Toyota LandCruiser 200 Series – What you need to know

The Toyota LandCruiser nameplate is an old one. In Australia it first saw service at the Snowy Mountains hydroelectric scheme in 1957, a decade before the Corolla arrived.

Any model name that has lasted that long is sure to embody trust and dependability, and the 200 Series Toyota LandCruiser that has sold here since 2007 certainly does.

On the horizon is the new-generation Toyota LandCruiser 300 Series with the news that the V8 diesel powering all four 200 Series variants will disappear, prompting buyers to rush into Toyota showrooms and snap up remaining stock.

Picture a scene like the toilet roll purchasing at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic a year ago…

So if you want one, you’d better move fast, and here’s what you need to know.

Starting with the base-model Toyota LandCruiser GX, which is priced at $80,996 plus on-road costs, you get the following as standard equipment:

• Halogen headlights
• 17-inch steel wheels
• Rear barn doors
• Vinyl floor covering
• Cruise control
• 6.1-inch infotainment touch-screen
• Four-speaker audio
• Satellite navigation
• Manual air-conditioning
• Power windows

Metallic or mica paint that account for seven of the nine colours is the only ex-factory option for the entry Toyota LandCruiser GX model, and like the rest of the range it costs $600.

The second-tier LandCruiser GXL can be optioned with a snorkel ($500) and KDSS (Kinetic Dynamic Suspension System, $3250).

Toyota doesn’t offer the snorkel on the third-rung LandCruiser VX, with KDSS fitted as standard for this trim level.

Similarly, the range-topping Sahara is available with just the one option (premium paint).

All Toyota LandCruiser 200 Series variants offer the usual gamut of mandated active safety features, but also come with hill start assist, multi-terrain anti-lock braking, crawl control with off-road turn assist, plus airbags for front, front/side and driver’s knee impacts.

In addition, the LandCruiser has head-protecting curtain airbags for the first and second row in the five-seater GX, and all three rows for other variants, which from the GXL move up to eight seats. Second-row side (thorax) airbags only come standard with the LandCruiser VX and Sahara.

For the convenience and safety brought with a reversing camera, plus front and rear parking sensors, buyers will have to slip past the LandCruiser GX and over to the GXL variant.

Driver assist technology, such as blind spot monitoring and rear cross traffic alert, are only available as standard in the second-from-the-top LandCruiser VX and the Sahara.

The basic halogen headlights of the entry LandCruiser GX model are replaced with auto-levelling LED headlights in the second-tier GXL, combined with fog lights. Both the LandCruiser VX and top-spec Sahara models build on that with a combination of dynamically auto-levelling bi-LED headlights and LED daytime running lights.

For the full suite of driver assist technologies – lane departure warning, autonomous emergency braking (AEB), forward collision warning, auto high beam and active cruise control – make a beeline for the LandCruiser Sahara.

Compared with the Toyota LandCruiser 76 Series Workmate wagon, the 200 Series is less utilitarian, even at the entry GX level.

But the Toyota LandCruiser GX is the only model lacking auto-up power windows all round (driver’s only), and missing both a 220V power socket in the rear and a keyless entry/start system.

The audio system of the LandCruiser GX is basic, with a CD player, USB connection, Bluetooth and satellite navigation.

While the LandCruiser GXL adds just two speakers, it also gains DAB+ digital radio and steering wheel controls, and the VX moves up to a 9.0-inch infotainment touch-screen, a 3.5mm auxiliary input and nine speakers, which is also the set-up for the LandCruiser Sahara flagship.

Traversing streams or muddy roads is perhaps best left to the entry-level LandCruiser GX and its vinyl flooring, as all variants higher in the range are carpeted.

Manually-adjustable seats are standard for both the GX and GXL trim levels, power adjustment only being available for the front seats of the LandCruiser VX and Sahara models, and a three-position memory function for the driver’s seat is exclusive to the Sahara.

The GXL and (five-seat) GX provide the practicality of a 60/40-split folding second row seat, but the two high-grade trim levels get an even handier triple-split folding unit instead. The third row seats in the GXL, VX and Sahara have a 50/50 fold and split.

LandCruiser VX and Sahara variants are trimmed in ‘leather-accented’ upholstery. Heated and ventilated front seats plus heated outboard seats in the second row are reserved for the Sahara. Both the high-grade LandCruiser variants go for an upmarket look with woodgrain veneers. A premium steering wheel and gear lever along with privacy glass and side steps all come standard on the GXL, VX and Sahara.

Manual air-conditioning for the LandCruiser GX is superseded by a dual-zone climate control system for the LandCruiser GXL and a four-zone system for VX and Sahara variants.

Occupants can enjoy a view of the stars through the standard moonroof of the LandCruiser VX and Sahara.

Only the LandCruiser GX delivers access to the cargo area by way of barn doors, all the other variants having a lift-up tailgate instead. The basic LandCruiser is also the only one riding on (17-inch) steel wheels, the GXL fitted with 17-inch alloys, and both VX and Sahara grades moving up one size to 18-inch alloys.

The two high-grade LandCruiser variants are also the only models with fold-in power door mirrors, a back guide monitor and rain-sensing windscreen wipers. Features unique to the LandCruiser Sahara also include a cool box and a rear seat entertainment system that comprises two 11.6-inch screens and a DVD player with headphones.

While the Toyota LandCruiser 200 Series did come in petrol as well as diesel when it launched in Australia back in 2007 – and was still offered with a petrol V8 after the 2015 facelift – the current line-up is all diesel-powered.

The 4.5-litre diesel V8 is a common-rail direct-injected twin-turbocharged unit producing 200kW and 650Nm for a combined-cycle fuel economy figure of 9.5L/100km.

A six-speed electronic control automatic transmission channels the torque to a Torsen (torque-sensing) limited-slip centre differential. All four wheels are constantly driven through a dual-range transfer case.

Let’s be honest – very few prospective buyers are going to fork out over 80 grand for a Toyota LandCruiser GX unless perhaps their surname happens to be Forrest or Rinehart and they’re buying on behalf of their surveyors, or you plan on spending a lot of time splashing about in water.

And as appealing as the Toyota LandCruiser Sahara is, with all the full brace of driver assist technology and creature comforts, the price is getting up there.

While the GXL sits below $100,000, it’s a lot to shell out for the second-to-bottom variant, so if you can, set your sights a bit higher and sign up for my pick, the Toyota LandCruiser VX.