1982 Toyota Celica GT Long Beach Grand Prix Celebrity Car for $9,700

June 5, 2021 726 views

Spotted for sale is a 1982 Toyota Celica GT Long Beach Grand Prix Celebrity Car for $9,700

Year : 1982
Make : Toyota
Model : Celica
Trim : GT
Mileage : 2,300 miles
Transmission : Manual
Series : GT Coupe
Drivetrain : RWD
Condition : Good
VIN : JT2RA64L100000890
Stock ID : 000890
Engine : 22R Inline-4 (Straight-4)

This is a rare Toyota Pro/Celibrity Race survivor car from 1982. The legendary 22R motor has only 2300 miles on it. The car has never been registered. It was raced at Long Beach on April 3, 1982.

1982 Toyota Celica GT

This is a rare Long Beach Grand Prix Pro/Celebrity race car with only 2300 miles on the original 22R motor. The car has was shipped in from Japan and went directly to Parnelli Jones Racing in Torrance California for race setup. Parnelli Jones installed a roll cage, racing seat, and fire suppression system. The car was then raced by LA Times Publisher Otis Chandler in the Pro/Celebrity Grand Prix. Unlike many of the celebrity cars, this one came through the race unscathed. Fun fact: according to friends connected to the racing scene that year, it is likely that other drivers drove this car. Apparently, they did not believe that every car was set up the same so they swapped seats. Dan Gurney and Bruce Jenner won the race that year. Did Bruce or Dan drive Otis? I’m not sure but it’s a cool story. From Long Beach, the car went to Fast Lane Racing School at Willow Springs International Raceway. After spending a few years at Willow Springs Raceway, the car was purchased by a family in Anaza California. They intended to set it up for racing 24 Hours of Lemons. As it often happens, family and work took priority and the Lemons racing never happened. We found “Otis” in 2019 and planned to get it ready to race. We added a new roll cage, updated seat, front brakes, rear shocks, safety harness, quick release steering wheel, wheels, tires, fuel pump, and a new fuel cell. We also ran the car multiple times at our local Autocross event and the car performed flawlessly. We recently brought Otis back to Willow Springs for a track day on the big track. We ran the car flat out all day and the car was awesome. So why are we selling the car? Much like the previous owner, life is getting in our way. One of our team members is moving to be close to a sick mother, another is dealing with major work issues, and yet another is unable to commit enough time to racing. This car would be great at Lemons.

VIN# JT2RA64L100000890

ra64L-blmqsa

2366cc

144.4 cu. In.