Toyota: Crown Is 'Not an Avalon Replacement'

Toyota is ridding the U.S. market of the Avalon full-size sedan and bringing to market the 2023 Toyota Crown car. But, the company is clear, one is not a replacement for the other.

The Japanese automaker introduced four versions of the new global model last week saying that the high-riding sedan version of the car would be available for sale to U.S. customers. The electrified model is only available as a hybrid in the States.

In an interview with Newsweek, Lisa Materazzo, group vice president of Toyota Division Marketing at Toyota Motor North America explained why the Crown is coming to North America after a 50-year absence and who the model is expected to appeal to.

"When we look at the sedan segment, although a lot of our competitors have been abandoning the segment, we've been very vocal about our commitment not only to sedans, but to electrification," Materazzo told Newsweek. "So, when we look at, from a buyer perspective, what the wants and needs are, we do see an opportunity to introduce a sedan that is reimagined, and that's exactly what the Crown is."

The model's proportions and body panels draw it stylistically closer to the Honda Crosstour, a vehicle ahead of its time when it debuted in 2010. Production of the Honda ceased just five years later.

The high-riding body style wasn't directly influenced by U.S. customers or Toyota's American design arm. The company says that it was more about remaking the Crown, a model 15 generations old, into something new and different.

"It makes a very bold styling statement. It has a performance story that goes along with it, and for a younger buyer - Gen X, older millennial - that's what they're looking for,"Materazzo said. "They're looking for a sedan that really fits with their lifestyle, They're independent thinkers and doers. They want a bold statement and this vehicle does that."

Those buyers, if marketing plans hold true to market realities, are younger than the Avalon customer. When the current generation of Avalon debuted in 2018, Toyota said that the average age of an Avalon owner is 66 years old.

Generation X is typically characterized as buyers born between 1965 and 1980 making the oldest member of the set 57 years old. Milennials were born between 1981 and 1996, with the youngest members being just 26 years young today.

Materazzo is clear, saying, "Crown is not a replacement for Avalon and when we look at product plans it is quite extensively that we look at it on a global basis. We have a product planning department that is constantly looking at the market and identifying market needs. Then we're collaborating with them, giving them the voice of the market and the voice of the consumer.

"So, there wasn't one single moment in time [when it was decided that Avalon was out and Crown was in]; it was really an evolution of, 'Is this a fit for the U.S. market?'"

U.S. sales of the Avalon peaked in 2013 with 70,990 units sold. In 2019, the last year before COVID-19-related restrictions hampered sales of all vehicles worldwide, Toyota sold just 27,767 of the models in the country.

Crown, Toyota's new car flagship model in the U.S., has interior design that is closer to what buyers will find in a Lexus, like the new Lexus NX, the company's luxury arm, than in a typical Camry or Corolla.

"When you look at the segment and you look at the expectations, especially with this younger buyer - high household income, very discriminating taste - we think that it fits perfectly. So, although we aren't a luxury brand, that's not to say that these buyers don't expect an elevated experience .... The vehicle is very sophisticated, very bold styling. There are several elements that make it a real standout," Materazzo said.

The 2023 Toyota Crown goes on sale in the U.S. later this year.