After decades as the company’s top-tier luxury badge, Lexus is stepping aside. In its place, Century—a nameplate traditionally reserved for the Japanese elite—has officially become Toyota’s new flagship brand.
The announcement, made in October, marks a redefinition of Toyota’s luxury ambitions. By elevating Century to flagship status, Toyota aims to compete with the likes of Rolls-Royce and Bentley, pushing the company into the ultra-luxury space for the first time on a global scale. Lexus will remain, but its role is about to change.
Lexus Outpaced in the Luxury Race
Since its launch in the late 1980s, Lexus has been Toyota’s global face of refinement. It debuted with the Lexus LS, a full-size luxury sedan that helped the brand quickly build a reputation for reliability and comfort. Over time, Lexus expanded into a wide portfolio of sedans, SUVs, and hybrids, achieving strong success in both the U.S. and international markets.
Yet as luxury standards evolved, Lexus stayed within a defined range. According to SlashGear, its current most expensive model—the LX 700h—starts at $116,685, including delivery. While competitive, that figure falls far below the entry prices of ultra-luxury brands. For comparison, the Rolls-Royce Ghost begins at around $358,000, and even that figure is rarely advertised publicly, signaling a level of exclusivity Lexus has never claimed.
Toyota’s leadership clearly recognized this ceiling. The answer: promote a different name with deeper heritage and untouched prestige.
Century Steps Forward With Quiet Confidence
The Century name is not new—it dates back to 1967, created in honor of the 100th birthday of Sakichi Toyoda, the company’s founder. Long associated with Japan’s political elite and business executives, the Century has traditionally been a low-volume, chauffeur-driven sedan. For decades, it remained exclusive to Japan, with only limited experiments in other markets in the 1990s.
Now, Toyota is spinning Century off into a standalone global luxury brand, giving it the authority once held by Lexus. SlashGear reports that Toyota plans to establish Century worldwide as its most refined and high-end offering. This includes a careful expansion of the product line: the classic Century sedan is being joined by a new SUV added in 2023, and a luxury coupé is set to debut at the 2025 Japan Mobility Show.
The goal isn’t to outshine Lexus in sales volume but to provide a level of craftsmanship and exclusivity that speaks to a different buyer entirely—one seeking understated, traditional luxury over flashy modernity.
Redefining Roles Across the Toyota Portfolio
The rise of Century doesn’t mean Lexus is fading out. In fact, Toyota appears to be recalibrating its luxury strategy rather than abandoning it. Lexus will now be freed from the constraints of being the flagship, allowing it to explore bolder designs and emerging technologies.
According to the same source, Toyota hopes this reshuffle will let Lexus take more creative risks, while Century focuses on classic elegance and elite craftsmanship. The brands will no longer compete for the same audience—they’ll serve different ends of the premium spectrum.
This strategy allows Toyota to cover more ground in the luxury market. Lexus can innovate and experiment, while Century builds a new identity atop Toyota’s corporate structure—an identity rooted in tradition but finally stepping beyond Japan.
