At $9,450, Would You Be Proud To Own This 1987 Toyota Cressida?

The seller of today's Nice Price or No Dice Toyota claims it offers "Pride of Ownership." Whatever that actually means, it's got to be better than shame of ownership or buyer's remorse. Let's decide if this classic Cressida is priced with dignity.

Commitment is a plus when describing an actor performing a challenging role or a dear loved one willing to put up with your baloney. Oh, and that's not an indictment of you; I have a lot of baloney myself. Commitment can be seen as a pejorative when the subject is mobile phone contracts or when the judge tells you you need to go away for a while after you've been caught running naked in the streets. Yeah, don't ask.

Mercedes made a major commitment to the R107 line of roadsters, designing the cars in the late 1960s and keeping them in production with only minor updates and ever-larger engines for nearly two decades. The 1987 Mercedes-Benz 560 SL we looked at yesterday arrived near the end of that run but still retained all the charm and, could we say, commitment to the theme of the first editions. At $9,900, a number of you were eager to commit to the car's value, a fact reflected in the 53% "Nice Price" win the Benz enjoyed.

Now, I didn't plan on us having a run of 1980s cars this week, but it seems that Kismet, or maybe it was Jenga, whatever, has brought us to this result today. The fact is, a lot of great cars came out of the 1980s; a renaissance period following the automotive industry's dark ages of the 1970s.

Today's 1987 Toyota Cressida is one of those great '80s cars that, sadly, we don't see around all that much anymore. With just 112,000 miles on the clock and an overall clean appearance, this one stands out as a survivor and carries with it all the '80s goodness of a Bartles & Jaymes-fueled VH-1 flashback weekend.

No company, not even Toyota, builds a car like this anymore, what with its chrome-framed greenhouse, glorious red velour-draped interior, or simple, clean angular styling. The closest thing in Toyota's current lineup in terms of size and market position is the Crown, but it's a pretty weird car, and few people actually buy them.

Speaking of Crown, that's the model that the Cressida originally supplanted. Toyota loves to name its cars after royal headgear, having at times offered the Corolla, Corona, and yes, for those with little imagination or flair, the Crown. Originally aligning with this strategy, the Cressida's ancestors were marketed in the U.S. under the Corona Mark II label. That nameplate was discontinued in the late 1970s in favor of Cressida, a name yanked from the Shakespeare play, Troilus and Cressida, set during the Trojan War. That name would carry the model through the 1990s. By that time, a luxury Toyota seemed superfluous in light of the recently introduced Lexus line of cars.

Craigslist

This isn't the last iteration of the Cressida, but it is, perhaps, one of the most iconic. It features boxy, elegant styling and a Jaguar-esque DOHC straight six under the hood. Transmission choices were limited to a four-speed automatic (a manual was briefly offered), and the suspension is independent all around.

That six-cylinder is Toyota's vaunted 5M-GE, a 2.8-liter unit making 156 horsepower and 165 pound-feet of torque. For bragging rights, this engine is related to the 7M-GE used in U.S. and other-market Supras. According to the ad, everything on this Cressida works as it should. The engine stays cool with a replacement radiator and water pump. A recent oil change and the installation of new tires on the factory alloy wheels are additional pluses. The A/C, which is old-school R-12, is reported to be working fine. This is an '80s Toyota, so anything less would be totally outside the expected narrative.

Aesthetically, there's nothing to complain about on this car. Yes, there does appear to be some discoloration on the back bumper, but that's reasonably minor. The interior features the aforementioned velour upholstery on the seats. If any complaint is to be leveled at the interior, it's about the mechanical mouse shoulder belts that the car is saddled with. That's par for the course in this era of cars, as U.S. passive restraint laws had gone into effect, but manufacturers were still behind the curve in fitting front seat airbags on many of their cars. Oddly, Toyota fitted the Cressida with the annoying mouse belts years before they became mandated by the law. That's one throwback we needn't revisit. This Cressida comes with a clean title, a purported accident-free history, and the seller's promise that it will offer its next steward pride of ownership.

There are only two things standing in the way of that pride: the car's overall desirability and its $9,450 asking price. Come to think of it, those are naturally related (one drives the other), and so it may be just one thing. See? I'm making your job much easier today.

That job—should you choose to accept it—is to determine if this Cressida is actually desirable enough to command that $9,450 asking. What is your take on this clean, classic, and classy Cressida at that kind of cash? Does that ding the ol' deal-o-meter? Or is this just a frumpy old Toyota that needn't have been saved and hence is way overpriced?

You decide!

Nice Price or No Dice:

Los Angeles, California, Craigslist, or go here if the ad disappears.

H/T to Steve Rivers for sending me down the Cressida rabbit hole!

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