New Toyota Land Cruiser commercial
Discussion
I suppose it’s poor form to start a Readers Rides thread on a car I don’t yet have in my possession. But here goes anyway.
Back in January I paid a deposit on a new SWB Land Cruiser Utility commercial and am waiting patiently for delivery. The waiting list is long: I gather the demand for the Commercial version is unprecedented. Toyota were very late to the party with a van version, only launched last year on the back of the bare bones, but non-VAT qualifying four seat Utility. The demise of the Defender and, more recently, the commercial Shogun left the market wide open for a commercial 4x4 to suit farmers and business owners, and uptake is strong.
For the Utility versions, there are no options to speak of, and only a limited colour choice. I’ve gone for Dacuma Grey and it should look just like this once landed.
Years of old and multi car ownership had become a faff. I fancied a simple, one-van-fits-all solution and could think of no other vehicle that would suit my needs as well. It will be used it for work. It won’t raise an eyebrow parked on a clients drive, yet will look just fine pretty much anywhere else. It will tow well (a requirement for work), ride well on tall tyres and long travel suspension over the broken rural roads I drive on mainly, have good visibility (for reasons above) and overall should prove to be comfortable. Autocar are currently running a Utilty on long term test, and surprising levels of comfort have been noted. The engineering is simple and strong, and I’m hoping the fabled reliability will not be in doubt.
Little equipment is fitted as standard. Absolutely fine by me, I find most gadgets in high spec cars no more than distractions. But the important stuff is there: air con, keyless entry (handy with an arm full of tools), Bluetooth phone pairing and cruise will all be useful. A trade off is an absence of weight: this is very much a Land Cruiser Club Sport, and is reputedly almost a tonne lighter than a fully equipped, LWB Invincible that shares the same engine and power once all of the gubbins are stripped out. Performance and economy will benefit as a result.
I’d like to keep it a long time. It should lead a charmed life compared to other examples: I do little mileage per annum and like to keep my vehicles smart and clean.
I also happen to think it’s a veritable bargain: with a tow bar and mats ‘n flaps, it will come in at around £24k once the VAT is reclaimed.
Also a few modifications to the load area are planned to accommodate my tools, and some accessories will be fitted to add to the ease of ownership. I confess to already buying some new OEM diamond cut rims and tyres normally fitted to a Hilux, despite liking the steelies. They can always go back on Ebay. Now all we need is the truck itself!
Back in January I paid a deposit on a new SWB Land Cruiser Utility commercial and am waiting patiently for delivery. The waiting list is long: I gather the demand for the Commercial version is unprecedented. Toyota were very late to the party with a van version, only launched last year on the back of the bare bones, but non-VAT qualifying four seat Utility. The demise of the Defender and, more recently, the commercial Shogun left the market wide open for a commercial 4x4 to suit farmers and business owners, and uptake is strong.
For the Utility versions, there are no options to speak of, and only a limited colour choice. I’ve gone for Dacuma Grey and it should look just like this once landed.
Years of old and multi car ownership had become a faff. I fancied a simple, one-van-fits-all solution and could think of no other vehicle that would suit my needs as well. It will be used it for work. It won’t raise an eyebrow parked on a clients drive, yet will look just fine pretty much anywhere else. It will tow well (a requirement for work), ride well on tall tyres and long travel suspension over the broken rural roads I drive on mainly, have good visibility (for reasons above) and overall should prove to be comfortable. Autocar are currently running a Utilty on long term test, and surprising levels of comfort have been noted. The engineering is simple and strong, and I’m hoping the fabled reliability will not be in doubt.
Little equipment is fitted as standard. Absolutely fine by me, I find most gadgets in high spec cars no more than distractions. But the important stuff is there: air con, keyless entry (handy with an arm full of tools), Bluetooth phone pairing and cruise will all be useful. A trade off is an absence of weight: this is very much a Land Cruiser Club Sport, and is reputedly almost a tonne lighter than a fully equipped, LWB Invincible that shares the same engine and power once all of the gubbins are stripped out. Performance and economy will benefit as a result.
I’d like to keep it a long time. It should lead a charmed life compared to other examples: I do little mileage per annum and like to keep my vehicles smart and clean.
I also happen to think it’s a veritable bargain: with a tow bar and mats ‘n flaps, it will come in at around £24k once the VAT is reclaimed.
Also a few modifications to the load area are planned to accommodate my tools, and some accessories will be fitted to add to the ease of ownership. I confess to already buying some new OEM diamond cut rims and tyres normally fitted to a Hilux, despite liking the steelies. They can always go back on Ebay. Now all we need is the truck itself!
Edited by olly755 on Sunday 22 September 22:03
Interesting. My brief for replacing an ageing Shogun Commercial would be almost identical. Seems like a fair price for something that might be cornering the market. In the end I have decided to hand the towing duties to a tractor and to privately run a light runaround.
Waiting for a new Suzuki Jimny SZ4. Will look forward to news of your Toyota.
Waiting for a new Suzuki Jimny SZ4. Will look forward to news of your Toyota.
That will be great for your needs and it looks really smart.
I have the LWB 5 door 2010 LC5, and it's been utterly reliable over the past 4 years and is nearly at 100k miles now. It does have all those luxuries you don't want, but is a great family vehicle, tow car and all round work horse. Servicing bills are cheap and it doesn't rust.
Here she is after a 23 hour drive to Austria last winter, wearing steel modular wheels and Grabber AP tyres which I swap with the alloys each winter.
I bet you can't wait!
I have the LWB 5 door 2010 LC5, and it's been utterly reliable over the past 4 years and is nearly at 100k miles now. It does have all those luxuries you don't want, but is a great family vehicle, tow car and all round work horse. Servicing bills are cheap and it doesn't rust.
Here she is after a 23 hour drive to Austria last winter, wearing steel modular wheels and Grabber AP tyres which I swap with the alloys each winter.
I bet you can't wait!
LordGrover said:
You did well at that price, on the website they start at £27k +VAT.
When are you expecting delivery
I was happy with the opening gambit of just shy of £25k ex VAT from a nearby dealership, but the salesman seemed unable to email me a formal quote/pro forma for my deposit. I gave up after three attempts of asking. When are you expecting delivery
Then, my local dealer expressed shock at the price and said they “couldn’t get near it” despite being of the same group.
In the end, a ten minute CarWow came up with an even more agreeable price with a dealer within 40 miles and a deposit was sent.
It’s expected this month (I’m not holding my breath TBH) for a 1st September registration.
Rich135 said:
That will be great for your needs and it looks really smart.
I have the LWB 5 door 2010 LC5, and it's been utterly reliable over the past 4 years and is nearly at 100k miles now. It does have all those luxuries you don't want, but is a great family vehicle, tow car and all round work horse. Servicing bills are cheap and it doesn't rust.
Here she is after a 23 hour drive to Austria last winter, wearing steel modular wheels and Grabber AP tyres which I swap with the alloys each winter.
I bet you can't wait!
Should have got the SWB, wouldn't crash into walls when parking then.I have the LWB 5 door 2010 LC5, and it's been utterly reliable over the past 4 years and is nearly at 100k miles now. It does have all those luxuries you don't want, but is a great family vehicle, tow car and all round work horse. Servicing bills are cheap and it doesn't rust.
Here she is after a 23 hour drive to Austria last winter, wearing steel modular wheels and Grabber AP tyres which I swap with the alloys each winter.
I bet you can't wait!
The commercial model is a van, so 2 seats in both swb and lwb. They utility model has the same spec but with windows and seats in the back.
They've all got the 177bhp 2.8 four cylinder diesel as fitted to some hilux overseas. Feels pretty grunty with over 40mpg possible apparently.
Permanent 4x4 with locking centre and rear diffs too.
A lwb 7seat utility in white with steelies will do me nicely.
They've all got the 177bhp 2.8 four cylinder diesel as fitted to some hilux overseas. Feels pretty grunty with over 40mpg possible apparently.
Permanent 4x4 with locking centre and rear diffs too.
A lwb 7seat utility in white with steelies will do me nicely.
Yes, two seats only. The conversion is fairly rudimentary: the rear seats are removed and a steel mesh bulkhead is fitted where the seat cushion normally sits in a 5 seater. This leaves some useful storage space behind the front seats in the foot wells. The mesh is bolted to where the grab handles usually go. The mesh has an opening “door”, secured by a magnetic catch.
A flat laminated plywood floor is fitted. I may change this for a heavier duty version with some routed in tie rings. The rear glass windows are retained and simply wrapped in vinyl, and the back window has a heavy black tint for privacy.
A flat laminated plywood floor is fitted. I may change this for a heavier duty version with some routed in tie rings. The rear glass windows are retained and simply wrapped in vinyl, and the back window has a heavy black tint for privacy.
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