Toyota LandCruiser and Lexus LX hybrids previewed

Toyota and Lexus in Australia have both pledged to offer an electrified variant of every model in their respective range by mid-decade – even their flagship 4x4 off-roaders in the new Toyota LandCruiser 300 Series and the related Lexus LX.

And now all the pieces are falling into place for the forthcoming hybrid-powered LC300 and LX, courtesy of the new Toyota Tundra pick-up in the US that’s based on the same TNGA-F platform as the LandCruiser and which we drove in hybrid form this week.

Toyota and Lexus Australia have not yet confirmed details of their flagship hybrid SUVs, although sources have confirmed that the all-new 3.5-litre twin-turbo V6 petrol-electric hybrid powertrain from Tundra is “an option that would be considered”.

And while the other options could potentially include a plug-in hybrid or, less likely in the short-term, battery-electric and fuel-cell electric, our sources suggest that “those powertrains that are chosen need to be fit for purpose based on customer demand and lots of factors need to go into consideration, including affordability and factory output”.

That leaves the Tundra’s new iForce Max hybrid powertrain as the prime, if not the only genuine, candidate for electrifying the new LandCruiser and LX, both of which are already confirmed as sharing twin-turbo V6 petrol and diesel engines.

And ditto for the forthcoming new-generation Toyota Prado and HiLux – two other key models set to spring from the TNGA-F platform – as our sources have confirmed there’s potential for other vehicles in the Toyota and Lexus line-ups to adopt the V6 hybrid, noting that the “powertrain is awesome”.

In terms of ticking the boxes, the so-called ‘iForce Max’ 3.5-litre hybrid produces 325kW and 790Nm, which easily trumps the LC300’s 3.3-litre diesel (227kW/700Nm) and the 3.5-litre petrol (305kW/650Nm) found in overseas-market LandCruisers as well as the new LX and Tundra.

That muscular peak torque in the hybrid arrives at a diesel-like 2400rpm, and as our review of the Tundra revealed, torque delivery is immediate with no turbo lag as the electric motor adds ultra-low-rev grunt.

The hybrid uses the same 10-speed automatic transmission found in the conventional engines, and could provide an advantage in areas such as fuel consumption and even towing capacity.

For reference, the Tundra hybrid is capable of towing 5194kg (11,450lb), depending on the variant, whereas equivalent models using the pick-up’s regular 3.5-litre petrol engine manage 5148kg (11,350lb).

The diesel-only LandCruiser 300 in Australia offers a 3500kg braked towing capacity, which is the same as the petrol LC300 sold overseas.

So it stands to reason that the hybrid versions will match, if not slightly improve on, the 3500kg marker when they arrive.

Given booming sales of other Toyota hybrids in Australia, the first-ever series-production electrified LandCruiser available Down Under is sure to follow suit.