I had a Mazda 929L, still did 150km/h with a cracked head an block. Wasnt a bad car. Interior was rooted though.
Engine-wise, The Mazda 626 i had for a while (1980 rear wheel drive) the engine AND the diff shit itself.
With my KE55, i had no problems, cept when i snapped the headbolt and converted everything over to a 4A-C and T-50 and found taht engine had piston slap, yet it still drove.
Miss my corolla though. Will get another one at the end of the year, seeing as these fuel prices are a bit insane at the moment.