Toyota Mark II
The Toyota Mark II is a compact, later mid-size sedan manufactured and marketed in Japan by Toyota between 1968 and 2004. Prior to 1972, the model was marketed as the Toyota Corona Mark II. In most export markets, Toyota marketed the vehicle as the Toyota Cressida between 1976 and 1992 across four generations. Toyota replaced the rear-wheel-drive Cressida in North America with the front-wheel-drive Avalon. Every Mark II and Cressida was manufactured at the Motomachi plant at Toyota, Aichi, Japan from September 1968 to October 1993, and later at Toyota Motor Kyushu's Miyata plant from December 1992 to October 2000, with some models also assembled in Jakarta, Indonesia and Parañaque, Philippines as the Cressida.
Its size, ride comfort, and interior accommodations ranged from affordable to luxurious, and it was typically Toyota's most luxurious offering in markets where the more prestigious Crown was not available. Vans and fleet use versions were also offered, although they were gradually discontinued, with taxi production ending in 1995 and the Mark II Van ending in 1997. The last three generations were only available as four-door sedans for private use.
History
The first series, called the Toyota Corona Mark II was an all new vehicle at its introduction in 1968, that sought to offer a car that was just under Japanese government regulations concerning maximum vehicle dimensions and engine displacement, thus allowing the Crown to grow larger and more luxurious. Using the established platform of the Corona sedan but slightly larger and wider, it was exclusive to Toyopet Store locations, and offered as a competitor to the newly introduced Nissan Laurel in Japan, the Isuzu Florian, and the Nissan Bluebird / Datsun 510 internationally that appeared August 1967, and two years after the Mazda Luce in 1966. The Mark II was the top-level product at Toyopet Store locations until the Toyota Celsior was introduced in 1989.At the Mark II's introduction in the late 1960s, Toyota was known as a small, economy car manufacturer. The Corona Mark II was sold as a larger companion to the Corona while still being smaller than the Crown. In Japan, the sportier Toyota Chaser appeared in 1977 at Toyota Auto Store, and later in 1980, the Toyota Cresta appeared at Toyota Vista Store locations. As other automakers continued to offer vehicles in this size class, the Mark II's popularity peaked in the 1980s. The Mark II's siblings, the Chaser and the Cresta, were discontinued due to declining sales, partly influenced by the Japanese recession that started in the early 1990s and were combined into the short-lived Toyota Verossa. The Mark II evolved into the Toyota Mark X, a name chosen because it was the tenth generation of the car, which was popular in Japan and selected international markets until the growing demand for SUVs and crossovers, which saw the Mark X canceled in 2019.
First generation (T60, T70; 1968)
The Corona Mark II, first offered for sale in Japan, September 1968, at Toyopet Store dealerships, was intended as an alternative model to the more established luxury sedan, the Crown, sold at Toyota Store dealerships, and the smaller Corona, also available at Toyopet Stores. It was a slightly larger vehicle than the Corona with a higher level of equipment offered at the time, sharing some of the features of the larger Crown, but taking the top position at Toyopet Store locations. At its introduction, the Mark II was third in Toyota's hierarchy of sedans, below the Crown and the all new, hand built, V8-engined limousine called the Toyota Century. Its competitor was primarily the Nissan Laurel in Japan, released earlier that year in April.The trim packages started with the Mark II, followed by the Mark II Deluxe, Mark II 1900 Deluxe, and the top-level Mark II SL. The four-door sedan was designated the T60, and the two-door coupé the T70. The 1,600 cc 7R series engine was replaced by the 1,700 cc 6R series engine. A year later the 1,500 cc 2R models were replaced by the 1,600 cc 12R engines. The RT62 sedans and the RT72 coupé feature the 1.9-litre 8R four-cylinder engine, unique to the Mark II. The RT63 sedan, RT73 coupé, and RT78/RT79 station wagons feature a two-litre 18R four-cylinder engine, also unique to the Mark II. While only two engines were available yearly to Japanese buyers, yearly changes would be introduced; each year, the two engine choices had two different horsepower ratings. Due to Japan's annual road tax obligation, several trim packages were offered, paired with two engine displacements. The two engine choices kept the road tax obligation the same because the displacement was below the 2,000 cc bracket, which would incur more to be paid.
This was the only series offered as a two-door pickup for commercial use. The Mark II pickup also came as a "double cab" which meant it had a conventional bench seat for rear passengers but only had two doors. Both forms of the pickup shared the same dimensions and wheelbase as the station wagon.
The suspension setup uses a double wishbone with coil springs at the front and leaf springs at the back with a front-engine, rear-drive powertrain format. The Mark II is longer, at over the Corona's length of for the sedan, and the coupe, with a width of in comparison to for the sedan and coupe. The height of the Mark II is lower at over for the sedan, but higher at for the coupé. The wheelbase for all body styles was a constant and was longer than the Corona's sedan wheelbase of.
Corona Mark II hardtop coupe (T70)
Building on the introduction of the 1600GT performance hardtop coupe for 1965, the Mark II hardtop coupé was introduced in September 1968. Two trim packages and two engines were offered. The top trim package was the 1900SL or the 1900 Deluxe using the SOHC 1900 8R-C. The 1900 SL came with power windows, a rear window defroster, and a choice of four exterior colours with a black interior. The instrument panel came standard with a round tachometer, speedometer, volt meter, water temperature, oil pressure, and fuel gauge. The 1900 Deluxe offered a red or grey interior, four exterior colours, and a 1970s-era sweep speedometer with engine temperature and fuel gauge only.In September 1969 the Mark II went through a mid-model refresh and new trim packages were added. The 1900SL was the entry-level offering joined by the 1900GSL and the performance trim package 1900GSS was the top model and was installed with the twincam 1,900 cc 8R-G.
North America
For North America, the Mark II was available with bucket seats for the driver and front passenger, a centre console with a floor-mounted manual transmission, electric rear window defroster, and a full size spare tire installed externally and underneath the cargo area on the wagon, with rear seats that fold down to a fully carpeted rear cargo area. The Mark II wagon was the largest wagon Toyota offered in North America, next to the Corona and Corolla wagons; the Crown wagon was no longer sold in North America. The US-exported versions arrived for the 1969 model year and often include the more powerful R series motors compared to other regions.Before its US introduction, it appeared in South Africa, which was the first market to receive the 1900 cc engine. While Japan and other markets often had 1.5-litre 2R, 1.6-litre 7R/''12R to 1.7-litre 6R models as well. Engines were shared with the Corona, with both using the 2R, and the 12R'' engines. Transmissions offered were an automatic transmission with three speeds for export and two speeds in Japan, or a choice of either a four- or three-speed manual transmission.
Second generation (X10, X20; 1972)
The second generation was based on a new X series platform, having graduated away from the previous T series chassis. In Japan, the second generation no longer used the "Mark II" as a trim package name and omitted the "Corona" model name while the "Corona" prefix was used internationally for brand recognition. The X10s are sedans and wagons, while the X20 is a two-door coupé. The coupé utility bodystyle was not updated, with the previous generation continuing to be built alongside the new one.The second generation's styling progressed from the first and resembled the S60 series Crown. It reflected a popular styling trend that appeared internationally during the 1960s and 1970s, called "Coke bottle styling," which Toyota adopted for only this generation of the Mark II.
Japanese trim package names for the sedan were updated with the top level "Mark II-L", followed by the 2000GSL, 2000GL, 2000DX, 1700DX, and the wagon came as either the 2000DX or the 1700DX. The Mark II-L was the first time a six-cylinder engine was offered using the 1,988 cc M. The inline six-cylinder "M" series engine was borrowed from the Crown S60 to stay competitive with the Nissan Bluebird SSS and the Nissan Laurel in Japan. Engine displacement remained at two litres, but with the inherent lower vibration of a six-cylinder. Power, at, was between the outputs of the single- and twin-carb four-cylinder models. In order to accommodate the larger engine, the L also received different front sheet metal with a split grille. This style was standard in the US market, where it was also sold as a Mark II without the "Corona" badge. The US-market Mark II only received the six-cylinder engine and was also offered in the station wagon bodystyle. There were slight trim differences at the rear.
Interior colours and the upholstery used were specific to the trim package, while there were 14 different exterior colours to choose including 10 metallic paint selections. The Mark II-L and the 2000SGL came with full instrumentation and a wood-grained steering wheel, a wooden-handled gearshift selector for floor-mounted automatic or 5-speed manual transmission, while a column-mounted automatic transmission selector was provided for lower trim packages. The DX sedan and station wagon offered a front bench seat with individually reclining seatbacks while other trim packages and the hardtop coupé came only with a full-length centre console that could accommodate either a manual or automatic transmission gear selector.
The availability of engines over 2.0 litres was a new approach, obligating the Japanese driver to more annual road tax and upper trim packages added more standard equipment and available optional items. An electric clock became standard on all models but was installed in the console for the Mark II-L and the GSL and was installed in the instrument cluster for other versions. The list of optional items included cruise control, air conditioning, electric rear window defroster, AM/FM stereo with a separately installed 8-track tape player, and power windows. Standard items added include a collapsible steering column in case of collision, three-point seat belts for front passengers with an audible seatbelt reminder, and power assist brakes with disc brakes for the front wheels.
In export markets, a version was sold as a station wagon, whilst in Japan, it was marketed as a van intended for commercial use. Due to the introduction of the Toyota Hilux pickup truck, the previously offered Mark II pickup was discontinued. The suspension carried over from the previous series, using double wishbones for the front wheels, while the coupe used 4-link with coil springs and the sedan and wagon used semi-elliptic leaf springs.
The engines offered began with the 1.7-litre inline-four and grew in displacement with increased standard equipment utilizing an overhead camshaft design. The X10 through 13 are sedans, 16- and 17-series numbers were reserved for vans, 20 through 23 for coupés, and 26 through 29 for wagons. The only exception to this scheme is the 18R-U–engined RX15, introduced in June 1976, which received the same chassis code whether fitted in the hardtop or the sedan.
In August 1973, there were minor changes and updates. The basic trim package wagon was offered with a five-speed manual transmission. Electronic fuel injection was introduced on the two-litre four-cylinder engine to increase power and lower fuel emissions. The four-cylinder 1,707 cc 6R engine was replaced by the 1,808 cc 16R. The 1.8 was discontinued in October 1975, leaving only two-litre engines of four or six cylinders in the Japanese market. Even after the introduction of the next Mark II, production of the second generation continued through November 1976.
Engine choices included: