Monday 24th August 2015

Toyota Land Cruiser V8 axed from UK

Slow sales kill off the range-topping Land Cruiser seven years after introduction

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Despite not being at all fast, the Toyota Land Cruiser is a very PH kind of car. Unpretentious, eminently capable and rather cool because of it, there's always been something quite appealing about the big Cruiser.

The V8 at launch. If it ain't broke and all that...

So it's rather a shame to confirm that the Land Cruiser V8 is being withdrawn from sale in the UK. In all honesty it's not a huge surprise; poor sales have killed it off and buyers for large V8 diesel off-roaders have so much choice. Can you imagine many customers after a big, luxurious 4x4 for c.£65K going for a V8 Land Cruiser over a Range Rover Sport, Porsche Cayenne, Audi Q7 or similar? Exactly.

The V8 replaced the Land Cruiser Amazon in 2008 but now the range will consist solely of models with the 2.8-litre four-cylinder diesel. A new Land Cruiser 200 is being launched in Japan with a V8 petrol (!) but predictably there are no plans to sell it in western Europe.

But should the imminent demise of the V8 awaken a yearning to own one, fear not! There are a few in the classifieds, nearly new and ready to depreciate for as many years as it will surely keep running. White with beige and £62K? Oh yeah! Sarcasm aside, it's sad to see another curio bite the dust. Still, reliability means they'll be around for yonks, right?

[TrivsTom]

Toyota seem to have a habit of this. They make a decent car and then sell it for years without many updates and wonder why sales are slow? See MR2 spider and Celica. Why would you buy a 5/6 year old Land Cruiser when the swanky new Range Rover is only 2 years old..