Toyota · 1955–present

Toyota Crown

The Toyota Crown (Japanese: トヨタ・クラウン, Hepburn: Toyota Kuraun) is an automobile which has been produced by Toyota in Japan since 1955. It is primarily a line of executive cars that is marketed as an upscale offering in the Toyota lineup. In North America, the first through fourth generations were offered from 1958 through 1972, being replaced by the Corona Mark II. The Crown nameplate returned to the North American market in 2022, when the sixteenth-generation model was released. The Crown has also been partially succeeded in export markets by its closely related sibling, the Lexus GS, which since its debut in 1991 as the Toyota Aristo has always shared the Crown's platform and powertrain options. Later models of the GS and Crown have taken on a very strong aesthetic kinship through shared design cues. In 2022, Toyota unveiled four different Crown models to replace the fifteenth-generation model. The first model that is available is the Crossover-type Crown. The remaining three models: Sedan, Sport, and Estate, were released between 2023 and 2024 respectively, and are available in hybrid, plug-in hybrid, and fuel cell powertrains depending on the model.

Text from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0).

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History

Introduced in 1955 as the Toyopet Crown, it has served as the mainstream sedan from Toyota in the Japanese market throughout its existence and holds the distinction of being one of the longest-running passenger-car nameplate affixed to any Toyota model. Its traditional competitors in Japan and Asia were the defunct Nissan Cedric/Gloria/Fuga, Honda Legend, Mazda Luce, Isuzu Bellel and Mitsubishi Debonair. Formerly only available at Toyota Store dealers in Japan, the Crown has been popular for government usage, whether as a police car or for transporting government officials. It has also been popular with Japanese companies as company cars along with use as a taxicab. While the base Crown was available for many years aimed at the taxicab market, the increasing opulence and price of the Crown line led to the creation of the Comfort in 1995 as a more affordable alternative. Outside Japan, the larger Lexus LS took over the role of Toyota's flagship sedan in 1989 in the company's global lineup. Toyota's "Discover Crown Spirit Project" is a program in which Japanese Toyota dealers fully restore instances of every generation of the Crown to show that even the oldest Crown still works. Having been in production since 1955, the Crown is Toyota's second longest running model nameplate in Japan after the Land Cruiser, and seventh in the world after the Mercedes-Benz S-Class (1954), Chevrolet Corvette (1953), Land Cruiser and Nissan Patrol (both 1951), Volkswagen Transporter (1950), Ford F-Series (1947), and Chevrolet Suburban (1935).

Exports

The Crown was first exported to the United States from 1958 to 1973 as the first model Toyota exported to the country. In 1960, Toyota temporarily suspended exports to the region as the Crown was not capable of speeds needed on American freeways, before introducing an improved model. The Crown was also exported to Canada from 1964 to 1972, and Mexico from 1959 to 1964. Exports to Europe began in 1964 with the first car going to Finland. Other European countries which saw early imports of the Crown included the Netherlands and Belgium. The United Kingdom was another European market until the early 1980s. Australia was another important export market for the Crown – to the extent that it was manufactured there from the mid-1960s until the late 1980s using many local components. It was discontinued when the button car plan was put into effect. Exports to New Zealand began in 1968 and local CKD kit assembly of the Deluxe sedan started in 1973 (under contract at Steel's Motor Assemblies in Christchurch alongside the Corona). The model was replaced in NZ assembly by the Cressida in 1979 though limited imports of Japanese assembled cars continued for several more years. The island nations of Aruba and Curaçao in the Southern Caribbean also imported the Crown starting from the second generation (S40) in 1965 in Curaçao up until importation of the tenth generation (S150). It was discontinued in 1998 due to the high price and low demand combined with the introduction of the Lexus GS series. In 2019, a small number of fifteenth-generation Crowns were exported to Indonesia for use as an official vehicle by cabinet ministers and other government officials. The sixteenth-generation Crown that was introduced in 2022 is exported to about 40 countries with an expected annual sales volum

Toyopet Crown – First generation (RS/S10/S20/S30; 1955)

The Crown was introduced in January 1955 in Japan to meet the demands of public transportation. The Crown was intended for private purchase, while the Master served in a commercial form as a taxi, both with the same 1.5 L Type R engine used on their previous car, the Toyopet Super. The front doors open conventionally, and the rear doors are "suicide doors", a feature also utilized on the Toyota AA, Toyota's first car. Small engine displacements were used to keep the vehicle affordable, as the Japanese government began to impose an annual road tax to help develop and maintain a national transportation infrastructure in 1950. The appearance of the Crown shows some similarities with the European Ford Versailles and Simca Vedette. The Toyota Patrol was a police car version of the 1955 Crown. It featured many differences from the standard car, including a more reinforced chassis with the more powerful B 6-cylinder 3.4 L engine from the Toyota BX truck. In a similar way, an ambulance based on the Crown was also built. In 1956, both of these vehicles were upgraded to the F 3.9 L engine and remained in production until 1959. The Crown was much more popular than the Master due to the more compliant suspension of the Crown, and while the Master was intended for taxi service, the Crown was more accepted by the market over the Master, and more Crowns were sold into taxi service than the Master. The Crown was designed to replace the Super but Toyota was not sure if its independent front coil suspension and its suicide type rear doors were too radical for the taxi market to bear. So the Super was updated, renamed the Master and sold in tandem to the Crown, at Toyota Store locations. When sales of the Crown proved worthwhile, the Master was discontinued in November 1956 after being in

Toyopet Crown – Second generation (S40; 1962)

Due to the introduction of the Corona, the dramatically restyled and enlarged Series S40 was launched in 1962, and saw the introduction of the Custom model. The front grille approach has a similar appearance to the 1960 Imperial Crown (Chrysler), which speaks to Toyota's aspirations that the Crown be a large, comfortable sedan. The station wagon body style carried over from the previous generation Masterline, but with more attention to the luxurious approach used on the Crown. The stylized "crown" badge, affixed to the grille and hubcaps, first appeared with this generation. Headlights were integrated within the boundaries of the greatly enlarged grille, providing a clean, modern appearance. A column-shifted 2-speed automatic transmission called Toyoglide was introduced on this generation. A bigger and better car than the previous S30 series, it initially had four-cylinder R-series engines before the addition of the "M" six-cylinder engine in 1965. Deluxe and Super Deluxe models were available with added features. The ladder frame chassis of the previous generation was replaced with an X-frame to achieve a lower centre of gravity. The sedan and wagon were known simply as the Crown while the commercial vehicles (coupe utility, double cab coupe utility (pick ups), and van) were known as the Masterline. There was also a limited run of the sedan known as the Toyota Crown S (MS41S) which featured twin SU style carburettors on the 2.0L M in-line-six engine, sportier camshaft, sports instrumentation, sports suspension, four-speed floor shift, bucket seats, 14 inch wheels, disc brakes on the front and larger drum brakes in the rear. This Crown became the first Toyota to be exported to Europe, after the head of Denmark's Erla Auto Import A/S saw it at the Tokyo Motor Show. They

Toyopet Crown – Third generation (S50; 1967)

Launched in 1967, the mechanicals were much the same as the previous generation, but additional equipment was included. The X-frame chassis of the S40 series was now dropped in favour of a perimeter frame that improved collision protection for passengers; this chassis design would remain in use until 1999 when the S130-series wagons were superseded by the unibody S170-series Estates. Higher specification models used the 2.0-liter M engine or the 2.3-liter 2M engine shared with the Toyota 2000GT sports coupe. A premium level Super Saloon joined the Super Deluxe model, and was available with the 2M engine including twin carburettors, electric windows, rear seat radio controls, air conditioning and luxury fabric on the seating including the Crown logo embossed into the vinyl. Lower specified models were equipped with the R-series four-cylinder engines. Crown vehicles meant for commercial use had received the Masterline nameplate until the introduction of this generation; they were now badged "Crown" as well. However, this generation was the last to be offered in an entire line of commercials - from the next generation on, the only commercial-use model available was the Crown Van, whose bodywork was also used for the Wagon models. Crown Double-Cab pickups were produced by the former Central Motor Co., Ltd. until December 1970. When the 1967 S50 series Crown was introduced to Japan, television commercials used Japanese actor Satoshi Yamamura, who among his many roles on stage, movie, and television, portrayed Fleet Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto in the 1970s movie Tora! Tora! Tora! Yamamura would serve as the Crown spokesman for 16 years, introducing subsequent new generations of Crown products until 1983. The Crown range now included the four-door station wagon, pick-up (rare), d

Fourth generation (S60/S70; 1971)

Launched in February 1971 for the Japanese Domestic Market, the fourth generation Crown was available in ascending trim levels, including Deluxe, Super Deluxe and Super Saloon. Another trim, Royal Saloon, introduced with the Crown's 1973 facelift, added luxury features from the Century limousine. The first two model years of the fourth generation Crown were marketed in North America; subsequently replaced by the Corona Mark II. The 4M 2600 engine was introduced, with the 2.0-liter 5R inline-four engine and the 2.0-liter M six-cylinder engine also available. As for the previous generation, the M-C engine (in Japanese specifications) has 105 PS (77 kW; 104 bhp), while the 5R's output increased somewhat to 98 PS (72 kW; 97 bhp). In some markets the previous 2.3-liter "2M" six remained available, in sedan or "utility wagon" forms. The Utility Wagon was a body style between commercial and passenger car, and carried chassis codes MS67V until the early 1973 facelift when it was replaced by the MS68V with the 2.6 engine. While previous generations of the Crown had been marketed under the Toyopet brand, the fourth-generation model was the first version to be officially marketed worldwide as the Toyota Crown. The Sedan and Wagon (Custom) were coded RS60/MS60/MS64/MS65 and MS62/MS63, while the Van was coded MS66V with the two liter "six". The Hardtop Coupé is MS70 (2.0-liter), or MS75 (2.6-liter). The Japanese market Crown Custom (Wagon) was classified as a seven-seater. This generation was the first Crown marketed as a Toyota in Japan, as previous models were marketed as Toyopets. Also, in Japan, this model was known as the "whale" or "kujira" Crown. In 1973, Japanese television commercials introduced Japanese actress Sayuri Yoshinaga as a co-spokeswoman, joining Satoshi Yamamura

Sections adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0); text is shortened. Read the full article for the complete history and citations.

Specifications

name

Toyota Crown

Manufacturer

Toyota

Production

1955–present

Assembly

Japan:, Toyota City, Aichi (Honsha plant: 1955–1959; Motomachi plant: 1959–present; Tsutsumi plant: 2022–present), Tahara, Aichi (Tahara plant: 2004-2005), Australia: Port Melbourne (Australian Motor Industries: 1967–1980), New Zealand: Christchurch (Steel's Motor Assemblies: 1973–1980), China: Tianjin (TFTM: 2005–2020), Indonesia: Jakarta (1976–1984; 1989–2000), Philippines:, Parañaque (1967–1984; 1989–1997), Santa Rosa, Laguna (1997–1999)

Class

Full-size car (E)

Body style

4-door notchback sedan (1955–present), 4-door hardtop sedan (1974–1999), 4-door fastback sedan (2022–present), 2-door hardtop coupe (1967–1983), 3/5-door wagon (1955–2007), 5-door SUV (2023–present), 2-door coupe utility (pickup, 1962–1971)

Layout

Front-engine, rear-wheel-drive, Front-engine, four-wheel-drive (1995–present)

Related

Toyota Crown Majesta (1991–2020), Lexus GS (1991–2011)

Predecessor

Toyota RH

Successor

Toyota Corona Mark II (North America, for S60/S70 model), Toyota Avalon (XX50) (China, for S210 model), Toyota Soarer (hardtop coupe)

Specification summary from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Check the linked sources for citations.

More photos

US EPA fuel-economy records

US EPA test figures (US MPG, US test cycle).

Sources

• Wikidata — https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q573411CC0 1.0 · retrieved 2026-10-01
• Wikipedia — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toyota_CrownCC BY-SA 4.0 · Text © Wikipedia contributors; revision 1377385940 · retrieved 2026-10-01
• Wikimedia Commons — https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Toyota_Crown_Sedan_Z_Hybrid.jpgCC0 · Photo: TTTNIS · retrieved 2026-10-01
• Manufacturer website (link only) — https://global.toyota/en/mobility/toyota-brand/gallery/crown.htmlLink only; no content copied · retrieved 2026-10-01
• Car Model Index — https://models.autoculturesociety.com/Compiled record. Sources that do not permit reuse are not copied; this index is credited instead.

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