Toyota Caldina

Not to be confused with Toyota Carina.

The Toyota Caldina is an automobile manufactured by Toyota for the Japanese market and was released in 1992. It replaced the Toyota Carina and Toyota Corona wagons, and was sold at both Toyota Store and Toyopet Store locations in Japan.

While the Caldina has never been officially exported by Toyota outside of Japan, its All-Trac 4WD capability and large capacity have made it a popular grey import in Australia, New Zealand, Russia and many South American countries.

The Caldina was discontinued in 2007, with the Toyota Avensis wagon assuming the market position previously held by the Caldina.

Model history

1st generation (1992-1997)

First generation
Overview
Manufacturer Toyota
Also called Toyota Carina E
Toyota Corona
Production 19921997
Body and chassis
Body style 5-door station wagon
5-door van
Layout FF layout, four-wheel drive
Powertrain
Engine 1.5 L 5E-FE I4
1.8 L 4S-FE I4
1.8 L 7A-FE I4
2.0 L 3S-FE I4
2.0 L 3S-GE I4
2.0 L 2C I4 diesel
2.0 L 2C-T I4 Turbodiesel
2.2 L 3C-E I4 diesel
Chronology
Predecessor Toyota Corona

The original Toyota Caldina was the 5-door wagon or commercial van version (1992–2002) of the four-door sedan Toyota Corona and Toyota Carina in Japan. The wagon has independent strut rear suspension while the commercial wagon has semi-independent leaf springs.

Toyota Caldina van (early model)
Toyota Caldina van (early model)


2nd generation (1997-2002)

Second generation
Overview
Manufacturer Toyota
Also called Toyota Avensis
Production 19972002
Body and chassis
Body style 5-door station wagon
Layout FF layout, four-wheel drive
Powertrain
Engine 1.8 L 7A-FE I4
2.0 L 3S-FE I4
2.0 L 3S-GE I4
2.0 L 3S-GTE I4 Turbo
2.0 L 2C-T I4 Turbodiesel
2.2 L 3C-TE I4 Turbodiesel
2000 Toyota Caldina GT-T (later model)
2000 Toyota Caldina 2.0E (later model)

Sharing a platform with Toyota Allion and Toyota Premio, the Caldina is the Japanese version of Toyota Avensis wagon.

The 4WD models are coded ST215, and are offered as Active Sports GT with the 3S-GE engine. The top of the line GT-T came with the turbocharged 260 PS (191 kW; 256 hp) 4th generation 3S-GTE engine, and included an all-wheel drive system similar to the Toyota Celica GT-Four. The GT-T also came with optional electronic stability control(VSC) (standard on Active Sports versions). The Aerial version features a large sunroof and countoured roof racks as standard.[1] Weighing 1,470 kg (3,241 lb), the Caldina GT-T offers similar performance to a Subaru WRX wagon achieving 0–100 km/h in 7 seconds. A refresh was given in 2000 with new bumpers and lamps a refreshed interior and extra lug added to the turbo manifold to stop the warping issue common on earlier GT-T models.

Engines for lesser models are the 1.8 L 7A-FE, the 2.0 L gasoline 3S-FE, and the 2.2 L diesel 3C-TE.


3rd generation (2002-2007)

Third generation
Overview
Manufacturer Toyota
Production 20022007
Assembly Tsutsumi, Japan[2]
Body and chassis
Body style 5-door station wagon
Layout FF layout, four-wheel drive
Powertrain
Engine

1.8 L 1ZZ-FE I4 (132hp)
2.0 L 1AZ-FSE I4 (152hp)

2.0 L 3S-GTE I4 Turbo (260hp)
Dimensions
Wheelbase 2,700 mm (106.3 in)
Length 4,510 mm (177.6 in)
Width 1,740 mm (68.5 in)
Height 1,445 mm (56.9 in)
Curb weight

1.8 X N/A FWD 1,240 kg (2,730 lb)
1.8 Z N/A FWD 1,250 kg (2,760 lb)
2.0 Z N/A FWD 1,290 kg (2,840 lb)
2.0 ZT N/A FWD 1,310 kg (2,890 lb)
2.0 Z N/A AWD 1,370 kg (3,020 lb)
2.0 ZT N/A AWD 1,390 kg (3,060 lb)
2.0 GT-Four Turbo AWD 1,480 kg (3,260 lb)

2.0 GT-Four Turbo N-Spec AWD 1,490 kg (3,280 lb)
2002 Toyota Caldina GT-Four (early model)
2005 Toyota Caldina ZT (later model)
2002 Toyota Caldina GT-Four (early model)

The all-new Caldina of September 2002 is a pure sports wagon, and does not share body panels with Allion, Premio, and Avensis. Engines for the Caldina are 1.8 L 1ZZ-FE, 2.0 L 1AZ-FSE, or 2.0 L turbo 3S-GTE. Trim levels are 1.8 X, 1.8 Z, 2.0 Z, 2.0 ZT, and 2.0 GT-Four (the latter is coded ST246). There is also a MKII Model years 2005-2007 with Minor refresh was given to them. All models have automatic transmission and the GT-Four only comes in tiptronic transmission. With the discontinuation of Celica, the Caldina was one of the sportiest Toyota models sold in Japan.

Caldina GT-Four is also widely available as a reconditioned grey-import car in Malaysia.

Production of the 3rd generation Caldina ended in 2007. That was also the end for both the 3S-GTE engine and the "GT-Four" moniker in Toyota's lineup.

As a tribute to Toyota motor sport development guru and the creator of the first GT-Four, Hiromu Naruse, a special edition Caldina GT-Four was produced. The Caldina GT-Four “N” edition. (N for Naruse).

This model was equipped with several performance enhancements specified by Hiromu Naruse:


References

  1. "J-Spec Imports model lineup". www.j-spec.com.au. Retrieved 2010-12-10.
  2. "History of KANTO AUTO WORKS". Kanto-aw.co.jp. Retrieved 2010-07-16.