Toyota has just introduced a new Century. This is a big deal. The Toyota Century is the most exclusive car in Japan. Introduced in 1967 and named for the 1
NEW YORK – Toyota has just introduced a new Century. This is a big deal. The Toyota Century is the most exclusive car in Japan. Introduced in 1967 and named for the 100th birthday of company founder Sakichi Toyoda, the Century defines top-tier Japanese luxury, the kind reserved for heads of state, chief executive officers — and yakuza bosses. It is so iconic as a status symbol that it is exempt from stringent national restrictions on vehicle and engine size. It cannot even be purchased in a typical dealership, but only at specialized stores, and only by invitation. The Emperor is chauffeured around in a modified Century.
Stately, formal, and very conservative, the model has gone through only two generations in the 50 years since its inception. This is an eon in the automotive world, where a standard car generally lasts just six or seven years. Even the Rolls-Royce Phantom, which evolves at a glacial pace, recently saw generational change after a dozen model years.
Of course, on first glance. you’d be hard-pressed to tell the difference between the old Century and the new one. This is intentional. A car with this level of cultural import must be recognized immediately for what it is, and the new car cannot render the old one archaic or irrelevant.
“Tokyo undergoes more trends and fashion movements than probably any (other) city on Earth, but there are select things the Japanese respect as tradition,” says Ben Hsu, editor in chief and founder of the authoritative Japanese domestic-market vehicle site Japanese Nostalgic Car. “The Century is one of them. The overall design has remained largely unchanged and immune to the latest styling trends.”
While it looks remarkably similar to the outgoing car, the third-generation Century actually features all-new bodywork. Look closely, and you will notice that it is slightly more formal in the angle of its front end, slightly more recumbent in the tilt of its windshield, and slightly thicker in its rear pillar, the better to protect the identities of its back-seat occupants (Centuries are most often chauffeured). It is also a smidgen longer, wider and lower, for ease of graceful entry and exit.
Inside, the car remains the same in many ways as well. Why mess with the hushed perfection of textured headliners, hand-knit lace antimacassars and privacy curtains, and expanses of clean-grain wood on the door trim, armrests and writing table.
