Toyota Celica could make a comeback, hints Chairman Toyoda

Those who have played the early Need For Speed games would be familiar with the Toyota Celica. It was among the starter cars in the game, but in real life, the Celica has had a long and storied history.

Now, it seems the Celica badge is about to make a comeback. Akio Toyoda, Chairman of the Toyota Motor Corporation, has hinted at the return of the Celica.

During an interview with Best Car magazine, Toyoda revealed that he had put in a request with the higher management to revive the Celica.

“I’m not just saying this because we’re at a rally event, but Kankkunen (who was invited to the demo run) is Mr. Celica. He was champion four times in the Celica. Now you can all have a think about why I’m using Kankkunen so much. See if you can guess!”

The seventh generation Toyota Celica was produced between 1999 and 2006. It was offered with a 1.8-litre, 4-cylinder engine. It came in two states of tune: 140 hp and 192 hp, and was paired with 5-speed and 6-speed manual and 4-speed automatic transmissions.