10 Best Cars of Model Year 1981

The 10 Most Reliable and Durable Cars of Model Year 1981 

This page lists the top ten cars of model year 1981 by reliability-and-durability grade point average (Reliability-Durability GPA or more concisely, R-D GPA).

1981's Top 10 Cars 

These 10 car classics are listed below in descending order of Reliability-Durability GPA (best first). The equipment of each model is that offered in the U.S.

  • The Toyota Pickup Truck 2-wheel-drive, with a R-D GPA of 3.83

The 1981 2-wheel-drive Toyota Pickup Truck came with an inline 4-cylinder, 2.4-Liter, 96-horsepower (72-kilowatt), 129-foot-pound-torque engine or an inline 4-cylinder, 2.2-Liter 62-horsepower (46-kilowatt), 93-foot-pound-torque diesel engine.

  • The Toyota Starlet, with a Reliability-Durability GPA of 3.79

The 1981 Toyota Starlet came in a 2-door-hatchback edition and with an inline 4-cylinder, 79-cubic-inch (1.3-Liter), 58-horsepower engine, a 5-speed manual transmission, and a fuel capacity of 10.6 gallons. The car has an overall length of 152.5 inches (3.874 meters) and an overall width of 60.4 inches (1.534 meters). The 1981 Starlet's tire size is 145R13.

  • The Toyota Celica, with a R-D GPA of 3.77

The 1981 Toyota Celica came in either a 2-door or 2-door-hatchback edition and with an inline 4-cylinder, 144-cubic-inch (2.4-Liter), a 96-horsepower engine, a 4-speed automatic or 5-speed manual transmission, and a fuel capacity of 16.1 gallons. The 2-door has an overall length of 176 inches and an overall width of 65 inches. The 1981 Celica's tire size is 175R14.

  • The Toyota Corona, with a R-D GPA of 3.75

The 1981 Toyota Corona came in either a 4-door-sedan, 4-door-hatchback, or 4-door-wagon edition and with an inline 4-cylinder, 144-cubic-inch (2.4-Liter), 96-horsepower engine, a 3-speed automatic or 5-speed manual transmission, and a fuel capacity of 16.1 gallons. The 4-door sedan has an overall length of 177 inches and an overall width of 65 inches. The 1981 Corona's tire size is 175R14.

  • The Toyota Tercel, with a R-D GPA of 3.74

The 1981 Toyota Tercel came in either a 2-door coupe, 4-door sedan, or 2-door-hatchback edition and with an inline 4-cylinder, 89-cubic-inch (1.5-Liter), 62-horsepower engine, a 3-speed automatic or 4-speed or 5-speed manual transmission, and a fuel capacity of 11.9 gallons. The 4-door has an overall length of 161 inches and an overall width of 61 inches. The 1981 Tercel's tire size is 145R13. 

  • The Toyota Cressida, with a R-D GPA of 3.73

The 1981 Toyota Cressida came in either a 4-door-sedan or 4-door-wagon edition and with an inline 6-cylinder, 168-cubic-inch (2.8-Liter), 116-horsepower engine, a 4-speed automatic transmission, and a fuel capacity of 17.2 gallons. It has an overall length of 185 inches and an overall width of 66 inches. The 1981 Cressida's tire size is 185/70R14 ("tire width=185 mm"/"tire height=70% of width""Radial""wheel rim diameter=14 inches". The Cressida was the first model to have the U.S.-mandated motorized seat belts as standard equipment, and the 1981 Cressida was the first model year to carry them.

  • The Toyota Corolla SR5, with a Reliability-Durability GPA of 3.73
  • The Mercedes-Benz 240D, with a R-D GPA of 3.72

The 1981 diesel-powered Mercedes-Benz 240D came in a 4-door-sedan edition and with an inline 4-cylinder, 146-cubic-inch (2.4-Liter), 67-horsepower engine, a 4-speed automatic or 4-speed manual transmission, and a fuel capacity of 17.6 gallons. The 4-door sedan has an overall length of 191 inches and an overall width of 70 inches. The 1981 M-B 240D's tire size is 175R14. 

  • The Toyota Corolla, with a Reliability-Durability GPA of 3.71

The 1981 Toyota Corolla came in either a 2-door, 2-door-hatchback, 4-door-sedan, or 4-door-wagon edition and with an inline 4-cylinder, 108-cubic-inch (1.8-Liter), 75-horsepower engine, a 3-speed automatic or 5-speed manual transmission, and a fuel capacity of 13.2 gallons. The 4-door sedan has an overall length of 166 inches and an overall width of 63 inches. The 1981 Corolla's tire size is 165R13.

  • The Datsun 510, with a R-D GPA of 3.67

The 1981 Datsun 510 came in either a 2-door, 4-door-hatchback, or 4-door-wagon edition and with an inline 4-cylinder, 119-cubic-inch (2.0-Liter), 92-horsepower engine, a 3-speed automatic or 5-speed manual transmission, and a fuel capacity of 13.2 gallons. It has an overall width of 63 inches. The 1981 Datsun 510's tire size is 165R13.

Note that all ten of the best vehicles of 1981 had a Reliability-Durability Grade of A (in fact, all had a R-D GPA well exceeding 3.50). This contrasts sharply with the Top 10 of 1975, when only the top 6 had a R-D Grade of A.

Manufacturers of the Top 10 

Toyota Motor Corporation accounted for 8 of the most reliable and durable cars of 1981, an increase from 6 in 1980, 5 in 1979 and 1978 and 4 in 1977, 1976 and 1975. Although the Toyota Corolla placed first in 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, and 1980, it dropped to 8th place in 1981.

Daimler-Benz AG and Nissan Motor Company each accounted for one of the best cars of 1981.

Japanese-built cars accounted for 9 of 1981's best cars; German-built cars accounted for the remaining 1. The Top 7 were all made by Toyota.

Note that in 1981 (as in 1980 and 1979) none of the Detroit 3 had a car among the Top 10.

The following chart gives each car maker's percent share of the Top 10 of 1981. 
 

 

Additional Vehicles with a Reliability-Durability Grade of A (R-D GPA of 3.50 or Better)

There are seven additional 1981 cars that have a Reliability-Durability GPA of 3.50 or better. They are:

  • The BMW 320i, 318i, with a Reliability-Durability GPA of 3.63

The 1981 BMW 320i came in a 2-door-csedan edition and with an inline 4-cylinder, 108-cubic-inch (1.8-Liter), 101-horsepower engine, a 3-speed automatic or 5-speed manual transmission, and a fuel capacity of 15.3 gallons. It has an overall length of 178 inches and an overall width of 63 inches. The 1981 BMW 320i's tire size is 185/70R13 ("tire width=185 mm"/"tire height=70% of width""Radial""wheel rim diameter=13 inches".

  • The Mercedes-Benz Turbodiesel Inline 5, with a R-D GPA of 3.62
  • The Mercedes-Benz 300D Inline 5 (except turbodiesel), with a R-D GPA of 3.60

The diesel-powered Mercedes-Benz 300D Inline 5 came in a 4-door-sedan edition and with an inline 5-cylinder, 183-cubic-inch (3.0-Liter), 83-horsepower engine, a 4-speed automatic transmission, an overall length of 191 inches, an overall width of 70 inches, and a fuel capacity of 21.1 gallons. The 1981 M-B 300D I5's tire size is 195/70R14 ("tire width=195 mm"/"tire height=70% of width""Radial""wheel rim diameter=14 inches".

  • The Honda Prelude, with a R-D GPA of 3.60

The 1981 Toyota Corolla came in either a 2-door edition and with an inline 4-cylinder, 107-cubic-inch (1.8-Liter), 75-horsepower engine, a 3-speed automatic or 5-speed manual transmission, and a fuel capacity of 13.2 gallons. It has an overall length of 161 inches and an overall width of 64 inches. The 1981 Prelude's tire size is 175/70R13 ("tire width=175 mm"/"tire height=70% of width""Radial""wheel rim diameter=13 inches".

  • The Toyota Pickup Truck 4-wheel-drive, with a R-D GPA of 3.58

The 1981 4-wheel-drive Toyota Pickup Truck came with an inline 4-cylinder, 2.4-Liter, 96-horsepower (72-kilowatt), 129-foot-pound-torque engine.

  • The Mazda RX-7, with a R-D GPA of 3.55
  • Mitsubishi's Mighty Max rebadged as a Dodge Ram 50, with a R-D GPA of 3.51

The Mitsubishi-engineered-and-built 1981 Dodge Ram 50 came with either an inline 4-cylinder, 2.0-Liter, 93-horsepower (69-kilowatt) or an inline 4-cylinder, 2.6-Liter, 105-horsepower (78-kilowatt) engine.

The 1981 Honda Prelude is the first Honda to have a R-D GPA equalling or exceeding 3.50.

Computations

To compute the reliability-durability grade point average of the MY 1981 cars, Consumer Reports' reliability ratings for the age ranges 4-to-5 years and 5-to-6 years are used.

CR's ratings are converted to numerical values following the standard academic pattern: a grade point of 4.0 (an A) is accorded a rating of Much Better Than Average, a 3.0 (a B) is accorded a rating of Better Than Average, a 2.0 (a C) is accorded a rating of Average, a 1.0 (a D) is accorded a rating of Below Average, and a 0 (an F) is accorded a rating of Much Below Average.

Then, for each age range, the grade point of CR's overall reliability rating is weighted 2/3 and the average of the grade points of the category ratings is weighted 1/3.

Finally, the average for the two age ranges is taken.

The Toyota Corolla SR5, the Toyota Corolla, the Datsun 510, the M-B Turbodiesel, and the M-B 300D offered only one year of data.

Best and Worst Vehicles of Each Model Year

The Best Cars of Each Model Year by Reliability-Durability GPA: 1975  1976  1977  1978  1979  1980  1981  1982  1983  1984  1985  1986  ...  2004  2005

The Worst Cars of Each Model Year by Reliability-Durability GPA: 1980  1981  1982  1983  1984  1985  1986  ...  2004  2005 

Additional Resources

The Best Car Brands of Each Model Year by Reliability-Durability GPA: 1985  1986 ...  2004  2005

The Worst Car Brands of Each Model Year by Reliability-Durability GPA: 1985  1986 ...  2004  2005

The Best Car Manufacturers of Each Model Year by Reliability-Durability GPA: 1985  1986 ...  2004  2005

The Worst Car Manufacturers of Each Model Year by Reliability-Durability GPA: 1985  1986 ...  2004  2005

Best Car Brands by CR's List of Used Cars to Avoid:  1985  1986  1987  1988  1989  1990  1991  1992  1993  1994  1995  1996  1997  1998  1999  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006 

Worst Car Brands by CR's List of Used Cars to Avoid:  1985  1986  1987  1988  1989  1990  1991  1992  1993  1994  1995  1996  1997  1998  1999  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006

Best Car Makers by CR's List of Used Cars to Avoid: 1985  1986  1987  1988  1989  1990  1991  1992  1993  1994  1995  1996  1997  1998  1999  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006

Worst Car Makers by CR's List of Used Cars to Avoid:  1985  1986  1987  1988  1989  1990  1991  1992  1993  1994  1995  1996  1997  1998  1999  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006

For additional car quality information, visit www.AutoOnInfo.net and CarsOnInfo.net.

In particular, for additional durability information, see:

http://www.AutoOnInfo.net/SharesOfHighMileageVehicles.aspx 
http://CarsOnInfo.net/ToyotaAgeEquivalents.aspx 
http://CarsOnInfo.net/ToyotaMileageEquivalents.aspx 
http://CarsOnInfo.net/Top25OfAutoonInfosHighMileageRoster.aspx

www.CarQualityInfo.net: The car-quality website for the brighter-than-average North American consumer.
 
To help support independent car quality information, shop Amazon.com by clicking a link from this site.
Comments