Toyota Cressida Packs a Nasty Surprise Under the Hood, Runs 7s

This fourth-generation sedan might look mostly stock on the outside, but it packs a fire-breathing dragon under the hood. It's a "hybrid" that brings together the bottom of a forged, 3.0-liter 2JZ and the cylinder head of a 2.5-liter 1JZ. The latter was actually offered in the fourth-gen Cressida. The combo, commonly referred to as a 1.5JZ engine, runs on methanol, mates to an MV Automatics Powerglide, and packs a whopping 1,200 horsepower.

And amazingly enough, it's still fitted with a Toyota G-series IRS rear end and runs on slicks instead of radial tires. And it also competes in Australia's Sport Compact Street289 class, dominated by smaller and lighter, rotary-powered cars. At almost 4.7 meters (15.4 feet) long, the fourth-gen Cressida is no shorty, but it's impressively quick.

Driven by Shane Crichton, the sedan recently broke its own record on the quarter-mile. A 7.81-second up until October 2021, the Cressida advanced into the 7.6s at a recent event. Following a slower-than-usual, 7.89-second run, the four-door Toyota stormed the quarter-mile in an impressive 7.65 clicks. To go with a trap speed of almost 182 mph. Shane cemented the new benchmark with a second 7.65-second sprint and a similar trap speed.

I haven't seen that many Cressidas stretching their wheels at the drag strip, so this one might just be the quickest and most powerful of its kind.

Based on the sixth-generation Toyota Mark II, the fourth-gen Cressida debuted in 1988. The final generation offered in the U.S., the Cressida was praised for its comfortable and solid fuel economy. The gap left by the discontinuation of the U.S.-spec Cressida in 1992 was filled by the Avalon in 1995.