Forget your super hi-tech Lexus hybrids or your Accord-with-a-posh-badge Acuras - if you want a true taste of Japanese luxury motoring, you should look no further than this, the magnificent Toyota Century.
This might seem odd at first, given that this 1994 car does a more-than-passable impression of a 1970s Buick, but the fact is that the venerable Century is one of the cornerstones of Japanese car luxury.
More to the point, the Yank-tank lines of this model went essentially unchanged from its inception in 1967 until it was replaced by the second-generation version in 1997. And seen in that light the blocky styling, though not exactly cutting-edge, is rather more comprehensible.
Besides, the black 'n' chrome three-box shape oozes Yakuza-style cool in a way that the limousines of royalty and politicians of other nations simply can't match (the Century served the Japanese establishment in much the same way as the Daimler DS420, Rolls-Royce, ZIS/ZIL, and Chinese Red Flag served the statesmen of Britain, Russia and China).
In that context, the fact that
this particular Toyota Century
has been off the road for two years and needs some work on its left rear suspension seems a mere trifle...
There's also something deeply appealing about driving around Blighty's roads in a 4.0-litre V8 limo of which 99.99 per cent of the populace will have zero knowledge. And when they ask you, you can always tell them it's what the Emperor of Japan rides around in. And you can't say that about Garlick's LS400...
1994 Toyota Century
Price: Don't know until the end of the eBay auction...
Why you should: You can pretend to be Japanese royalty
Why you shouldn't: Everyone else will think it's a decrepit Yank tank