Over the past few months, America has gone crazy over one Japanese car in particular. It’s the Toyota Century, a luxury limo designed for CEOs and high-ranking state officials. This V12-powered JDM Maybach is currently available for import Stateside, but what we really want to buy is the upcoming 2024 Toyota Century SUV.
That’s right, there’s going to be a Century SUV. Toyota successfully transformed the Crown sedan into a family of vehicles which includes a crossover. And so the Century 4×4 makes perfect sense.
Some of the most desirable and expensive luxury vehicles are SUVs, including but not limited to the Rolls-Royce Cullinan, Bentley Bentayga, and especially the long-wheelbase Range Rover. In fact, many flagship models are now SUVs, and the Century SUV could be a hit if Toyota ever decided to bring it to the United States. Many famous YouTubers own the limo version, including James Engelsman from Throttle House.
A new chapter for Toyota
Toyota has already talked about the Century crossover. The model is less than a year away from its debut and sightings occur more frequently. A Japanese rival to the Rolls-Royce Cullinan seems crazy at first, but there’s a genuine need in Asia for a luxury SUV that’s not made in Europe or America.
News of the Century SUV broke in January when the Japanese website Best Car Web broke the story. According to them, the new Toyota luxury flagship would debut towards the end of the year. However, it probably won’t be delivered until 2024. These rendered images from Kolesa offer an early preview of this classy JDM 4×4.
We predict that the car will be among the most expensive Toyota offers. The Century sedan is currently sold for 20,080,000 yen ($151,412) in Japan, and there’s also a “Royal Edition” of the LM minivan offered for around $210,000.
2024 Century SUV: platform, specs
The Century SUV is said to ride on the same TNGA-K platform as the Toyota Grand Highlander, which already has a luxury cousin, the Lexus TX. While that doesn’t sound like a suitable platform for a Rolls-Royce rival, Toyota undoubtedly has the best engineers on the job. Their reputation is literally riding on this car.
The Century is named in honor of Sakichi Toyoda, the company’s founder who was turning 100 years old when the sedan was first introduced in the 1960s. Toyota calls this a “halo product” and the Century is a core part of Japanese culture. There’s even a 1987 Century in the hit show Tokyo Vice, which is why we think the SUV looks like a yakuza car, especially in black.
The Century crossover model is likely similar in size to the TX and Grand Highlander. We predict that it measures somewhere between 200 and 204 inches from bumper to bumper (over 5.1 meters). And it should have a 116-inch wheelbase (2950mm).
The main differences are going to be the styling, which will be more retro, and the 4- or 5-seat interior layout. For powertrains, it’s possible that a hybrid system will be borrowed from other Toyota models. The 2.4-liter turbo of the Lexus TX would obviously fit, but based on our intel, a hybrid V6 will be offered for reliability, later joined by an EV.
