01
A Car Never Meant to Be Sold
Development of the Sports 800 began at Kanto Auto Works on the premise of using the Publica's engine and chassis. The chief engineer was Tatsuo Hasegawa. According to Hasegawa, it was never built to be sold, and was nothing more than an experimental work done to pass the time between the end of Publica development and the start of the next car, the Corolla. Publica parts were used because company facilities could not be spared for a car with no plans for production. But when it was shown at the Tokyo Motor Show that year it drew an unexpected response, and at the request of the sales division it was put into production. It went on sale about three years later. Partly because Hasegawa strongly opposed it, arguing that Publica parts made for Japan could not withstand high-speed use on American roads, it was hardly exported, and cumulative sales had reached only 3,131 units by the end of sales.
