Vehicle Spotlight 2024 TOYOTA LANDCRUISER LX 2.8D WAGON Words and pictures by Richard Hobo.
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Toyota has kept the 70 Series Landcruiser alive like a favourite pet that nobody wants to have put down. Born in 1984, this vehicle just refuses to die and now in 2024, it has just received its latest update. Being forty years old, the Landcruiser’s age is certainly evident in its exterior design and a few of the design elements play up to this, such as the round headlights and chunky front indicators, as well as the large, all-caps TOYOTA badge across the front grille.
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There are a few features on the interior that also hark back to the origins of the species, such as the style of the gauge cluster, that is a nicely updated version of the early eighties original. The seats are a plain but comfortable fabric, over which I suspect most buyers will be installing seat covers straight away. Everything about this vehicle is no-nonsense and solid. Folding the rear seats up is very easy and the result is a very large, carpeted load space. Muddy boots of the occupants are accommodated by sturdy rubber mats.Of course, what most buyers of this vehicle will want to know about is the four-wheel drive system.
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Yes, moving between two and four-wheel drive is still performed by shifting a chunky manual lever situated next to the transmission tunnel. It’s simple and doesn’t feel like it’s going to break any time soon. Diff locks are selected by a switch on the dash, which would’ve been unimaginable luxury back in ’84. There’s also a hill descent control activated by a button that will maintain the vehicle’s speed down a hill, no matter the terrain or angle.
Those round front headlights may give the Landcruiser a retro look, but they are LED, highly effective at lighting up the road ahead and feature daytime running lights for added safety. The front indicators are chunky units, separate from the headlights and in fact, if there was one word for this vehicle, it would have to be chunky; even the ride is chunky, riding as it does on leaf spring rear suspension and a ladder chassis.
Power comes from the same 2.8 litre turbo diesel as found in the latest Hilux ute. Where’s the V8 you may well ask? It’s still available in the ute version of the 70 Series Landcruiser, but not this wagon. Fear not, however, as the four cylinder is, umm, actually more powerful than the V8. Go figure. It certainly feels like it too, with power rated at 150kW, but I suspect it’s the impressive 500Nm of torque that really shifts things along to the point that I was really quite surprised at just how quick this behemoth actually is. (When I say quick, I’m obviously speaking in relative terms, as it apparently takes around 14 seconds to get to 100km/h.
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Toyota doesn’t even list a 0-100 time for the Landcruiser). To slow things down, you could always bung a 3,500 kilogram trailer on the back and take advantage of the Landcruiser’s maximum towing capacity. There are a couple of nods to the modern world, such as the two USB-C outlets in the dash and a small infotainment touch screen. There are buttons on the steering wheel for Bluetooth phone controls and radar cruise control, as well as the trip computer in the gauge cluster. The heater controls, however, appear to be completely unchanged since 1984, although I doubt any Landcruiser back then had air conditioning.
Are 70 Series Landcruiser drivers even interested in air conditioning? Surely, they’d just wind down the window if things got a bit sweaty and if they do need to wind the windows down, they’ll be pleased to discover that they’re all powered. The external mirrors are electrically adjustable too, although if you regularly do your make-up in the sun visor mirrors, you may be horrified to discover that the 70 Series Landcruiser doesn’t have any.
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The 70 Series Landcruiser certainly has its fans, one of whom is my teenage daughter who was very excited when she saw it pull up outside the front of the house. It certainly drew a bit of attention at cars and coffee too. This is the perfect vehicle for those who are as serious about their work as they are about their adventures. It’s the kind of vehicle that makes you put on your boots and your Swanndri, rather than your sneakers and your hoodie, safe in the knowledge that the end of the road doesn’t mean the end of the adventure. PRICE AS TESTED: $90,590
