Toyota Sera

Production period:	1990 to 1997
Class :	sports car
Body versions :	Coupé
Engines:	Gasoline :1.5 liters (79 kW)
Length:	3860 mm
Width:	1650 mm
Height:	1265 mm
Wheelbase :	2300 mm
Curb weight :	930 kg

The Toyota Sera (model code EXY10) was a 2-door, 4-seater coupe that Toyota produced from February 1990 to December 1995. The car was only made for the Japanese market, but arrived (in small quantities) as a gray import also to other countries with left-hand traffic such as Australia , New Zealand , Pakistan , Bangladesh , India , Great Britain and Ireland . The name of the serial model Sera comes from the Frenchand means "will be". This should indicate both the futuristic design and the close relationship to the concept vehicle AXV-II on which the Sera is based. The most striking detail was his butterfly doors that opened to the front and his large glass dome.

History 

In April 1983, Toyota launched the Young Project under the direction of Chief Engineer Mikio Kaneko with the aim to design a car for a young buyer and thus to open up a new market segment away from the conservative mass market  . This resulted in the concept car Toyota Palette (Y-1), which, however, did not receive the approval of the management. After the project was subordinated to Toyota Headquarters in Aichi Prefecture in January 1985 , work on a new concept began. Three months later, the team was reinforced by designer Hiroyuki Yao, who was responsible for the exterior design of the new vehicle later in the development.

In order to give the interior an open atmosphere and to interpret the project slogan " Live Performance" , possibilities were discussed to design the passenger compartment with a low waistline and the largest possible glass surfaces. However, the proposal to use a movable roof as in 1962 presented concept vehicle Toyota Publica Sports was rejected because of security concerns. Finally, at a meeting appointment of Hideichi Misono, who later became head of the Toyota Design Center, a cardboard model with diagonal battered butterfly doors presented, Those present were fascinated by the design and decided to implement the idea despite the technical challenges still to be solved.

Later, the management presented three different sound models to choose from and finally developed the prototype AXV-II (Y-2), which was presented to the public at the 27th Tokyo Motor Show in late October 1987. Due to the predominantly positive reactions, the management decided to transfer the concept to production.

After slight external adjustments, a pre-production model of the Toyota Sera was unveiled in October 1989 at the 28th Tokyo Motor Show. Series production began on 9 February 1990 at the Toyota subsidiary Central Motor Sales Launch was on 8 March 1990.

Toyota initially expected sales of around 1,000 cars in the first month, but was surprised by demand, with 3,600 orders received in the first two weeks. In total, 9,000 cars were sold in the first 12 months.

The basic version of the Toyota Sera cost about 1 600 000 yen (today about 15 611 EUR). Popular optional options included the automatic gearbox for 75,000 yen (now about 732 EUR) and the super live sound system (SLSS) for 206,000 yen (about 2,010 EUR today).

Other models of the Sera were originally discussed - including a model with a more powerful engine and a semi-open two-seater with fabric top - but ultimately not realized. Plans to offer the sera outside of Japan also existed, but were abandoned because sales estimates proved difficult.

Since the car was brought out only in a body shape and with an engine type, there is technically only a model EXY10. There was, however, a whole set of special equipment packages offered ex works. In addition, Toyota manufactured the car in three generations (called phases), which are in certain details, for. As the interior, distinguished, although the differences were more cosmetic. A total of 15,951 vehicles were produced of which 15,852 were approved in Japan.

All Sera were powered by the 5E-FHE four-cylinder in - line engine of the Toyota-E series. The engine developed 82 kW (110 DIN horsepower ) from 1 496 cc displacement and was designed for unleaded gasoline with a minimum octane number of 91 RON . The injection engine, which was also used in the Toyota Paseo , was transversely mounted front and drove the front wheels. All versions of the Sera had a power steering and either a manual five-speed gearbox or a four-speed automatic system for which about 90% of buyers decided. The brakes were equipped with ventilated discs at the front and drums at the rear. Only the versions with ABS had ventilated discs all around.

Performance:(JIS standards)

• Max power 80,9 kW (110 hp) at 6400 rpm
• Max torque 132,4 Nm (13,5 kgm) at 5200 rpm
• Specific power 54,1 kW/litre (73,5 hp/litre)
• max speed 200 km/h.

Drive components, underbody, suspension, steering and brakes were the same as the Paseo and Starlet. Thus, these parts are still relatively easy to get as spare parts today.

Bodywork 

The Sera was a 2 + 2 coupe with individual seats in front and a rear seat, which had a fixed center armrest. Both front seats had to be moved forwards and the backrest had to be moved back to allow entry. Thanks to the deep back seats, adults in the back have enough headroom. In all phases three-point belts were installed at the front, while at the rear two- or three-point belts were available depending on the phase. The individual phases differed essentially in the interior design.

The Sera EXY10 was one of the first cars to have projection headlights (although the AXV-II concept car in 1988 still had normal headlights). The Alfa Romeo Tipo 33 was probably the first car scissor doors , the windows as the Sera reached to the roof.

In normal seating configuration (rear parcel shelf mounted and backrests set up) the trunk has a remarkably small opening (52cm x 82cm) and the sill is relatively tall. The trunk itself is quite large. The backrests of the rear seats are but repositionable and both the parcel shelf and the luggage net behind the rear seats can be completely removed, whereby the entire rear part of the car to the trunk. In fact, the Sera has plenty of luggage space for its size. The spare tire and the tool are in an extra compartment under the boot floor.

The sera had a monocoque body made of steel, which had a low and rounded shape. It was a 3-door combo coupe . The most striking detail was the butterfly doors , which were posted at the top and bottom of the A-pillars and similar to those of the McLaren F1 or the Saleen S7opened. The weight of the doors was mainly supported by powerful gas springs and additionally supported by smaller gas springs in the doors, which compensated for temperature differences. Over time, the springs lose their gas filling, which can cause the doors to stop open. This error can be eliminated by refilling or replacing the dampers. Unlike normal stop doors, the butterfly doors of the Sera could be opened even in relatively tight spaces; only 43 cm of space to the side were needed for a full opening.

The tailgate of the Sera was exceptional, as it was built entirely of glass without metal frame. This gave the sera, together with the windshield and the roof windows of the butterfly doors, the appearance of a glass dome. This arrangement gave the driver of a Sera good all-round visibility, even though the wide B-pillars limited this somewhat, especially on the driver's side. This large proportion of windows caused in intensive sunlight also for a strong heating of the interior, which is why the vehicles were equipped as standard with an automatic climate control and two usable roof panels.

Since this roof structure, such. B. granted even with a convertible, little support, the sera also did not reach the torsional rigidity of a vehicle with a closed roof. This can lead to deteriorated driving characteristics, which may also be due to the age of the vehicle and the failure of some suspension components.

Export

Since the sera was officially built for the Japanese market, all cars were equipped with right-hand drive and metric instruments. This allowed export mainly to countries that had the same requirements. For the United Kingdom, where a milage tacho is required, only minor changes were necessary. For the export in the USA or in the most European countries larger conversion measures are necessary. In Australia, the sera generally require three-point seat belts and side impact protection for type approval.

The Toyota Sera was produced in three different generations. It was available with manual or automatic transmission, standard or ABS brakes, normal stereo system or Super-Live Sound System (SSLS). During the entire production period there were also extensive special equipment packages to choose from.

Phase I (March 1990 - May 1991)

The original version shipped most of the Sera models (approximately 12,000 out of a total of 15,852):

• Beige or gray-blue interior (depending on exterior color)
• Tank cap with bayonet closure
• durable, ribbed upholstery fabric

Phase II (May 1991 - June 1992)

Second version (about 2,300 copies):

• Pastel colored interior with beige or grayish upholstery, depending on interior color
• screwed gas cap
• other upholstery quality

Phase III (June 1992 - December 1995) 

The last version of the Sera showed much more changes than the original version than the Phase II (about 1,550 copies):

• gray interior with second color, which was adapted to the exterior color
• some improvements on the engine
• Side impact protection in the doors
• on request: Airbags (only in combination with ABS)
• Three-point seat belts in the back (optional until November 1993)
• stronger gas shock absorbers for the doors to compensate for the extra weight of the side impact protection
• solid plastic rear spoiler with third (LED) brake light. This was the only externally visible change on the sera.

Phase III "Amlux" Special Model 

The Sera Phase III was also available as a special model Amlux (about 20 copies), a name that was borrowed from the prestigious Toyota building in Tokyo . The Amlux building housed the world's largest showroom for automobiles by the end of 2013 and is located in Ikebukuro . It is one of the oval skyscrapers that glow purple at night, but has a dull finish and bright white stripes.

The Sera Amlux was based on the Sera Phase III with automatic transmission and SLSS. He had the following equipment details to offer:

• Two-tone paint in green
• Axcaps in special colors
• Blue tinted slices
• Six different colors to choose from for the seat covers
• Cover for the rear seats
• AMLUX logo on the floor mats
• AMLUX logo on the doors
• Personal name badge on every car
• Customer-designed seat cushions and a special scarf

Special equipment ex works 

In all phases there was the sera with various optional extras ex works. The most important technical equipment was the ABS. Further details included:

• different logos and stripes as stickers
• Karosseriekits
• Car phone / car fax
• parking sensors
• tinted slices with pattern
• roofing
• Ski racks (attached to the doors)
• upper spoiler made of smoked glass
• special patterns for seat covers and floor mats
• different car radios

Super Live Sound System (SLSS) 

An important special feature inside was a special stereo system called Super-Live Sound System or SLSS. The SLSS had a total of 10 speakers, 3 x 10 cm tweeters in the front console (left - center - right), 2 x 10 cm midrange speakers in the doors (left - right), 2 high and 2 midrange speakers in a tubular attachment on the hat rack and a subwoofer in the trunk. The SLSS had a 3-way digital sound processor (DSP) with the positions "off", "casual" or "funky", which could be set with a button on the radio, which was labeled with "WARP". This caused slight differences in sound due to preset ratios of highs and lows and switched the speakers either for listening pleasure in the car or sound emission through the rear window.

Air Filter and Fragrance Systems 

Owners of a Toyota Sera could also choose one or two different electronic interior air filters. There was either a single air filter-interior lighting combination mounted on the headliner, or a system mounted as an "Air Fantasy" in the front console below the stereo. The roof unit sucked in air through a fan from the front and blew it out through a rear filter. The Air Fantasy system was connected to the car's air conditioning system and pumped small amounts of fragrance-added air either automatically or through the vents if desired.