IN 1966 Japan a game-changer rolled off the production lines of Toyota.

Named Corolla, it was only a humble two-door saloon with a four-cylinder 1,077cc petrol engine and laid no claims whatsoever to performance, style or leading edge design.

The secret of this car was its simplicity.

Aimed very much at Japan's man in the street, the Corolla soon took pole position as the people's car in its home market, so much so that later in the year of its launch, the Corolla saw a 30,000 a month production turnout at the Takaoda factory which was an astonishingly high figure for the time - and all were for the home market.

Then word started to spread and the car was developed to become the best-selling car worldwide by 1974 and was a big hitter in the sales league thereafter.

The Corolla was truly unstoppable and became thebest-selling nameplate in the world surpassing even the VW Beetle.

Toyota reached the milestone of 40 million Corollas sold over eleven generations in July 2013.

Early models were mostly rear-wheel-drive with front-drive arriving later to help the Corolla fight massive sales battles with the Nissan Sunny and Honda Civic.

Since its launch the Corolla has been built all over the world, including the Burnaston factory in the Midlands.

It was after the launch that Toyota bosses realised the potential of this car and enlarged it to include a four-door option.

From as early as 1972 the range offered five-speed manual transmission in the UK while many manufacturers waited until the 1980s to take the five-speed leap of faith.

Over the years Corollas became less austere and much more comfortable. Not to mention being enjoyable to drive. As a young motoring journalist in the early 1980s I always looked forward to driving Corolla test cars as there was little to criticise and more to enjoy.

The range also expanded to include the fast front-drive Corolla GT of 1985 with its 1,587cc engine of 119bhp with disc brakes all round. This was a thrilling little car with 122mph on tap. A fine flagship for one of the most enduring ranges in automotive history.