Motoring Icons: Commercial Heroes - Toyota Crown Comfort
04 Jun 2024|5,140 views
After almost 20 years plying Singapore roads, the Toyota Crown Comfort (LXS12) Taxis are no longer a sight on the roads here since September 2014. With almost two decades of presence, most Singaporeans could probably picture how these things look like without the need for any visual prompting - that's just how iconic these cars are.
So, this time round, the Motoring Icon that we are diving into isn't a fancy JDM sports car nor is it a special race car. Instead, we are training our sights on the Toyota Crown Comfort.
Powertrain
Engine: 5L 2,985 cc in-line four Single-Cam diesel
Horsepower: 90bhp at 4,000rpm
Torque: 191Nm at 2,400rpm
Drivetrain layout: Front-engine, rear-wheel drive
History of the Toyota Crown Comfort
Not to be confused with the Toyota Crown, which is a lineup of luxury cars from the brand, the Crown Comfort is specially designed for fleet use - such as taxis and for driving schools in Japan.
Prior to the Crown Comfort, Singapore's taxis were mainly made up of the Nissan Cedric and Toyota Crown (S120 and S130). The S130 Crown was powered by a 2.4-litre diesel engine with a four-speed column-mounted manual transmission.
The Toyota Comfort and the long-wheelbase Crown Comfort (what we got as taxis in Singapore, albeit with the nameplate simplified to just Crown - I will continue to refer to it as the Crown Comfort for clarity's sake) were introduced to replace Toyota's previous fleet-use specific sedans - the Mark II and the S130 Crown. Despite its name, the Crown Comfort is actually more closely related to the X80 Toyota Mark II than the Crown.
Singapore wasn't the only country that used these Toyotas as taxis - the Crown Comfort taxis can also be seen in Hong Kong and Japan in their respective iconic liveries.
Allure - a purpose-built vehicle made for transporting passengers
While the decision to drive a Crown Comfort wasn't something that was made by the drivers - the taxi company such as ComfortDelGro chose them - there is something special about these cars that made them the ideal choice for the job.
Introduced in December 1995, the Crown Comfort was developed primarily to be used as taxis and driving school learner cars. While its exterior looks similar to the Crown, the Crown Comfort was built upon the Mark II sedan and specially designed for maximum rear passenger space and comfort.
To ensure maximum space, the Crown Comfort has a long wheelbase of 2,785mm and is rather lengthy at 4,695mm - generously sized even by today's standards. To put it into perspective, the recently launched Aion Y Plus, which is lauded for its interior space, has a wheelbase of 2,750mm and a total length of 4,535mm. This resulted in massive legroom for the rear passengers.
Furthermore, the car was designed specifically with a boxy roofline that ends with C-pillars that are decidedly upright - all to ensure maximum headroom and ease of entry and exit for the rear passengers.
The Crown Comfort wasn't attractive in the typical way, it wasn't powerful, nor was its design sleek and premium, but it checked all the right boxes for its main purpose as a taxi.
Cultural significance - decades of presence as taxis
The Crown Comfort is no movie star, it wasn't raced, nor was it driven by any famous people, but it is a car that almost every Singaporean, Japanese and Hong Konger would be able to identify immediately due to its prominent use as taxis in these regions.
Despite being driven extensively due to their nature as taxis, the Crown Comfort was known to be reliable - many of them chalked up incredible mileage over their years of operation, with the highest recorded example being an SMRT taxi that travelled more than two million kilometres!
When it comes to passengers, if you have ever sat in one, you would probably still remember that pandan fragrance. That was the result of the common practice by taxi drivers to leave a bunch of them in the car as a natural air-freshener. You would also remember just how substantial the rear legroom was - I could put my school bag between my legs and the front seats and there was still wiggle space!
Now, you might find it a little weird that a car enthusiast like me has chosen to hone in on a boring, pedestrian taxi. Well, you got me! For unknown reasons, TRD (Toyota Racing Development) came up with a limited production high-performance version of the short-wheelbase Comfort - the TRD Comfort GT-Z Supercharger. With just a total of 59 units, these cars are extremely rare. Equipped with the 3S-FE 2.0-litre in-line four engine that can be found on the base Comfort, TRD fitted a supercharger to it, increasing its power output to 158bhp and 221Nm of torque!
There’s no easy way to get one of these…
As they are only ever used as taxis in Singapore, there aren't any privately-owned examples of the Crown Comfort here. Taxis are only allowed to be used on Singapore's roads for eight years, and would have to be disposed of after. With the last of these Crown Comforts taken off the roads almost 10 years ago, there aren't any left here.
There might be a possibility of importing a used Crown Comfort to be registered under the classic vehicle scheme, however, that would require the car to be 35 years or older. As the Crown Comfort was introduced in 1995, the earliest that you could potentially register one to drive on our roads would be in six years' time.
Enjoyed reading about the iconic Crown Comfort? Here are some other interesting reads
Motoring Icons: JDM Legends - Toyota Corolla AE86
After almost 20 years plying Singapore roads, the Toyota Crown Comfort (LXS12) Taxis are no longer a sight on the roads here since September 2014. With almost two decades of presence, most Singaporeans could probably picture how these things look like without the need for any visual prompting - that's just how iconic these cars are.
So, this time round, the Motoring Icon that we are diving into isn't a fancy JDM sports car nor is it a special race car. Instead, we are training our sights on the Toyota Crown Comfort.
Powertrain
Engine: 5L 2,985 cc in-line four Single-Cam diesel
Horsepower: 90bhp at 4,000rpm
Torque: 191Nm at 2,400rpm
Drivetrain layout: Front-engine, rear-wheel drive
History of the Toyota Crown Comfort
Not to be confused with the Toyota Crown, which is a lineup of luxury cars from the brand, the Crown Comfort is specially designed for fleet use - such as taxis and for driving schools in Japan.
Prior to the Crown Comfort, Singapore's taxis were mainly made up of the Nissan Cedric and Toyota Crown (S120 and S130). The S130 Crown was powered by a 2.4-litre diesel engine with a four-speed column-mounted manual transmission.
The Toyota Comfort and the long-wheelbase Crown Comfort (what we got as taxis in Singapore, albeit with the nameplate simplified to just Crown - I will continue to refer to it as the Crown Comfort for clarity's sake) were introduced to replace Toyota's previous fleet-use specific sedans - the Mark II and the S130 Crown. Despite its name, the Crown Comfort is actually more closely related to the X80 Toyota Mark II than the Crown.
Singapore wasn't the only country that used these Toyotas as taxis - the Crown Comfort taxis can also be seen in Hong Kong and Japan in their respective iconic liveries.
Allure - a purpose-built vehicle made for transporting passengers
While the decision to drive a Crown Comfort wasn't something that was made by the drivers - the taxi company such as ComfortDelGro chose them - there is something special about these cars that made them the ideal choice for the job.
Introduced in December 1995, the Crown Comfort was developed primarily to be used as taxis and driving school learner cars. While its exterior looks similar to the Crown, the Crown Comfort was built upon the Mark II sedan and specially designed for maximum rear passenger space and comfort.
To ensure maximum space, the Crown Comfort has a long wheelbase of 2,785mm and is rather lengthy at 4,695mm - generously sized even by today's standards. To put it into perspective, the recently launched Aion Y Plus, which is lauded for its interior space, has a wheelbase of 2,750mm and a total length of 4,535mm. This resulted in massive legroom for the rear passengers.
Furthermore, the car was designed specifically with a boxy roofline that ends with C-pillars that are decidedly upright - all to ensure maximum headroom and ease of entry and exit for the rear passengers.
The Crown Comfort wasn't attractive in the typical way, it wasn't powerful, nor was its design sleek and premium, but it checked all the right boxes for its main purpose as a taxi.
Cultural significance - decades of presence as taxis
The Crown Comfort is no movie star, it wasn't raced, nor was it driven by any famous people, but it is a car that almost every Singaporean, Japanese and Hong Konger would be able to identify immediately due to its prominent use as taxis in these regions.
Despite being driven extensively due to their nature as taxis, the Crown Comfort was known to be reliable - many of them chalked up incredible mileage over their years of operation, with the highest recorded example being an SMRT taxi that travelled more than two million kilometres!
When it comes to passengers, if you have ever sat in one, you would probably still remember that pandan fragrance. That was the result of the common practice by taxi drivers to leave a bunch of them in the car as a natural air-freshener. You would also remember just how substantial the rear legroom was - I could put my school bag between my legs and the front seats and there was still wiggle space!
Now, you might find it a little weird that a car enthusiast like me has chosen to hone in on a boring, pedestrian taxi. Well, you got me! For unknown reasons, TRD (Toyota Racing Development) came up with a limited production high-performance version of the short-wheelbase Comfort - the TRD Comfort GT-Z Supercharger. With just a total of 59 units, these cars are extremely rare. Equipped with the 3S-FE 2.0-litre in-line four engine that can be found on the base Comfort, TRD fitted a supercharger to it, increasing its power output to 158bhp and 221Nm of torque!
There’s no easy way to get one of these…
As they are only ever used as taxis in Singapore, there aren't any privately-owned examples of the Crown Comfort here. Taxis are only allowed to be used on Singapore's roads for eight years, and would have to be disposed of after. With the last of these Crown Comforts taken off the roads almost 10 years ago, there aren't any left here.
There might be a possibility of importing a used Crown Comfort to be registered under the classic vehicle scheme, however, that would require the car to be 35 years or older. As the Crown Comfort was introduced in 1995, the earliest that you could potentially register one to drive on our roads would be in six years' time.
Enjoyed reading about the iconic Crown Comfort? Here are some other interesting reads
Motoring Icons: JDM Legends - Toyota Corolla AE86
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