Johannesburg - As more and more buyers flock to higher-riding vehicles like SUVs and bakkies, we are seeing some interesting new crossover creations emerge.
One such example is the new Toyota Crown revealed in Japan last year, which is set to hit South Africa in limited numbers later this year.
Although sold alongside a new sedan version that won’t be exported, the Toyota Crown crossover seeks to combine some of the design elements of of a sedan and SUV in a sporty fastback format.
And there could be more vehicles like the Crown on the horizon, Toyota’s design boss Simon Humphries has hinted.
In an interview with IOL, Humphries said “Yes, I do think there will be more of those type of vehicles, but there is also a place for a low-down, sporty type of vehicle, and there will continue to be because it’s so practical from a driving point of view.
“So I think what will happen is that we'll just diversify and they'll coexist. But up until now maybe the sedan was the majority, I don't think that will be the case in the future.”
Humphries believes there are two types of sedan buyer. One of these seeks a sporty car with a lower centre of gravity and the other wants something smart, formal and business-like.
“So the main point is how to evolve the car for those types of people, I don't think that changes. There are people who wear suits or are smart all the time, then there's people who wear jeans and a T-Shirt, and that's down to your own sense of values.
“So what we're trying to do is to, with that new Crown for example, is to ensure that it still looks smart, it still looks well dressed if you like, but it's also giving someone a new experience within that.
“We don't want to abandon what those customers might believe in but we want to give them a new experience that builds on that.”
Humphreys attended Toyota South Africa’s State of the Motor Industry event via livestream earlier this year and reiterated that the automotive industry was undergoing an unprecedented period of upheaval, which would have a significant effect on car design.
“Where we used to have only one powertrain, now we have five; where we used to be isolated, now we are connected; where ownership was dominated by privately owned cars, now sharing is finding a foothold,” the design chief said.
“Driving used to be all about the driver, but now we are increasingly supported in the operation of the vehicle, and where there was only steel, now materials and production technologies make it possible to create almost anything that we can imagine.
“Put very bluntly, just about every factor that influences design is undergoing a paradigm shift,” Humphreys concluded.
As mentioned, the Toyota Crown is set to reach South Africa later this year but numbers will be extremely limited due to stock constraints. However, the company is aiming to import a larger quantity of the new crossover in 2024.
The Crown is powered by a 2.4-litre E-Four Hybrid drivetrain that offers a system output of 176kW, and Toyota is claiming a combined fuel consumption figure of just 4.4 litres per 100km.
Pricing and specifications will be revealed closer to launch.