Hits and misses of the new Toyota Prado 250 Series

The first new Toyota Prado in 15 years is big news, especially for those wanting to head off-road. Up to seven seats, the ability to tow up to 3500kg and the architecture from the LandCruiser 300 Series underpinning it.

The hotly anticipated newcomer arrives with big expectations, from towing and heading into the bush to delivering on tech and packing the family aboard.

Having spent a few days and more than 1000km in the new Toyota Prado 250 Series in the Northern Territory we’ve delved into every detail to look at what’s great and what’s not so great.

Here are the hits and misses of the new Toyota Prado.

Some of Toyota’s greatest hits in the four-wheel drive styling stakes are the older LandCruisers.

The company learnt that a decade ago with the love for the FJ Cruiser that played to that retro aesthetic.

Like a greatest hits album, the new Prado has leveraged some of the iconic looks of previous LandCruisers, including the 40 Series, 60 Series and 80 Series.

Some Land Rover-esque boxiness tops off what is a tough-looking SUV.

Visibility from the front two rows of the new Prado is improved in part due to the low windowsills that make for a bigger glasshouse.

There are hints of Range Rover to the arm-welcoming shelf that is part of the low belt line aesthetic.

Japanese brands led the world on narrowing the gaps between panels for a clean, precise look.

But with the new Prado, Toyota is boasting of slightly larger panel gaps around the front bumper.

It’s to allow space for movement over big hits and to “minimise damage if one of the panels makes contact with an obstacle when off-roading”.

While it’s virtually imperceptible when looking at the car, it could be enough to prevent minor damage for those getting down and dirty.

Prados have always been good off-road and the 250 Series steps it up further.

Wheel articulation - how far the wheels compress and droop within the arches - is better than ever, up 10 per cent on the previous gen.

The rear wheels in particular do a great job of flexing around rocks and other obstacles. And if you choose the Altitude trim grade, it gets a front stabiliser bar disconnect system that allows 10 per cent more wheel travel than other model variants, further boosting that off-road cred.

It’s clear plenty of work has gone into the Prado’s electronic traction control, which rarely gets it wrong.

It’s beautifully calibrated and eerily quiet (unlike the graunching you’d hear from earlier systems, including the LandCruiser 200 Series and the previous Prado 150).

And it steps in swiftly and cleanly to keep drive to the wheels with traction. On VX, Altitude and Kakadu variants the calibration can be adjusted for different terrains, including sand, dirt, rock, mud and snow.

There’s also a centre locking differential, although only the Altitude adds to that with a locking rear diff. Our experience suggests the traction control alone will get you through most obstacles.

Low-range transfer cases can be a source of frustration in four-wheel drives. But the one in the Prado is brilliant.

Most electronically controlled selectors these days are fairly easy and quick, although some can clunk as the cogs slot into place.

Not the one on the Prado. Toggle the lever and it almost imperceptibly shifts from H4 to L4 very quickly.

Tall side mirrors that are higher than they are wide are a welcome change from the norm. As well as good side visibility they provide excellent vision down the side of the vehicle to make it easier to keep an eye on what’s going on around the vehicle.

They also match the boxy retro exterior look.

The new Prado drives markedly better than the car it replaces and much of it comes down to a new steering system.

The hydraulic system has been replaced by electric power steering that is way lighter at parking speeds but brings nicely calibrated weight when cruising.

Along with better sorted dynamics it makes for a much more settled and comfortable machine.

VX and Kakadu variants of the 250 Series get tyre pressure sensors.

They’re the first Toyota four-wheel drives with them fitted standard, although why they’re not applied across the range is a mystery.

The sensors are fitted to all five tyres - the spare included - and will automatically sense the new location if a tyre is rotated or replaced.

The new lift-up tailgate is more user friendly than the heavy swing-out door of previous Prados.

And being able to lift the glass independently of the main tailgate makes it easy to load or unload smaller items.

The previous Prado could only tow 3000kg but the new one ups that to 3500kg, matching the likes of the Ford Everest and Isuzu MU-X.

Sure, there are issues with payload (see the Misses section below) but for those wanting to tow something really heavy the Prado 250 is now better suited to the challenge.

There’s no hybrid Prado although one is almost certainly on the way (there’s one available overseas but Toyota would prefer some changes before it makes its way Down Under).

But there have been improvements that lower fuel use to a respectable 7.6L/100km, according to the government test.

The electric power steering helps but it’s the 48V assistance system providing the biggest impact around town, helping lower suburban fuel use; urban use drops from a claimed 9.6L/100km to 8.8L/100km.

The new eight-speed automatic transmission is a big step up on the six-speed of the previous car.

The additional ratios provide a broader spread better suited to the weighty SUV body, in turn assisting with acceleration.

It’s also smoother and more responsive, helping make the most out of the engine.

The so-called Multi-Terrain Monitor provides visibility to areas the driver may not see, including over the nose of the car when cresting peaks.

Fitted to VX, Altitude and Kakadu models it also provides a virtual view of what’s under the car, adding to the information for the driver when traversing terrain off-road.

Wading your way through the menus on the 12.3-inch infotainment screen occasionally requires patience.

There’s no physical home button, so you need to divert to the virtual menu buttons down the right hand side of the screen. That’s not always ideal on bumpy tracks.

Sliding middle row seats are common in large SUVs, allowing occupants to trade off between leg space and luggage space (or knee room in the rear).

But the Prado’s middle row seat is fixed, reducing its flexibility. There’s also a big hump on the centre of the floor that soaks up foot space of the middle occupant.

Toyota gloats of more rear legroom for those unlucky enough to be crammed into the back row of seven-seat versions (GX, VX and Kakadu).

But once there the floor is unnaturally high and knee room tight (it can’t be improved on due to the fixed middle row). It’s definitely one for the littlies.

Many three-row SUVs don’t bother with child seat top tether points for the back row - and the Prado is one of them.

It means you can only fit child seats in the second row. It’s a shame given some rivals - including the Ford Everest - provide the choice of fitting child seats to the second or third rows.

There’s no dancing around the tight load area on the Prado. As much as Toyota talks of a broader overall boot, the practicalities of it aren’t great.

Five-seat versions have an oddly raised floor (it’s been designed to accommodate large battery packs for overseas models) and seven-seat models are borderline useless for luggage duties with all seven seats in play.

Even with the third row folded, the way the seats sit clunkily above the floor robs the load area of so much otherwise useful real estate. And the removable plastic box at the back of the boot is weird and feels flimsy.

The EV era has spoilt us for opening up cabins and providing some often innovative storage solutions (sliding consoles and floating platforms among them).

But the latest Prado feels like it’s gone backwards. The door pockets aren’t particularly big, two cupholders are the main open storage areas up front and the covered console is modest for such a big car.

It’s like designers merely ticked the boxes rather than trying anything more original.

Since its inception the Prado has been available with dual fuel tanks, with capacity for up to 180 litres of fuel.

Dual-tank versions of the previous 150 Series model could take 150 litres, for a theoretical range of 1898km (real world range was less because it’s very difficult to match the laboratory-derived fuel consumption).

It was one of the great differentiators with the Prado. But the new model only gets a single 110-litre tank that provides 1447km of theoretical range (expect a lot less in the real world, away from the difficult-to-match claimed fuel figures).

The placement of the spare wheel under the rear of the car also makes it difficult to fit an aftermarket fuel tank.

The new Prado can carry less than the one it replaces. The payload - the weight of people, accessories, luggage and anything else you load on board - has come down substantially.

The previous car could carry between 640kg and 750kg, depending on the model. The new Prado’s payload ranges from 580kg to 615kg.

The equation gets worse when towing. If you utilise the full 3.5-tonne tow capacity, the Prado can only carry 230kg in the Altitude.

The GXL has the highest payload when towing at the limit, but at 265kg it’s still below that of key rivals.

Throw in some accessories – a bull bar (up to 57kg), winch (32kg), roof platform (20kg), tow kit with wiring (about 10kg), aluminium underbody protection (5.6kg), front and rear rated recovery points (17kg) and driving lights (maybe 5kg) - and your payload could drop below 100kg. Best make sure you don’t have a big lunch…

The new Prado is heavy. The volume selling GXL is 2535kg, which is about 150kg heavier than its rival, the Ford Everest.

Despite two fewer cylinders and a smaller body it’s only 45kg lighter than the GXL version of the LandCruiser 300 Series.

That’s in part because the LandCruiser uses mostly aluminium panels (the rear side quarter panels are an exception, made of steel) whereas the only aluminium panel on the Prado is the bonnet.

The push to clean up noxious diesel emissions has led to the use of AdBlue for the first time on a Toyota in Australia.

The separate AdBlue tank holds up to 17.4 litres of the fuel additive that reduces harmful oxides of nitrogen (NOx).

It will generally only need to be topped up at services but if you’re towing or doing lots of hard-core off-roading it may need to be filled up on the road, meaning one more thing to worry about.

As with the LandCruiser 300 Series the Prado 250 Series has grouped some of the four-wheel drive buttons together.

But there are still oddities. The terrain mode selector, downhill assist and crawl control modes are further forward of the dual-range transfer case and diff lock selectors, for example.

And the Tow/Haul mode – essentially another drive mode for the transmission – is near your left knee, rather than part of the larger mode selector.

While it shares its architecture with the LandCruiser 300 Series the new Prado somehow makes a four-cylinder take up a lot of space under the bonnet.

We couldn’t find anywhere obvious to fit a second battery (and space is at a premium in the cabin, too). Plus, it does without the Hilux’s auxiliary fuse box that makes fitting accessories so much easier.

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