3 Toyota Hybrids That Have Better MPG Ratings Than the 2023 Toyota Crown
The all-new Toyota Crown entered the market in late 2022. Toyota’s website presents the stylish Crown as a sleek midsize hybrid package filled with smiling occupants. As a Toyota, it’ll likely be reliable, comfortable, and deliver excellent value, but will it advance the level of fuel efficiency established by current Toyota hybrid models?
The Toyota Crown
The new Toyota Crown comes in three trim levels, XLE, Limited, and Platinum, and a choice of engines and transmissions. According to Toyota, the Crown XLE starts at $39,950, the Limited at $45,550, and the top-trim Platinum at $52,350.
Toyota Crown XLE and Limited trims feature a 236-horsepower all-wheel drive (AWD) hybrid drivetrain built around a naturally aspirated 2.5-liter four-cylinder backed by a continuously variable transmission (CVT).
Crown Platinum models feature a 340-hp AWD hybrid drivetrain with a turbocharged 2.4-liter at its core and a six-speed automatic transmission. As a result, fuel economy estimates vary from Platinum’s 29 mpg in the city and 32 mpg on the highway to 42 mpg city and 41 mpg highway for XLE and Limited trims.
More efficient Toyota hybrids
The $27,450 Toyota Prius gets 58 mpg in the city and 53 mpg on the highway thanks to its 2.0-liter four-cylinder based hybrid powertrain that delivers 194 horsepower in front-wheel drive (FWD) versions and 196 horsepower in AWD models. Like the two lower trim Crown models, the Prius uses a CVT for its shifting duties.
With similar dimensions to the Prius, the EPA estimates the $22,800 Corolla’s combined fuel economy at up to 50 mpg. In addition, the Corolla offers FWD or AWD and features a 138-hp 1.8-liter four-cylinder CVT-equipped hybrid drivetrain.
Meanwhile, the midsize Camry offers a closer comparison to the Crown but costs less, starting at $28,355 for the LE hybrid, which gets better fuel economy ratings at 51 mpg city and 53 mpg highway.
In addition, the top-trim Camry XLE hybrid, starting at $33,245, is less expensive than the Crown XLE by nearly $7,000, and it gets an estimated 44 mpg in the city and 47 mpg on the highway.
Toyota hybrids with less fuel efficiency
The new Crown isn’t the most fuel-efficient hybrid in Toyota’s lineup, but it offers better fuel economy ratings than two other Toyota hybrids. So while comparing the Crown to the following two hybrids isn’t a fair comparison any more than the comparison with the Prius, it illustrates where it fits in Toyota’s catalog as far as mpg ratings go.
The Crown will get you better fuel economy than the Highlander Hybrid and Sienna Hybrid. Both these vehicles aren’t really comparable to the sedan.
The LE trim is the most popular version of the eight-passenger Toyota Highlander. Powered by a 243-hp 2.5-liter I4-based hybrid CVT-equipped powertrain, the AWD Highlander gets an EPA-estimated combined 35 mpg.
The 2023 Toyota Sienna LE starts at $35,385 and offers eight-passenger seating. At the heart of the Sienna minivan’s FWD powertrain sits a 2.5-liter I4 hybrid system with 245 horsepower and a CVT. With a similar size and horsepower as the Highlander, the Sienna gets a slightly better fuel economy rating at 36 mpg combined due to its FWD configuration.
