The new Toyota Prado four-wheel drive wagon is ready to score a US twin with a focus on retro styling and serious off-roading. But will it come to Australia?
of toyota land cruiser teeth Expected to return to US showrooms next year After a two-year hiatus, it retains its retro styling based on the new Toyota Prado, but with the latest petrol-electric hybrid power.
The Japanese auto giant has taken inspiration from Land Rover, as seen in the recent Lexus twin of the upcoming Toyota Prado with its boxy, utilitarian styling, and classic designs for some of its iconic and historic models. seems to be praising
drive US market A retro-faceted version of the new Toyota Prado, with styling cues said to be inspired by early Land Cruiser models. – 40 series from the 1960s and 70 series introduced in 1985 and still sold in Australia today.
Ten per cent of all Toyota Land Cruisers built in the nameplate’s 74-year history are sold here, and even though Australia is the top market for iconic 4WD in all its forms, retro styling The US Prado I may not be able to come to your local showroom.
A Toyota spokesperson said. drive The U.S. market model will be marketed as a serious off-roader with retro design features and will be sold in small quantities, rather than as an expensive luxury vehicle like the previous 200 Series and current 300 Series Land Cruisers. is.
The US model adopts more retro styling cues than the international Prado Australia is expected to receive, including circular headlights inspired by the 1960s and 1970s Land Cruiser 40 Series (FJ40) is expected to. drive Have learned.
It’s unclear how much bodywork will be shared between the U.S. Land Cruiser and the global Land Cruiser Prado, but it’s possible they share the same side profile but feature unique front and rear end styling. .
The Prado’s luxury twin, the Lexus GX, has also historically shared Toyota’s core structure, the doors and major side panels.
The final design has yet to be revealed, but the illustration at the beginning of this story was created by Theotl – Shows what the retro model planned for the US will look like.
According to recent teaser images, the US-focused Land Cruiser could also be sold in Europe, but it’s unclear if it will be sold alongside the next-generation Prado.
drive There are said to be at least two model grades of the US Land Cruiser. This is a semitone down from Toyota’s flagship, hardcore off-road version in the same lineage as his TRD Pro version of the U.S. pickup. The level of upgrades found in the Ford Raptor Performance UT.
Details of what will power the US Land Cruiser have yet to be confirmed, but drive According to Toyota officials, the Lexus GX will be equipped with a 2.4-liter turbocharged four-cylinder petrol-electric hybrid.
In the related Toyota Tacoma pickup (the US version of Australia’s best-selling Toyota Hilux Ute), the system outputs 243kW and 630Nm.
A US version of the Land Cruiser Prado has not been ruled out for Australia, and Toyota has yet to confirm that a US version of the Prado is in development.
However, it is understood that the car was built specifically for the North American market, and there are fears that it could eclipse regular Prado sales in Australia.
As previously reported, driveThe Toyota Land Cruiser name has been discontinued in the US with the end of the full-size 200 series in 2021.
At the time, Toyota chose not to introduce the 300 Series Land Cruiser in North America, even though the Lexus LX version was available in North America.
The decision not to sell the 300-series Land Cruiser in North America was attributed to poor sales, with the previous 200-series Land Cruiser sold in the United States averaging 3,200 units annually over the past decade, while the small four-wheeler 4Runner was 100,000 units. – Drives sold in the US. Paired with today’s Prado and US Tacoma pickups.
Land Cruiser sales in the United States peaked in 1999 with the 100 Series, when 18,000 were reportedly sold.
The steady decline in sales that the Land Cruiser has experienced in recent decades is due to the Land Cruiser’s growth into a more expensive and premium vehicle.
A Toyota spokesperson said. drive Unable to build a business case for the Land Cruiser 300 Series in its current form, the company abandoned plans to sell the Land Cruiser 300 Series in the United States in the late 2010s and chose to focus on the luxury Lexus LX for North America.
but, drive The company reportedly never intended to do away with the Land Cruiser badge entirely, and given its importance as one of Toyota’s most iconic nameplates alongside the Corolla, Camry, and Crown, the company decided to ditch the Prado. started looking for an “Americanized” version of
Production of the 200 series will end in early 2021 and will be superseded by the 300 series globally. The Land Cruiser name was put on hold until the Prado-based model was completed.
Toyota officials say the U.S. Land Cruiser is marketed as a smaller vehicle in 2021, with 145,000 units sold, or an average of 100,000 units per year over the past decade, compared to the 4Runner, which has been marketed as a low-volume off-road vehicle. It is now possible to focus more on the buyer.
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