A Brief History and Overview of the Toyota Paseo

The Toyota Paseo is probably one of those vehicles that not many people remember, ever, like ever. However surprisingly I really wanted one for a brief time.

I remember finding one on Craigslist when I was shopping around for a car, and it was around $500, which was perfect for me. It was a 2 door coupe, looked like it could be fun to drive, and had a few of the markings of one of my all time favorite cars, the Toyota Celica. 

That said, this car is kinda like the forgotten awkward cousin of the 3 well known brothers, the Celica, Supra, and the MR2.

Unfortunately I never did end up buying that car, and I don’t really remember why. Probably didn’t have enough money at the time or something. However since then, I have always kept an eye out for them.
So with that said, let’s take a look at the history of this car! There isn’t much of it…. but let’s take a look!

Side note: You can find tons of these cars on the used market. So if you plan on this, make sure to read about what to look for when buying a used car.

First Generation of the Toyota Paseo

The first generation Paseo was released for the year 1992.

There isn’t a ton out there on these vehicles, however the first generation came out with a single engine option of a 1.5 Liter, 90 horsepower engine.

That’s right, 90 horsepower.

The vehicle did however have two transmission options, being an automatic and a 5 speed manual.

One of the shining achievements of this vehicle was the great gas mileage, reaching into the 30 miles per gallon range.

The Toyota Paseo wasn’t an overly elegant design of a car, however in it was a great value, and had the Toyota reliability.

Second Generation of the Paseo

The 2nd gen Paseo came out in 1996, with minimal changes to the first generation.

While not a ton changed into the second generation, the changes were mainly the nose, rear, and some window changes. They did also add some additional air bags.

I doubt many people would be able to spot the difference between the two generations.

The biggest change to this vehicle happened in its final year, where a convertible was launched. Unfortunately this was short lived, as in 1997 the Paseo was no more.