SR5 - which was first, pickup or Corolla ?

Hello all.

In another forum, someone asked the meaning of "SR5". Many answers came up, including 'sport rally 5-speed' which I had heard of years ago. I have owned many Toyotas including a 1978 and a 1988 pickup trucks.
But, I got my Toyota start by buying a 1973 Corolla coupe from a friend. I do not think it was a SR5 but it did have a 5 speed manual. I got hit in the back by a bigger car while I was stopped, was pushed into the stopped car in front of me, which 'accordioned' the car and was totalled by the insurance company. I bought a 1975 Corolla SR5 off a Toyota used car lot, and it had a 4 speed manual. So that ruins the theory of SR5 indicating a 5 speed.
The 1973 had a 'thinner' and rounder bumper compared to the 1975 having a 'taller' more squarish bumper. And the body had changed in 1975.

While owning the 1975, I found a 1974 Corrolla S5. NO, that is not a misprint. The badging on the car is clearly S5, NOT SR5. The 1974 coupe is like the 1973 coupe, but different than the 1975, but the bumpers match the 1975, not the 1973. The 1974 has a % speed manual. I bought it around 1979 ( I think ) because of it's unique properties. To repeat, it had the body of the 1973, but the bumpers of the 1975. And, the fact that it was badged a S5, when by that time, Toyota had clearly latched on to using SR5 on multiple models.

When I have researched 1974 Corolla S 5s, they always come up as SR5s and usually have bumpers that match my 1973 bumpers. Just tonight those, I repeated the search and I noticed a pic of a 1974 with my (75) bumpers, I clicked on it, and they made mention of the 'unique' bumpers. I would just like more info on the S 5 badging. Were both S5 and SR5 offered in 1974 due to different options ? Was that the only year there was a S5 ? Was S5 a Canadian offering ? Or what ?

Since I lived through the era, and had Toyotas, and became sort of a Toyota fan / car buff, I think I saw SR5 Corollas with automatics and thought even then, that 'sport rally 5 speed' could not be the accurate definition for SR5. Also, in that other forum, people credit the SR5 being first used on the pickup. But, straining my memory, I think my 1975 Corolla SR5 was on the road before any pickup carried that badge. I just would not bet money on it.

I am not a computer guru but, as I say, would like more info. And since I do not know if I can find my way back here, if anyone has info, you could make it go to grvtmann over at that mail place by google.

I saw that 1974 Corolla SR5s sold for over 15K. What would an apparently much more rare 1974 S5 go for ?

jim

 

Welcome to the TW

 

https://www.ebay.com/itm/324587399478

 

Welcome to TW!

 

Good info, thx.

 

Welcome. The evolution of trim badges and their nomenclature is always a convoluted research project for the most enthusiastic of enthusiasts.

Sometimes a letter or number gets thrown on and offered as a new option, as a way to drive sales on a mid-generation model. It's not an XL, it's an XLT! Look, this one comes with little trees embroidered across the seats, so your neighbors know that you are better than them.

The exact meaning on why they named the things they named gets quickly lost when the trim gets adopted across multiple models, or when a newer, better trim gets rolled out.