1999 Toyota Crown, Athlete V JZS171

system checked on dedicated equipment including vacuum test for leaks Engine smoke machine test for exhaust and vacuum leaks Battery drain test OBD scan for fault codes Alignment performed Wheels balanced Wheel torque verified with calibrated torque wrench All lights and signals tested Engine bay treated with protective chemical to prevent rubber and plastic dry rot Stored with full tank to prevent fuel tank corrosion Driven and verified, all issues addressed before listing On this Crown Athlete V specifically: Timing belt and water pump replaced less than 10,000 km ago New Variable Valve Timing sensor installed, a known weak point on the 1JZ-GTE New valve cover and valve cover gasket New brake rotors and pads BBS RG115 wheels with new tires mounted Strut tower bar installed for improved front-end rigidity Aftermarket intake and blow-off valve installed Aftermarket exhaust installed, OEM exhaust included with the car Note: there is a small hole in one seat. It will be repaired before delivery. White exterior, no rust anywhere. Non-smoker. Verified by our team. The Crown Athlete V is the turbocharged version of the S170 Athlete lineup. Where the standard Athlete uses the naturally aspirated 1JZ-GE, the Athlete V carries the 1JZ-GTE, Toyota’s twin-cam turbocharged 2.5L inline-six producing 276 HP at 6,200 rpm and 278 lb-ft of torque from 2,400 rpm. The same engine that powered the Mark II Tourer V and the Chaser Tourer V. In a car that looks, from the outside, like a conservative Japanese executive sedan. People ask why the Athlete V uses a 4-speed automatic when the Royal Saloon got a 5-speed. The answer is that these are not the same transmission. The Athlete V’s 4AT is a sport-calibrated unit with shorter gear ratios and a different shift map tuned specifically for the 1JZ-GTE’s power band. It keeps the engine in its boost range through gear changes and feels sharper in real driving than the 5-speed Royal Saloon unit, which is optimized for smoothness and fuel economy rather than performance. The 4AT in the Athlete V is the correct transmission for this application. Timing belt and water pump were replaced less than 10,000 km ago. The Variable Valve Timing sensor was replaced as well, which is the most commonly reported electronic failure on the 1JZ-GTE platform and the first thing to check on any example with unknown history. New valve cover and gasket. New rotors and pads. Aftermarket intake and blow-off valve fitted. Aftermarket exhaust at a level that sounds intentional without being antisocial. OEM exhaust is included with the car. Strut tower bar added. BBS RG115 wheels with new tires. Beige interior, clean throughout. Non-smoker. Mileage: 60,100 miles (96,723 km). Interesting Facts The 1JZ-GTE in the JZS171 Crown Athlete V is the second-generation version of the engine, featuring a single CT15B ceramic turbocharger rather than the twin CT12 units of the earlier 1JZ-GTE. The single-turbo configuration improved mid-range torque delivery and reduced the flat spot between the two turbos’ operating ranges that characterized the earlier setup. Peak output is rated at the Japan domestic market limit of 276 HP. Japan maintained an unofficial 276 HP (280 PS) ceiling on domestic performance cars from the late 1980s through the early 2000s. This gentleman’s agreement between Japanese manufacturers meant that factory output figures were capped regardless of actual engine capability. The 1JZ-GTE’s real output in stock tune is generally accepted by the enthusiast community to exceed the rated figure. The JZS171 Crown Athlete V shares its engine and basic platform architecture with the Toyota Mark II Tourer V (JZX110) and the Chaser Tourer V (JZX100), both of which became iconic in Japanese performance and drift culture. The Crown Athlete V version of the same drivetrain is significantly rarer in the US market because most importers focus on the Mark II and Chaser nameplates. The strut tower bar fitted to this car connects the two front strut towers across the engine bay, reducing chassis flex under hard cornering loads. On the JZS171, which uses a double-wishbone front suspension, the tower bar works with the existing geometry to sharpen turn-in response without changing ride quality on straight roads. About Us We’ve been working with Japanese vehicles for over 25 years. Long before opening our location in the United States, our team was importing and servicing these vehicles in Europe when many of them were still new. Because of that experience, we know these platforms extremely well. Every model has its own weak points, and we inspect and address them before the vehicle is offered for sale. All vehicles are serviced at our facility in Japan before shipping. Fluids, belts, filters, batteries, and common failure points are inspected and replaced when necessary. Unlike many dealerships, we actually drive our vehicles. They don’t sit in a parking lot. Our trucks and cars are used regularly so we can verify reliability before they reach their new owner. When you buy from us, you’re getting a vehicle that is fully prepared and ready to drive from day one. JP-TRADE is our first location in the United States, supported by a team of more than 40 people across Europe, Japan, Korea, China, and the U.S. If you made it this far, here is a little bonus for you. Why did Japan cap horsepower at 276 for over a decade? In the late 1980s, Japanese manufacturers were locked in an escalating performance war. Turbo sedans, sports cars, and even family cars were getting progressively more powerful, and the government was paying attention. Rather than wait for legislation, the major manufacturers agreed among themselves to cap domestic market output at 280 PS (276 HP). The agreement was self-enforced and entirely unofficial, which is why it worked: no manufacturer wanted to be the one that triggered actual regulation. The result was a generation of Japanese cars rated at 276 HP that everyone understood were underrated. Engineers tuned for the cap and moved on. The actual capability of engines like the 1JZ-GTE was never the number on the spec sheet.