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Celica – Generation 4
The fourth Generation Celica was released in 1986 and was produced through to the end of that decade. For the first time, the car featured front wheel drive instead of the rear wheel drive of the earlier models.
Initially the new FWD car was available in 3 variants – the ST, the GT and the GT-S, and with a liftback (hatchback) or a coupe bodyshell. The G3 Celicas are also known by the code name AT160, ST161, ST162, and ST163.
Shortly after the introduction of the new range, the new 3S-FE engine replaced the older 2S-E engines in the STs, and the GT was given the new 3S-GE engine. Both of the new engines would later be fitted to numerous other Toyotas throughout the 1990s, including later Celicas, the Camry and the MR2.
Generation 4 also saw the introduction, in October 1986, of four wheel drive for the first time. The ST185 model – also known as the GT4 or (in America) the All-trac Turbo, would be the first of three generations of GT4 which would further Toyota’s ambitions in the World Rally Championship. The GT4 (throughout all three incarnations of its life) featured the 3S-GTE engine, a turbo-charged version of the 3S-GE engine fitted to most other Generation 3 cars.
Initially the GT4 was a Japan only model, but its success led to it being exported 2 years later in 1988. This was the same year of its first major rally wins which were to be followed by the first GT4 WRC rally victory in Australia the following year.