The Forgotten 1985 Toyota Celica GT-S Convertible Cost More New Than A Supra, 300ZX, or Camaro Z28

While prolific in their time, the third generation Toyota Celicas are now few and far between - before this one, I probably hadn't seen one on the road in 20 years, and only a spattering at collector auctions. I presume this is because most of them got used up, and people never considered them as collectible as the Supra.

This is a shame, because not only did the Celica predate and launch the Supra, it has a storied history spanning 36 years and seven generations, including some racing victories and very special editions.

This 1985 Celica GT-S is one of those editions - in total, less than 4500 were made (200 in 1984, the rest in 1985), and they were expensive - shockingly so. The conversion done by ASC added over $6K to the base GT-S price of $11500, putting the MSRP on these cars in the mid $17s - a thousand more than the cost of a Supra, a few hundred more than a 300ZX, and encroaching on to BMW E30 and Porsche 944 territory. I'm not surprised so few were built.

This 3rd generation Celica GT-S shares much with the Supra - everything from the A-Pillars back is the same, as are the wheels, the brakes, the suspension, and the incredible sport seats. Fender flares and graphics gave these cars very sporty appeal, though the 2.4 liter 22R-E engine was significantly less potent than the Supra's inline 6. Otherwise, the balance and handling of this car was phenomenal, and the fuel economy very good.

This is a full review and test drive by Bill of a very well preserved 1985 Celica GT-S Convertible, along with an in-depth look at the prior generations and development of what was a very popular Toyota at the time.

Vehicle is for sale at Autohaus of Naples, on the web at http://www.AutohausNaples.com, or by phone at (239) 263-8500.