The Toyota Corolla AE86 is a legend. It’s prized for being a happy-go-lucky car that’s eager and willing to drift, and it trades on its fame as well thanks to its starring role in Initial D. A clean, stock example is worth big money, and even bare shells command serious coin. But if you find one that’s a little oddball, a little messed with… you could come out with something unique at a pretty tasty price.
This convertible AE86 is just such a car. No, it’s not a rare one-off from Toyota itself or some crazy movie car, and no, it’s nowhere near stock. That’s a good thing. It means that it’s not worth a billion dollars, and it’s not so precious you can’t take it outside. It’s currently up for sale at Kleinanzeigen, the largest classified sales site in Germany.
The car is a Toyota Corolla AE86 Levin GT. That means you get regular non-popup headlights and the twin-cam 16-valve 4AGE engine. It’s good for 124 horsepower and in this case, comes without a catalytic converter, according to the seller. We’re told this was a one-off build by a company called Voll Würzburg in 1985, and was first registered in November 1986. The current owner states they purchased it from its original owner on May 4th, 1996. It presently has 192,000 km (around 119,000 miles) on the clock.
The car looks sharp in convertible form, with the basic Corolla lines adapting well to the top-down body style. It’s finished in metallic blue with a color-matched bumper and grille. It also wears Halslbeck side skirts and a rear spoiler. The Atiwe Käseloch 15-inch wheels also have color-matched centers inside the polished rims. It’s a very German, very 1980s look, but swapping out the rims and a few plastics wouldn’t be too difficult if you wanted a more traditional JDM look.
The company behind the conversion, more properly known as Karosseriefabrik Voll KG, was established in 1926. Effectively a coachbuilder, it produced all kinds of customized vehicles, with municipal emergency vehicles making up much of the company’s work. The company’s most popular convertible build was the Opel Ascona C, also known as the Vauxhall Cavalier Convertible and built in a relationship with British company Hammond. Voll would later falter in the early 1990s as a shift to producing buses and refrigerated vehicles failed to prove profitable.
From what we can see in the sale photos, the car looks in good condition. In particular, the interior looks near-factory fresh. The ad suggests the car has been well taken care of. The owner states it was a “summer” vehicle only driven as a second car, and is currently in winter storage until May.
The vehicle is listed with an asking price of €17,500, or roughly $18,750 USD. That’s not bad for a highly unique drop-top AE86, and it’s hard to imagine building one of your own for similar money. Sure, it’s not going to handle quite like a standard one, but that doesn’t mean it can’t be a highly engaging and thrilling car to drive. To be honest, I suspect that with the wind in your hair, it feels a lot less like sitting in an economy hatchback than most AE86s.
In any case, this thing looks fun as hell. Go buy it and enjoy cruising the German boulevards, assuming they have those. Oh, and dominate everyone else at your local Cars and Coffee. You’re gonna crush it!
Image credits: Kleinanzeigen
And here I was thinking this was a 1st gen Cavalier.
This is cool. Looks like a mini Fox Body convertible
Gesundheit
You can register and drive in Germany with a cat delete? Also, other than the latches, I’m not seeing a whole lot of evidence of seat belts going on. My sketchy sense is tingling.
If you go the link where the car is selling, you can see the belts. In the front, it is attached to the bottom where the B pillar would be if it was a hard top (just obviously a little lower).
do these have to pass TUV inspections?
its pretty would def love to drive/own
No popup headlights, no dice. It just looks like an 80’s Camry with the roof cut off.
I irrationally want this.
Y’know, some conversions look like hack jobs. This one is definitely not a hack job. I really like the targa-like setup for the top. I’d drive it!