When Toyota launched the Land Cruiser (300 Sequence) in 2021, it did not give it a V-8 or a US visa for that matter. Then the 250 Sequence got here alongside in 2023, and whereas it is obtainable in North America, there isn’t any engine with eight cylinders. Heck, there is not even one with six. A 3rd taste of the Land Cruiser is offered in some markets. It used to have an enormous ol’ V-8, however not anymore.
Launched 40 years in the past, the 70 Sequence continues to be bought in Australia. The unhealthy information is that its venerable 4.5-liter turbodiesel V-8 is not any extra. Toyota’s division Down Underneath cites “altering laws and neighborhood expectations” for the oil-burner’s demise. The writing had been on the wall for a while because the order e-book was closed almost two years in the past. Manufacturing will proceed for some time to clear the backlog of orders however the firm will not settle for new requests for automobiles outfitted with the 1VD-FTV engine.
The primary to die would be the four-door Wagon and the two-door Troop Service, that are each technically SUVs. Manufacturing for these two will finish in September 2024 when Toyota Australia may even pull the plug on the single- and double-cab pickup vans within the GX trim degree. The ultimate models of those 4 flavors might be delivered to clients earlier than the tip of the 12 months. The pickups in GXL trim are sticking round till later subsequent 12 months, with the final ones to be shipped to consumers in This fall 2025.
Whereas the V-8 is formally no extra, the five-speed handbook gearbox is staying. From October, Toyota will supply a stick shift with the two.8-liter turbodiesel engine. This four-pot delivers 201 horsepower, similar to it does within the six-speed computerized, however torque is diminished by 37 pound-feet to 332 lb-ft. It is the identical handbook the previous V-8 model used to have however with totally different gear ratios by shortening the primary three gears for improved acceleration. Fifth gear is now longer for higher gasoline effectivity and a quieter cabin at larger speeds.
Australia will not be the one place the place Toyota nonetheless sells this era of the Land Cruiser initially launched in 1984. The 70 Sequence was reintroduced in Japan on the finish of final 12 months, full with a fender mirror. As well as, the LC70 can be provided within the United Arab Emirates with a V-6 for the three- and five-door SUV physique kinds.
It is value noting this isn’t the identical Land Cruiser launched by Toyota two years earlier than I used to be born. The off-roader was up to date over time, most lately in 2023 when it obtained trendy options corresponding to a 6.7-inch touchscreen with wired Android Auto and Apple CarPlay. The go-anywhere SUV/pickup additionally has an computerized high-beam, pace signal help, and even lane departure warning. Automated variations profit from the Downhill Help Management system.
Regardless of being one of many oldest automobiles in the marketplace, demand stays sturdy. Newly positioned orders in Australia will not be fulfilled within the subsequent 3-6 months. It is comprehensible why it stays a well-liked product this present day of overly difficult automobiles full of plenty of know-how we hardly ever use. The easy nature of the LC70 provides to its enchantment, particularly if reliability is a high precedence since there are fewer issues that may go fallacious.
