2018 Toyota Land Cruiser | PH Review
Can Toyota's utilitarian 4x4 still wade through the ever deepening sea of Chelsea tractors?
It is, then, all it has recently been; the default choice, worldwide, for those who need what it can offer: off-road approach, breakover and departure angles on a par with a Land Rover Discovery, a low-range set of gears, a 700mm wading depth and the kind of reliability and durability that makes Toyota the dominant vehicle manufacturer in places that don't have shiny premium dealerships and where they value cars that don't trouble the warranty.
A mild redesign of the interior that wouldn't give an Audi Q7 much to worry about has mostly been done to make the Land Cruiser's off-road systems easier to use (an Audi interior redesign would probably make something like booking a restaurant easier, so context is all). As well as the low-ratio 'box, then, there's a locking centre differential, still a lockable rear-differential (an open one or the top-spec Torsen are the three options there), a crawl-control (low speed cruise control, effectively, but it's also very good at freeing the Land Cruiser from rest when you think it's otherwise stuck), a button to make it start in second gear, one to raise the body and a dial for 'Multi Terrain Select'. That helps the traction and stability control, ABS and throttle modulation do you whatever favours they can off-road: so in Sand and Mud you get more wheel slip than in rock, for example.
But being a body-on-frame design, and what with the Land Rover Defender having disappeared from sale, Toyota hasn't failed to spot another opportunity, so the new Land Cruiser gets a new Utility spec - coil sprung and steel wheeled, at not much more than £34,000 for a five-door manual. Which I think has quite a lot of appeal.
So do the more expensive versions, mind, so long as you remember what this car is about. Given the solid rear axle, high centre of gravity and the knowledge that most people around the world wouldn't look twice at the kind of 4x4 that dominates the UK sales charts, it's unreasonable to expect the Land Cruiser to feel as sophisticated on Tarmac as those road-biased luxury SUVs.
SPECIFICATION - 2018 TOYOTA LAND CRUISER INVINCIBLE
Engine: 2,755cc 4-cyl diesel
Transmission: 6-speed automatic, four-wheel drive
Power (hp): 177@3,400rpm
Torque (lb ft): 331@1,600-2,400rpm
0-62mph: 12.7sec
Top speed: 108mph
Weight: 2,430kg
MPG: 44.8
CO2: 194g/km
Price: £52,295
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