1985 Toyota SR5 Xtra Cab Goes Back to the Future

This 1985 Toyota pickup is identical to the one driven by Marty McFly, and we love it.

The Toyota pickup driven by Marty McFly in Back to the Future might be overshadowed by the time-traveling DeLorean, but realistic kids from the 80s dreamed of having a sweet off-road-ready pickup like the one in the movie. Forum member T85 might that dream a reality, converting a 1985 Toyota SR5 Xtra Cab 4×4 into an exact replica of the truck from the movie.

The Introduction

When the OP originally introduced us to his 1985 Toyota SR5 Xtra Cab Back to the Future project back in late 2016, he explained his motivation for the build while also showing us the truck in the state in which he purchased it.

Well after years of hunting, tracking, chasing…the search has finally ended. Call it a midlife crisis or just fulfilling a childhood dream of owning the Marty Mcfly truck. Either way, the time has come.

I am starting this building with my newly acquired 1985 Toyota SR5 Xtra Cab, 4×4. The previous owner did alot of the hard work, which I am grateful for, which include: rebuilt 22RE motor, fresh paint job, new bumpers cleaned up interior.

There are several things I need to do to get this going such as fixing the leaking knuckles, stabilizer and shock replacement, catalytic converter and O2 replacement, upholstery update, window tint, roll bar, bumpers etc. So first thing to tackle is the catalytic converter and 02 sensor get this boy to pass California Smog Emissions.

He also included a few pictures of his ’85 his 2000 Toyota Tacoma, showing an interesting comparison between the two.

Building Marty’s Truck

The OP began the Back to the Future transformation by tinting the windows and ordering a set of the same US Wheel Model 94 Black 15-inch wheels that were on the movie truck.

Once he had the wheels on and the windows tinted, the OP took his 1985 Toyota to the high school where parts of the movie were filmed.

The next big step was finding the tubular front and rear bumpers from the movie truck. The OP hunted around for a while and he found them, but he couldn’t find the matching roll bar. Fortunately, a local off-road shop was willing to fix up the bumpers and fabricate the roll bar. Once those were completed, the off-road lights were added above the cab and the lights on the front bumper were installed.

To finish off the exterior, the OP added black fender and windshield trim, along with a Toyota windshield banner. He also added the proper extended mirrors and at that point, the truck looked nearly identical on the outside to Marty’s Toyota in the movie.

The last big change was the interior, as the previous owner added red seats and carpeting to the 1985 Toyota pickup. Since the movie truck had grey interior, the OP removed the red and added the proper materials, completing this incredible recreation of the truck that Marty McFly rocked in Back to the Future.

Check out the gallery below of the perfect recreation of the Back to the Future Toyota and for a closer look at the entire project, click here to read the full thread.

Patrick Rall

"Before I was old enough to walk, my dad was taking me to various types of racing events, from local drag racing to the Daytona 500," says Patrick Rall, a lifetime automotive expert, diehard Dodge fan, and respected auto journalist for over 10 years. "He owned a repair shop and had a variety of performance cars when I was young, but by the time I was 16, he was ready to build me my first drag car – a 1983 Dodge Mirada that ran low 12s. I spent 10 years traveling around the country, racing with my dad by my side. While we live in different areas of the country, my dad still drag races at 80 years old in the car that he built when I was 16 while I race other vehicles, including my 2017 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat and my 1972 Dodge Demon 340.

"Although I went to college for accounting, my time in my dad’s shop growing up allowed me the knowledge to spend time working as a mechanic before getting my accounting degree, at which point I worked in the office of a dealership group. While I was working in the accounting world, I continued racing and taking pictures of cars at the track. Over time, I began showing off those pictures online and that led to my writing.

"Ten years ago, I left the accounting world to become a full-time automotive writer and I am living proof that if you love what you do, you will never “work” a day in your life," adds Rall, who has clocked in time as an auto mechanic, longtime drag racer and now automotive journalist who contributes to nearly a dozen popular auto websites dedicated to fellow enthusiasts.

"I love covering the automotive industry and everything involved with the job. I was fortunate to turn my love of the automotive world into a hobby that led to an exciting career, with my past of working as a mechanic and as an accountant in the automotive world provides me with a unique perspective of the industry.

"My experience drag racing for more than 20 years coupled with a newfound interest in road racing over the past decade allows me to push performance cars to their limit, while my role as a horse stable manager gives me vast experience towing and hauling with all of the newest trucks on the market today.

"Being based on Detroit," says Rall, "I never miss the North American International Auto Show, the Woodward Dream Cruise and Roadkill Nights, along with spending plenty of time raising hell on Detroit's Woodward Avenue with the best muscle car crowd in the world.

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