1977 Celica GT Liftback Bumpers - Toyota Nation Forum : Toyota Car and Truck Forums

whiteimp325 · 07-06-2007, 08:09 PM

I am looking for front & rear bumpers (and support brackets) for a 1977 Toyota Celica GT Liftback.
I want the NON-USA bumpers. Those are the smaller, stylized and close to the body, WITHOUT THE SHOCK ABSORVERS found on the vehicles imported to the USA.

stepho · 07-08-2007, 11:07 PM

These are as rare as honest politicians.
A slightly easier source is to use the metal front bumpers from the earlier '70-'75 models.
You will also have to use the earlier under bumper lights and make up some brackets to hold the lights.
Sadly, the coupe rear bumpers do not fit the liftback.

- Stepho

Killer Squirrel · 07-10-2007, 12:54 PM

You can still find people selling them; I just got a set from Aus a couple weeks ago. Check out the Classic-Celica forum in the For-Sale section, the guy still has a few left last I looked.

As an alternative, you can get fiberglass smileys from a couple places, though I have heard they are not nearly as good as the original metal ones.

whiteimp325 · 07-10-2007, 01:10 PM

I am having a little difficulty finding the link in your post: "Classic-Celica forum in the For-Sale section". Would you please copy and paste the address?
How much did you pay for yours?

Killer Squirrel · 07-10-2007, 02:40 PM

Yikes, sorry about that. Here is a direct link to the post: http://www.classic-celica.com/nuke/m...13092&start=30

And here is a link where you can find the fiberglass smileys... http://www.toygarage.com/index2.html
I have heard mixed to poor reviews about them though, so keep that in mind.

whiteimp325 · 07-10-2007, 03:02 PM

Thanks for the help.
I own a 77 Silver Celica Liftback like yours.
I noted you received yours, do they fit and are you satisfied.
I was curious about how to attach them to the support brackets on our RA29?
I have previously measured older models (pre 1977) front bumpers and found them to be narrower than mine.

Killer Squirrel · 07-10-2007, 03:35 PM

I haven't fit mine up yet, although it's something I may play with this weekend just to see how they'd look. I had a perfect 'Smiley Bumper Install' bookmark, but it looks like it is no longer functional, so... Make sure you specify that they are for a liftback; like you said the earlier ones are different. The rear bumper just bolts into place but the front requires mounting brackets. I made sure they came with the one I got. You'll also want to find some grille trim (the 3 pieces that are right above the front bumper and frame the inside of the grille) from an RA28 since the trim on ours interferes with the smileys. As an alternative, you can modify your 2 side trim pieces by cutting off the part that curves around the outside. Below is an image that shows what I am talking about:

The 2 pieces circled in red are part of the trim we get in the US; the 3 pieces right above it are smiley-friendly.

As an added bonus, I hear that the US safety bumpers are uber heavy, so going with smileys helps lighten the chassis more.

Also noticed you are in TX, what part? I'm in Baytown (near Houston).

whiteimp325 · 07-10-2007, 03:45 PM

Again, thanks for the help.
If you have not taken your stock bumpers off yet, you will see they weigh significantly more than the Japanese version you are fixing to replace them with.