Thorough market research and adoption of new technologies
The Crown was the result of thorough market research and the adoption of several new technologies. One of them was the front-wheel independent suspension (double wishbone suspension), which is still used in luxury cars today.
This reduces vertical swaying on rough roads and greatly improves the ride quality. The semi-automatic automatic transmission named “Toyoglide” was also adopted for the first time in Japan. Automatic transmissions are commonplace today, but at the time, manual transmissions were still the norm, and the double-clutch system required the driver to shift into neutral and then carefully match the engine and gear rpm before shifting gears. It was quite a challenge.
The Toyoglide made it possible to shift gears directly by stepping on the clutch, just like today’s manual transmission cars. In order to survive, Toyota, which was still a weak manufacturer in the world, needed to absolutely differentiate itself from its rivals, and that meant adopting new technologies.
In addition, the first generation Crown had an easily recognizable feature, the suicide doors. These doors are now used in Rolls Royce models and have the great advantage of making it easier for rear passengers to get in and out.
As you can see from the use of those doors and their price starting from ¥1,014,860, which was more than 100 times the starting salary of a public servant at that time, the car was also a model that was strongly intended for fleet sales.
Success in Japan, defeat in the US
In 1956, Toyota conducted a challenge of driving the Crown 50,000 km (31,068 miles) from London to Tokyo. The success of that challenge made the car sold like hotcakes and soon became Toyota’s most popular car.
Confident that it was possible to produce a proper sedan in Japan, Toyota tried to export the Crown to the United States, the home of the automobile. However, the car, which boasted a top speed of 100 km/h (62 mph), was not well received in the United States as it was labeled as an underpowered car that could not even be driven on freeways.
The first generation Crown gave Japanese automakers the confidence that they could make proper luxury cars, but it also showed the difference in industrial power between the two countries.
