its side steps and shod with gold BBS
wheels, really drives it home. The steps
don’t affect ground clearance, which,
like the wheelbase, is unchanged from
the previous truck. But losing the visual
weight makes the truck look taller, leaner,
and more muscular.
And it feels it, too. The 5.7-liter V-8
makes the Land Cruiser finally move
with some authority on the road, and it
gets better fuel economy while doing it.
The ride is quieter and more comfortable
than ever—an easy chair and a steering
wheel. A midcycle update, something of
an anomaly for Land Cruisers, upgraded
the six-speed automatic to an eight-speed
that’s smoother and smarter. The ancient
infotainment system has been replaced
with one that’s just kinda old. Losing the
third-row seats for the Heritage Edition
dropped a hundred pounds, but it’s still a
nearly three-ton vehicle.
Although it drives like any other
modern, ostensibly three-row SUV on
the road, the current-era Land Cruiser
still does things in the dirt nothing else
this big can touch. Low range is selected
by twisting a knob, and it’s crowded by a
bunch of other knobs and buttons. The
100 added a manually lockable center
differential; the 200 adds a limited-slip
rear diff. You also get a litany of off-road
modes, plus low-speed crawl control, and,
a particular favorite, turn assist, which
locks up the inside rear wheel and forces
the 200 to pivot around that wheel and
turn tighter than anything this long ought
to. Less flashy, hydraulically adjusted anti-
roll bars keep the body more level and
combat wheel lift by pushing the wheelsdown for maximum traction even while
crossed up.
A literal ton heavier, 3.5 feet longer, a
full foot wider, with a nearly 2-foot-longer
wheelbase, but, curiously, 2 inches shorter
in height, the 200 series nevertheless
towers over the 40 series. It’s difficult to
draw a straight line from one to the otherNew as the FJ80 was, you really have to squint to see the Land Cruiser heritage
in the FJ100, especially with its V-8 engine and independent front suspension.Like the FJ100, but
with a bigger V-8,
the FJ200 introduced
a pile of electronic
off-road features to
augment its already
stout capabilities.without all the intervening generations,
but the shared kokoro is unmistakable.
A clarity of purpose permeates,
announcing these vehicles are something
unusual. Not just SUVs, not just civilized
military trucks, but an intersection. Call it
a soul, a ghost, or a spirit, but the essence
of the Land Cruiser is unbroken. QFJ100
FJ200
FEBRUARY 2020 MOTORTREND.COM 67