Action star Sonny Chiba fronted Toyota's Carina commercials in Japan for decades — a movie tough guy selling a family sedan.
Median 89 hp across 230 similar cars
Lead trim: 1.6 2T (75 PS) · up to 133 hp
Toyota Carina A40/A50A40/A50 · 1977–1981
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Nobody in Burbles has spotted a Toyota Carina A40/A50 yet. See one on the street, point the app at it, and the first card is yours — with your @handle permanently credited on this page.
FactAction star Sonny Chiba fronted Toyota's Carina commercials in Japan for decades — a movie tough guy selling a family sedan.
Released in Japan in August 1977, in Germany that December and in the rest of Europe during 1978, still front-engine and rear-wheel drive and sharing much of its chassis with the facelifted late first-generation cars. Most markets kept the 1,588 cc 2T engine (75 PS DIN claimed), automatic transmission was new to many export markets, and an estate was offered for export for the first time on the same heavy-duty leaf-spring rear suspension as the earlier Carina Van. Actor Sonny Chiba fronted the Japanese commercials. The August 1979 facelift moved to four headlamps and a semi-trailing-arm rear suspension (the A50 series); five-speed gearboxes became standard on saloons and coupés in 1981, and fuel injection was optional on top models from this generation. Toyota also built the Celica Camry on this platform for Japan (January 1980). The 1600GT's twin-cam engine was updated in 1978 for the Showa 53 emissions rules.
Collectors Spotted in the Toyota Carina Lineage
No member has published a public street spot of the Toyota Carina yet — the First · Worldwide stamp is wide open.
Trims & Figures
3 published trims in the catalogue. A blank is a figure not recorded, not zero.
| Trim | Years | Engine | Power | Torque | 0–60 | Drive | Gearbox | MSRP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1.6 2T (75 PS) | 1977–1981 | 1.6 L Inline-4 | 74 hp | 86 lb-ft | — | RWD | — | — |
| 1600GT 2T-GEU DOHC (115 PS) | 1978–1981 | 1.6 L Inline-4 | 113 hp | 108 lb-ft | — | RWD | — | — |
| 2000GT 18R-GEU DOHC | 1978–1981 | 2.0 L Inline-4 | 133 hp | 127 lb-ft | — | RWD | — | — |
Owning one
We don’t estimate running costs for a car like this. What it costs depends on its condition, its specialist and how it is driven, and an average would mislead.
Owners’ builds
Nobody has claimed one yet.
Photographs
The last Carina ever built came with a five-valve, 8,000rpm redline engine, ending 31 years of the nameplate in December 2001.
Britain got its own Carina: Toyota built the Corona-based Carina E at a brand-new plant in Burnaston, Derbyshire, from December 1992.
The Carina wagon and van kept selling until March 1992, when the all-new Caldina finally took over.
This generation is where the Carina switched sides entirely — adopting the Corona's front-wheel-drive platform and leaving rear-wheel drive behind for good.
An everyday A60 Carina sedan raced the Dakar Rally for Japanese private teams in 1981 and 1982 — and actually picked up marathon-class championships doing it.
Action star Sonny Chiba fronted Toyota's Carina commercials in Japan for decades — a movie tough guy selling a family sedan.
Toyota's first Carina crossed the Atlantic just as a new 10% US import duty landed — sales flopped, and Toyota pulled it from the American market after only two years.
Rivals
Same body, same money, other badges — tap any card to flip.
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