Toyota Celica Cabriolet (Toyota Celica Standard)

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Product:	Toyota Celica Standard
Date:	26/01/01 (773 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Good drive

Disadvantages: Performance

Not only does the Celica Cabriolet look good with the hood up, but there’s a sexy aggression to the nose treatment that will get you noticed.

But clambering into the Toyota after soft-top rivals like the Saab 900 Turbo and BMW 328i is like wandering into a burger joint after the Savoy. It’s downmarket, and there’s plastic everywhere. Build quality is not all it could be while wind and engine noise are more noticeable. The leather seats are narrow while the rear is cramped. Boot space is OK, provided you don’t mind the high load lip and have left the tonneau cover at home.

The Toyota’s hood is complicated. Each window must be lowered by its own switch, a slow and noisy job. After the two retaining clips are undone, the Toyota’s electric motors fold the hood away, but the plastic tonneau cover must be fitted manually.

The Celica is not at its best in a traffic jam thanks to a jerky transmission. And in this company, the 1,998cc 16-valver’s 173bhp is beaten by the others. Another bugbear is smoothness – the engine’s raspy, but not in a very exciting, performance-car kind of way.

Despite its drawbacks the Toyota is more fun than the Saab. It has the best gearbox and steering of the trio; the brakes offer the most feel, too, but they are not the most effective. Like the Saab, the Toyota is front-wheel drive but it’s cleaner, tidier and more involving. Over the sweepy stuff it feels firm and well constructed, with minimal body shake.

The Celica's all-new engine might be state-of-the-art, with intelligent variable valve timing, 16 valves and twin overhead camshafts, but it develops only 140 bhp and has an even less impressive torque figure of 125 lb ft it simply isn't enough to give the car the performance it needs.

Toyota claims a top speed of 127 mph, with the 0-60 mph dash taking a comparatively tardy 8.7 seconds. In an att
empt to disguise the lack of torque, the car has been given a six speed gearbox, but Toyota then shoots itself in the foot by gearing the car for relaxed cruising rather than performance.

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