Saturday, 15 August 2015

The TE71 Sprinter - the top of the KE70-based tree..

Neat and tidy example of the top-tier of the fourth-generation Corolla range.

1981 TE71 Toyota Sprinter GT (1600).
Sprinter being Toyota's more sports oriented variation of the Corolla, and the GT 1600 being the highest, twincam-equipped variation of that.
Available as a Sedan, Liftback (the body style sold in Australia as the T18), Hardtop, and Coupe (fastback); with this chassis also the basis of 3 and 5door wagons/panelvans under the Corolla name!

Smoother tail and C-pillar treatment than its Corolla-sedan cousin. Different rear guards, roof, rear pillars, rear doors, boot lid, tails, rear panel, etc. Impressive work, and now almost reminds me of a early Leone sedan at first glance!
I'd say I prefer the somewhat sharper lines and slimmer tail-lights on the Corolla, but this is something different.. all the while being a little more painful for parts replacement.

Scene 20.
One piece 14" alloys replacing the factory fitted styled steel wheels and dress rings..

Sprinter GT badging and a TE71 chassis code leads up to the injected 2T-GEU sitting in the bay.
Displacing 1.6litres and even more oversquare than its successor the 4A-GE, with a two-valve-per-cylinder twin-cam head designed by Yamaha.
Probably not so much the case 2T-GEU injected versions, but these 2T-G look great with a little detailing! Great looking engine at the very least, that also manages to make impressive power for its size/age. Cool.

Basic blue cloth fabric over flat seats, and a thin, large, two-spoke wheel - possibly a little plain for what is the most sporting of Corolla-based Toyota's; but the deep, hooded dash is nice, as is the classic ball shifter.. 
Crazy this car still seems to have the plastic on the door cards..!?


Done.
Currently for sale at a dealer in Japan, for <~1million yen.
..which as usual, I have no trouble justifying! Couldn't build up a nugget E7 to these specs for that. This is in great shape for its age (and claimed 200,000km!), would be a blast to punt around in, while also different to the usual AE86-chassis RWD Sprinters.

..and its got fender mirrors.


2 comments:

  1. Shane Gilbertson30 January 2016 at 22:39

    How would I get in contact to buy this vehicle?

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    Replies
    1. Hi; unfortunately it doesn't look to be for sale anymore. This was from a good 5 months ago now.
      Any of the cars I post that are for sale in Japan, are almost always off Goo-net or Carsensor. If you see something I post with "currently for sale", a quick browse of those teo car sales websites should be able to find it! Failing that, almost all dealers will cover the car's plates with the name of their dealer.. Or it'll be in the background of the image somewhere..! Enough google-searching of their name, and you'd likely find them.
      So sorry, but I hope this helps.

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