Hot Wheels set out to find the next custom car it will add to its catalog of scale models across the Detroit River to Windsor, Canada. The winner of the final Legends Tour stop is a 1973 Toyota Celica that has been heavily modified and nicknamed the Tokyo Trans Am.
Kevin Huth saw the coupe on Craigslist in Washington, took it to Canada and finished it in time for the 2019 edition of the SEMA show. Visually, the tweaks look relatively minor: Huth added aftermarket headlights; a body kit with a splitter, wheel arch extensions and a spoiler; and period-correct-looking graphics. When you peek inside, you begin to suspect that not everything is in stock under the hood. In particular, there is a Wilwood hydraulic handbrake, a part that was not on the list of available features released by Toyota in 1973.
The main changes are in the engine compartment. The stock four-cylinder engine was pulled out and replaced with a 5.7-liter LS1 V8 sourced from the General Motors parts box and tuned to deliver over 500 horsepower. This is the same base engine that has powered a long list of Chevrolet and Pontiac models, including the fifth-generation Corvette and the Firebird Trans Am, although 500 horses were never made with it. The cavalry reaches the rear wheels via a manual transmission from a Nissan 370Z and an 8.8-inch rear from a Ford Explorer.