Toyota Century trademarks hint at Aussie plans

The Toyota LandCruiser Sahara ZX could be usurped as the biggest and most opulent SUV in the Japanese brand’s Australian model range in the coming years, following a pair of local trademark filings by Toyota Motor Corporation related to the ultra-luxurious Toyota Century.

Traditionally a full-size limousine, the Toyota Century was reimagined as a Rolls-Royce Cullinan-baiting upper-large premium SUV last year and while it’s primarily aimed at the Japanese market, the Century SUV was never completely ruled out for global release.

And now both the Century nameplate and its corresponding Pheonix emblem have been trademarked independently of one another with IP Australia.

Toyota head office submitted the applications on December 27 exclusively under Class 12 (automobiles and structural parts thereof), which suggests that plans for a local introduction are still being mulled over – rather than being locked in.

If it does end up being offered Down Under, the 2024 Toyota Crown SUV would comfortably become the most expensive Toyota product offered here to date.

And while the upcoming Tundra pick-up might be bigger, the Crown would be the indisputable flagship for Australia’s top auto brand, with an asking price likely to be well north of $250,000.

The big rig rides on Toyota’s front-biased TNGA-K architecture and is powered by a 3.5-litre V6 petrol-electric plug-in hybrid system outputting a combined 303kW of power and driving all four wheels via a continuously variable transmission (CVT).

Concrete performance figures are still sorely lacking at this stage, but we do know the Crown will travel up to 69km on electric power alone according to the Japanese WLTC test cycle and consume 7.1L/100km when operating as a traditional hybrid once the battery’s flat.

Adaptive dampers are fitted at all four corners, paired with a variable all-wheel drive system to deliver a journey as cosseting as possible, leaving passengers to sit back and relax in the reclining, massaging and power-adjustable rear seats.

Other headline appointments include an automatic step for easier ingress and egress, dual control panels that can double as a mobile device, LED work lights, climate control, an 11.6-inch entertainment system for each seat, 18-speaker audio system, dimmable privacy glass, LED ambient lighting and a panoramic glass roof, among others.

“Among the next generation of public figures and global professionals, there are those who conduct meetings while they travel, while others want to relax and recharge before their next business engagement,” said chief engineer Yoshikazu Tanaka of the Crown SUV at its Japanese launch.

“To evolve as a chauffeur-driven vehicle, we therefore felt that the Century needed spacious, functional rear seating – in other words, new value in the form of space and function.”

Toyota Australia is yet to express any public interest in the Century SUV, though executives have spoken previously about wanting to avoid any major overlap or competition with Lexus in reference to the lesser new Toyota Crown sedan.