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Toyota is a titan. Last year, it built some 10.5 million vehicles and earned over $400 billion in revenue globally.
What many people may not know, though, is the sheer volume of diversity underpinning such numbers. For every sensible Yaris, Corolla, Camry, RAV4, LandCruiser, HiLux and HiAce there are some pretty niche and even out-there models.
Here, then, are five cool, contemporary Toyotas that Australians are denied access to.
Time to start petitioning your local dealer!
Toyota Prius 5: the original hybrid finally gets it together
Did Toyota drop the Prius line in Australia before it laid eyes on the latest version?
As stunning as its gothic predecessor was like a poke in the eye, the world's original breakthrough hybrid now has the style and elegance to frighten many premium-branded alternatives.
There's even a plug-in hybrid (PHEV) version for people not quite ready to take the plunge with EVs like the Tesla Model 3 or Hyundai Ioniq 5.
We already know Prius 5 is a great drive as this is essentially a reclothed and more powerful evolution of the sweet-driving 2016 model (which, fun fact, was the first with the vaunted TNGA Toyota New Global Architecture), so why can't Australians get to enjoy a dynamic Prius with haute – rather than horror – couture?
C'mon, Toyota. The 2023 Prius would knock it right out of the park.
Toyota Sienta: the world's most desirable urban runabout?
Like the Prius, the previous Sienta was an awkward styling exercise that best stayed in Japan, but the third-gen version unveiled back in August is another aesthetic knockout from Toyota. There's clearly something in the water in Nagoya.
Looking like the lovechild of a Volkswagen Up, Fiat Panda and Citroen C3 Picasso, its happy face, tallboy proportions, stepless flat floor, 5+2-seater packaging, sliding side doors and smooth detailing is just the elixir for the many thousands of Australians left high and dry now that the Honda Jazz age is over.
Under that boxy skin is, you've guessed it, more TNGA goodness – this time courtesy of the compact GA-B platform nicked from the popular Yaris Cross, complete with three-pot hybrid eco powertrains and very tidy road manners.
Toyota reckons this car is designed to make each life stage easier. Smooth, comfy, refined and fun to drive, the 2023 Sienta needs to enter Australia, pronto. Especially if somebody decides to slide in a GR Yaris chassis underneath...
Toyota Crown Crossover: boldly evolving the old sedan theme
Like its Netflix show namesake, Toyota's Crown conjures up memories of a stately mid-20th Century sedan.
But this millennium's 16th descendent of the 1955 original is less Princess Margaret and more Meghan Markle, with an American-style makeover of epic proportions. Literally, thanks to the fusion of SUV road stance and a liftback bodystyle. Yet another Toyota stunner, then.
But wait, there's more. Like the British monarchy, Toyota has enough in its war chest to have also funded an unfeasibly attractive Outback-esque wagon (obviously to be badged the 'Crown Estate'), a more formal low-riding fastback sedan and an upright SUV as well. The latter three are still in development and so are debuting at a later date.
One of Series 16's crowning achievements is its Toyota-first turbo-hybrid AWD system, featuring a 2.4-litre petrol engine and 'eAxle' electric motor with a bipolar nickel-hydrogen battery, for punchy yet parsimonious performance. It's available as a step-up from the standard series-parallel hybrid set-up.
Combined with a sophisticated TNGA-GAK platform lurking underneath, all members of the 2023 Crown are ultra-modern, Lexus-like in presentation (the latest NX and RX SUVs are close relatives), and very in keeping with nearly 70 years of established Toyota large-car fundamentals... luxury, presence and quality.
We imagine this is what a 2024 Holden Commodore or Ford Falcon would have evolved into if the Americans had this level of resources.
Toyota Aygo X: Toyota shows the Euros how to do city-car chic
Thank you, Toyota, for believing in the sub-B supermini city car concept (along with Kia and Fiat) when so many others – including Ford, Opel, Renault and Peugeot – have thrown in the towel.
As we've banged on before, the Aygo X is essentially a shrunken current-gen Yaris underneath a strikingly-designed body that's very in keeping with the street-smart attitude of classic French city cars like the original Renault Twingo of 1992. The difference is, being the crossover-crazy 2020s, this Toyota possesses a modicum of extra ride height. Hence the X reference.
That TNGA GA-B engineering connection ushers in impressive levels of standard safety gear, as well as an agile and enjoyable driving experience, while a spirited 1.0-litre there-cylinder petrol engine helps keep running costs down.
European reviews suggest that the base Pure is all the Aygo X you'll ever need, but as this Toyota hails from the Czech Republic, don't hold your breath for an Australian arrival anytime soon. What a shame.
Toyota JPN Taxi: A fare go?
Now for something completely different.
If Kia Motors Australia sees the potential in importing the Niro PBV (Purpose Built Vehicle – essentially an elongated and raised version of the previous-model eco hatch) for the booming ride-share market Downunder, then surely Toyota could do the same with the intriguing JPN Taxi.
It's all in the name, with a very London taxi-like silhouette that clearly prioritises passenger room, comfort and convenience. Aiding these are an extra-wide sliding left-hand-side rear door (the other three are conventionally hinged), deep windows, a sizeable cargo capacity and stratospheric headroom.
While the resulting five-door wagon's looks might be described as ungainly or even awkward, this is a tool-for-task vehicle that we reckon Australian ride-share organisations might be crying out for.
Crucially, the JPN Taxi is also cheap to run, thanks to a 1.5-litre four-cylinder petrol-electric hybrid powertrain similar to that found in the now-defunct Prius C sold here last decade. Such, ahem, proven tech helps keep the Toyota relatively affordable.
Created to replace the legions of 80s-era Toyota Crown and Nissan Cedric taxis that are true icons of Japan, the aptly-badged JPN Taxi could do the same for the Camrys and remaining Ford Falcon workhorses still plying our roads.
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