A sad day for some..., A happy day for others Options

[snadman]

Today, as I went to the Toyota dealership to look for a 6sp GT-S I learned a few things. I learned that they've only made a dozen GT-S's that are 6speeds within the last year and a half. I also learned that either next year or the after they are dropping the GT-S in the USA. The year after that the Celica will be dropped all together. And when it's dropped, it will be sad for some of us...

But for those who can afford to spend more than 35k on a car it will be happy. The Supra will be returning to the USA in that year. It will still sport the 2JZ-GTTE engine, with upgraded technology however...which may bring it a new number in the JZ engine line. It will be a brand new body style, and no information besides the fact that there will be one when the Celica is dropped has been leaked. I have no further information besides it will come out and it will sport a 3.0L inline 6 twin turbo optional engine.

Later.

[Cody]

Dunno...can you really trust a dealer?

[Coomer]

Are you sure about all that? I know that the people at my local Toyota dealer aren't very smart and often try to give me misleading information.

If it's true, it sucks that they're killing off the Celica, but seeing the Supra back would be awesome!

[ghostdog]

they are gonna drop the celica??? that doesn't make any sense, the 7th gen has sold very well since its release. and besides, its got so much history, why would they risk all that??? I'm confused.

[Inferno]

I don't think they would be smart in dropping it at all... I look forward to the Supra, though. I hope it still has the 2JZ, but it might not be likely. Nate has information on the 'new' Supra that seems totally different. Who knows.

[Stealths95GT]

no more celica....although about then i should re~enlist in the military...hello supra oh well....i'll still keep the celi....it's different from all the other cars...has potential and it isn't honda!

[XE_Nathaniel]

Thats misleading and wrong. Read all my old posts. WHo would you elieve. A toyota dealershiop or my sources from Toyota of Japan Headquarters?

-Nate

[XE_Nathaniel]

Oh yea its 2JZ-GTE.

And yea.in the beginning Celica sales were very strong. Up a whopping 230% from 6GC Sales. They are still selling quite a few but sales are dropping off...I doubt tehy are makign a dozen are so....Do you know why the salesman said dozen? to make the 6 speed seem more rare to entice you to buy it! =)

Supra with 2JZ? Unlikely although a 25th Anniversary Supra TT would be great (For more info on the next supra...look up my posts)

Bottom Line: Celica is not goign to die and Toyota is hard at work for the next Supra and a side one...for guess what......an Exotic (New information =P).

-Nate

[GeEkBoY]

Doubtful at best. Rumors about a new supra come up all of the time. They are very hot right now due to the upcoming refresh on the IS300. and as for an inline six, nope. the new IS300 is rumoured to be going to a V-6 for packaging and crash reasons. I check the online spies pages, this one is one of the best out there:

http://www.imakenews.com/autospies/

I would bet that an IS300 coupe would be much more probable than a supra.

jus my $0.02

[GeEkBoY]

here is a link to some recent rumors about a new supra:

http://carspyshots.proboards2.com/index.cg...&num=1059973029

sorry about the DP.

[97sccelica]

yeah and 3 yrs ago some salesman said to my dad that they were going to stop making the new vw beetles after 2001.

dropping the celica would take toyota out of a big part of the market.

and i HIGHLY doubt that only 12 celica GTS 6spds have been made in this comming model year.

the main reason sales are down is because it has been 4 years since the 7th gen came out.

what happens when sales go down on a model of a car? you change something.

they are probably going to drop the 7th gen and introduce the 8th gen

[bonzaisushi]

ya that dealer is BS, after investing money into the ZZ platform i dont think they would drop the gts and leave the matrix theonly car with the 2zz.... celica has been around for ever and will remain

[macavely]

Call toyota motor corp. cause i think that dealer is BS.. mainly cause toyota is about making money.. and the celica makes them money... they stopped making the supra cause people were not buying them.. and the 7th gen Celica sells like weed at a wu concert..

[Andason]

[Phr0z3n664]

The celica has to stay but they should be put on a rwd platfrom, like the old school celicas, can we say potential Silvia killer?

[capncrakhed]

i dont know though....back when my roomate had a honda prelude he was on boards and forums and i remember a thread similar to this saying "the prelude is gonna die"

and nearly everyone doubted it and said "Honda will never kill the prelude...it has a lot of history and style" and Honda did kill the prelude they stopped production and no one saw it coming except that one guy that posted nearly the same info ....a honda sales rep at a honda dealership found out they're going to stop production of the prelude

so i would never say never

[Silver94CelicaOw...]

Well they'll definately keep the celica around until the release of the new Supra, which would be in 2006 from what Nate said a while ago cuz Toyota wouldnt go without a sports car in their model lineup.....ever. But even after the Supras introduction, im sure they'll keep it like bonzaisushi and 97sccelica were saying about the zz platform and how it wouldnt make sense to eliminate it. Also Celicas keep Eclipse sales under wraps too, and thats something that Toyota probably wouldnt wanna lose. The phasing out the Prelude doesnt suprise me though, because while it was a nostalgic model for Honda the Accord 2 door and the Civic more than cover what the Prelude could offer with the ammount of aftermarket stuff available for the other 2 models.

[XE_Nathaniel]

I say and say agian..you say you were interested in a 6 Speed Celica correct? Then the dealer says how rare it is..tis to entice you to buy it! nuff' said =)

-Nate

[Silver94CelicaOw...]

Agreed...

[97sccelica]

[bonzaisushi]

u could also get a GT mustang for the price of a prelude... u do the math rwd v8 vs fwd I4.......... sadly i woulda taken the stang

[speedracer_2020]

I'm sorry to say.. but the Celica isn't going anywhere!

If they were going to drop the Celica.. they would've done it when sportscar sales were at an all time low (back wheneverything from the 240, Probe to anything else) was being dropped! 6th gen sales were less than most of the other rides

And 7th gen sales are insane. XE_Nathanial has said their sales were up 230%, I'm thinking more. In the last week or so I counted the num,ber of 7th vs 6th gens .. the results "42" 7th gens, "3" 6th gens (and one 6th gen was in the parking lot with a full 3sgte conversion.. funny)

Point is. Dropping the CElica is ridiculous from a sale & marketing point of view. Toyota wanted to get that younger market, and there's no way they are gonna kill their marquee item - in that field.

Also.. most sales staff are part-timers. They just do what they gotta do to get your cash in their pants.

[Inferno]

I totally agree with speedracer, yeah. It would be so stupid for Toyota to phaze it out. Think how much money they would lose.

[Drocay]

My dad and my Uncle who's a manager work for Toyota and both of them said the whole dropping the Celi isn't going to happen. Just a bad rumor.

[GeEkBoY]

I have heard some people say that Toyota could flip the celica model over to Scion, but this is just speculation and I really do not believe they would do that. The matrix would be much more likely to flip over, but my bet lies with the corrola hatch from europe coming over as a Scion.

[snadman]

First off. Nate, man most times you're pretty cool about this stuff...just don't be a smart a$$ man. I'm just trying to give information I'm given.

Second, I didn't go in just asking for a 6 speed. I asked if they had any on the lot. I even told him I wasn't interested in buying one, just wanted to see whee I could get one to keep my options open. I actually told him I hate the looks of one, and asked him he had any MKIV Supras in the warehouse...in which he had two. Both were over 30k...but they also had over 10k in upgrades and under 40k miles. A red and a yellow one...both twin turbo.

Third, the guy knew his ****. He is the head of research for Toyota in america. I have no clue what that means really...except the fact that he knew everything about Toyotas. I tested him. Most times I do this to see if I'm going to get bull****ted on soemthing I don't know much about...so I ask questions about past motors...what cars they came in. He even knew a lot about the 3sgte swap. Just, he was one of those guys where you talk to him for five minutes and you ask him a few questions...he gets them all right and he knows what he's talking about. He also said that Toyota sales of Celicas and MR2's are going dead. He said he has no clue why they'd keep the celica...considering the new ones are slower than molasses...they make barely any with stick...and for the same price...someitmes more sometimes less you can get a much faster car.

Granted, Toyota sales in the sedan and SUV/Truck areas are doing alright...and the Camry as always is a great seller. The MR2, and more importantly the Celica, are almost done. The MR2 sales are completely dead in the water. And honestly, if you think the new Celicas are so great and they are goign to keep them around...why is that about six months ago...when sales were really hot...I saw so many...and all of a sudden now I see used ones for sale all over. Reallly cheap. They aren't that great, and people realized they can't keep up with other sports of the same or close to the same price range.

All I'm trying to say here is that, you're crazy to think that the Celica will still live on. Except for one loophole...when the Supra comes back..it will be called the Celica Supra. Besides that they are going Twin Turbo again...and I just called the guy to ask a few questions too. What you said about not the 2JZ anymore is most likely true. It will still end up being an inline 6 cylinder...with a twin turbo option. Not sure how it will work out but it will I'm guessing.

I don't wanna sound like a jerk here, but like you guys are knocking me for providing information I was given...and now am sharing with you. If you think it's false...then just say why you think so. You don't gotta come knocking me.

Lates

This post has been edited by snadman: Aug 10, 2003 - 3:31 PM

[bonzaisushi]

not knocking on u bro, just stating some facts, i agree strongly that the mrS sales are dead in water ... but y would th ehead of toyota research or something be in minnesota at a dealrship running the lots?...... im pretty sure hed be at there NA headquarters in cali... i personally think that they will release the new celica and it will be a big hit, more power and everything else we love, and they will discontinue the mrS and start up the supra again... toyota is smart, they know what to do, they know that america are eating these sports cars up right now(350z,evo,wrx,srt4,rsx) toyota wants a piece of that ass and when they release there stuff they will get a big piece..... celica will be here im almost positive....

[Inferno]

Firstly, no one knocked you. Secondly, I highly doubt that a twin-turbo model will be made available. You know why they cancelled the Supra in the 90's? Because it costed too much, and the Twin-Turbo models only make it more expensive. I doubt they will make it.

On top of that, I do agree that the Celica's are slow. However, I think it will NOT be cancelled. It'll just be evolved into an 8th generation.

And agreeing with the last guy, I don't know why the head of 'such and such' would be in Minnesota and not at their HQ. Also, you can ask almost 75% of the people on these boards (and tons of others) and they'll know engine codes. They aren't that hard to learn. You see them a few times and they become familiar.

This post has been edited by Inferno: Aug 10, 2003 - 10:56 PM

[XE_Nathaniel]

1: Im not trying to be a smart ass. I enver said something like "mang this guy must be stupid because he said 2JZ-GTTE instead of 2JZ-GTE".You know thats only something Inferno would say (LOL j/k j/k) . I'm just stating the facts and some possible things that may come up. Sorry if I offended you mang.....sorry =) No hard feelings? Yea I know he must know alot of if he was head of something in Minnisota.....but I tend to believe that my Japanese contacts are a bit more accurate.

2: Inline-6? Hopefully, but most likely a twin turbo option will not be in a works...perhaps a system from TRD...but on the car? probobly not.... Toyota is going very BIG with the V-6 Notion and even the Skyline may go V-6. Many critics have said taht the 2JZ in the IS300 is too heavy and needs an aluminum block (example: Carpoint) the next IS may share its engine with the next Supra...and most likely its chassis also. To enforce the theory, lately the Skyline has been test fitted with V-6 engines....hmm...why would they do that....I don't know lol

3: Yea I said sales were up 230%....but that was in the begining
(Information Collected From sources ushc as Consumer Reports and Motor Trend Magazine....another note was that they compared the Mitsubishi Eclipse 3G sales vs. the 2G sales.....guess what..sales are up also....around 20-40%)

4: yea its nice they have a red and yellow surpa twin turbo...i've had a black one with over 20K in upgrades.....but no one cares =P haha

5: I agree.the MR-S sales have plummeted....but they were limited edition in the first place....how many people in the midwest had to go MILES upon MILES to find that limited edition vehicle? (Information Collected from www.spyderchat.com)

6: The Celica is not dead.......still a solid seller and the 8th Gen is in plans.

7: Celica Supra? Whos knows.....Toyota has been analyzing the sucess of the "retro" 350Z.

8. Used Celicas....Toyota doesnt care about used Celicas because they sold it to them in the first place.

9. The Celica was tested to be second in handling through the slalom with 89G on the skidpad by the Lancer Evo. Clearly Toyota wanted something else for the Celica. Also.....many of the Celica sales aren't going to tuners....they go to a wide range of people who love the Celica Styling. Hell my friend for one a week ago. And I see a bunch of 03's around here.

10: The Prelude was always a technical testhouse with Honda. with 4WS and all. Why did it die? Higher Civic and Integra sales.....why would you need the Prelude?...save alot of money =).....the NSX is still alive and its sales are horrible....but its Honda's Exotic......theres something about it....and for teh past 12 or so years.....they kept it alive.

11: The MR-S is MORE likely to be discontinued than the Celica. The MR-S was Toyotas staple car of being the most sold, cheep blah blah blah mid-engined rear wheel drive car. Just liek the Prelude was Hondas technical tour de force. Oh well...

11: If hes the Head of Toyota Research..why is he selling you cars?

Hey mang if im wrong, then im wrong! Ive been wrong before.im only human....no one is knocking you We just analyzing the information you've given us and argued it a bit for the good of the community =P. I know....its natural to combat everyone....hey its alrite mang....No hard feelsing....you stated your argument....and now im stating mine.....But its just like a debate mang =) In the end....we still friends =P

Besides, this is 6GC.....everyone here is nice ::looks from side to side::

-Nate

[Toyota_guy31783]

I dont know about discontinuing the celica...it seems like a rather stupid move. And about the new supra, If and when it does come out it will most likely not be a twin turbo. look at how the 350z came back into the market. Also the RX-8. Both the 300zx and the RX-7 are know for being twin turbo, but niether one came out as twin turbo when re-released. Toyota stoped selling the supra because it got to expensive for the market. So it would only make sense that Toyota would re-release the supra as a NA car, then if sales go up release a turbo version. Just a thought.

[macavely]

snadman no one was knocking you.. we just all feel that it would be a real stupid move for Toyota to kill the Celica line. its' been suck a great car for so long. it the longest selling car in the U S just ask your self why would they stop it now. yea sales are not what they were when the car first came out. but that is expected with ever car model out.. that why they change things up. The 7gc have been around since 2000 that almost 4 years of selling a car. it's going to get to the point that most poeple that want the car have bought it already. the Supra like the 300z and the Prelude and the RX 7 just cost to much for the poeple that it was intended to buy it.