Yahoo Autos Tested: The 2025 Toyota Crown Signia Is a Lexus for Penny Pinchers
Toyota, with its scattershot SUV product plan, stands in stark contrast to other mainstream automakers intent on building a single competent product per size class. Instead, Toyota is marketing a host of similarly sized products, each with a unique niche appeal. The latest model to launch in the company's onslaught of crossovers and SUVs is the Crown Signia, which marries Lexus-level luxury with Toyota attributes, including a hybrid-only powertrain.
The mid-size Crown Signia replaces the unloved Venza, and straight away it's a more compelling offering. Based—however loosely—on the Crown sedan, the Signia model doubles down on the four-door's premium appeal with a nearly identical interior, but its exterior design goes its own way, with a unique front fascia and wagon-esque silhouette.
The company's most recent SUV launches—the Land Cruiser, the 4Runner, and the Lexus GX—have focused on off-road capability, but the Crown Signia instead prefers pavement, thank you very much. A soft-riding suspension and the hushed hybrid powertrain make the Crown Signia an ideal long-distance cruiser. Trundling around town is a happy task too, but twisty roads don't elicit much joy.
The electrified powertrain is borrowed from the Crown sedan and comes one way, with a 2.5-liter four-cylinder and three electric motors combining for 240 horsepower. All-wheel drive is standard, but instead of shifting power rearward on a driveshaft, one of the electric motors is mounted at the rear axle and kicks in when all-wheel traction is required. Toyota estimates 39 mpg city, 37 mpg highway, and 38 mpg combined for the Crown Signia, although we recorded only 32 mpg on our 75-mph highway fuel-economy route.
At the test track, the Signia managed a 7.0-second run to 60 mph, and it completed the quarter-mile in 15.4 seconds at 91 mph. While these test results aren't particularly impressive—and real-world quickness isn't anything approaching thrilling—they're competitive among other hybrid SUVs in this size class, and most casual drivers will find this SUV quick enough.
Highway passing performance is decent, and we recorded a 4.2-second 30-to-50-mph time and a 5.1-second 50-to-70-mph time. However, in these scenarios, the continuously variable automatic transmission sends revs high under heavy throttle applications, injecting some engine drone into the otherwise placid interior. A 0.82-g result on our skidpad proves that the Bridgestone Turanza EL450 Enlighten all-season tires can hold on through moderate cornering, even if the Crown Signia is not particularly engaging while doing so.
So, performance and driving character are equally unremarkable, but the Crown Signia's appeal lies instead with its plush cabin and quiet cruising demeanor. What Toyota has created here is a potential problem for Lexus. The Crown Signia is offered in two trims, XLE and Limited, and both feature a bounty of luxury and convenience features.
The XLE starts at $44,985, slightly less than the smaller Lexus NX350h hybrid, and includes leather trim, heavily cushioned heated and ventilated front seats, dual-zone climate control, a digital gauge cluster, a 12.3-inch infotainment display, and 19-inch wheels. The Limited model rings in at $49,385, undercutting the RX Hybrid by several thousand dollars. The top trim brings niceties such as an 11-speaker JBL stereo system, a fixed glass roof, ambient interior lighting, and 21-inch wheels.
Our Limited test vehicle was painted in Finish Line Red, a $425 optional hue, and came with the $1865 Advanced Technology package, which brings a 360-degree exterior camera system, power-folding mirrors, and some additional driver-assistance tech such as parking sensors and front cross-traffic alert. That bumped its as-tested price to $51,675, a relative bargain considering that a similarly equipped RX Hybrid commands about a $5000 premium.
If Toyota dropped the more powerful 340-hp Hybrid Max setup from the top-spec Crown sedan into the Signia, performance would instantly improve, but perhaps this crossover's target niche doesn't require the extra pep. The Crown Signia strikes us as the luxury SUV for the thrifty, delivering a premium experience at a discount. Those same buyers aren't likely to spring for a more expensive hybrid setup that returns lower mpg numbers. Saving money can be a thrill all its own.
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