Toyota Corolla (E80)

The Corolla E80 was the fifth generation of cars sold by Toyota under the Corolla nameplate. It was also sold under the Sprinter nameplate.

The fifth generation is generally regarded as the most popular Corolla when measured against its contemporaries, and some 3.3 million units were produced. This model, from 1983, moved the Corolla into front-wheel drive, except for the AE85 and AE86 Corolla Levin / Sprinter Trueno models which continued on the older rear-wheel drive platform, along with the three-door "liftback" E72, three-door van E70 and five-door wagon E70 of the previous generation, that were still being produced.

The front-wheel-drive wheelbase was now 95.6 in 2,430 mm.

It was the first Corolla to top the New Zealand top-ten lists, ending Ford's dominance of that market. A shorter hatchback range, called the Corolla FX in Japan and the Corolla Compact in Germany, arrived in October 1984 on the front-wheel-drive platform. The three- and five-door hatchbacks resembled the Corolla sedan with a truncated rear deck and trunk. Although there was a five-door liftback model of the basic Corolla, the shorter FX hatchback was sold alongside it. The Corolla FX replaced the Toyota Starlet in North America.

A DOHC 16-valve engine, designated 4A-GE, was added in 1983 on the rear-drive cars. It was a 1.6 L I4 and produced an impressive 124 PS, turning the Levin/Trueno, Corolla GT coupé and Corolla GT-S into a what was arguably a sports car. The three-door FWD hatchback was also available with this engine; it was known as the Corolla FX-16 in North America. This engine was also combined with the front-drive transaxle to power the mid-engined Toyota MR-2.

The Sprinter sports cars, in two-door coupé and three-door liftback forms, were notable for being the line's first use of pop-up headlamps, which the equivalent Corolla Levin sports models did not have.

The 1.3 litre 2A engine was replaced by the more modern 12-valve 2E engine along with a May 1985 facelift. The range began with the 1300 Custom DX and ended with the 1600 GT Limited, introduced in June 1986. The FX hatchback lineup was considered a semi-separate line and received a different nose and different equipment levels than its sedan and liftback counterparts. The 1.3 was not available in the FX, targeted at sportier buyers, until the 2E engine became available.

The American specification was available with either SOHC or DOHC engines. From 1985 to 1988, NUMMI in Fremont, California built a rebadged version of the Sprinter sedan sold by Chevrolet as the Chevrolet Nova. During calendar 1985, Corolla sedans and Sprinter-type 5-door hatchbacks were added, with the Toyota-branded US built cars gradually superseding imports from Japan and Nova hatchbacks being offered from the 1986 model year. All rear-wheel drive coupé models continued to be imported from Japan, as was the Corolla FX hatchback launched for 1987 and replacing the 3-door AE86. Nova's successor, the Geo Prizm was another rebadged Corolla selling in the United States from 1989 to 2002.

While all the rear-wheel drive 80-series Corollas were AE86 chassis in North America, the VINs differentiated between the three equipment levels: the DX got AE85, the SR-5 got AE86, and the GT-S received an AE88 VIN.

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