Ian Schmidt
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I gotta admit, the retro 80s styling of that thing speaks to me. Just not as much as the new LS does.
I gotta admit, the retro 80s styling of that thing speaks to me. Just not as much as the new LS does.
Funny how time can change your perspectives.
For some reason, I still vividly recall the debut of the original Toyota Century in 1967. (I guess it was one of those Random Access Memories Daft Punk sang about a few years ago). I was just 11 years old and had been living in Spain for just a few months. Even as a child, I was as much an incurable car geek as I am now. I recall buying a magazine with coverage of the 1967 Tokyo Motor Show (though I don't recall if said magazine was British, Spanish or French. I lean towards the latter). One of the right-hand pages had a 2 x 3 grid of 6 photos of the cars that debuted there. Only 2 still stick in my mind, though: the 3rd-gen Toyota Crown and the Century, in black as it always is. I remember intensely disliking it, a stodgy, large car that reminded me of a bad enlarged copy of a Studebaker Lark.
Now, the 3rd-generation comes out, and I find myself totally loving it. It's still unmistakably a Toyota Century, but subtly modernized in all the right places and in such details as the headlight contours, grille proportions, a greenhouse that is ever so slightly more raked and moved back, and lower side chrome trim that looks to have a bit more of a modern matte finish and is not as tall as it used to be.
Despite the lack of a "coolness" factor, today's designers tend to forget now much sense those retro-sedan designs made, with the square, three-box styling.....high rooflines for headroom and ease of entry/exit, roomy cargo areas, large and easy-to-accomodate trunk lids, good outward visibility from the drivers' seat, easy cleaning of inside windows, and more room under the hood to reach and service the engine and its components. Today's Humpback-Whale, Jelly-Bean-shape, 4-door coupe-wanna-bes may look sleek, but with that slick look also comes a number of trade-offs.
Something I learned all over again the other day when my loaner (the LS turned 25,000) was an NX200T. I swear they didn't even try to make it so it was drivable by people over 5'9" or so.
A hybrid system with a full-on 2UR? Now *that's* what the LC hybrid should've had.
View the original article postJapan-only limousine gets first update in 21 years.
I wonder why it has such long front and rear overhangs. The proportions don't look right for a longitudinal vehicle (more like transverse FWD). Usually a 5300 mm long car should have a 3300 mm long wheelbase...
my wish is that lexus have a ultra luxury brand (LEXUS CENTURY):heart_eyes::heart_eyes::heart_eyes::heart_eyes: