Toyota Corolla 1979 News

So says mother and car fanatic Lauretta Salis, 35, of Scarborough, who has fought back by starting her own car club. "I have been in other car clubs and they weren't very family or female oriented," she says."I've always been into cars and car clubs and they are all the same; they don't welcome females. It's a very male-dominated world. "A lot of car clubs run computer forums and when females ask questions they tend to get shot down."So she formed East Coast Commodores in October and already has more than 200 members from around South East Queensland "plus a couple from Perth, a couple from northern NSW and one in Victoria". "We have about 30-40 per cent females and they're aged from about 25-40," she says."Other clubs have younger members who don't have families and events don't cater for kids. "Our club does cruises, events that kids can go on, picnics and car shows."Lauretta has always been into cars. "When I was a child I had loads of toy cars and used to play under the back stairs and make tracks in the dirt," she says. "My daughter Brooke is nine and she takes after me. She's got more toy cars than dolls."Her son is also a reflection of her love for Holdens. He's named Storm "like the ute" and his initials are SS "like the SS Commodore" "He's our club mascot."It's not always been Holdens for Lauretta whose first car was a 1976 Corolla station wagon she bought for $700. "It was pretty dodgy," she says. "It needed an engine rebuild and new paintjob which my dad, Russell, and I did. "He taught me everything about cars. I can work on all the old-school engines but not fuel injection. "When I met my husband he had a VL Commodore and I changed the spark plugs for him."She sold the Corolla after three years and began her love of Holdens with a HR Holden and a 1979 Gemini panel van. Since then she has owned two more Geminis.But she also has a soft spot for VW Beetles having owned three and being a VW Club member. "I bought a 1969 Beetle in 2002 for $5500 and sold it in 2006 for $3500 because I needed a family car," she says. "But I told the guy who bought it to ring me if he ever wanted to sell it and he did and I bought it back a year later for the same price."She still has it but her main love remains Holdens and she avidly supports the HRT V8 Supercar team. However, she does admit to owning one Ford. "It was an XM which was a classic so that's ok."Her latest love and the inspiration to found her club is a VY Commodore she bought in 2007 for $18,000. She has since spent about $5000 on mags, body kit and a paintjob. "I haven't done the interior yet but it will come. I'll end up spending another $10,000 on it," she says. "They are my favourite Commodore because of the lines and they do up very well."Naturally, her dream car is another General Motors product; a 1957 Chevy costing anywhere from $30,000 to $130,000. "They are just beautiful American muscle cars," she says."I've tried to buy one from the States to bring over and restore but money is always the problem. Family situations pop up and you just have to let it go." 

And there are many reasons why.Some like the Corolla's looks, others are drawn to its reliability and good reputation.And then there are those who like adding their own personal touch so they can demonstrate their unique character and create an expression of themselves.And it's when you add these touches, that you can be a unique Corolla owner.Matthew Breen, 22, is among the devotees who have modified a Corolla.The Sydney resident owns an AE92, which means it's a 1992-model Toyota Seca SX series 2. He's a self-confessed Corolla fan.He's owned two other Corollas, a 1985 KE30 and a 1979 KE70. He and his three siblings all learned to drive in the family 1985 Corolla.Breen bought his current Corolla for about $6000 and has spent $2000 on upgrades. "I put some mag wheels on it and a CD player and I lowered it," he says.For Breen, the Corolla's appeal can be attributed to its looks as well as its solid reputation for reliability.His interest in the near-legendary vehicle, which has spanned more than eight years, was initially fuelled by his friends' shared interest in the make. It was raised further in 2003, when he joined a community of Corolla fans, who have dubbed themselves the Sydney Rolla Club.On a regular cruise, the club attracts a convoy of about 30 Corollas, both male and female owners and all types of models."They're always reliable and the price of them and everyone's got one," Breen says of the reason they're so popular.Breen uses the car as his regular daily transport and says he hasn't had any problems in the two years he's had it.He says he wants to hold on to his current model for a little while longer, and doesn't have any plans to upgrade to a newer car, be it a Corolla or otherwise.The Toyota Corolla has been available in Australia for 40 years and in that time, more than 974,000 models have been sold. Toyota Australia predicts that the brand will reach the milestone of a million sales in Australia by the end of this year.So its popularity doesn't seem to be diminishing any time soon.The small, four-cylinder car was the second most popular model in Australia last year, beaten by the Holden Commodore. This year alone, 7076 Corollas have been sold.The very first Corolla export from Japan came to Australia in 1966.Jaqueline Brooks, 24, owns a 1988 CS Corolla. She purchased the car six years ago when she was still driving on her P-plates. It cost just $3500 and maintained a family connection with the model."It was a family tradition that we all had Corollas," she says. "My cousins all had Corollas and my grandfather liked them."Brooks was also attracted to the reliable nature of the popular car."That's the reason I bought it. It's not the most attractive car going around. It has a brown interior," she laughs."It has no airconditioning or power steering, but it goes well."Brooks has clocked up many kilometres in her car over the six years and says she has only really had one major problem with it."It needed an engine replacement, but it doesn't cost much to fix," she says."I'm going to drive it until it dies."And when that time comes, she says she will consider upgrading to another Corolla.