Toyota Mark II

The Toyota Mark II (Japanese: トヨタ・マークII, Hepburn: Toyota Māku Tsū) is a compact, later mid-size sedan manufactured and marketed in Japan by Toyota between 1968 and 2004. Prior to 1972, the model was marketed as the Toyota Corona Mark II. In most export markets, Toyota marketed the vehicle as the Toyota Cressida between 1976 and 1992 across four generations. Toyota replaced the rear-wheel-drive Cressida in North America with the front-wheel-drive Avalon. Every Mark II and Cressida was manufactured at the Motomachi plant at Toyota, Aichi, Japan from September 1968 to October 1993, and later at Toyota Motor Kyushu's Miyata plant from December 1992 to October 2000, with some models also assembled in Jakarta, Indonesia and Parañaque, Philippines as the Cressida.

Its size, ride comfort, and interior accommodations ranged from affordable to luxurious, and it was typically Toyota's most luxurious offering in markets where the more prestigious Crown was not available. Vans and fleet use versions were also offered, although they were gradually discontinued, with taxi production ending in 1995 and the Mark II Van ending in 1997. The last three generations were only available as four-door sedans for private use.

The first series, called the Toyota Corona Mark II was an all new vehicle at its introduction in 1968, that sought to offer a car that was just under Japanese government regulations concerning maximum vehicle dimensions and engine displacement, thus allowing the Crown to grow larger and more luxurious. Using the established platform of the Corona sedan but slightly larger and wider, it was exclusive to Toyopet Store locations, and offered as a competitor to the newly introduced Nissan Laurel in Japan, the Isuzu Florian, and the Nissan Bluebird / Datsun 510 internationally that appeared August 1967, and two years after the Mazda Luce in 1966. The Mark II was the top-level product at Toyopet Store locations until the Toyota Celsior was introduced in 1989.

At the Mark II's introduction in the late 1960s, Toyota was known as a small, economy car manufacturer. The Corona Mark II was sold as a larger companion to the Corona while still being smaller than the Crown. In Japan, the sportier Toyota Chaser appeared in 1977 at Toyota Auto Store, and later in 1980, the Toyota Cresta appeared at Toyota Vista Store locations. As other automakers continued to offer vehicles in this size class, the Mark II's popularity peaked in the 1980s. The Mark II's siblings, the Chaser and the Cresta, were discontinued due to declining sales, partly influenced by the Japanese recession that started in the early 1990s and were combined into the short-lived Toyota Verossa. The Mark II evolved into the Toyota Mark X, a name chosen because it was the tenth generation of the car, which was popular in Japan and selected international markets until the growing demand for SUVs and crossovers, which saw the Mark X canceled in 2019.

The Corona Mark II, first offered for sale in Japan, September 1968, at Toyopet Store dealerships, was intended as an alternative model to the more established luxury sedan, the Crown, sold at Toyota Store dealerships, and the smaller Corona, also available at Toyopet Stores. It was a slightly larger vehicle than the Corona with a higher level of equipment offered at the time, sharing some of the features of the larger Crown, but taking the top position at Toyopet Store locations. At its introduction, the Mark II was third in Toyota's hierarchy of sedans, below the Crown and the all new, hand built, V8-engined limousine called the Toyota Century. Its competitor was primarily the Nissan Laurel in Japan, released earlier that year in April.

The trim packages started with the Mark II, followed by the Mark II Deluxe, Mark II 1900 Deluxe, and the top-level Mark II SL. The four-door sedan was designated the T60, and the two-door coupé the T70. The 1,600 cc 7R series engine was replaced by the 1,700 cc 6R series engine. A year later the 1,500 cc 2R models were replaced by the 1,600 cc 12R engines. The RT62 sedans and the RT72 coupé feature the 1.9-litre 8R four-cylinder engine, unique to the Mark II. The RT63 sedan, RT73 coupé, and RT78/RT79 station wagons feature a two-litre 18R four-cylinder engine, also unique to the Mark II. While only two engines were available yearly to Japanese buyers, yearly changes would be introduced; each year, the two engine choices had two different horsepower ratings. Due to Japan's annual road tax obligation, several trim packages were offered, paired with two engine displacements. The two engine choices kept the road tax obligation the same because the displacement was below the 2,000 cc bracket, which would incur more to be paid.

This was the only series offered as a two-door pickup for commercial use. The Mark II pickup also came as a "double cab" which meant it had a conventional bench seat for rear passengers but only had two doors. Both forms of the pickup shared the same dimensions and wheelbase as the station wagon.

The suspension setup uses a double wishbone with coil springs at the front and leaf springs at the back with a front-engine, rear-drive powertrain format. The Mark II is longer, at 4,295 mm (169.1 in) over the Corona's length of 162.4 in (4,125 mm) for the sedan, and the coupe, with a width of 1,610 mm (63.4 in) in comparison to 61 in (1,549 mm) for the sedan and coupe. The height of the Mark II is lower at 1,405 mm (55.3 in) over 1,420 mm (55.9 in) for the sedan, but higher at 1,374 mm (54.1 in) for the coupé. The wheelbase for all body styles was a constant 2,510 mm (98.8 in) and was longer than the Corona's sedan wheelbase of 2,420 mm (95.3 in).