Seven generations · 1970–2006
The Toyota Celica story, generation by generation
Seven generations of Toyota's sports coupé and liftback, told with timelines, tables and buying advice. Every number on this site comes with its source.
Photo: Armin Schwarz and Klaus Wicha in a Toyota Celica GT-Four, Sanremo Rally 1990. Carlom1961, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons, cropped.
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Every video gets an article that gives you more than the video can: the key facts in short, a table or diagram, the sources with the date we checked them, and an FAQ.
1970–2006
Seven generations, one timeline
Pick a generation for its years, body styles, layout and rally versions, each with a source.
1st1970–1977Coupé, then liftback · rear-wheel drive
2nd1977–1981Coupé and liftback · rear-wheel drive
3rd1981–1985Coupé and liftback · last rear-drive Celica
4th1985–1989Front-wheel drive · first GT-Four
5th1989–1993GT-Four ST185 · World Rally titles
6th1993–1999GT-Four ST205 · liftback and convertible
7th1999–2006Liftback only · 1ZZ-FE and 2ZZ-GEGen 7 Garage →
Series
Gen 7 Garage
Buying, problems and maintenance of the 7th-generation Celica (1999–2006). We collect documented issues in one table: symptom, cause, what to check, and the source.
Guide
Buying a Celica
What to look at before you buy, generation by generation. We start with the 7th generation and add the others as our videos cover them.
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The 7th-gen Celica buyer's checklist
One page to take to a viewing: what to look at on a 1999–2006 Celica before you pay, with the known documented issues from our Gen 7 Garage table.
- What to check on the car, the papers and the test drive
- Documented issues with their sources
- Weekly email with the new video and article
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