Compare the2023 Toyota CrownVS 2023 BMW 4 Series Gran Coupe

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Crown are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The 4 Series Gran Coupe doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

The Crown has standard Whiplash Injury Lessening Seats, which use a specially designed seat to protect the driver and front passenger from whiplash. During a rear-end collision, the Whiplash Injury Lessening Seats system allows the backrest to travel backwards to cushion the occupants and the headrests move forward to prevent neck and spine injuries. The 4 Series Gran Coupe doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.

Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The Crown Limited/Platinum has standard Automatic Braking that uses rear sensors to monitor and automatically apply the brakes to prevent a rear collision. The 4 Series Gran Coupe doesn’t offer backup collision prevention brakes.

To provide maximum traction and stability on all roads, All-Wheel Drive is standard on the Crown. But it costs extra on the 4 Series Gran Coupe.

The Crown (except XLE) offers an optional Bird’s Eye View Camera to allow the driver to see objects all around the vehicle on a screen. The 4 Series Gran Coupe only offers a rear monitor and front and rear parking sensors that beep or flash a light. That doesn’t help with obstacles to the sides.

Both the Crown and the 4 Series Gran Coupe have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver and front passenger knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras and rear cross-path warning.

Toyota’s powertrain warranty covers the Crown 1 year and 10,000 miles longer than BMW covers the 4 Series Gran Coupe. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 5 years or 60,000 miles. Coverage on the 4 Series Gran Coupe ends after only 4 years or 50,000 miles.

There are almost 4 times as many Toyota dealers as there are BMW dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Crown’s warranty.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Toyota vehicles are more reliable than BMW vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Toyota above average in long-term dependability. With 34 more problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, BMW is rated lower.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2021 Auto Issue reports that Toyota vehicles are more reliable than BMW vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Toyota second in overall reliability. BMW is ranked 12th.

The Crown Platinum’s standard 2.4 turbo 4-cylinder hybrid produces 85 more horsepower (340 vs. 255) than the 430i Gran Coupe’s standard 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder.

On the EPA test cycle the Crown gets better mileage than the 4 Series Gran Coupe:

The Crown has a standard continuously variable transmission (CVT). With no “steps” between gears, it can keep the engine at the most efficient speed for fuel economy, or keep it at its peak horsepower indefinitely for maximum acceleration. The 4 Series Gran Coupe doesn’t offer a CVT.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the Crown has standard 19-inch wheels. Smaller 18-inch wheels are standard on the 4 Series Gran Coupe. The Crown’s optional 21-inch wheels are larger than the 19-inch wheels optional on the 4 Series Gran Coupe.

The Crown has a standard space-saver spare tire so you can replace a flat tire and drive to have the flat repaired or replaced. A spare tire isn’t available on the 4 Series Gran Coupe; it requires you to depend on its run-flat tires, which limits mileage and speed before they are repaired. If a run-flat is damaged beyond repair by a road hazard your vehicle will have to be towed. Some tire options on the 4 Series Gran Coupe don’t have a run-flat feature, either.

For better maneuverability, the Crown’s turning circle is .6 feet tighter than the 4 Series Gran Coupe’s (38.8 feet vs. 39.4 feet).

The Crown has .6 inches more front legroom, 1.9 inches more front shoulder room, .9 inches more rear headroom, 4 inches more rear legroom and .8 inches more rear shoulder room than the 4 Series Gran Coupe.

The Crown has standard heated front seats. Heated front seats cost extra on the 4 Series Gran Coupe. The Crown Limited/Platinum also has standard heated rear seats to keep those passengers extremely comfortable in the winter. Heated rear seats aren’t available in the 4 Series Gran Coupe.

To quickly and conveniently keep personal devices charged without cables tangling and wearing out, the Toyota Crown has a standard wireless phone charging system (Qi) in the center console. Wireless charging costs extra on the 4 Series Gran Coupe.