Toyota Crown – 14th-gen S210 makes its debut

toyota crown royal saloon 1

Christmas may be a time of rest for many, but not Toyota. The automaker, set to regain the top spot in 2012, took the festive occasion to introduce its all-new Crown luxury sedan for the Japanese domestic market.

The Crown name has been around since 1955, and moves into 2013 in its 14th-generation form. The S210 replaces the S200, which had a four-year run, and is available in both Crown Royal and Crown Athlete versions. The former is aimed at corporate users, while the Athlete targets individuals looking for some flair.

Ah yes, flair. The new Crown has been given an updated design – replete with larger front grille – and lower prices, things the company is hoping to attract younger buyers with; the current Crown user base has an average age hovering around the late-50s mark, and Toyota is hoping that the new car will appeal to those in their 40s.

toyota crown athlete 1

Both the Royal and Athlete variants are available in rear-wheel 2WD and i-Four 4WD form, and the hybrid versions now incorporate a 2.5 litre engine instead of the 3.5 litre found previously. The 2.5 L 2AR-FSE is good for 178 PS at 6,000 rpm and 221 Nm at 4,200 to 4,800 rpm, and the paired electric motor has 143 PS and 300 Nm for numbers – combined system output is 220 PS.

The gasoline lumps are a V6 2.5L 4GR-FSE, with 203 PS at 6,400 rpm and 243 Nm at 4,800 rpm, available on both Royal and Athlete versions, and a V6 3.5L 2GR-FSE offering 315 PS at 6,400 rpm and 377 Nm at 4,800 rpm, which is only found on the Athlete.

Transmission-wise, the hybrid is equipped with an E-CVT unit, while the rest of the range features a six-speed Super ECT automatic, and in the case of the 3.5 litre-equipped Athlete, an eight-speed Super ECT box.







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Anthony Lim

Anthony Lim believes that nothing is better than a good smoke and a car with character, with good handling aspects being top of the prize heap. Having spent more than a decade and a half with an English tabloid daily never being able to grasp the meaning of brevity or being succinct, he wags his tail furiously at the idea of waffling - in greater detail - about cars and all their intrinsic peculiarities here.

 

Comments

  • Chris on Dec 27, 2012 at 12:29 pm

    Nice but big cc with miserable outputs for car this size..wow ecvt 6/8 speeds lol.

    I rmbr the crown of old days- those days yes u can say it was good. Now 2012 and this is wat thwy offer? Only 6/10.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 8 Thumb down 22
    • droll on Dec 27, 2012 at 1:31 pm

      some of the outputs look similar to lexus engines.

      anyway, the 3.5L v6 on the athlete makes it quite quick for a lumbering uncle car.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 14 Thumb down 10
  • Way nicer to Sam Loo Camry

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 29 Thumb down 5
    • Sam Loo on Jan 09, 2013 at 12:51 am

      Once my used kimchi dealership has turnover of 30 cars per month, I will upgrade to the GS350.

      So, Please buy more kimchis brand new. I may need to invest in another Hilux

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 2
  • Slenderman on Dec 27, 2012 at 12:46 pm

    If only I had the money…oh the athlete.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 22 Thumb down 5
  • kingston on Dec 27, 2012 at 12:54 pm

    something very suzuki kizashi about its design,somehow :/

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 14 Thumb down 8
  • shawal on Dec 27, 2012 at 1:05 pm

    crown athlete lol… it cud only b japanese
    shudve name it crown sport , or crown s
    when will it hit our kg baru markets..?

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 10 Thumb down 2
  • jolly_idiot on Dec 27, 2012 at 1:25 pm

    Fugly

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 9 Thumb down 25
  • Jimmy on Dec 27, 2012 at 1:31 pm

    Toyota designers have done their best.
    Mercedes’ prices are not far away, for potential buyers.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 11 Thumb down 7
    • Paul Tan on Dec 27, 2012 at 5:31 pm

      But they did so well with the Lexus GS and Toyota Avalon.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 33 Thumb down 5
    • Sam Loo on Jan 07, 2013 at 7:30 pm

      And most of all, in the US and Oz aftermarket, these models have great RV, unlike kimchis

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 4
  • Alvin Tan on Dec 27, 2012 at 1:35 pm

    mercadez S500 is more good la. why this car must got crown also dont know. toyota is suck

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 9 Thumb down 39
  • Martian90210 on Dec 27, 2012 at 2:24 pm

    Never heard of the brand mercedes here..

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 11 Thumb down 7
  • hantu on Dec 27, 2012 at 3:33 pm

    aiyoyo … look at the front … fugly lar! why must have that darth vader design – double darth vader some more … aiyoyo!

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 11 Thumb down 18
  • shawal on Dec 27, 2012 at 6:12 pm

    Road tax for

    2.0 litre : RM380 per year (wokey)
    2.5 : RM800 per year (huh… whut? )…
    3.5 : RM4380 per year …. hahahahaha

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 15 Thumb down 1
    • uncertain buyer on Dec 28, 2012 at 2:43 pm

      just to add for fun:

      4.0l BMW 740i Series roadtax alone is RM14k++ w/o insurance. I saw one of the contractor’s car.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • Alpha on Dec 27, 2012 at 7:22 pm

    The front grille of the Athlete looks like Pikachu’s tail.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 10 Thumb down 2
  • If someone would do something about that stupid front grill this would be an awesome car. but I supposed, being a JDM car, the Japanese are into this sort of design.
    The interior is also quite contemporary Japanese. this is than, a very Japanese car.
    The only JDM Toyota I like is the V12 powered Century, which is only available in Japan…..sigh.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 2 Thumb down 4
  • grs180 on Dec 27, 2012 at 8:21 pm

    woow..wow..predator grill on athlete…this to me claimed to be the best sports sedan in the world..dont believe?..you bet…you drive any of athlete series then you know what I m talking about..(crown athlete 3.5 with 2grfse engine codenamed dba-grs214)..

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 5 Thumb down 0
  • thebosssedangbercakap on Dec 27, 2012 at 8:25 pm

    fugly2 pun, lagi cantik dari proton ;)

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 14 Thumb down 8
  • This car will make Merc S-class ride like a bicycle without suspension and in the rain.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • gOOsh on Dec 28, 2012 at 8:53 am

    cantik lar sangat…

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 1 Thumb down 1
  • Johnny Walker on Dec 28, 2012 at 9:28 am

    meh…the previous generation looks a thousand times better…

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 2 Thumb down 4
  • cosmo on Dec 28, 2012 at 11:07 pm

    i think this car will look damn good in our country… especially black colour Athlete model (imagine driving it slowly thru the city road at night)… definitely will attract lots of attention, bcoz it’s rare , huge and looks aporty yet elegant… damn.. i wan this…

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 9 Thumb down 1
    • grs180 on Dec 30, 2012 at 12:14 am

      ya..you can find them from the grey importer here the latest 2 models grs180 and grs200..they both outstanding and amazing cars…if I hv money this is the car I will definitely buying..wait next 2 years or so this newest model grs210 will come to our shores and this black athelete will smoke any of the conti cars out there..haha

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 6 Thumb down 0
  • Like the Athlete G , will order the 2.5 G spec , just wonder the 200bhp is not sufficient for the 1.8ton load
    Fear front look , but camry tail lamp look

    lets try next week

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
 

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