Toyota Starlet

KP60 Starlet Rally Car

The Toyota Starlet is a small automobile manufactured by Toyota since 1973, replacing the Toyota Publica (and retaining the Publica's "P" code and generation numbering). The Publica name was still used on some export models for a time however.

Initially launched in 1973 as the 40 series, the Starlet was offered with 1000 and 1200 cc engines. Generally the car looked like a shortened Corolla. Variants available were 2-door sedan and 3-door wagon.

The 60 series, introduced 1978 was better known, being the first to be extensively sold outside Japan, and offered with 1000, 1200 and 1300 cc engines. 3-door and 5-door hatchbacks were offered in export markets, although a distinctive 5-door wagon variant was sold on the Japanese domestic market. In 1980 the car was facelifted to include square headlights, and again was facelifted in 1983 to incorporate a slant nose frontend.

The 70 series in 1984 saw the Starlet finally switch to front wheel drive. 3-door and 5-door hatchbacks were offered.

The 80 and 90 series of 1989 and 1996 retained the same idea of a three/five-door hatchback.

Normally, Starlets were known for being dependable but dull automobiles, but there were exceptions. The Toyota Sera, made in the early 1990s and officially sold only in Japan, was the same car with a sports body and gull-wing doors. Only about 16,000 were ever produced due to their poor performance in frontal-impact crash tests.

Several turbocharged sport versions of the Starlet were also sold in the Japanese Domestic Market (JDM), including the EP71 Turbo S (1987-1990), EP82 GT Turbo (1990-1995) and the EP91 Glanza V (1995-1999). These have become quite popular in recent years in other right-hand drive regions such as the British Isles, Australia and New Zealand as used imports.

The Starlet was briefly exported to North America from 1981 to 1984, when it was replaced by the Tercel in Toyota's North American lineup.

The range was replaced by the Toyota Vitz/Platz/Echo/Yaris range in 1999.

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