Toyota Celica Liftback Turbo

The Toyota Celica Liftback Turbo was a Group 5 Special Production racing car based on the three-door liftback first-generation Celica GT, built by Schnitzer, a firm that specialised in BMWs, through Toyota Deutschland to run in Division 1 of the German DRM series. It raced in 1977 and 1978 and was the only Japanese car in the top division. Schnitzer fitted a lightweight fibreglass body and a turbocharged 2,090 cc version of Toyota's 18R-G engine with a 16-valve head and Kugelfischer fuel injection, rated at 560 hp, and the car reached 310 km/h. It was plagued by reliability problems, finished fourth at the Nurburgring in 1977 and won only a non-championship race at Zolder. After Schnitzer withdrew, the car was sold to Nobuhide Tachi's TOM'S team in Japan for the Fuji Super Silhouette series, with modest success until retirement in 1983.