Toyota Debuts Ultra-Luxurious SUV Convertible For Sumo Champion

At the launch of the Rolls Royce Cullinan-rivaling Century SUV last summer, Toyota teased a convertible version of its ultra-luxurious vehicle when it flashed a photograph to the assembled media. Last Saturday in Tokyo, that Century SUV convertible made its global premiere when it appeared in front of the Kokugikan stadium where the year’s first Grand Sumo Tournament kicked off on Sunday. The one-off convertible has been specially prepared as a parade car for the tournament’s winning Sumo wrestler to ride in after capturing victory in the 15-day event. The topless four-door SUV was created at the request of retired Grand Sumo champion Hakuho, who won a record-beating 45 tournaments over a 20 year career. Toyota Chairman, Akio Toyoda, who appeared next to Hakuho at the launch, said that he had proposed a new Toyota Crown convertible for champions to enjoy their parade lap. But Hakuho had in stead strongly suggested “a Century” given that it is Toyota’s most luxurious vehicle. And when the most successful Sumo wrestler in history suggests something that could positively impact your brand’s status, well, you listen.“When Hakuho made that recommendation, I spoke to our product planning and engineers and we made it happen. And here it is.” said Toyoda. To be fair, given that this new Century was designed as an SUV, the convertible version you see here is the absolute best-looking conversion possible. When you start cutting off B- and C-pillars, you radically alter the look and feel of the car, especially if it’s not a sleek, low-slung sports car that normally suits topless designs. Rolls Royce would never do this to their Cullinan SUV, and neither would Range Rover or Bentley for that matter. But it somehow works with this Toyota. At first glance, the Century convertible does look chunky and a little awkward, but it has a distinct purpose—to make the winning Sumo wrestler look good during his parade run, or should we call it a ‘crawl’ given the low speeds during the run. The bottom line is that the Century looks more stately than a Crown convertible in its glossy white paint, bespoke cream-colored interior and multi-spoke wheels. As a dedicated topless parade vehicle, the rear seats have been replaced with a simple, yet tasteful, and heavily reinforced two passenger bench arrangement that has the winning wrestler essentially sitting at rear deck level. When you lose your B- and C-pillar, you also lose body rigidity. So it was important for Toyota engineers to beef up not only the body rigidity but more importantly the convertible’s rear suspension, which will have to support the weight of two wrestlers sitting in the back— combined weight that could clear 700 pounds. The winning wrestler is normally accompanied on his parade run by his understudy. While no mention was made of the car’s powertrain, we think it’s safe to assume that the all-wheel-drive will deliver sufficient grip while the stock 3. All data is taken from the source: http://forbes.com Article Link: https://www.forbes.com/sites/peterlyon/2024/01/18/rolls-royce-would-never-make-a-cullinan-convertible-but-toyota-has/ #newscast #newstodayabc #cnnnewstoday #cnnnewstoday #bbcnewstoday #newsworldbbc #