The Toyota Land Cruiser 300 prices as a lot as a Land Rover Defender however is it pretty much as good?
January 13, 2024 at 12:38
It’s at all times an enormous deal when a brand new era of Toyota Land Cruiser is launched so it’s little shock that clients had been excited when the 300-series mannequin was first introduced in mid-2021. It proved to be so immediately well-liked that ready lists in Japan shortly swelled to 4 years, though COVID-19-related points and provide shortages additionally performed a job in growing wait occasions.
Down Beneath, the Land Cruiser 300 has been out there since late 2021 and shortly after North America’s new Land Cruiser was unveiled, we thought it might be price seeing if the worldwide mannequin is worthy of all of the hype and if it’s a becoming successor to all of the legendary SUVs which have come earlier than it. Let’s dive in.
The main points
The Toyota Land Cruiser has lengthy been a staple amongst households and off-road fanatics in Australia so it’s little shock that the native vary is sort of in depth with a minimum of six variants on provide. The vary kicks off at $102,769 ($70,025) together with all on-road charges for the entry-level GX after which jumps to AU$117,138 ($79,816) for the GXL, AU$130,191 ($88,710) for the VX, AU$148,595 ($101,251) for the Sahara, AU$155,658 ($106,063) for the GR Sport, and AU$156,728 ($106,772) for the Sahara ZX. Not low cost then and naturally, we opted to check out the flagship mannequin, the Sahara ZX.
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Fast details
There are many causes to get excited by the Land Cruiser 300. For starters, it’s underpinned by a brand new metal ladder chassis and all variants are pushed by a 3.3-liter twin-turbocharged diesel V6 that replaces the V8 of the older mannequin.
Learn: 2024 Toyota Land Cruiser Coming To Europe With A 201 HP 2.8-Liter Turbodiesel
Whereas some traditionalists had been none too happy with Toyota’s choice to drop the V8, significantly provided that the Nissan Patrol remains to be supplied with a naturally-aspirated eight-cylinder, the diesel V6 has loads of grunt, churning out 227 kW (304 hp) and 700 Nm (516 lb-ft), wholesome good points over the 200 kW (268 hp) and 650 Nm (479 lb-ft) of the previous V8 diesel. Mated to the brand new engine is an Aisin 10-speed computerized transmission. Over the mixed cycle, Toyota says the Sahara ZX consumes 8.9 l/100 km (26.4 U.S. mpg), 11.3 l/100 km (20.8 U.S. mpg) over the city cycle and seven.6 l/100 km (30.9 U.S. mpg) on the freeway.
The Sahara ZX occupies an attention-grabbing place inside the Land Cruiser line-up. Whereas it’s the priciest mannequin on provide, it isn’t probably the most off-road-focused. That mantle is as an alternative held by the GR Sport which has entrance and rear locking differentials and Toyota’s superior e-KDSS electronically managed energetic roll bar system, options that the Sahara ZX misses out on. The place the Sahara ZX stands aside from the GR Sport is within the luxurious and luxury departments, being designed as a variant higher suited to street driving but nonetheless providing some very stable off-roading credentials.
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As well as, the Sahara ZX is stable completely as a five-seater whereas the GXL, VX, and Sahara could be ordered with seven seats, making them extra applicable for big households.
Huge on luxurious
From a visible standpoint, the Sahara ZX seems to be like an actual luxurious proposition from each the skin and within the cabin. In comparison with lesser variants, it provides a set of 20-inch silver alloy wheels and in addition has distinctive entrance and rear bumpers, distinctive wheel arch moldings, totally different aspect steps with illumination, and new rear mudguards. It’s also the one variant bought in Australia with a rear torque-sensing limited-slip differential and comes commonplace with adaptive variable suspension.
We discovered spending time contained in the Land Cruiser Sahara ZX to be an absolute pleasure and whereas it’s way more premium than the 200-series mannequin, the Sahara ZX cabin isn’t a lot totally different than the cheaper Sahara. In reality, the one upgrades made are new trim on the steering wheel, middle console, and doorways, and the addition of three USB charging ports.
Brad Anderson / Carscoops
Happily, the VX and Sahara are very well-equipped. Key options embrace a 7-inch digital show within the cluster, a 12.3-inch infotainment display screen with satellite tv for pc navigation, four-zone local weather management, and a 14-speaker JBL premium audio. There may be additionally a big head-up show and front-seat passengers get to take pleasure in 8-way adjustable seats with heated and ventilated features, though there isn’t a therapeutic massage operate, a disgrace given how expensive the 4×4 is.
Different welcome options embrace a cool field, heated and ventilated 2nd row rear seats, a heated steering wheel, and a rear-seat leisure system with twin screens.
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Toyota has performed a fantastic job of constructing the Land Cruiser 300 approachable and simple to function. It has performed so through the use of maybe the right mixture of bodily buttons and switches with controls and settings housed inside the massive and shiny infotainment display screen. Among the many features that may be managed with actual buttons embrace the local weather management and essential audio settings, in addition to every of the out there drive modes.
Not all the things is ideal
The infotainment system helps each wired variations of Apple CarPlay and Android Auto and in addition features a neat operate the place each the native software program and CarPlay/Auto could be displayed concurrently. What’s not so good is the truth that the Land Cruiser 300’s commonplace infotainment software program is outdated with below-average graphics and a somewhat complicated structure.
The massive head-up show additionally leaves just a little to be desired. Whereas it features effectively and shows all of the essential info one may need, it turns into virtually fully invisible when you’re carrying polarized sun shades. Sure, there are many different head-up shows available on the market that undergo from the identical challenge however the Land Cruiser’s is worse than most.
This brings us to a different technology-related challenge with the brand new 300-series: the lane-centering help operate. Toyota has geared up the brand new mannequin with a bunch of options that homeowners of previous-generation fashions may solely dream of, together with autonomous emergency braking with pedestrian and bicycle owner detection, adaptive cruise management with stop-and-go velocity management, and lane-centering. Whereas the primary of those two options work effectively, the lane-centering borders on infuriating as it’s unable to maintain the automobile within the middle of the lane and can routinely bounce you between the strains. This isn’t a difficulty throughout city driving but it surely proved irritating throughout our 1,500 km (932-mile) round-trip between Melbourne and Adelaide.
What’s it wish to drive?
All through our week with the Toyota, we drove it in suburban areas, nation roads, and loads of lengthy stretches of freeway. It proved to be comparatively environment friendly, averaging 10.4 l/100 km (22.6 U.S. mpg) and whereas that’s above the claimed 8.9 l/100 km, it’s nonetheless respectable for a automobile that weighs over 2,600 kg and has this a lot efficiency on faucet. In any case, it could hit 100 km/h (62 mph) in round 8 seconds.
Each the Sahara ZX and GR Sport provide six totally different driving modes; Eco, Consolation, Regular, Sport S, Sport S+, and Customized, whereas lesser variations solely provide the Eco, Regular, and Sport modes. Vital elements of the Land Cruiser are tweaked relying on the drive mode, together with the throttle, steering, transmission, and suspension. We discovered the candy spot to be the Sport S mode.
In Eco, Consolation, and Regular, the journey may be very comfortable and whereas that’s a superb factor more often than not, it’s not so good at greater speeds and over street inconsistencies the place it feels just a little too floaty. This comes regardless of Toyota conducting in depth tuning of the Land Cruiser 300 in Australia to swimsuit native roads. Fortunately, the Sport S and Sport S+ modes stiffen issues up properly.
Learn: 2024 Toyota Land Cruiser Returns To America With Hybrid Energy And Enormous Worth Reduce
The dual-turbo V6 and the 10-speed auto gearbox work superbly collectively. Pin the throttle and the Land Cruiser roars to life, producing fairly a pleasant be aware (for a diesel that’s…) and the acceleration is clean and constant as much as freeway speeds. Those that plan to make use of it for towing will probably be happy to comprehend it has a rated towing capability of three,500 kg (7,716 lbs), greater than sufficient for big caravans, trailers, and boats. The gearbox enhances the engine effectively and supplies clean and exact shifts, though it actually isn’t the quickest shifting field on the market.
For the 300-series Land Cruiser, Toyota opted to make the doorways, bonnet, roof, and entrance guards from light-weight aluminum, serving to to shave as a lot as 200 kg (440 lbs) from the general weight. Whereas the load financial savings are good, one quirk is the truth that the aluminum bonnet is so gentle and skinny that it shakes and flexes everytime you drive. That is significantly evident at freeway speeds and will get somewhat annoying, significantly provided that it’s at all times in your line of sight.
Off-roading
We solely had the possibility to briefly take a look at the Land Cruiser off-roading skills with some deep ruts and shallow water crossings. It gives up 235 mm of floor clearance and a 700 mm wading depth, and does a superb job of absorbing bumps and ironing out the harshest of bumps. There are many off-road goodies that consumers will welcome, together with a low-range switch case, adjustable downhill crawl management, and a flip help mode the place the programs will brake an inside wheel to shrink the turning radius, an essential automobile for a automobile of this dimension.
It’s price noting, nevertheless, that lesser variants of the Land Cruiser 300 have comparable off-roading credentials. The one key options that the entry-level GX mannequin misses out on are the Multi-Terrain choose operate with modes for various surfaces, and the trick 4-camera Multi-Terrain Monitor with a Panoramic View Monitor. As talked about, the GR Sport is the one variant with the e-KDSS suspension and entrance and rear differential locks, so it needs to be the one which probably the most hardcore off-road fanatics select.
Verdict
Like its predecessors, the 300-series Land Cruiser stays a supremely succesful all-rounder with a large breadth of skills and feels simply as effectively suited to suburban household use because it does on a protracted street journey or when towing. Sure, it’s costly and sure, it has some faults, but it surely stays a stable possibility. With that being stated, you will get a well-equipped Land Rover Defender 110 for a similar cash and if we had the selection, that’s the place our cash would go.