This 1950s Toyota Model Was A Total Sales Failure In The US

Toyota is one of the biggest names in the American auto industry today. So, it might be surprising that the automaker's first attempt to sell passenger cars in the United States — also the first Japanese-made passenger vehicle offered to American consumers — was anything but a success. Though it's nowhere near the least reliable cars Toyota has put out, the Toyopet Crown has gone down in history as the company's first passenger car sold in the U.S. as well as its first major failure in the market.

It all started in 1957, when the Japanese automaker delivered the small sedan to the American market with high sales expectations. Per the company's own historical accounts, the car seemed like it would fit right in with its contemporary mid-century body styling. Besides, as Toyota UK Magazine pointed out, foreign-built compact cars were seeing their U.S. sales double annually during the 1950s. It was also already a success in Japan, having been introduced there just a couple years earlier in 1955 (and has since been credited with encouraging the country's subsequent auto industry growth as a whole).

Nevertheless, the Toyopet Crown formally went on sale in 1958 through five U.S. dealerships and quickly exposed just how different the U.S. market was from Toyota's usual clientele. Sales quickly fell flat — very flat — with just 287 cars sold in its first year.

A not-so-small issue with the Toyopet Crown was its price. The car came with a $1,999 price tag, making it about $500 more expensive than one of its primary competitors, the Volkswagen Beetle Deluxe Sedan. That same asking price would be about $23,586.65 in 2026 after adjusting for inflation, still nowhere near the most expensive vehicles Toyota makes. The other reasons for its disappointing sales were more practical in nature. The Crown simply wasn't designed for long-distance, fast American driving styles. Tests in 1957 also found that it struggled to maintain speed on U.S. freeways.

Despite selling fewer than 300 Crowns by the end of 1958, things looked a little more promising for Toyota when sales more than tripled to 967 cars the following year. The automaker even tried to keep the American market momentum going in 1960 by adding a wagon version and a larger, more powerful engine. Ultimately, however, sales fell to just 659 units, and Toyota reportedly accumulated $1.42 million in losses, equivalent to more than $16 million in 2026.

After the Toyopet Crown's failure, Toyota pivoted to other vehicles and eventually went on to reach widespread international success. As of 2026, so few Toyopet Crowns are around in the U.S. that it'd be hard to put them among classic cars now worth a fortune. Still, vintage miniature models of Japan's first U.S.-market passenger car were listed on eBay for anywhere from about $10 to more than $160 in August 2026.