Toyota Publica

Toyota Publica
Production period:	1961-1978
Class :	Small car
Body versions :	Sedan , station wagon , pickup , convertible
Successor:	Toyota Starlet

The Toyota Publica (also Toyota 1000 and Daihatsu Consorte) was a small car that the Japanese automobile manufacturer Toyota built from 1961 to 1978. It was intended as a family car to fulfill the “National Automobile Concept” and was the smallest Toyota at the time. After he was hired, the starlet , who himself started as a version of Publica, took over this role. The Publica always had only two or three doors, but was available in a number of body versions: sedan, convertible, station wagon and pickup. The latter outlived the other versions by a whole decade and spawned other models such as the Sports 800 or the MiniAce .

development

The MITI National Car Concept

The beginnings of the Publica can be traced back to the “National Car” concept of the all-powerful Japanese Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI), which was promulgated in 1955. This concept required a vehicle that met the following requirements: top speed over 100 km / h, weight under 400 kg, fuel consumption of no more than 3.33 l / 100 km at an average speed of 60 km / h on a flat road and in particular one distance of at least 100,000 km without major repairs.

realization

Eiji Toyoda originally favored front-wheel drive for this car , but it turned out that this new drive for Toyota could not have been developed within the required time frame. So it was decided to use a front engine and a conventional rear-wheel drive. Although the government had announced that vehicles with a displacement of less than 500 cc would be favored for tax purposes, Toyota decided that such a small engine would give the car too little power for driving on the motorway, and decided on a displacement of 700 cc . The result was a two-cylinder boxer engine with 697 cm³ displacement and overhead valves, which made 28 bhp (21 kW) and was called the Toyota U-engine. Fortunately for Toyota, the government failed to carry out its vehicle tax plans.

The new car was given a two-door sedan body and could accommodate four people and a lot of luggage, which met the requirements and expectations of the customers. The front wheels were individually suspended on double wishbones , the rigid rear axle on semi-elliptical leaf springs .

Publica UP10

UP 10
Toyota Publica UP10 (1961)
Production period:	1961-1966
Body versions :	Sedan , station wagon , pickup , convertible
Engines:	Petrol engines : 0.7 liters (21–24 kW)
Length:	3520 mm
Width:	1415 mm
Height:	1203 mm
Wheelbase :	2130 mm
Empty weight :	580 kg

The new car was given the internal designation UP10 and the trade name Publica . It was sold through a new dealer network that was not identical to the previous "Toyota" and "Toyopet" dealers. Sales began in June 1961 at a base price of ¥ 389,000. At first the car was very simply equipped; there wasn't even a heater or radio. This made the car less popular with customers because they wanted more luxury.

Pronunciation of the name in Japanese

The name "Publica" was chosen as an echo of the English expression "public car" and was intended to indicate the desired popularity of the car. However, since the consonants “r” and “l” are insufficiently differentiated in Japanese , the name was occasionally misinterpreted as “Pabrika”, which led to an undesirable association with paprika .

Further development of the UP10 series

A three-door station wagon was added in 1962, and a Sports 800 derived from the original model (initially marketed as Publica Sport ) made its debut at the Tokyo Motor Show . In 1963, Toyota also offered a deluxe version, internally called the UP10D . The luxury equipment consisted of folding front seats, heating and radio, as well as various chrome strips. The previous basic model was now called Standard. The Deluxe finally aroused more customer interest, and when a convertible was offered that same year, sales increased to the forecast level of 3,000 - 4,000 per month. A pickup was also offered from February 1964, and in September of the same year the engine output was increased to 32 bhp (23.5 kW). The deluxe equipment was now also available for the station wagon.

Publica UP20

UP 20
Toyota Publica UP20 Cabriolet (1967)
Production period:	1966-1969
Body versions :	Sedan , station wagon , pickup , convertible
Engines:	Petrol engines : 0.8 liters (29–36 kW)
Length:	3520 mm
Width:	1415 mm
Height:	1203 mm
Wheelbase :	2130 mm
Empty weight :	580 kg

In 1966, Toyota offered a revised Publica range called the UP20 . The new engine had a displacement of 800 cm³ and developed 36 bhp (26.5 kW). The new engine was named 2U. The convertible was delivered with the Sport 800 twin-carburetor engine, which developed 45 bhp (33 kW). Since October the dealers no longer called themselves “Publica” but “Toyota Publica” and the sales price of the car fell to 359,000 yen in 1967. At that time, USD 1 was equivalent to ¥ 360, which is why Toyota marketed the car as a "$ 1,000 car".

In 1966, Toyota also released the Toyota MiniAce , a forward control van based on the Publica UP20. In 1968 the production of the station wagon was transferred to Hino Motors after this company was taken over by Toyota. In the same year the “Publica Super”, which was equipped with the Sport 800 engine, was presented.

Publica UP / KP30 / Daihatsu Consorte

UP 30 / KP 30 Daihatsu Consorte
Toyota Publica (1969)
Production period:	1969-1988
Body versions :	Limousine , station wagon , pickup
Engines:	Petrol engines : 0.8–1.3 liters (29–41 kW)
Length:	3645-3865 mm
Width:	1450-1490 mm
Height:	1380 mm
Wheelbase :	2160 mm
Empty weight :	665 kg

New model, new engine, new image

In 1969 a whole new generation of the Publica came out. The cheapest models kept the 2U engine of the predecessor, but the other models received the new, water-cooled four-cylinder in-line engine 2K with 1,000 cm³ displacement, a smaller version of the contemporary Corolla engine, which had 1,100 cm³ displacement. The pickup variant was now officially called that. The market situation in Japan changed due to the rapidly increasing demand, as the "baby boomers" of the post-war years came of age and got their driver's licenses. The Corolla was established as a family car, and the Publica was no longer offered as a “public car”, but as an entry-level model for novice drivers.

Publica SL and Daihatsu Consorte

In 1969 the Publica dealers were renamed “Toyota Corolla” dealers and the Publica SL with the 1.1 l Toyota KB engine with dual carburetor system from the Corolla SL came out. In the following year, the 1.2 liter Toyota 3K-B engine replaced the 1.1 liter in the Publica SL and Corolla SL. Since Toyota had just started working with Daihatsu , the former was also released as Daihatsu Consorte in 1969 , but turned out to be a Publica KP30 with only a slightly revised styling. The car was initially powered by Daihatsu's 1.0L engine, which was also used in various other models from the manufacturer, e.g. B. the Compagno was used.

Facelifts and Starlet

Toyota Publica Estate (1978)

In 1970 the model series was slightly revised and received a new dashboard and a new high deluxe version with a 1.2 liter single-carburetor engine and disc brakes at the front. A more noticeable facelift took place in 1972 when the Publica KP30 got a new front and rear. The production of the U-engine was stopped because the air-cooled boxer engine could no longer meet the new emissions regulations. In 1973 the new Publica Starlet (internal KP40) was introduced, a coupé version of the revised Publica. This model was manufactured until 1978 when it was replaced by the KP60, which was sold as the Toyota Starlet. The Publica pickup was produced until 1988. He later received the Toyota 3K and 4K J engines with 1,160 cm³ and 1,290 cm³ displacement.

Toyota 1000

Toyota 1000 Publica KP 30

The Toyota 1000 (the name was derived from the cubic capacity) was the entry-level model for the German market in the small car class shortly after the Toyota Germany agency was founded in 1971. Only after the launch of the Publica Starlet P40 in 1973 in Japan, the 1000 was also sold in Germany from 1974 with an unusually complete set of features, such as radial tires, front headrests, tinted windows, heated rear windows and even a radio. In most markets, the Toyota 1000 range consisted of a two-door sedan, three-door station wagon, and two-door pickup truck. In South Africa there was also a pickup with a 1,166 cm³ engine, type Toyota-3K. Due to the inadequate rust prevention at the time, poor noise insulation and the stigma of being Japanese, the car remained rather exotic. There are only a few copies left, and almost all of them are in collectors' hands.

In 1978 the Toyota 1000 - available as a sedan and station wagon - was also replaced in Europe by the Starlet P60, only the 1000 pickup continued to be built in parallel until August 1988.

The car was available as:

• 1.0 liter sedan model code KP30 engine code 2K 993 cm³ 33 kW / 45 PS
• 1.0 l combi model code KP36V engine code 2K 993 cm³ 33 kW / 45 PS
• 1.0 l pickup model code KP36 engine code 2K 993 cm³ 33 kW / 45 PS

Abroad also as

• 1.2 l pickup model code KP36 / 37 engine code 3K 1166 cm³ 40 kW / 55 PS

Web links

Commons : Toyota Publica  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Models and prices: Toyota 1000 is coming in the fall , Auto, Moto und Sport, issue 13/1974, p. 28, June 22, 1974
2. ^ Toyota Vehicle Identification Manual, Toyota Motor Corporation, Overseas Department, Catalog No. 97912-84 (1984)