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From the archives: 1997 Toyota Corolla RSi

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Monday, May 28th, 2012 10:24 am GMT +2

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The popular Toyota 4A-GE engine earned its stripes in rally and circuit racing during the mid-1980s when it was doing duty in the Conquest RSi. Much to the disappointment of aficionados, Toyota discontinued this unit in the early 1990s. However, a few years later the Japanese marque announced that it was creating a new version of the 4A-GE and South Africa was the only country to get it in the Corolla saloon. The 20-valve 1,6-litre engine pushed out 115 kW and 150 N.m of torque. When CAR tested the Corolla RSi in the July 1997 issue, the team described it as “the ideal car for the enthusiast with a family”. It clocked an impressive (for that time) zero-to-100 km/h sprint time of 7,71 seconds and managed to achieve a top speed of 207 km/h.

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PLEASE NOTE: The opinion expressed in this article is the author's own and publication does not mean it is endorsed by the CAR magazine editorial staff or RamsayMedia, publishers of CAR magazine.
  • Miguel

    … a sedan rocket!!

  • Steve

    Fantastic! My RSi, also in red and one of the first on the road as a 1997 model, has just ticked over 340 000km. We’ve owned the car since new and have no intention of selling it. The best bit? It hasn’t given us one problem since the day we bought it.

  • EmJay

    In my six years with this car the relationship has only gotten stronger.
    I love it when it dazes some of the more pricier and bigger-engined cars from take-off, especially when the boy-racer in the modern machine thought “arghh that old Toyota will be relegated to the rear-view mirror”.

  • t-rex

    Will never sell my RXi 2001…..

  • keith

    a superboss, with so much work and and LSD does 0-100 in 7.64s, while the RSi 20v does it in 7.71 with no LSD. The golf 5 gti which is a 2.0 turbo unit with 155kw does 0-100 in 7.67. look how fast the RSi actually is!

  • Classic Cult Car says

    A 1997 1.6 20valve hi tech variable valve timing engine with a 4 throttle body intake which act similar to side draughts that is ten years younger than an old tech engined Super Boss with minor factory upgrades which increased its power from 115kw to 125kw (10kw more). How can you say that? Even thou the Super boss will outrun a Corolla Rsi basically everywhere you have to compare apples with apples. Like a 1.6 Rsi with a 1.6 Vtec 1.6, and see where the Rsi ends up. The Golf GTi is far more refined car than both the Super Boss and the RSi. It’s got far more equipment, safety and quality features than any other Toyota, Opel, Ford, Honda in its class. And with that it’s a heavier car. Again compare apples to apples with apples, a GTi is in a different league. Check your facts first before you comment. I know we all have our favourites but we must not be blinded by certain facts.

    • keith griffen

      Please stop being bias. The 4age 20v silvertop version was rated at 115kw, whereas the Blacktop version is rated at 121kw. South africa got the blacktop version at 115kw cos of poor quality fuel. Also, the silvertop engine was used in 1991, which is around the same time as the supereboss. The honda B16A was used in 1988, which once again shows its superiority against the WORKED superboss.

      Of course the golf is more refined, but so far as performance goes, the 20v still matches some stock turbo manual cars.

      How can you say the 20v engine is so high tech, when look how much work is done the the c20xe? The superboss has greater displacement and serious internal engine modifications to match. I reckon the rsi 20v would beat a superboss if it had LSD.

      Also take for instance the sr20de. Apply less mods to it than the superboss, more specifically the Maus Nissan Sentra, (with No LSD and a less power to weight ratio), and the sr20de still comes out better. maus nissan sentra 0-100 : 7.49, and 1km sprint of 27.19 seconds. Sr20de was around in the 80′s!

pqt: 0.06s - ct: 0.178s - 229pq - 2rq