Avante G 2.5 (1JZ-GE)

STORY

Toyota released the Chaser on 24 June 1977 as a sportier companion to the third-generation Mark II, sold through the Toyota Auto channel that became Netz in 1998, with 1.8 and 2.0 fours plus the M-U six and its fuel-injected M-EU version. The X60 came on 1 October 1980 and gained the turbocharged M-TEU a year later; the X70 followed on 22 August 1984 and the twin-turbo 1G-GTEU arrived in October 1985. The X80 arrived on 24 August 1988, and from August 1990 it carried the 2.5-litre 1JZ-GTE at the Japanese ceiling of 280 PS, the engine the car is now remembered for. The X90 of October 1992 gained electronically controlled full-time four-wheel drive in October 1993, sold as the Avante Four on the naturally aspirated 1JZ-GE. The X100 of September 1996 ran a single VVT-i turbo in the Tourer V from the start, 280 PS at 6,200 rpm and 377 Nm at 2,400. Production ended in June 2001.