. Clearly this car was very well engineered and its a shame all of this will be lost since Toyota does not make anything like this anymore. I did not notice the understeer that normally comes from a FWD Toyota, this car's handling is sharp and precise just the way it should be. It would be nice if it came with AWD or even better RWD to make the handling that much more exciting but oh well.
My Score: 10/10 - Clearly the best handling car I've driven that has FWD.
Interior: I'm not expecting too much from the interior since many cars of this type often put most of the money in performance. That said when I got in the Celica the materials were of reasonably quality and having some digital gauges makes it more advanced than most of the Toyota lineup. The layout is not much different from a Toyota Corolla which makes it a simple interior, but the stereo is pretty average however. One thing that is neat is how much lower you sit in the car, most people love the high driving position of SUVs and minivans...I like the low driving position, you feel so much closer to the ground. For a 2-door hatchback there's some space for people in the rear seats, not a whole lot but enough to fit short people or children, a large adult is not advised however. The hatch itself gives the Celica pretty good cargo capacity for something more fun oriented. The rear window has poor visibility however thanks to the probably pointless spoiler. The car is very well built, its another car that is built in Japan. The rather practical interior makes it a step above other similar cars.
My Score: 7/10 - Not the nicest interior but rather modest and due to design it makes a 2-door coupe surprisingly practical. The spoiler however is more annoying than useful.
Styling: The styling is the biggest appeal this version of the Celica has. Its sharp and aggressive, and due to how at least the handling matches the looks the car actually seems better than before. Its not too often Toyota hits a winner on the styling and this is probably one of Toyota's best styled cars in its history. Every angle the car looks good...its good enough that I had to drive one.
My Score: 10/10 - Looks great, sharp and aggressive, just as you want every car to be.
Value for money: The Celica has never been the most affordable of the entire Toyota lineup. The GT version needed an optional package to gain some of the electric toys like the sunroof, key less entry, etc. The amount of money spent on a GT-S is even higher in order to gain the high revving engine. Up against the Hyundai Tiburon and the Acura RSX, the Celica was rather expensive but due to its high revving engine and much better styling could persuade someone to join Toyota.
My Score: 7/10 - A tad expensive, fortunately its quite competitive with some attractive qualities.
Overall: 41/50 - A very good car, one that Toyota should have continued. I do not understand why Toyota abandoned its enthusiasts, this is one of the few cars people would hope to buy just for a few simple qualities that Toyota now has abandoned. Things like styling, handling and most importantly fun. Toyota has now positioned itself to be the Buick of auto companies.
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