This sure seems to basically be the Land Cruiser Prado we never got in the US. Which isn't a bad thing, in my opinion. Apparently the average new car is almost $50k these days, so that base model price is reasonable (ugh, that feels bad to say). Toyota can sell three(?) different three-row SUVs so I'm sure they'll have no problem moving these new Land Cruisers and the 4Runner.
Make mine a 1958 in Heritage Blue!
I like it. I don't see my wife giving up her Tahoe, but we might go drive it. It'd definitely help her on fuel economy and the towing capacity might work well to move small cars. I'd really prefer 7500# or more capacity, but we'll see how this plays out.
The 70 series I actually dig. For some reason the styling seems more....honest I guess. Like it is square to be simple and rugged rather than square to be trendy.
I have had a few 4Runners as rental cars, and I have to say that they suck as a daily driver. They are probably great off-road, but for regular street driving, I think they are awful. Gutless, they get terrible mileage, and drive like a clumsy truck. If this Land Cruiser is based on that, no thanks.
Interesting to see this marketed in the USA as a 'full fat' Landcruiser.
Here in Australia, they're calling it the Prado, and it's marketed as a step down from the 300 series Landcruiser. That said, I love this new Prado, and would happily own one in a few years. It's sold here with a 2.8 diesel and can get 25-28mpg fairly easily.
300 series: https://www.toyota.com.au/LandCruiser-300?gclid=CjwKCAjw_aemBhBLEiwAT98FMlRbphm_x6ctb_jWqFc2mADpQQ6gEMuhmLZ6lbY1nnkq3rbHBIxStxoCkD0QAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds
mblommel said:Some styling cues remind me of FJ60, which I like.
I wish they'd just give us a new 70 series
I think I've pinned down why I don't find the new one appealing.
It's missing the body line down the side around the door handles. Instead the body line is up by the windows. And all of the corners are bigger radius, so while it's boxy it also looks a little too smooth and bloated. Like when body builder go from competition season back to bulking
Howdy, checking in to offer a few thoughts since I was at the reveal and got to poke around a bit.
This is a Prado, not a "Wagon" which is what the United States has received as "a Land Cruiser" for several decades now. The Prado is a bit smaller but allegedly has been built to the same 25-year service life standards as the Wagons. We've received Prados in the U.S. ever since Lexus introduced the GX.
Toyota's placing all their bets on the iForce Max drivetrain, which is the 2.4L turbo four + hybrid. This is the same "high" engine option in the 2024 Tacoma that was announced a few months ago. So far, nobody has seen how the setup performs in real-world use, on- or off-road, but if Toyota is going full-force into it then I assume it's pretty good. Plenty of torque and electric motor in the bellhousing means you get a real automatic and the hybrid system works in both 4 High and 4 Low. I assume the lower tow rating of 6k versus 7k+ on the new Lexus GX is due to engine choice.
I wrote a bunch more about the Land Cruiser's specs and my general feelings on the whole thing, having slept on it. Generally though, I like it and they'll sell a ton of 'em. It made zero sense to bring the 300-series over here and sell it, as they had with the 200, as a stealth-wealth-only sort of vehicle. Not enough volume despite big margins.
Couple thoughts:
2.4 engine. Wow. The torque is massive. Horsepower adequate. Pretty cool and hopefully returns decent mileage.
looks: not terrible- the boxes on the front are odd, but I love the round headlight option.
Price: thank you for moving the right direction.
Toyota: how many SUV's do you guys make? RAV4, 4runner, Highlander, sequoia, Land Cruiser.... did I miss one or two? Combine the rav and Highlander (rav4 highlander edition), combine 4runner and land cruiser (blasphemy!), but make the 4Runner edition with a manual and removable top, Land Cruiser the upmarket edition, and make the sequoia the family wagon- or make it the Land Cruiser wagon. 3.4 iforce as option on the Land Cruiser and Land Cruiser wagon (sequoia). Boom- I saved Toyota millions and consolidated the suv offerings to two
pinchvalve (Forum Supporter) said:I am not a fan of the chunky look (of most modern Toyota trucks) but definitely a fan of making it more affordable.
But I sure wouldn't want it to look like a new Highlander either.
In reply to Teh E36 M3 :
You forgot the Corolla Cross, Venza, Z4X and Grand Highlander.. Pretty sure there's another one I can't recall, but according to the Toyota website there are 9 separate SUV models currently on sale.
Are these going to be like the Land Cruisers of the past and solely built in Japan before shipping worldwide?
RacerBoy75 said:I have had a few 4Runners as rental cars, and I have to say that they suck as a daily driver. They are probably great off-road, but for regular street driving, I think they are awful. Gutless, they get terrible mileage, and drive like a clumsy truck. If this Land Cruiser is based on that, no thanks.
You are correct and Wranglers suck even more as daily drivers. But they sell like hotcakes. I don't know if people have never driven a car that is actually fun or just don't care. My guess is they don't care. It's all about the "lifestyle".
octavious said:Are these going to be like the Land Cruisers of the past and solely built in Japan before shipping worldwide?
They are built in Japan. Actually I think all LCs were built in Japan.
Slippery said:octavious said:Are these going to be like the Land Cruisers of the past and solely built in Japan before shipping worldwide?
They are built in Japan. Actually I think all LCs were built in Japan.
I had a 100 series and the build quality was fantastic. It had 252k miles on it when it moved on down the road, but it was crazy quiet and reliable.
If I were buying a $50k SUV, it'd be at the top of my list. Cloth seats! It'd probably be just fine with a generic NA 300 HP V6...but I guess the service dept. has to make money off these things. Either way, they'll sell as many as they can make.
The bigger question is....does this mean the end of +$70K TRD Pro 4runners?
parker said:RacerBoy75 said:I have had a few 4Runners as rental cars, and I have to say that they suck as a daily driver. They are probably great off-road, but for regular street driving, I think they are awful. Gutless, they get terrible mileage, and drive like a clumsy truck. If this Land Cruiser is based on that, no thanks.
You are correct and Wranglers suck even more as daily drivers. But they sell like hotcakes. I don't know if people have never driven a car that is actually fun or just don't care. My guess is they don't care. It's all about the "lifestyle".
A Jeep is a great daily driver if you don't mind the fuel economy and don't need to tow anything. Seriously the towing ability is the only reason I ever sold mine. The truck version is just too long to be really useful IMO. A factory Jeep with the right options can literally go just about anywhere in North America with ease and in comfort. It'll go places the competition in the 4WD market will not easily. I miss mine, but I need to be able to tow things and right now I need good fuel economy for my long commute.
In reply to AnthonyGS (Forum Supporter) :
The ability to go anywhere is not what makes a great daily driver to me. I like good handling, fun to to drive and decent gas mileage. A Wrangler might be fun to drive off pavement but 90% of them will never be driven off pavement.
In reply to parker :
And some people like taking the top and doors off to tool around town. Different strokes for different folks.
Did anybody else find all the talk of 'grades' a bit painful to read in the press release, namely when having to continually differentiate between Land Cruiser the grade and Land Cruiser the vehicle?
RacerBoy75 said:I have had a few 4Runners as rental cars, and I have to say that they suck as a daily driver. They are probably great off-road, but for regular street driving, I think they are awful. Gutless, they get terrible mileage, and drive like a clumsy truck. If this Land Cruiser is based on that, no thanks.
Well, its all based on a body on frame platform from a decade ago. I've driven more modern BOF cars from other manufacturers and its improved a lot, so I expect it to improve on Toyota's end as well since this is a new platform.
Puddy46 said:In reply to parker :
And some people like taking the top and doors off to tool around town. Different strokes for different folks.
99% of Wranglers will never have the doors off. The reason I have a 4Runner for my trail beast is that the roll bar necessary to keep offering removable panels (that almost nobody removes) really impinges on interior space. Even the 4 door Wrangler has less space inside than my 25 year old 4Runner.
Toyota did the 100% right move by moving the Land Cruiser between the GX, Sequoia and top-line 4Runner.
My guess is that the Land Cruiser will be as capable offroad as the TRD 4Runner, but more comfortable on-road.
Those tires sure do look wimpy though.
Here's a crude render with bigger tires:
Hoondavan said:If I were buying a $50k SUV, it'd be at the top of my list. Cloth seats! It'd probably be just fine with a generic NA 300 HP V6...but I guess the service dept. has to make money off these things. Either way, they'll sell as many as they can make.
The bigger question is....does this mean the end of +$70K TRD Pro 4runners?
Blame the turbo-fours on tighter emissions and CAFE standards (corporate average fuel economy) - easier to meet the EPA test with a boosted small-displacement engine vs a bigger N/A, even though in real-world driving the fuel economy difference may not be as significant. It's not a ploy to make money on service, I promise.
And yeah hopefully the 4Runner moves a little "downmarket" and even the higher-end models don't overlap much with the more basic Land Cruisers. That'd make most sense.
Slippery said:octavious said:Are these going to be like the Land Cruisers of the past and solely built in Japan before shipping worldwide?
They are built in Japan. Actually I think all LCs were built in Japan.
I heard production is going to be at the famous Hino plant.
It's good to see toyota moving away from the cvt based hybrid transmission, I wonder if it is the zf8 that jeep is using or a new design. The use of the small nickle battery surprises me, I guess no ability to run electric only. Unless they plan on releasing a prime later. I have wondered if off road vehicles with the ability to run battery only would help get back some of the parks that have been shut down.
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