![]() On top of these advantages, the most surprising appeal was the concentration of high performance in just about every aspect of the car. ![]() Though people were much more accustomed to the latter approach and had expressed hesitation at first, the resulting confidence in operating the vehicle was highly praised. The Corolla was also one of the earliest cars to place the gear shift on the floor instead of on the steering column for a more reliable operation. The car was also ready for the age of speed in performance terms as well, with the internal crankshaft being supported by five bearings to help reduce vibration. Structurally speaking, the car also featured aluminum headlight enclosures which were considered a luxury for a practical car at the time. The Corolla was also appealing in mechanical terms, with the use of the newly developed K model engine with a 1,100 cc displacement that exceeded that of its rival, the Sunny by 100 cc. Meanwhile, the interior also grabbed the imagination of the people at the time, such as with the bold use of red seat material. These factors paved the growing interest in speed, as expressways were opened one after the other, further raising the popularity of the Corolla. Incidentally, a two door coupe-style Corolla with an even sportier image was released a year and a half later as the Corolla Sprinter. Yet, unlike the plain practicality of the Publica, the Corolla also featured sporty design elements in other areas as well, such as the subtle curves in the body, and the semi-fastback form with a new relaxed roof line. The Corolla itself was perfectly aligned with this concept, though it also included some sporty elements such as a 4-speed manual transmission as well as separate meters. While one might imagine at first glance that the 80-point target implied that there was no need to try to attain a perfect score, the real meaning of the concept was to aim for balanced high scores in all areas and a performance that exceeds 90 points.Īs a result, the concept represented the essence of the development of practical cars which could be driven for many years. ![]() ![]() The points referred to the score of the car when evaluated on a scale of 1 to 100. Hasegawa was well known as the engineer who introduced the concept of aircraft aerodynamics to automotive design, he also came up with the “80-plus points” concept for the Corolla’s design. The leader of the development was Tatsuo Hasegawa, who had designed aircraft during WWII, and had been in charge of the design of the earlier Publica and the Toyota Sports 800 after the war. Instead, a new car was designed and was released as the first generation Corolla in 1966. While the original intent was to implement a full model change and release the car for the masses in an evolved form, this idea was abandoned due to technical issues and customer response that was less favorable (although the 2nd generation was launched in 1969). The government had also recently announced the “National Car Concept.” Given this, the Publica was launched in 1961, priced at an appealing 389,000 yen with simple configuration and high productivity. Toyota became aware of the need for a car for the masses in the late 1950s as Japan recovered from the war, and the economy had expanded as it headed toward the period of rapid economic growth.
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