Upgraded Toyota Prado imminent

Toyota will deliver a late-life technical upgrade to the current Toyota Prado as early as next week in order to keep its 13-year-old family favourite ticking over until the next-generation Prado is revealed as early as next year.

That’s according to media reports out of Japan, which claim the updated Toyota Prado will begin production and/or be revealed on August 2, 2022.

It’s not clear exactly what changes will be part of the latest upgrade for the fourth-generation Prado, which has long been Australia’s top-selling large SUV.

However, sources with knowledge of the enhanced Prado previously told carsales it won’t bring any major exterior design changes.

Instead, safety, technology and convenience updates like those seen as part of the recent Toyota HiLux upgrade (minus the wide-track Rogue variant) are more likely.

Expect blind spot detection, a 360-degree parking camera and updated alloy wheel designs to feature, for example.

However, Japan’s Best Car says the ‘partially improved’ Toyota Prado will deliver powertrain/emissions updates to its aging 2.8-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel (150kW/500Nm), while new model grades may also bring unique interior and exterior details.

There’s certainly scope for a tougher GR Sport version of the aged Prado, but nothing has been confirmed at this stage.

The Japanese website also says the long-running Toyota Prado will be replaced by all-new model later in 2023. Our sources suggest the fifth-generation Prado won’t arrive in Australia until 2024, making a 2023 reveal within the realms of possibility.

Toyota Australia wouldn’t comment on its future Prado plans but as we’ve previously reported the next-generation seven-seat off-road SUV will leverage the same TNGA-F ladder platform that underpins the LandCruiser 300 Series and Tundra pick-up.

As such, the new Toyota Prado will have a more potent arsenal of weapons at its disposal, potentially including Toyota’s first V6 turbo-diesel. The 3.3-litre twin-turbo diesel six bangs out 227kW/700Nm in the Toyota LandCruiser 300 Series but could be detuned for the Prado, potentially via a single-turbo set-up.

Nevertheless, it may give the Prado an improved towing capacity, which currently stands at 3000kg, and fuel consumption should be further reduced by the LC300’s 10-speed automatic transmission.

While it’s unclear if the new Prado will continue to offer a four-cylinder diesel engine, Japanese publication Spyder 7 reports that a new 2.4-litre turbo-petrol four-cylinder engine producing 184kW will be paired with an electric motor.

Combined, the new Prado’s hybrid powertrain will be good for a whopping 294kW, according to the report.

It's no secret that Toyota will unleash an electrified Prado as part of its promise to offer a fully electric or hybrid powertrain in every model by 2030.

Toyota recently trademarked the iFORCE MAX name, which is currently only applied to the Toyota Tundra Hybrid’s 325kW/790Nm 3.4-litre twin-turbo petrol V6 hybrid powertrain, in Australia.

Australia is a key market for the Prado, which found more than 20,000 homes here last year – more than double its nearest competitor – and Toyota Australia is expected to be play a role in fine-tuning the all-new model.

The local arm of the Japanese car-maker undertook significant development work on the LandCruiser 300 Series during its gestation period, as part of its status as a global ‘centre of excellence’ for Toyota’s off-road vehicle evaluation process.

While the tech update for the current Prado will most likely bring modest price rises over the current four-grade model line-up, which starts at $60,830 for the base GX and rises to $87,807 for the Kakadu flagship, the next-gen Prado is set to be a lot more costly and top-spec models could nudge $100,000.

Stay tuned for more details.

Digital image: Luc Britten

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