History
In 1955 Toyota wasn't sure if its independent front coil suspension and the rear-hinged back doors installed on the Crown wouldn't be too radical for the taxi market to accept. When sales of the Crown proved satisfying, the Master sedan was discontinued in November 1956. The Master's body was built by Toyota'sMasterline (RR)
The Toyopet Master range also included the Masterline RR16 pickup, the Masterline RR17 van and the later Masterline RR19 double pickup (with two rows of seats). They were introduced in November 1955, originally only as a single-cab pickup and a van. These replaced the SG commercial models and were the first car-based trucks to enter production in Japan. The chassis were built at Toyota's main Aichi plant and then transported overland to Kanto Auto Works in Yokosuka, where the bodies were assembled mainly by hand. The double pickup was added in August 1956, around which time the engine was upgraded to provide . By 1958, power had been increased again, reaching . Ozeki, p. 86 The double cab pickup was built by Central Motor Co., who kept building this bodystyle of succeeding generations until December 1970. The double-cab could seat six people with a maximum cargo load of , but was subject to the lower tax applied to commercial vehicles, making it popular with construction firms and the like. The Masterline commercial models were carried over after the discontinuation of the Master. In 1957 the light van was lightly changed and was now fully glazed, rather than having pressed steel in the rear side windows. The first generation Masterlines were built until replaced by a new Crown-based generation in March 1959, Ozeki, p. 58 for the Toyota Store sales channel. A total of 19,400 Master and Masterlines (excluding the Central Motors-built RR19s) were built by Kanto Auto Works until production ended in 1959. A smaller Coronaline version was also developed to be sold through Toyopet dealers.Master Ribbon (RS)
Toyota managed to introduce yet another variant on the Master/Crown theme with the "Master Ribbon" which appeared in export catalogues in the first half of 1956. This was a series of light commercials using the body panels of the Masterline but with the more modern Crown chassis underneath, including that car's independent front suspension. A two-door pickup or chassis-cab (RS16), and a two-door Light Van (RS17) were offered, also available with left-hand-drive. The engine was the same R unit seen in other Master models. Later in 1956 a two-seat pickup version also entered lists, with the RS19 chassis code. ''Japan Built Automobiles: Japan Machinery Floating Fair'', p. 31Masterline (RS20/30)
When the Crown passenger car was facelifted, the Masterline nameplate was moved to the commercial versions of the Crown. This meant independent front suspension coupled with the Crown's bodywork; Toyota now only used solid front axles on trucks intended to carry more than . The new version was available as a single-cab pickup (RS26) or as a two-door light van (RS26V), both fitted with the 1.5-liter R engine. In 1960 regulations were changed and passenger cars and light commercials were allowed to be longer and wider, with maximum engine size increased from 1,500 to 2,000 cc. Toyota responded accordingly with the new RS30 Crown and RS36 Masterlines, which arrived in June 1960. This was also when Kanto Auto Works relinquished production of the Masterline. The pickup was called the RS36 while the light van received the RS36V chassis code. The bodies grew and two new bodystyles were introduced: a double-cab pickup (RS36P) and a four-door van (RS36V-B). The engine was upgraded to the 1.9-liter 3R version. Another difference is that the RS36-series cars have 5-bolt, wheels rather than the 6-bolt, units used on earlier Masterlines.Masterline (RS40)
The all-new RS46 Toyopet Masterline arrived in October 1962, using the same 1.9-liter 3R engine as the previous RS36 models. Bodystyles included a pickup (RS46), a double-cab pickup (RS46P), and a four-door light van (RS46V). The two-door van bodystyle was discontinued. A two-liter inline-six model was added in November 1965; this received chassis codes beginning with MS47. As for the previous models, the Masterline was sold with Toyota Crown badges in export markets. The Masterline nameplate was discontinued in September 1967 as the S50 Crown was introduced; from now on the commercial models were sold as Crowns in Japan as well. Crown pickup production ended for good at the end of 1970.Dates and production figures
Produced at Kanto Auto Works from January 1955 to November 1956 (Master sedan); a total of 7,403 RR sedans were built. About 12,000 RR16 and RR17 Masterlines were also built by Kanto, while the double cab RR19 was built by Central Motor Co. It is not known how many RR19s were built, but Central Motor Co. assembled a total of 43,241 double cab Masterlines and Crowns (from four generations) until December 1970.References
{{Toyota cars