Toyota Going Precious With Larger Screen and More in 2021 Crown, Is a JDM Affair

Toyota’s second largest model in its JDM lineup, after the Century, the Crown has enjoyed steady popularity during its 65 years tenure – and perhaps the company’s quick release schedule for extensive upgrades has something to do with its success.

The Japanese automaker unveiled the 15th generation version just two years ago, and already the Japanese dealerships are getting a reworked version for the 2021 model year. The pricing range has also been revealed, with the base Crown kicking off at 4,899,000 yen ($46,822) and then going as high as 7,393,000 yen ($70,669).

For the money, the carmaker has a raft of novelties for its mid-size luxury sedan – though most of them are very subtle when discussing the stately exterior. For example, the RS Advance and RS Advance Four grades have a wider variety of alloy wheels than before, including an exclusive set of 18-inch aluminum wheels.

There are also three new exterior colors – two of them being intentionally (or not) a play of words on the royalty-derived moniker: Precious White Pearl and Precious Metal, along with an Emotional Red II (maybe they should have called this one Emotional Red Jr., or Emotional Red, The Second – American or British-style).

Anyways, the major changes are hidden inside, both literally and figuratively. The “G,” “G Four,” “RS Advance,” and “RS Advance Four” trims all receive genuine leather seats, while the new infotainment system T-Connect SD now comes with a massive 12.3-inch touchscreen.

Additionally, the company has also updated the proprietary Toyota Safety Sense package with additional features. For the first time ever, Toyota is adopting a special “driver abnormality response system” - which gradually brings the vehicle to a halt if there’s no input from the person behind the wheel due to a sudden change in physical condition. Another first for the Japanese automaker is the inclusion of a “curve speed suppression function.”