Toyota Corolla Hatch XSE

Club Spotlight: Nathan’s Manual Toyota Corolla, “Mako”

1 Comment

Next time you roll up on a new Corolla, don’t forget that it could very well be a stick. In fact, it could be Nathan Geer.

“I found out about the car back in 2019, when the great Larry Chen released his Corolla Hatch at SEMA,” said Geer, who remembered the tuner concept’s fifteen52 wheels above all. “I’m 18, so I was looking for a car that would be reliable enough to get me to school and work and still be fun enough for me to get excited to drive it everyday.”

Nathan knew the Corolla Hatch was a match. He also knew his would have to be a manual — even though he had never driven stick.

“I bought the car without knowing how to drive manual, so my dad drove it home from the dealership,” said Geer, a mechanical engineering student in his freshman year who learned to drive manual transmission on his new car. “It truly made the driving experience raw.”

The E210-chassis Corolla is so new, aftermarket companies are still developing performance parts. Geer said the owner community is active and helpful; springs, intake and exhaust options are out there, but front lips and diffusers are the most popular mods. For now, the owner community is focused on aesthetics — and Geer’s Corolla had no problems attracting attention out of the box.

“I have always loved the color blue and was amazed by how Nitrous Blue looked on the Focus RS,” Geer said. “When the Hatch was released in Blue Flame, I knew that was the right color for me. The color definitely draws a lot of attention, especially mid-day when the sun hits it.”

Squint, and you’ll see more than a little DNA from Gazoo Racing’s hottest projects out of Europe and Japan. With bulging fenders and right-sized proportions, the Corolla Hatch is a convincing visual package missing just one finishing touch.

“I was looking for a cool-looking sticker that still gave a warning not to get all up on the car at stops,” said Geer, who discovered The Manual Gearbox Preservation Society through the Instagram Discover feed. “The simplistic design of the TMGPS decal was exactly what I was looking for.”

@highmileage is a world-traveling automotive historian. follow adam barrera on instagram.

Junkyard Adventures: Last of the Four-Speed Breed

Leave a comment

No radio. No wheel covers. No bumper paint. No A/C — a hard sell under the year-round South Texas sun. At just over $10,500, this 1996 Toyota Tercel had no tachometer, either, but it had something no other US-market car offered at any price: a four-speed manual transmission.

The fifth-generation Tercel landed on American shores in 1995. Rounded in front to match the Camry of the day, the sharp, flat-cut rear decklid added a sporty edge to otherwise simple transportation. DX-trim models in period-correct hues of teal and green come to mind, but the base-grade two-door was the only Tercel of the era missing its fifth ratio. Unexpectedly punchy in its class, the 1.5-liter 5E-FE four-cylinder churned out 94 horsepower, put to pavement in the base cars by a C141 four-speed stick.

In 1997, the base Tercel was replaced by a better-equipped CE trim level, thus marking the demise of the last four-speed manual for sale in the United States. Two years later, the Tercel would disappear from America altogether.

With only 143,498 miles on the clock, this tough-as-nails Tercel might seem too young for the crusher — until you walk around back. Is this custom ute conversion the necessity of genius or an affront to what should have been a rolling tribute to the legendary four-on-the-floor? Let us know in the comments.

@highmileage is a world-traveling automotive historian. follow adam barrera on instagram.