Toyota AE86: the last rear-drive Corolla and a drift icon

The AE86 series of the Toyota Corolla Levin and Sprinter Trueno are small, front-engine, rear-wheel-drive cars that Toyota built from 1983 to 1987 as coupés and liftbacks. They were the last production Corollas with rear-wheel drive, and in Japan they are known as Hachi-Roku, “eight-six”.

Toyota AE86 at a glance

History of the Toyota AE86

The chassis code “AE86” describes the 1.6-litre rear-drive model of the fifth-generation Corolla: A is the 4A engine series, E8 the E80 generation and 6 the variation. The nameplate Trueno comes from the Spanish word for thunder and Levin from the Middle English word for lightning. In Japan the Sprinter Trueno was sold through Toyota Vista Store dealers and the Corolla Levin through Toyota Corolla Store dealers; for export both were simply called Corolla. Nobuaki Katayama, later head of Toyota’s motorsport department, was among the engineers behind the car.

The car was light, affordable and easy to modify. It had a five-speed manual gearbox, an optional limited-slip differential, MacPherson strut front suspension and a near 50/50 weight balance, at a time when the front-engine, rear-drive layout was fading from the industry. The Japanese car used the high-revving 4A-GEU twin-cam engine, which also powered the first Toyota MR2. The standard 1.6 L Corolla range was otherwise front-wheel drive; the AE86 was built on the older rear-drive E70 platform.

Zenki and kouki

Cars made between 1983 and 1985 are called zenki, “early period”, and those from 1986 to 1987 kouki, “latter period”. In May 1985 the kouki brought different tail-lights, new wheels, updated bumpers, a revised interior and halogen lamps as standard. In 1986 Toyota offered a limited “Black Limited” edition of 400 cars based on the Sprinter Trueno GT APEX liftback, and in early 1987 a Tama, Tokyo dealer sold about 20 soft-top Trueno conversions.

In the world

North American cars used the 4A-GEC engine, rated at 112 hp, or the single-cam 4A-C at 70 to 74 hp, to meet California emissions rules. In Europe the twin-cam car had 124 PS. During its production run the AE86 was a popular choice for showroom stock, Group A and Group N racing, and it won the 1986 European Touring Car Championship manufacturers’ title in Division 1. Chris Hodgetts won the British Touring Car Championship in an AE86 in 1986 and 1987.

Its real fame came afterwards. Its light weight and rear-drive layout suited controlled slides, and the Japanese racer Keiichi Tsuchiya, known as the Drift King, helped popularise drifting in an AE86 Levin. The car was the main character’s drift and tofu delivery car in the manga and anime series Initial D (1995–2013). The AE86 also inspired the Toyota 86 sports car of 2012.

Design and features

• Engine: the 4A-GE, a DOHC four-valve-per-cylinder 1.6 L with Denso fuel injection and variable intake geometry (T-VIS).
• Brakes: ventilated discs on the twin-cam cars; the single-cam model had a front solid disc and rear drums.
• Chassis: a rear-drive platform from the older E70 Corolla, with an optional limited-slip differential on twin-cam manual cars.

Toyota AE86 versions

• GT, GTV and GT APEX (Japan): the 4A-GEU cars, in Levin or Trueno form, coupé or liftback.
• AE85: the same layout with the smaller 1.5 L 3A-U engine.
• SR5 and GT-S (North America): single-cam and twin-cam export models.
• Black Limited (1986): 400 cars based on the Trueno GT APEX.

The AE86 belonged to the Toyota Corolla family, and the Trueno was sold as the Toyota Sprinter. Its spiritual successor was the Toyota FT-86 concept. More cars are in our Toyota collection.

Sources

• Toyota AE86, English Wikipedia: history, specifications, motorsport
• Toyota AE86, Italian Wikipedia: development and versions