Toyota will further expand its Chinese lineup with the addition of the new Land Cruiser J250 and the Crown Sedan. The models appeared on official teasers by FAW Toyota ahead of their local debut at the 2023 Guangzhou Auto Show on November 17. The Toyota Crown Sedan was recently launched in Japan, looking identical to the prototype from last year. The Chinese-spec version appears to share the exterior design with the Japanese model, with changes likely limited to the emblems. The low-slung body of the model with the generous wheelbase of 3,000 mm could attract the attention of Chinese buyers who still love sedans with great rear-passenger comfort.
At the moment, there is no information
about the powertrain lineup in China; In Japan, the Crown Sedan is available in
hybrid and FCEV forms, priced from ¥ 7.3 million (US$ 48,300) and ¥ 8.3 million
(US$ 54,900) respectively. As for the Toyota Land Cruiser Prado, we don’t know the
powertrains for the Chinese market but chances are they will be among the
petrol, hybrid, and diesel options already offered in other regions.
Another question mark remains on whether
the Crown Sedan and the Land Cruiser Prado will be manufactured in FAW‘s
Tianjin Plant in China. While most FAW Toyota models are locally produced,
there are a few imports including the Crown Crossover which is sold under the
Crown SportCross moniker in China.
As with all foreign automakers, Toyota
maintains two joint ventures in China, with FAW and GAC. It remains to be seen
if GAC Toyota will unveil its own version of the Land Cruiser Prado and Crown
Sedan sometime in the future. Note that several models including the Corolla,
Corolla Cross, C-HR, RAV4, Highlander, and bZ4x are offered by both FAW and GAC
in the Chinese market, using different names and slightly different
configurations.
