Soul and passion are two words that are synonymously linked with another, very popular, word, Ferrari. Those two words are rarely heard about a mere Toyota Cressida. But this 1977 Toyota Cressida has a biblical amount of soul and passion in very fiber of it's being. This is a car that will turn heads as you drive it down the street. It does not matter who you are, but when you are driving this car, you will not only feel like the coolest person on the planet, but you will also be the coolest person on the planet
It was a grey and stormy day when I saw the car for the first time. The owner, Edward, slowly rolled up his garage door to reveal this gorgeous red car. That sight was like catching a glimpse of a smile from the "woman in the red dress" in a sea of grey.
The recipe was simple: a fresh coat of paint from PJ Bonifacio, the right stance, and the perfect wheels was all that was needed. Why ruin such classical beauty with anything loud and garish?
Edward told me about how he's owned a number of different modern cars which ranged from BMW M3s to Mitsubishi Evos. He mentioned how modifying newer cars were so cut and paste and how there was no heart to the modifications. You go online, you order the parts you want, you install them, and then that's pretty much it --suspension, wheels, tires, interior bits and presto! You got yourself a modified car. Older cars on the other hand require so much more soul, dedication, patience, and love. Time and time again, Edward always finds himself back to an old classic car.
Modern modified cars have nothing to compare when it comes to the completely hands-on approach to tuning carburetors with a screwdriver and smelling the gasoline. Sitting in the passenger seat with a laptop is so "laissez faire" in comparison!
The car is sitting on a gorgeous set of Watanabe RS 8 spokes which are 16x9.5 in the front and 16x10 in the rear. A perfect old school look for such a classic car
Looking at the interior makes you think about driving this car when it was brand new in 1977. You're driving around town with gorgeous late afternoon light bathing in and you have a fresh suit on and you have an absolutely gorgeous girl sitting next to you.
That's living --and that's the exact feeling you get while driving this car.
One of the key things that Edward was so proud to show me was that this car has air conditioning. It was A/C that blew extremely cold also! Just imagine driving this car in the summer, looking so cool, while actually being cool with the A/C!
The Cressida's amazing stance has been brought to you by TRD shocks all around with Ground Control coilovers in the front and Eibach springs in the rear. Such a juicy combination! Absolutely nothing has been taken away from the original experience of driving this car. The motor has been left completely original with its straight six, 4M-E, and kept healthy with the usual maintenance but with a meticulous eye!
Every so often, we gear-heads need to be reminded of why we love what we love so much. This Cressida is so simple, yet, it is a car that has so much character. It yearns for those days when Formula 1 was insane with cars that had six wheels and names like Niki Lauda and Mario Andretti were household names; when men smoked like there was no tomorrow and kissed their ladies with all the love they can muster; when racing was racing, and cars driven by the normal populous was infused with so much passion and soul --and to hell with safety!
We need to be reminded where our roots lay. This 1977 Toyota Cressida shows us those roots and beckons us to not lose our sense of love, passion, devotion and soul with whatever we do to our automobiles or to our motorsports.
Soul and passion? Sorry Ferrari. Its not just yours, it belongs to all of us.
-Linhbergh Nguyen