The Toyota Celica Twin-Cam Turbo is a racing car produced to compete in rally racing in Group B, presented by Toyota in 1983 and used until the abolition of Group B at the end of 1986. [1]
The Celica TCT proved to be one of the best-used cars in African rallies, winning both the Safari Rally and the Ivory Coast Rally on three occasions, earning the nickname King of Africa. [2]
The main rules for racing in Group B were to produce at least 200 road cars and Toyota working with its European division put precisely the number that provided for the regulation by building even twenty rally cars with a new engine. [3]
While some rival teams such as the Audi Quattro adopted all-wheel drive, the Celica, such as the Lancia 037 Rally, had rear-wheel drive. [4]
The car debuted in the 1983 World Rally Championship at the 1000 Lakes Rally with driver Juha Kankkunen finishing sixth overall. In the same year, he achieved the first of three victories in the Ivory Coast Rally, led by Björn Waldegård. [5]
In 1984, the Swedish driver Waldegård also finished first overall at the Safari Rally, giving the first of three consecutive victories to the Toyota team. [6]
With the end of Group B, the Twin Cam Turbo engine became the engine (TA64) of the future Toyota Celica GT-Four, proving perfect for all-wheel drive used since 1987. [7]
The Toyota Celica is an automobile produced by Toyota from 1970 until 2006. The Celica name derives from the Latin word coelica meaning heavenly or celestial. In Japan, the Celica was exclusive to Toyota Corolla Store dealer chain. Produced across seven generations, the Celica was powered by various four-cylinder engines, and body styles included convertibles, liftbacks, and notchback coupé.
Juha Matti Pellervo Kankkunen is a Finnish former rally driver. His factory team career in the World Rally Championship lasted from 1983 to 2002. He won 23 world rallies and four drivers' world championship titles, which were both once records in the series. Both Sébastien Loeb and Sébastien Ogier have since collected more world titles, but no driver was able to repeat Kankkunen's feat of becoming a world champion with three different manufacturers until Ogier matched this achievement in 2020.
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Lars-Erik Torph was a Swedish rally driver. He debuted in the World Rally Championship in 1980 and took his first points at his home event, the Swedish Rally, in 1984. Driving a Toyota Celica TCT, a Toyota Supra 3.0i and an Audi Coupé Quattro, he went on to finish on the podium four times. After just turning 28, Torph and his co-driver Bertil-Rune Rehnfeldt died while spectating the 1989 Monte Carlo Rally, after Lancia driver Alex Fiorio lost control of his Delta Integrale and crashed into them.
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