The Nissan president reacted to the Toyota Crown then Toyota reacted with a Century

In 1967, Toyota launched the Century after Nissan reacted with a Nissan President to the 1964 Toyota Crown 8, a large, 2.6-liter V-8-powered four-door built to stop the use of foreign luxury cars.

For the chauffeur-driven buyers, a vehicle "tailor-made" to the customer's requirements. Toyota will launch a new Century SUV which will be sold alongside the brand's Century sedan, it will be a global model, unlike the sedan which is primarily sold in Japan.

With the new Century SUV that comes with seating for only four, sports a lavish interior, and is even available with trick sliding doors. Apparently it is based on Toyota's modular TNGA platform. Two model variants will be on offer when the Century SUV launches: a standard one and a sporty looking GR-badged version. Both come exclusively with four seats. A large infotainment screen on the dash taken from Lexus and the SUV comes with a Century badge rather than a Toyota.

Rear seats slide and recline and feature massive armrests with dual Windows-based tablets and entertainment screens. It comes with optional sliding rear doors. The Century SUV features a laminated glass partition that separates the rear cabin from the cargo area. Toyota Century SUV could rival the likes of the Bentley Bentayga and Rolls-Royce Cullinan but with a lower price tag.

A 406-horsepower 3.5-liter V6 plug-in hybrid, providing “exhilarating acceleration performance” - but the actual performance figures haven’t been revealed yet. The hybrid 5.0-litre V8 option from the saloon hasn’t been carried over. There’s also four-wheel steering, all-wheel drive.