Toyota Century is the car for the coronation of Naruhito, the new Emperor of Japan

Japan has a new emperor, following the abdication of Akihito in favour of his son, Naruhito. A ceremony full of tradition that was carried out without incident and that had a supporting player, who was barely taken into account but who was of vital importance in getting the now new Emperor of Japan to the coronation venue. The Toyota Century was chosen to become the Emperor’s vehicle and became the focus of everyone’s attention. But what do we know about this spectacular Japanese model?

The Toyota Century is based on the Lexus LS of the previous generation, although it has been given a deliberate retro look and has a rather imposing and spectacular image. Its appearance offers the look expected of a presidential car or, in this case, of the Head of State of Japan. Luxury is present in the car, both on the exterior and the interior and, although it has not been made public, this car has surely been modified for the occasion, with additions suited to the Emperor’s security.

Since it launched on the market last year, the Toyota Century has been one of the most pampered cars from the Japanese brand, with production that never exceeds 50 units per month, in order to take care of even the smallest detail of its manufacture. The usual price of this model is around 160,000 euros, which already gives an idea of what to expect from this model.

The Toyota Century uses a hybrid V8 engine with a 5.0-litre combustion unit that delivers 425 CV and a maximum torque of 510 Nm. This is the case for the basic Toyota Century and, as I have already mentioned, this unit has probably been modified due to the important role it had to fulfil on this occasion.

The last luxury car used for a ceremony of this kind in Japan was a Rolls Royce Corniche Convertible. This car was used at the wedding of Emperor Akihito and Princess Masako, in 1993. This model was initially going to be used for this ceremony, but it was reported to be seriously damaged and could not be repaired because of the difficulty of finding spare parts. Thus, the Toyota Century, one of the most interesting luxury cars in Japan, has been the star of one of the historic moments of Japan.