There have been unique line-ups in the Crown’s long history
Many people may have been surprised when the new Crown was unveiled. The information that it would be an SUV had already been available, so that made sense, but it was surprising to see a sedan and a wagon in the lineup. Is this the Crown? Some people were really surprised. But looking back at the history of the Crown, there have been some unique line-ups and the conservative model known as the Royal Saloon. Let’s check some unique Crowns.
4th generation Crown nicknamed the Whale
With its rounded design, known as the spindle shape, it is known as the Whale Crown. It is a popular model today because of its rarity and uniqueness, but at the time it was too eccentric, and its sales weren’t successful. Even when the new model was launched to the public, it was said that ‘a Crown must be as it should be ‘. It was also the first Crown to use a saloon as a model designation.
9th generation got a distinctive rear view
This was the next controversial model. The reason was simple: the rear end was rounded. But at the time (1991) when Crown-like features were important, this caused a big problem and sales were slow. At times it lost out to its competitors, such as the Nissan Cedric and Gloria. A minor change brought a hasty design change to the rear styling, which became more Crown-like. After that, there were no more hardtops with challenging designs.
Crown saloons took a different path from the hardtop
The saloon remained in its original Crown style, even for taxi use, and went its way with the introduction of the four-door hardtop in the fifth generation Crown. The first real saloon was introduced in 1974 and produced as a basic saloon series until 2018, comprising six generations. It was also used for police cars and taxis.
In addition to orthodox variation names such as Super Deluxe, there were also Super Saloon and Royal Saloon. Some models were equipped with a straight six-cylinder engine.
Crown Comfort is used in taxis etc.
This model was derived from the saloon and was used exclusively as a taxi and in driving schools. Incidentally, the Crown Comfort is a medium-sized model, while the Comfort is a small one. It was introduced in 1995 and production was discontinued in 2018 due to its inability to meet safety standards. It was a compact RWD and was popular with street racers. TRD introduced a supercharged Comfort GT-Z Supercharger.
The Crown Estate made the most of its hardtop appeal
Vans and saloon-style wagons were available in successive generations, and a wagon-based model called the Athlete, based on the Royal Saloon, was also available. The interior and exterior were full of Crown’s trademark luxury. It was a very satisfying luxury saloon with leather seats. It disappeared in 2007, but the new Crown is a station wagon, so it has been a long time since its return.
Any time there is a complete model change there is always controversy. The new Crown has also been criticized by enthusiasts for not being ‘like a Crown’, but like the fourth generation, it may be reassessed later. The manufacturer is hoping for great sales right now. We’ll see what happens in the future.