49 years have passed since Toyota last sold the Crown in the US. The all-new model will make a return to North America judging by a teaser image released earlier this week by Toyota USA on Twitter. It's the company's longest-running nameplate used for passenger cars, having been around since 1955. It has typically been reserved for the flagship model, excluding the JDM-only Century sold exclusively to high-ranked officials and other VIPs.
Although there have been wagons, coupes, and even a pickup truck, the Crown is usually associated with the sedan body style. The revamped model will be completely different than any of its predecessors by attempting to fuse SUV and sedan traits to create an unusually shaped high-riding liftback. If the patent images are any indication, it should be something along the lines of the ill-fated Honda Crosstour. Similar cars still exist in Europe where Citroën has the C5 X while its sister brand Peugeot just came out with the 408.
2023 Toyota Crown patent images
With the Avalon going away after the 2022 model year, there's a pretty good chance the new Crown will more or less fill in the void left after the midsize sedan's demise. Given the nameplate's prestige, logic tells us it'll be a more sophisticated product with quite possibly a higher price tag. A hybrid powertrain seems like an educated guess and considering the high-riding profile, all-wheel drive is probably in the offing as well.
Toyota has been tight-lipped about the US-bound Crown, but we'll remind you the namesake sedan is still around at home in Japan. In addition, China got the Crown Kugler last year as a fancy Highlander, along with the Crown Vellfire serving as a posh minivan. It looks as though Toyota now has international aspirations for its fabled nameplate.
We will have all the juicy details shortly as the livestream is programmed to begin at 0:20 AM EST / 4:20 AM GMT on July 15.
