New Toyota LandCruiser four-cylinder could eventually replace V8

Toyota Australia could call time on its V8-powered LandCruiser 70 Series should Aussie buyers overwhelmingly favour the new four-cylinder version launched nationally this week.

In a move to preserve one of its most loved models locally, Toyota says it has introduced the four-cylinder diesel in a bid to address tightening emissions standards globally.

While it isn’t walking away from the V8 powertrain that has powered the 70 Series since 2007, Toyota Australia vice-president of sales, marketing and franchise operations, Sean Hanley, said the company will be closely watching the sales split for the four-cylinder versus the V8.

The 2.8-litre turbo-diesel will initially make up 30 per cent of the sales mix, Hanley predicted, but with the V8 remaining unavailable to order, that figure will quickly spike to 50:50 while Toyota catches up with 12-month backlog of V8 orders.

But it could become 100 per cent if a big number of 70 Series customers opt for the four-cylinder, or emissions regulations put an end to the V8.

“We don’t have an exact end date for V8 sitting here at all. There is no timeline, but we do need to examine where that car would fit into the future,” Hanley explained.

“If, like hybrid, we went to an 85 per cent mix of hybrid versus petrol, we’d go ‘why do we have a petrol anymore, let’s just go hybrid’. That’s what we did with C-HR and Camry.

“The same could happen with this car: if we had a really high mix of four-cylinder, well then you’d sit there and go ‘why would you bring that car in?’.

“However, we don’t have an end date, so what I don’t want to say is that ‘right, V8 production is stopping.”

The 1GD turbo-diesel that’s now available in entry-level versions of the LandCruiser 76 Series, 78 Series and 79 Series already powers Toyota models including the HiLux, Prado and Fortuner.

carsales understands that both the four-cylinder and V8 diesel engines still have some scope to improve their emissions in order to meet Euro6 requirements, which could form part of the Australian government’s upcoming Fuel Efficiency Standard.

For now, Hanley said Toyota Australia was simply giving the public another option, while also addressing overwhelming 70 Series demand.

“We’re going to give buyers the option of four-cylinder,” he said.

“At the moment there is no wait time for four-cylinder. We’ve got about 1000 orders for an annual production of 4000 vehicles, but that’s very early.

“I suspect that 4000 vehicles will exhaust very quickly.”

Hanley said those who have put a deposit down on a V8 LandCruiser 70 Series will be the first to be offered a four-cylinder.

“There will be a lot of people that will be coming from V8 across to four-cylinder, particularly on fleets,” he said.

“We thought 30 per cent of sales will go to the four-cylinders, but our dealers are suggesting that could increase to 50 per cent of sales pretty quick. We don’t know that factually yet, so we’ll see how it plays out.

“We’re confident that there’s no compromise to come back from the V8 to the four-cylinder.

“In the end that’s a customer option and the pricing is quite different too.”

As for when the LandCruiser 70 Series V8 order book will reopen, Hanley said Toyota Australia is working hard to secure production and keep customers happy.

“As of now it’s not for sale, but only because I’ve got an order bank I can’t jump over and I want to prioritise customers, but who knows what’s going to happen in the future,” he said.

“The whole landscape will be dictated by what happens with the government’s fuel emissions standards, so we’re loathe to say anything about V8 right now because honestly, we don’t know yet.

“The whole idea of this new four-cylinder is to in part secure the LandCruiser pick-up market and the product offering in Australia.

“We’re not going to leave anyone behind. There’s a definite strategy here.”

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