Toyota Corolla KE30 (seventies RWD model)

BrianD3

Just interested in people's experiences of these cars. They were one of the most common cars on Irish Roads for many years even long after they went out of production. I'd say there's hardly a person in Ireland who hasn't been in one/driven one at some point. I haven't seen one on the road since 1996 and you don't see them in scrapyards either. They are still very common in Australia and are popular for restoring and modding.

My dad had one up to the mid eighties, I've also had numerous lifts in them and drove one in a field (banger racing with my mates) when I was 14. Really solid, reliable and strong car and great fun to drive with RWD and cart springs at the back I always liked the black vinyl interior, car was also very comfortable and quite characterful for a jap motor.

I saw a few of them that had been in crashes. One collided with a brand new Citroen ZX which was wrecked. Damage to Corolla was a slightly bent bumper and wing, car was driven away from the scene and was in everyday use for a couple of years afterwards without any repairs. Saw another similar incident involving a Mitsubishi Galant. Saw another incident where one collided at high speed with an old Escort, Corolla stood up far better to it, all occupants survived while 3 in the Escort died.

But enough of that morbid stuff, here a pic of one of these mean machines
<edit> can't link directly to the pic, so here's the page that I got it from
http://public.fotki.com/Jaby/jaby_corolla_ke30/

alias no.9

Most irish 30's have been turned to rust. The last that I can remember were in the mid 1990's and were very much riddled with it. Australian cars tend to survive much longer due to their climate.

JohnBoy

my mum had one for a brief spell when i was a kid, barely remember it, twas orange and rusty as hell, lots of filler in it too.

saw one once in a shed near home, an old abandoned forge a mate and I went poking around. I reckon the car is still there but she was fairly rusty and this was 6 or 7 years ago.

a cool alernative to an escort though

dcGT

Ah I remember those Corollas well. I haven't seen one in years though. They remind me of the old Datsun (then became Nissan) 120Y. My brother had one in canary yellow - classy

http://www.geocities.com/rte38.geo/121cars.html

Looks like these are (badly) modified down-under too

DC.

Silvera

Ah......the good old 'K30's' (as they were usually known) !

I learned to drive in one, my brother had a 4 door Estate version for many years and I had another 3 of them after that !
Great old cars - just kept going and going - except for the dreaded 'tin worm'

I haven't seen one on our roads since about 1996 also.
However, I have just recently returned from Oz and New Zealand and there were lots about on their roads.

Surprisingly, there are lots of old cars on New Zealand roads full stop !
(It really made me realise how wealthy we are here in Ireland !!)


I have however, seen a Corolla KE20 at a classic car show here in Ireland in 2003.
It was orange in colour - hadn't had a full respray (I should know, I used to be a spray painter!) - only had circa 40k miles on the clock AND had an original Irish registration !!!
(It must have been kept in a heated garage all it's life).


Heres a photo of a K30 when new -

BrianD3

Thanks for the responses lads. What sort of engine was in the K30, IIRC it was a 1.2. Were there other engine options for the Irish market.

I know there were a few different bodystyles - 2 dr saloon, 4 dr saloon, estate and a sort of coupe/liftback. By far the most common were the 4dr saloons, with the liftback being a much rarer sight.

Also there seems to have been a facelift around 1977 with the car getting a slightly different grille and rear lights.

The K20 was another good car. Loads of these on the roads up until the late eighties.

BrianD3

Silvera

I only ever saw the K30 with a 1.2 engine.
(It was the same engine as the Starlet of that period).

Yeah, the Coupe was a rare sight in Ireland.
(I saw many of the coupes in NZ, usually 'souped up' !)

There were also a few 2 dr Estates about. There were 2 dr saloon versions available in the US/Oz/NZ, but I don't recall seeing any here.

You are correct about the facelift in 1977/78. It also got larger tail lamps circa 79/80.

I have seen the occassional K30 advertised in the Buy & Sell over the last few years, but what condition they were in would be anybodys guess.

Interestingly, I have never seen one of them advertised in UK mags, I don't think they were sold new there. (AFAIK, Corollas weren't a big seller in the UK at any time)

So if anybody wanted one to keep as a 'classic' it would be either find one here and spent a lot restoring it, or import one from Oz (or NZ) - which wouldn't be cheap to say the least !


Are you looking to find one Brian, or just recalling old times ?


Here are two pics of that immaculate K20 I mentioned.
(Pictured at Trim Car Show July,2003)

mike65

God this threads depressing me! I'm being whisked back to an era when you prayed before cranking the engine on a damp morning! The Corrolla was a rubbish lump usually in a really bad colour. The Datsun 120-Y on the other hand rocked and often came in electric purple - fantastic! I was driving a Fiat 127 at about that time (hence the praying)...cough

Two barges time forgot. Still saw occasional examples, usually in a farmyard up until a few years back.





Mike.

Silvera

(Too big to upload. How do I 'crop' scanned pics to actual size of photos?)

mike65

PaintshopPro 4 is handy item for that sort of thing and its availible for download here - http://junior.apk.net/~jbarta/pgtut/psp412.zip

Mike.

BrianD3

Silvera, I'm just recalling the old days really. But in the back of my mind I'd have a slight inclination to try restoring something ususual some day. I'd be thinking along the lines of something reasonably simple which used to be common but has now all but but disappeared. Something which has been long forgotten and would never be regarded as a "classic" and is a bit different from the usual MGB/Beetle/Morris Minor fare. A K30 might fit the bill - if I could find one which hasn't dissolved into a pile of iron oxide

But don't mind me, I also like the Renault 12, Citroen GS, Hillman Avenger, Cortina Mk3 and various other unloved machinery

BTW mike you're right about the colours but remember that 70s cars are *supposed* to come in vile colours which remind people of piss, vomit etc.


BrianD3

unkel

BrianD3 wrote:

Something which has been long forgotten and would never be regarded as a "classic"

The Toyota fits in that bracket alright

Silvera

More 'forgotten' Toyotas

Carina 76-80 model (brown) and 81-84 model.

Likewise BrianD3 !
(I too would like to restore something a bit different like an 80's Toyota).

BrianD3

The thing about those K30s is that just about eveyone has had one or been in one at some point. Apart from my dad, I could make a big list of people in my area that had one. Everyone from the local plumber to the headmaster in my primary school. But now the vast majority of these cars have turned to dust which is quite sad IMO as they represent a slice of Irish motoring history that has disappeared. And they were a very Irsih thing too - they were far more popular here than anywhere else in western Europe.

Therefore I'd say if you owned an immaculate one today it would attract quite a bit of interest and would be a good talking point.

As for Carinas, didn't that 80-84 Carina get a pretty substantial facelift at some point where it acquired plastic bumpers and other styling changes. Top marks to you Silvera if you know the one I mean and can find a pic

BrianD3

dcGT

mike65 wrote:

God this threads depressing me! I'm being whisked back to an era when you prayed before cranking the engine on a damp morning! The Corrolla was a rubbish lump usually in a really bad colour. The Datsun 120-Y on the other hand rocked and often came in electric purple - fantastic! I was driving a Fiat 127 at about that time (hence the praying)...cough

Two barges time forgot. Still saw occasional examples, usually in a farmyard up until a few years back.

Mike.

Some classics there Mike. I remember quite a lot of people owning these too:
Enter the Fiat 131

http://www.carsfromitaly.com/fiat/131_200.jpg

http://www.fiat131rallye.de/texte/bilder/foto394.jpg

http://members.aol.com/gemery/131george4dr.jpg

A bit of a heap and there were many rusty examples back then. But they were popular. They still have lots of these in Turkey, where the local car manufacturer (TOFAS - basically FIAT in Turkey) seemed to buy up all the crappy old Fiat designs. :rolleyes: Turkey is still full of them today surprisingly (in excellent condition too). Perhaps the dry weather is kinder to the body work

DC.

BrianD3

This is all a bit anoraky but I've been doing some reading up on Toyota Carinas. Both of the pics (brown and silver cars) that Silvera posted are of the TA40 Carina which was produced from 1977-1981. There was a facelift along the way hence the two different pics. In 1981 the TA40 was replaced by the TA60 which is the plastic bumpered model that I was referring to. This lasted till around 1984 when it was replaced by the first Carina II which was also the first FWD Carina.
Info here: http://www.tacn.nl/carina.htm

BrianD3

mike65

Anyone remember delights like the Simca 1100 or Humber Sceptre? Both of which I spend time in during my youth...





Or the Citroen Visa which had possibly the most messy and fragile dashboard controls - ever!.



Mike.

BrianD3

I've never seen that model of Humber Sceptre on an Irish road. But it was a basically a rebadged Hillman Hunter and there were plenty of Hunters still around the place in the mid eighties. Also plenty of Avengers....check out the L-shaped rear lights

Then there was the Vauxhall Viva

And when did you last see one these "beauties"

mike65

BrianD3 wrote:

And when did you last see one these "beauties"

Agh! Anglo-French monster! Run....:D

Mike.

unkel

mike65 wrote:

Anyone remember delights like the Simca 1100 or Humber Sceptre? Both of which I spend time in during my youth...

Yup my dad had a Simca 1100. Your picture is of a Simca 1300, Mike. My grandfather had one of them :eek:

I liked the Talbot Tagora at the time, BrianD3

I don't think there is anything Anglo about it though

mike65

I could'nt find a 1100 model. The Talbot marque was a strange mix of history with British, French and American input

http://www.allpar.com/model/eurocc.html
http://vea.qc.ca/vea/marques1/talboteng.htm
http://www.sunbeam.org.au/models/talsun.htm


Mike.

unkel

mike65 wrote:

I could'nt find a 1100 model

Edit: thanks for the links Mike. Some interesting stuff out there

Silvera

Simcas ! Hillman Hunters ! Talbots Tagoras ! :eek:
Yuch !!!!!!!!!!
I hated them when I was a nipper...... and still hate them !


Is this the Carina you are thinking of BrainD3........

alias no.9

BrianD3 wrote:

This is all a bit anoraky but I've been doing some reading up on Toyota Carinas. Both of the pics (brown and silver cars) that Silvera posted are of the TA40 Carina which was produced from 1977-1981. There was a facelift along the way hence the two different pics. In 1981 the TA40 was replaced by the TA60 which is the plastic bumpered model that I was referring to. This lasted till around 1984 when it was replaced by the first Carina II which was also the first FWD Carina.
Info here: http://www.tacn.nl/carina.htm

BrianD3

Those TA60 carinas are still very common as taxi's in asia though they're called coronas over there. If anyone has ever seen an estate version of the TA60, from the 'A' pillar back, they look almost identical to the estate version of the T17 released in 1988, makes you wonder if there was anything but cosmetic changes through that time.

Silvera

Here are pics of the immaculate K20 that was at Trim Car Show in July 2003.

Should bring back a few memories for some here

BrianD3

Great pics Silvera. Amazing to think that the K20 is now around 30+ years old. I never saw one in that orange colour, most of the ones around my area were a kind of baby blue colour.

BrianD3

Silvera

Yeah, I think orange was something of a rare colour for them, though I did see a few others in orange 'many moons ago'.

I recall that "baby blue colour" - I think it was the most popular colour, that or a horrible dark green :eek:

The K20 in the pics only has c.40k miles on the clock. It must have been cherished and rustproofed from new.
The sills (panels under the doors) was the first place to rust on them, even after only a few years !

The KE30 was somewhat better in that it didn't 'fall apart' after only a few years !

There were also a couple of NI registered early 80's Starlets (now also a rarity!) parked alongside the K20 - all part of a Toyota Club display........althougn I can't find any details of an Irish or NI Toyota Club on the net

unkel

Silvera wrote:

that or a horrible dark green eek:

Not to forget the "poo poo" brown

dcGT

Silvera wrote:

Here are pics of the immaculate K20 that was at Trim Car Show in July 2003.

Should bring back a few memories for some here

Classic pics. Isn't it funny to compare the size of this Corolla with the current one. The one in the pic looks more like the size of a Fiat Seicento saloon

Also, is that an old Cortina in the right background of the first pic?

DC.

Silvera

Yep, DC, things have come a long way since the days of the K20 !

Correct, that is a Mk 2 Cortina in the background.
It was a great show actually. It had a broad range of vehicles on show.

Actually, I have a couple more 1970's car pics that I can post, namely -

75' Fiat 128p
74' Toyota Corona

I'll post them in my 'Cars in 1980's Ireland' thread.

Silvera

Have any of you guys ever seen a K30 Coupe in Ireland ?

I recall seeing at least one.