Tech standards
The 1970s changed the way drivers used the space between the front seats. The gear lever had found its permanent home in the middle of the car. Goodbye, column shift! The handbrake moved out from under the dashboard and into the center console, just ahead of the gear lever. Naturally, that put it right where young hotshots needed it to slide around corners.
Designers made room for gadgets, too. ESP and air conditioning were common on American-market Toyota Coronas, though I never saw either on a European one. ESP in 1976? No way! Here, ESP stood for Electric System Panel, which kept tabs on the braking system. Cool stuff!
DE 
EN