Toyota Sports 800 (1965) | Showroom |

"The 'Yota-Hachi', quick around corners with its wide tread and low centre of gravity."

The Toyota Sports 800, nicknamed the 'Yota-Hachi' (Hachi meaning 8 in Japanese) by many, appeared in 1965 to prove that light weight and compact size are what make a sports car. It was also one of the earliest cars in the world to feature a mechanism where the roof could be removed while leaving the B-pillars on the car, a system which later came to be called Targa tops.

There is clever innovation in its build as a sports car. What they tried to achieve was a complete adherence to simplicity rather than utilising complex components. Because of this, most of the parts were carried over from the Public economy car, and when you floored the accelerator you could hear the characteristic whirr and 'put-put' of the horizontally opposed 2-cylinder air-cooled engine, complementing its rounded, cute looks with a humorous sound.

Despite its demeanour, however, the car was actually a wolf in sheep's clothing. With its simple design and use of aluminium and acrylic parts throughout the body, it had a vehicle weight of only 580 kg - which was a considerable advantage as a sports car. The 790 cc engine only produced 44.3 BHP even with twin carburettors, but because of its light weight it was capable of 96.3 mph, equal to 1,500 cc class cars of its day.

Although 'eco-friendly' and 'conservation' have become buzz-words of the 21st century, the 1965 Toyota Sports 800 was a groundbreaking model that was way ahead of its time, together with its timeless design.