TOKYO (AP) 鈥� Toyota鈥檚 flagship model in Japan, the Crown, is going on sale around the world for the first time, including in the U.S.
鈥淚鈥檓 so excited to announce today that this new Crown family of vehicles will be offered not just in Japan but globally for the very first time,鈥� its Chief Executive Akio Toyoda told reporters Friday.
鈥淎 car that could very well be our crowning achievement.鈥�
The 16th generation Crown, set to begin production in January, comes in four varieties 鈥� a crossover with a hybrid system; a sedan that is most similar to the Crowns seen on Japanese streets; a sport-utility vehicle and a wagon crossover called the 鈥渆state,鈥� the company said.
The Crown will go on sale in 40 nations, with Toyota Motor Corp. aiming for 200,000 vehicles in annual global sales. The cheapest version starts at 4.35 million yen ($31,000) in Japan.
Toyota, Japan's top automaker, sells about 10 million vehicles globally a year. It has a successful global luxury lineup called Lexus, whose cheapest models sell for about $35,000 in the U.S.
The Crown鈥檚 history parallels the rise of Toyota and of the modern Japanese economy, with the first sedan going on sale in Japan in 1955. 鈥淪ome day a Crown,鈥� was a tagline over the years. But the cars are not well-known abroad.
Toyoda called the Crown 鈥渢he pride of Japan.鈥� Company founder Kiichiro Toyoda, his grandfather, came up with the name.
鈥淣othing will make me happier than Japan鈥檚 Crown becoming loved by everyone around the world,鈥� said Toyoda.
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Yuri Kageyama is on Twitter https://twitter.com/yurikageyama
Yuri Kageyama, The Associated Press
