A 2001 Toyota Crown Athlete V hearse just landed on Facebook Marketplace in Washington State, and it might be the most entertaining way to make an exit. Asking price is $19,995 Canadian, or about $14,514 U.S. at current exchange rates.
Under the hood sits Toyota’s 1JZ-GTE, a turbocharged 2.5-liter inline-six with a cult following in the drift and tuning community. It sends power to the rear wheels through an automatic, which was the only option Toyota offered for the S170 Crown. The odometer reads 81,797 miles.
The car only became legal to import to the U.S. this year under the 25-year rule. The Canadian-dollar listing suggests it may have been sitting north of the border, waiting out the clock.
The S170 Crown generation ran from 1999 to 2002, and the Athlete trim was the sporty one in the lineup. A mesh grille, subtle body kit, and that turbo six distinguished it from the plusher Royal and the stretched Majesta. This particular car appears to have been converted from the wagon variant, with the casket area sitting where the rear seats would normally be.
No wheelbase stretch, no elaborate ornamentation. The cargo section has proper wood paneling, though the hastily reworked rear seating area got no such treatment.
It is not a traditional Japanese ceremonial hearse, the kind with ornate temple-style rooflines that look like rolling shrines. This is closer to a Western-style conversion, functional and restrained. The casket fits. The job gets done.
Similar-vintage JDM Crowns have been selling for less on Bring a Trailer, but none of those came with a factory for the deceased. Rarity has a price, even when that rarity involves a coffin compartment.
The Crown nameplate stretches back to 1955, making it one of Toyota’s oldest. In the U.S. market today, Toyota has repurposed the name for a lifted sedan on its TNGA platform and the Signia crossover. Neither of those is rear-wheel drive. Neither has a 1JZ. Neither carries a casket.
For JDM enthusiasts who have spent years dreaming about owning a proper Crown Athlete, this one adds a layer of absurdity that elevates it beyond a simple import. The turbo six has real tuning headroom. The rear-drive layout is correct.
The platform is the same one that has been sideways at drift events across Japan for two decades. It just happens to have a wood-lined compartment out back designed for cargo that cannot complain about the driving.
At $14,500 U.S., the seller is betting someone out there wants exactly this combination of JDM credibility and morbid novelty. The question is whether the buyer strips the hearse conversion and builds a proper drift car, or leans into it and shows up to meets with the rear door open and a mannequin in a suit. Either path has its merits.
Tie-downs for the casket are presumably included, but the listing is thin on details. For a car this strange, that feels about right.
Share this Story