We’d be just as remiss not to bring the longest-running nameplate in Toyota’s history. Born over 70 years ago, the Toyota Crown is still in production today. However, if we split that seventy years nearly perfectly in half and venture back to 1991, we land in the birth year of the ninth-generation Toyota Crown.
The highest trim level of the Toyota Crown sedan, the “Royal Saloon G,” had none other than the iconic Toyota 2JZ-GE under the hood. Interestingly, stepping down to the standard “Royal Saloon” trim netted a 1JZ engine, which is nearly as iconic as the 2JZ. Though neither of them was the sought-after turbocharged version, it is pretty cool that you could pick from either one in the same model. Of course, there’s no way buyers in 1991 could have known how iconic the engines would go on to become.
In 2001, Toyota released the tenth generation of the Toyota Crown, which also came with both 1JZ and 2JZ power. However, these two generations were the only models of the extensive Toyota Crown lineup to feature the legendary 2JZ engine.
