America has barely had time to get to know the Toyota Crown. But, in Japan, the Crown is a lineup all its own.
More of that lineup may be coming to America soon. This week, Toyota released a teaser photo showing the tailgate of a new hybrid SUV. The brand isn’t saying what it is. The text only says, “This hybrid electric midsize SUV goes beyond what’s expected.”
But we think we know what it is. It’s a model the brand already makes overseas, the Toyota Crown Estate.
Common Elsewhere, New Here
The name Toyota Crown still seems new to Americans. But it’s one of Toyota’s longest-running products. Toyota sold a Crown sedan in the U.S. from 1955 to 1972.
It has echoes in the United States — Corolla is Latin for “little crown.” But the Crown name left the American market in the Nixon years.
In its home market, it thrived. In Japan today, Toyota sells the same Crown sedan we get — a high-riding 4-door with an SUV’s stance but a sedan’s body. But the company also sells a lower, more conventional Crown sedan and a sleek Crown Sport SUV. It plans a more family-oriented Crown Estate midsize crossover next year.
The teaser Toyota released this week suggests we’ll also get a second Crown model. It wears taillights that match the Crown Estate midsize SUV, and you can see the first letter of its name — “C.”
In Japan, that car is offered as both a hybrid and a plug-in hybrid. The teaser image shows an HEV badge, so we expect that one to make its appearance here. We’ll bring more information when we have it.
Toyota’s new habit is to leak teaser images for several weeks before revealing a new car in full, so chances are good that we won’t have to wait long to know more.
