1979: You Asked For It, You Got... a Toyota Corona Liftback Sedan?
The Junkyard Find ’79 Corona we saw earlier was a pretty nice car, but it was a regular sedan with an old-fashioned trunk. Just as Chevrolet buyers could buy a Nova with a hatchback in 1979, Toyota shoppers had the option of getting a Corona Liftback. Let’s tune into the old days of analog television and watch how Toyota USA’s marketers pitched this fine automobile.
So, we have a mean-looking tough old guy with a combover— probably just got back from advising the Proceso on interrogation techniques in Buenos Aires, from the look of him— driving a ’79 Corona Liftback around a suburban American neighborhood. Through clenched teeth, he commands the viewer to get with the program and buy this extremely sensible car. Few viewers did.
Murilee Martin is the pen name of Phil Greden, a writer who has lived in Minnesota, California, Georgia and (now) Colorado. He has toiled at copywriting, technical writing, junkmail writing, fiction writing and now automotive writing. He has owned many terrible vehicles and some good ones. He spends a great deal of time in self-service junkyards. These days, he writes for publications including Autoweek, Autoblog, Hagerty, The Truth About Cars and Capital One.
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There was a Corona wagon as well. These were the last of the RWD, engine in the front on a north / south axis, subcompacts from Toyota prior to the Camry. For the traditionalist, the Cressida was there to soldier on much longer.
When I was born, my parents drove a Falcon, but I have no memories of it. Then they bought a brand new '78 Corona liftback, much like this one. That's the first car I could recognise. My parents were happy with it, the only problem was rust here in the north. They kept it 7 years. I have good memories of this one. I haven't seen one other than on a picture in a loooooong time.