Daily Driven: 1G-GE-powered TA22 Celica

28 December, 2016

Owner: Sam McGill
Location: Auckland
Occupation: Navy able marine technician (electrical)

NZPC: Hey, Sam. You don’t see many people daily driving an old-school Japanese car in this condition any more. How long have you had it, and what have you done?
Sam: Hey, guys. I bought it nearly two years ago from an old guy down in Wellington. It was a bit rough around the edges, but I’ve been bringing it back up to tidy condition, and have added the ST-model bonnet vents, grille, and oil-pressure and ammeter gauges.

Being an able marine technician in the navy and getting deployed on the ships regularly, how do you find time to work on the car?
I actually took the door cards on the ship down to Antarctica with me — the side louvres and grille went on a trip up into the islands, as well. They’re pretty good like that; I’m allowed to work on bits in my own time. I also helped build an RB30 on a ship, but that’s another story.

The wheels look period correct for the car, giving it that awesome Japanese-muscle vibe.
What are they?
They are 1970s TRD Toscos; pretty hard to come by these days. For me, they absolutely make the car, and I’m so glad that I’ve got them. People leave notes under my window wipers asking to buy them [laughs].

Rad, and we see that it’s had a bit of an engine swap with the addition of a 1G-GE and five-speed box — do you have plans for more modifications?
For sure, I love the one-and-a-half 4A-GE [1G-GE]. I’m currently in the process of buying a 4A-GE individual-throttle-body set-up from a friend and want to get a high-scroll header.

That should make for some crisp noise! It’s missing some of the modern comforts newer cars come with — have you had any issues daily driving a 42-year-old car?
Not since I’ve owned it. I took it down to Christchurch over Christmas and it loved the 2000-ish-kilometre journey. Don’t think I could ever let it go now, to be honest.

A good choice. Look after the old girl, Sam. Thanks for the yarn.

Make/Model: 1974 Toyota Celica LT (TA22)
Engine: Toyota 1G-GE, 2000cc, six-cylinder
Interior: Factory, new carpet, custom centre console
Exterior: Resprayed green-purple pearl
Wheels/tyres: 13×8-inch TRD Tosco, 205/60R13 Cooper Cobra
Suspension: Shortened shocks, compressed springs

NZ Classic Car magazine, July/August 2026 issue 406, on sale now

21 June, 2026

Rebirth of a brilliant Grand Tourer –1973 Datsun 240Z
How often do we long for that ultimate dream sports car, and that dream comes true? This is about one of the most influential Japanese cars of all time, a car that changed the sports car market.
This is about much more than the restoration of an iconic classic sports car, the 240Z. It’s about the culmination of a dream over many years and the friendships made. It’s about the people who helped and the professionals whose approach ensured that the dream became a reality, an attitude typical of the industry we call ‘classic restoration experts’.
It is no surprise that the outcome after a lengthy search by Conrad Van der Geest for the right Datsun 240Z culminated in a trophy for the best Japanese car at this year’s Caroline Bay Beach, Rock N’ Hop at Timaru.
Originally a roadworthy car in running order, it was left-hand-drive and had been driven for several years by its Timaru owner, as Conrad explains.
“A neighbour, Dave Barron, knew I was looking for one and introduced me to the owner. I had seen the car being driven around Timaru. It was unusual for one of these coming originally from California, so it was a really clean car instead of rusty, as they are prone to rust. The story goes that the grandfather passed it onto his grandson, who decided to sell it, and that’s when it came over here.”
Every issue comes with our FREE huge wall poster; this issue, it’s our cover car for this edition, a 1973 Datsun 240Z

The butterfly effect

18 June, 2026

The man on the mountain bike pedalled over, taking it all in. Gazing in wonderment at this small Japanese coupe with butterfly doors, he said, “Wow, I have never seen one of these before. What is it?” When I told him it was a Toyota, he nearly fell off his bike.
The Toyota Sera is unique amongst ’90s Japanese coupes. The Sera, which is Italian for ‘evening’, can trace its roots back to Toyota’s AXV-II concept car. Launched as part of a trio of Toyota concept cars at the 1987 Tokyo Motor Show, it shared its underpinnings with the P70 Toyota Starlet. The similarities ended there, thanks to the AXV-II’s low-slung and rounded coupe styling with butterfly doors. These doors were held upright by gas struts when fully open. Glass covered the upper section of the doors and the rear hatchback.
These features, much to everyone’s surprise, were carried over to the production Sera in 1990. Toyota marketed the Sera, which means ‘will be’ in Spanish and ‘princess’ in Hebrew, as a funky alternative to the much-loved MR2.

Daily Driven: 1G-GE-powered TA22 Celica

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