2023 Toyota Crown Review: Odd to Consider, Easy to Live With

We drove the hot Toyota the hip “younger empty nesters” are raving about.

Published December 7, 2023

The Crown sedan is Toyota’s longest-running nameplate, dating back to 1955. The Crown — not the Land Cruiser — was the first Toyota imported to the United States. But you can be forgiven for never having heard of it, as Toyota has kept it out of the American market for the last 50 years. But now — for the first time since Don Henley first wanted to discuss a witchy woman with you — the Crown has returned to America.

Toyota has dropped the Avalon, its full-size droopy-dad sedan, from the lineup, replacing it with the Crown — which is sort of an automotive enigma. It’s not the Crown sedan, which isn’t coming to America, and it’s not the SUV, which will be coming to the U.S. as the Crown Signia. No, the four-door Crown is somewhere inbetween. The Crown is a premium product — but carries Toyota, not Lexus, badging. And it feels both futuristic and — at a time when other manufacturers are launching seriously cool EVs — behind the times.

Toyota brought me to Nashville, home of country music and all the modern luxury condos, for a first-drive launch of the Crown. I later followed that up with a home loan of a Crown Platinum for a week in Michigan— where it grew on me.

The Toyota Crown: What We Think

I struggled with the Crown conceptually. What is it? Who is it for? Sedans appeal to more traditional buyers of a certain age. But with flashy looks that sprinkle in elements of SUV and hybrid powertrains, the Crown is anything but traditional. It’s spacious, practical and easy to get into — but not as much as a crossover would be.

Toyota said at the launch event that the Crown is targeting “younger side of empty nesters” — which feels like a narrow niche.

But once I got out of my head and embraced the Crown life for a week, I found the Crown quite easy to live with. It’s pleasant and comfortable for driving around town. You can opt for robust power with the Hybrid Max or impressive efficiency with the Toyota Hybrid System. Call it an Avalon for the modern (but not too modern) age.

The Crown is excellent for normal driving, but not too sporty

On the first drive event, Toyota directed us to a golf course outside of Nashville, where I spent a day driving several variants of Crown on a 30-minute loop of curvy back roads, stately homes and one gentleman selling ammunition out of his pickup truck along the roadside. We avoided the suffocating Nashville traffic … though traffic is where the Crown’s best qualities would have stood out more.

The acoustic glass delivers the promised quietness. The soft-tuned suspension, even on the Platinum’s giant 21-inch wheels, keeps road bumps out of the cabin. If you’re measured with your inputs with both versions, your drive will be mostly smooth sailing.

The Crown is not particularly fun to drive with vigor. It handles its prodigious weight — it’s 800 pounds heavier than a Camry, and approaching a 4Runner in mass — well. And it takes a direct line through corners. But Toyota doesn’t give you a sport seat, so slosh around. And Toyota’s Proactive Driving Assist steps in to kindly but firmly slow your roll, which can get annoying if you drive like a car journalist.

The Hybrid Max is fun, but the THS is super-efficient

The Crown offers two engines; both are solid options. The 2.4-liter Hybrid Max powertrain (also used in the Grand Highlander) felt smoother and more powerful than the typical Toyota hybrid I was used to. Having 400 lb-ft of torque on tap absolves a lot of sins, even if it does come with a bit of lag. And it’s reasonably efficient, delivering 30 mpg combined.

The 2.5-liter THS setup is the more Prius-like hybrid. And as in other Toyota vehicles, it’s fine. It’s fit for purpose and adequately powerful when cruising, but it becomes progressively more depressing the harder you hit the gas pedal. A hill at the start of our drive route at the launch event that the Hybrid Max gamely powered up elicited an immediate and heartfelt groan from the THS and CVT. But on the plus side, it gets an extra 11 mpg from every gallon of gas.

The Crown’s exterior did attract a crowd.

The Crown was not my cup of tea aesthetically. The hints at sportiness don’t quite line up with its longer proportions. The two-tone black paint extends beyond the roof to a broad swatch of the vehicle’s front and rear. And “Bronze Age” probably wouldn’t have been my first (or even fifth) color choice.

However, the Crown did seem to appeal to its target demographic. I spent about 15 minutes in my local park with the Crown, taking pictures on a weekday afternoon. During that brief span, three couples from the target demographic came in for a closer look and asked me about it. The Bronze paint color proved a particular hit.

But the Crown’s interior is not quite as exciting

The Crown sticks to the Toyota playbook inside. It has Toyota’s fancy new infotainment system; Limited and Platinum trim Crowns get leather seats; and it commendably still provides physical buttons for several functions. But there isn’t much to consider from a design or materials perspective. It’s basic and boring; if you want fancy, plunk down for a Lexus.

But the interior is comfortable and spacious. The seat height provides a relatively ergonomic transition (great for “younger empty nesters”) from standing compared to a low-slung sedan. And there’s ample space in the rear window seats, whether you’re a six-foot-tall adult or a child in a car seat.

What are some Toyota Crown alternatives?

This is a tough one. There isn’t really anything like the Crown on the market. Full-size sedans no longer exist outside the luxury realm.

Toyota suggested the Nissan Maxima and Kia Stinger as rivals. Both of those cars and the Chrysler 300 have been discontinued for 2024. The Volkswagen Arteon is returning for 2024, but that will be its last year. In the Crown’s defense, none of those vehicles were hybrids.

The best alternative for a sleek, luxurious hybrid sedan in the $40,000 to $50,000 range, may be within the Toyota range with the Lexus ES hybrid ($44,590), which earns 44 mpg combined.

The 2023 Toyota Crown Platinum

Powertrain: Turbocharged 2.4-liter inline-four hybrid; six-speed automatic; AWD
Horsepower: 340
Torque: 400 lb-ft
EPA Fuel Economy: 29 mpg city, 32 mpg highway
Seats: 5

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