Myth has a way of making one feel small, imagine Hercules and his impossible labours. They made mere mortals feel puny, and that is exactly how I felt standing in front of the Toyota Land Cruiser – tiny, as if the SUV itself is mythical in nature, not just due to its behemoth dimensions, but the reputation that precedes the name plate – absolutely legendary. And if my wide, almost maniacal laugh on the first spread doesn’t tell you just how the Land Cruiser feels from behind the wheel, keep reading as this is going to be mostly about how Toyota has made one of the, if not the only car I would choose in a zombie apocalypse/nuclear winter.
If the Hilux is the choice for mobile assault forces, the Land Cruiser serves as the more luxurious, but just, if not more capable vehicle of the dictator, and while I am absolute fan of the Hilux, nothing has ever come close to how the Land Cruiser feels – adds a few inches to the ‘ego’ for sure. No history book on automobiles can ever be complete without the mention of the Land Cruiser, and if one has to properly document its exploits, it would likely be the fattest section in the book. Since 1951, the Land Cruiser has set itself up as the most capable, reliable vehicle that one can buy.
Toyota launched the new Land Cruiser 300 in India a few years back, and then brought an updated version of the SUV here this year, along with the new top-spec variant – GR Sport that you see on these pages. The term GR refers to Gazoo Racing, often the suffix given to the hottest versions of Toyota’s sportier models – GR Yaris, GR Corolla, GR Supra – and only the Supra is for speed on tarmac, the other two are rally cars for the road, and that same principle has been adopted for the LC. This is the off-road friendlier version of the Land Cruiser, quite an oxymoron.
This GR Sport measures 4,965mm long, has a wheelbase of 2,850mm while the width and height sit at 1,990mm and 1,995mm respectively. Importantly, because of different bumpers at the front and the rear, the GR Sport is shorter than the ZX, by 20mm, that also means that the front overhang and rear overhang are both shorter by 10mm. The front carries a slightly different look compared to the regular LC, with a black mesh grille, flaunting the Toyota lettering in white flanked by large LED headlamps and a simple LED DRL, and a sign of true SUVs – headlamp washers. The lower bumper is different too, and comes with a dual-tone look.
Over to the sides, the sheer size of the LC is enough to make you question if all these cars plying on the roads are actually SUVs or just pretending to be so. The strong wheel arches have a flattened look while the blacked out pillars give the LC this nice contrast. With the GR, one also gets different alloys, these being 18-inch blacked out wheels shod with Yokohama Geolander All-Terrain tyres, with a 265/65 section, which presents a bit of a problem as the ZX comes with 20-inch alloys, and these 18-inchers do not really fill up the massive wheel arches, but on the positive side, you can see the sizeable suspension and complex 4X4 machinery, and geek out on it. At the rear, the LC continues with a clean look, with high set LED taillamps. GR Sport badging on the grille, fenders and the tailgate add to the charm, and compared to the ZX, the GR also gets non-glossy plastic cladding and a smaller running board. As Toyota’s brochure says ‘ It’s designed to overwhelm and built to ravage any terrain’.
One of the key reasons that the Land Cruiser in the past few decades elevated itself to the pinnacle of SUVs is owing to the supremely luxurious cabin and its comfort quotient, and that continues with this LC 300. The space is cavernous, and decked in premium leather upholstery, that in the GR Sport takes a sporty turn with the red and black dual-tone theme, with certain sportier looking elements such as the GR Sport logo on the steering and the start/stop button.
In a world where even key controls such as mirror adjustments and headlamps have moved to oversized infotainment displays, the Land Cruiser stays analogue, with enough buttons that it feels like an aircraft. There is a bank of toggles and switches for the 4-zone climate control, drive modes, terrain modes, and the extra off-road tech that the LC comes loaded with. I am especially a fan of the way the 4H and 4L toggle works, and for one, all the switches and buttons and dials feel extremely tactile, and this feeling of quality continues to almost every surface inside the cabin.
The driver’s and passenger seats come with 8-way power adjust, heating and ventilation, while the large armrest also doubles up as a cooled box that can be flipped open in two directions! Space in the rear is strangely not as incredible, because the bench seat is fixed, while the recline is manual, that does mean one gets a massive boot, this in no means is a complaint, or to say that the space isn’t enough for three individuals to sit comfortably abreast, but SUVs smaller, and costing much less offer power adjustable seats, and even three rows, that the India-spec LC misses out on.
The 12.2-inch infotainment display is pretty simple, and comes with wireless smartphone integration, while the driver’s display is fully customisable, and changes it theme based on the drive or terrain mode, while most of the functions such as the new-for-2025 – Level 2 ADAS can be accessed and controlled via the steering mounted buttons, takes a bit of time, but is easy enough.
From behind the wheel, the Land Cruiser feels like a s, I was sitting higher than everyone else on the roads, and even a Range Rover I pulled up alongside lacked the road presence that this behemoth exudes. This comes with a 3.3-litre turbo-diesel that generates 308bhp and 700Nm of moon-pulling torque. And it can literally go anywhere, at least the worst bits I could find in Delhi, was no match for the Land Cruiser. The full-time 4WD coupled with the fact that it gets GR-exclusive front and rear electronic diff locks, and independent front and rear stabilizers, longer suspension travel and Adaptive Variable Suspension, means that the LC crosses terrain like nothing I have ever driven before.
Actually my brain cannot comprehend the number of things that the car with its mechanical bits, backed by failsafe software, was doing as I was jumping across ponds, or just going through a foot of thick mud like it was a tiny pothole. It would also be apt to mention that the GR also has the longest wheel articulation of any Land Cruiser on sale today. Most of what the suspension does is controlled by the E-KDSS (Electronic-Kinetic Dynamic Suspension System), that controls each stabiliser independently, reacting to the road and traction condition on each wheel, adjusting the AVS and the spring rate, and this works both on and off-the-road, ensuring that the GR has grip, and control all-the-time.
Speaking of potholes, I would imagine that Toyota engineers benchmark the LC for moon craters, nothing, absolutely nothing seemed to stop it from moving, also considering that I had set the Multi Terrain Select to Auto meant that the cameras were analysing the terrain in front and around the car, and deploying countermeasures on its own. Be it adjusting the torque to each wheel to maintain grip, or to manage the suspension’s reactiveness depending upon the size of the undulation. For those who prefer to take things into their own hands, the SUV offers Dirt, Sand, Mud and Deep Snow modes in addition to Auto, while one can put the LC into DAC + Crawl, lock the centre diff, front diff or the rear diff, and switch off the traction control.
But driving the LC around in urban areas, which is where most of these Rs 2.40 crore SUVs will ply is a bit of a strange feeling. It is hulking enough that most cars move out of the way. There are six drive modes, two of which are Sport and Sport S+, and despite its size, the LC does pull with quite the urgency. The ride is surprisingly comfortable for the most part, and speedbreakers or undulations do not filter in, as long as they are not sharp, in which case, the GR’s stiffer suspension does lead to the body shuddering as the mighty SUV keeps pushing on. This is no corner carver, and a part of that resides in the fact that the engineers in a bid to keep the driver cocooned from the roughest of environments have made the steering a bit too dead, which for me is the only disappointment in this otherwise faultless piece of state-of-the-art machinery.
The Land Cruiser GR Sport is out and out an adventure machine, and its lore does not just extend to its capabilities off the road, but in the fact that a buyer shells the hefty amount for this 5-seater SUV for the peace of mind, that whether it is a warzone in a desert, or exulting a peak higher than what most choppers fly, the Land Cruiser will keep moving, with a full load, under any weather condition – it will always conquer.
Verdict
For Rs 2.40 crore, there are a few SUVs one can choose, like the Range Rover, or the Defender 110, or even the equally iconic G-Class, but somehow, all of these SUVs, while being just as capable off-road, while probably being superior on road, do have a sense of flamboyance that makes them feel a bit less utilitarian. In fact, both the Land Rovers are too electronic, susceptible to failure, while the G-Class plays too hard on its decades-old brick shape. Do not get me wrong, I have driven all of these, and love each of them for what they are, but what they aren’t is a Land Cruiser, honest, tech loaded but analogue, opulent yet simplistic, quiet yet capable of herculean tasks and a true exemplar of SUVs. And to shed the extra Rs 10 lakh for this GR Sport just seems like the proper thing to do, considering that it is the GR that rhymes more with the Land Cruiser’s ethos.
