Toyota Crown is new hybrid model family

After the top limousine Century, the Crown is the highest-ranking model in Toyota’s pecking order. The Crown made its debut in 1955 and was also delivered in our country in the distant past. The fifteenth generation Crown – which Toyota now mainly sells in its home country Japan – is always a sedan, but that changes with the introduction of the all-new Crown. Toyota turns the Crown into a complete model family! Recently, AutoWeek was able to show you a variant of the new Crown on a patent image. Some of the newcomers already showed Toyota in concept form in December.

From left to right: Crown Crossover, Crown Sport, Crown Sedan and Crown Estate

The new Toyota Crown will have four body styles (photos 22 to 25). The new Crown is the first to be launched in Japan and the United States, among others, and the latter is especially striking, because the model has not been delivered there for quite some time. Toyota is the first to talk about a ‘Crown Crossover’. That is also a sedan, but one that stands high on its legs in the style of the Citroën C5 X, although the latter is of course a liftback because the rear window hinges with the flap. There will also be a new Crown Sedan (photos 31 to 36), but it doesn’t stop there. The Crown Estate (photos 37 to 41) and Crown Sport (photos 26 to 30) will be placed next to the Crown Crossover and Crown Sedan. These are more SUV-like, where the Estate is a size larger and has a more traditional SUV shape than the more dynamically designed Crown Sport.

Toyota Crown

As mentioned, the Crown Crossover kicks off. Like the rest of the Crown family, the car sits on Toyota’s GA-K platform, a base that also sits under the Camry, Avalon, RAV4 and Highlander. The Crown Crossover is about 10 centimeters higher than the Camry. No E-TNGA basis for the Crown and that of course indicates that there will be no fully electric variant. The Crown family is available with two hybrid powertrains. There will be a hybrid powertrain with a 2.4 four-cylinder turbo engine, a six-speed automatic transmission and a system output of about 340 hp. This version has an electric motor on the front axle and a small electric motor on the rear axle that makes it a four-wheel drive. There is also a powertrain with an atmospheric 2.5 four-cylinder. There are two four-wheel drive systems: E-Four AWD and E-Four Advanced AWD. With the latter, the rear axle only steps in if grip threatens to disappear. The latter is reserved for the Crown with the 340 horsepower drivetrain and is able to send up to 80 percent of the power to the rear wheels.

Toyota Crown

In contrast to the body, the interior looks remarkably understated. With, among other things, a standard 12.3-inch touchscreen on which new software runs, it looks modern, but remarkably quiet and free of frills. Quite refreshing these days. Toyota prides itself on a quiet atmosphere inside and promises, among other things, high-quality sound insulation.

For the time being, it does not look like the new Toyota Crown family will also be launched in Europe. A missed opportunity?