Category: Off-Road Vehicles

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The new, 2024 Toyota Land Cruiser is smaller, cheaper and simpler than the generation that came before. It’s not quite as capable as the one before it, which might not be the best news for hardcore off-roaders (though it still comes with standard, full-time four-wheel drive, rear and center locking differentials, crawl control, various terrain modes, and it offers a manually disconnecting stabilizer bar in the higher “Land Cruiser” trim). On the other hand, it's good news for folks who missed the nameplate, want another choice in rugged Toyota SUVs, and need something that’s a decent daily driver that can get you a bit off the beaten path.

We spent several days with the Toyota Land Cruiser 1958, the base trim starting at $57,400 (including $1,450 in destination fees). It uses the i-Force Max hybrid powertrain, which we’ve sampled in other Toyotas, and have liked so far. It’s also pretty basic, especially when it comes to the interior, as you’ll see in the paragraphs and photos below. Besides equipment quantity, materials quality is significantly lower than what you'll find in the "Land Cruiser" trim. Hard plastics and cloth upholstery are present instead of soft-touch surface and leather. Of course, it’s also $11,000 cheaper than the "Land Cruiser" (who thought that naming scheme was a good idea, by the way?). With that, here are several thoughts about the 2024 Toyota Land Cruiser 1958.

1. Boxy is back, it seems

Car design goes through cycles, it seems, of boxy, curvy, boxy, curvy, etc. Right now, it’s pretty clear that we’re entering another angular generation. As a kid who grew up loving 1980s Volvos, I’m pumped about it. It’s always looked good on off-roaders, too. This Land Cruiser is a pretty good execution of it. The multitude of straight lines and sharp angles make me want to bust out my large son’s Lego collection and start building cars of my own. Furthermore, the rigid geometry makes elements like the circular headlights and air vents really stand out. Whether you actually like that will depend on your personal taste. It’s almost a little too severe of a contrast, making me just the slightest bit uncomfortable, but I think it ends up being more fun than the pixel headlights of the eponymous Land Cruiser trim.

2. The grille is cool

Just look at it. It looks like some sort of cage. Where everything else today seems to have some sort of diamond mesh or big, chunky bars, the grille on this Land Cruiser looks quite wiry. The amount of negative space is off-putting, like rocks and bugs and road debris could dive right in there and do some damage, and make it a huge pain in the neck to clean. Yet, I still like it, at least visually. I wish I could replace all the hardware cloth on my chicken pen with this stuff, “TOYOTA” logo and all.

3. The hybrid powertrain is slick

All hail the i-Force Max! This 2.4-liter turbo mates to an eight-speed automatic with an integrated electric motor, providing a total of 326 horsepower and 465 pound-feet of torque. No, it’s not as efficient as your average hybrid, rated at 22 miles per gallon city, 25 highway and 23 combined, but boy is it great to use. Despite being down on horsepower from the previous Land Cruiser generation, the extra torque makes it feel quite responsive around town. While it may not post superb 0-60 times (nor does it need to), this powertrain is super-smooth and linear. I found it quite satisfying to use in daily driving. Whether I was cruising leisurely, trying to get somewhere in a hurry or creeping down a rutted dirt road, it always felt composed and unharried.

4. The interior … wow

The 1958 feels like 1985. It’s almost impressive how oppressive all the cloth and plastic are. How much gray can you handle? This is budget rental-car spec. Is it weird that I kind of like it?

5. But cloth seats aren’t terrible in the heat

The weather was quite warm when I had the Land Cruiser, and though there aren’t ventilated seats, the cloth chairs didn’t burn me like leather would when my skin touched the upholstery. The texture of the cloth is nice and airy, too, keeping my back from getting sweaty in the heat. The seats arere pretty soft, providing more cushion than support, which isn’t all too terrible in an upright seating position like this. I’d be curious to see how they will stand up over time, though.

6. The suspension is pretty good on-road

I found it a huge relief that the suspension in this Land Cruiser isn’t a total roller coaster. In the last Land Cruiser, whatever you put on the front passenger seat was certain to end up on the floor, whether it was a backpack, a water bottle or, in at least one instance, a bag of takeout — way more so than other cars under much harder braking. Hit the accelerator, the nose would go up. Do anything more than just brush the brake pedal, and it felt like the nose was going to burrow into the ground. It made for pretty miserable commuting.

The new Land Cruiser feels a lot less newborn-colt-like on its feet. There’s a little bit of give from the front suspension when you get on the brakes, but it didn’t dump my entire dinner on the floor between the restaurant and my house. It’s a lot more comfortable for it, too. All that porpoising gets tiring, and I’m glad to see it gone.

7. The suspension is still good when the pavement ends and the road gets rutty

Transitioning from good to poor pavement, then to no pavement at all, the Land Cruiser seems totally at ease. Going down gravel roads, dirt roads and roads that are barely roads at all (more moonscapes, really), this SUV shows its eagerness to keep going further, taking whatever you could put in its path. I’d love to take this thing to some trails up in North Michigan. I feel like it could tackle them without the kids shouting in discomfort about all the jostling. If I were going to go that route, though, I’d probably want to pony up for the equipment on the “Land Cruiser” trim. But the 1958 is plenty good for most of the light work you might encounter getting to a campsite or cabin in the woods … if you’re cool with that interior.

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