2024 Toyota Land Cruiser Review: Better Than The Badge

There's a danger, bringing back a beloved nameplate, of too high expectations. Then there's the fact — as the auto industry has discovered over, and over, again — that you can't please all the people, all the time. Latest to flirt with such struggles is the 2024 Toyota Land Cruiser, a familiar badge but (for American drivers, at least) on a smaller SUV this time around.

In off-roading circles, the Land Cruiser has a haloed reputation. Rock-solid reliability meets old-school practicality: no surprise, then, that old examples still command sizable prices. This new 2024 Land Cruiser, though, isn't the successor to the old, full-size Land Cruiser J200, North American sales of which ceased in 2021. That was the J300, sold in various global markets, but never making it to the U.S. and Canada.

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Instead, we get what other markets call the Land Cruiser Prado. Though smaller physically, it also has a smaller price tag. There's no Prado branding for the North American version, but still a body-on-frame platform, full-time 4WD, and more off-road niceties than most drivers will ever require. You could get hung up on a badge, then, or you could just embrace the chunky styling.

2024 Land Cruiser ownership kicks off at $55,950 (plus $1,395 destination) for the 1958 trim, rises to $61,950 (plus destination) for the regular Land Cruiser, and then tops out at $74,950 (plus destination) for the First Edition you see here. Unusually, Toyota doesn't just distinguish the various grades of its SUV with minute variations of grille, fender flares, and bumper tweaks. The 1958 and First Edition have completely different headlamp clusters, circular rather than the rectangular version on the mid-range Land Cruiser.

It's enough to leave the SUV with a very different feel, grade-depending. The circular lamps give the Land Cruise more than a passing resemblance to Johnny 5, the cheerful robot from the "Short Circuit" movies. With the squared-off headlamps on the example we took off-roading, it looks, well, like the evil version of Johnny 5, when his programming was usurped.

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Which you prefer, then, will probably come down to whether you see yourself as a good robot or a wicked one, though I did see some Defender owners looking confused at the Land Cruiser First Edition's Land Rover-esque front lighting. The Toyota certainly isn't ugly — even in this particular baby-food-like Sand paint — but it can feel derivative from some angles.

All trims get 18-inch wheels as standard, though finish varies; the mid-tier Land Cruiser can optionally sport 20-inch versions, for those more committed to the big rim, on-road aesthetic. It also gets running boards as standard, whereas the First Edition sports rock rails, heavy-duty mudguards, and an upgraded version of the front skid plate, engine, transmission, and transfer case protection that's standard on the other two trims.

LED fog lamps — white/amber color-selectable on the Land Cruiser and First Edition trims — along with front and rear tow hooks are standard. Roof rails come fitted to the Land Cruiser; the First Edition swaps that for a beefy black roof rack. The 1958 trim misses out on a power liftgate, but all three get the useful pop-up rear window for the 37.5 cu-ft trunk.

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There's 8-inches of ground clearance, regardless of trim, and 6,000 pounds of maximum tow rating. While the cheapest 1958 trim boasts 31 degree approach and 17 degree departure angles, the more expensive versions nudge approach angle to 32 degrees.

Unsurprisingly, given it has cropped up elsewhere in Toyota's truck line-up, the 2.4-liter i-FORCE MAX drivetrain is standard on the 2024 Land Cruiser. It's a turbocharged inline-four hybrid, with 326 horsepower at 6,000 rpm, and 465 lb-ft of torque at 1,700 rpm. Toyota pairs it with an eight-speed automatic transmission; there's no manual option, though I don't think that's a particularly great loss (and I doubt Toyota would've sold many).

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Full-time 4-wheel drive is standard, with a locking Torsen limited-slip center differential, two-speed transfer case, and an electronically-controlled locking rear differential. All but the 1958 trim get a stabilizer disconnect mechanism; it also misses out on Multi-Terrain Select (MTS), Toyota's attempt to make navigating off-roading settings easier. That has Auto, Dirt, Sand, Mud, Rock, and Deep Snow options. Crawl Control — effectively cruise control for low-speed trails — and Downhill Assist Control (DAC) are standard across the board.

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If you need to go off-road — and it seems a shame not to, given you're paying for the new Land Cruiser's hardware — it's almost too straightforward. The Mode Select dial usually switches between Sport, Normal, and Eco, but tap the MTS button first and you access the various off-road options. Tap DAC/CRAWL, and the readily-accessed dial controls speed.

That simplicity builds on Toyota's largely functional and common-sense cabin. I'd hesitate to call it handsome, but there are at least physical controls for the HVAC to go with the infotainment touchscreen (a miserly 8-inches on the 1958 trim; 12.3-inches on the others), a volume knob (even if it's mounted too close to the driver to be easily-accessible to the front passenger), and a dedicated button to summon the exterior cameras (though the 1958 trim misses out on the useful bird's eye, front, and side views).

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The 1958 gets fabric seats with heating in the front; the Land Cruiser swaps that for SofTex with heating, ventilation, and power-adjustment for the driver; the First Edition gets leather and both front seats are powered. Three-zone climate control is standard across the board, as are six USB ports, and even a 2,400W AC inverter for a 120V outlet in the trunk. That makes the fact that a wireless phone charger pad is only standard on the First Edition (a paid option on the Land Cruiser trim, and not even offered on the 1958) even more of a head-scratcher.

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At least Toyota Safety Sense 3.0 is standard, with modern niceties like adaptive cruise control, lane-departure alerts with steering assist, lane tracking assist, and Proactive Driving Assist, plus pre-collision assist with pedestrian detection. Blind-spot warnings with rear cross-traffic alert and trailer merge warning; front and rear parking sensors with auto-brake; and safe-exit alerts are also standard. Front cross-traffic alert is only standard on the First Edition, mind.

With a familiar engine under the blocky hood, and Toyota's body-on-frame GA-F platform — shared with the latest Tacoma and 4Runner, along with the Lexus GX — it's no surprise that the 2024 Land Cruiser doesn't break new ground from behind the wheel. That's no bad thing, overall. The hybrid engine may only have four cylinders, but there's only 14 lb-ft less torque than the 3.4-liter twin-turbo V6 in the GX 550, and the smaller Land Cruiser is about 500 pounds lighter than the Lexus, too.

The result is perky, brusque, and fairly loud. The hybrid's electric motor may be relatively small, but its low-end contribution helps belie the overall weight of the Land Cruiser, plus its slab-sided proportions and upright windshield. They're not exactly aero-friendly, and undoubtedly add to the wind noise at higher speeds. Still, it's eager from a standing start.

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There's plenty of grip, but also plenty of body roll: Toyota doesn't have the adaptive variable suspension system that upper-grades of the GX enjoy, and the same soft tuning that leaves the Land Cruiser compliant on rough surfaces can mean the upright body leans noticeably in all but the most sedate of cornering. Honestly, though, that's not without charm — nobody is confusing this SUV for a Supra, after all — and the same goes for the body-on-frame's shakiness.

If you want more refinement, after all, you can look to the vast number of unibody two-row SUVs out on the market: you're spoiled for choice. Most of them will be more refined than this particular Toyota, but few will have its relatively effortless off-road talents. The truth of the matter is, membership of the Land Cruiser club demands some honest assessment before adding your name to the order book.

If you only really want the looks of a serious off-roader, then the 2024 Land Cruiser's on-road compromises could grate over time. Those who demand a third row of seats, meanwhile, will have to wait for the 2025 4Runner. And, though a hybrid, the 22 mpg city, 25 mpg highway, and 23 mpg combined EPA fuel economy numbers aren't exactly Prius-level.

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Long-time Toyota fans could spend a lifetime arguing whether this 2024 model is a "real" Land Cruiser or otherwise. While they're debating, the rest of us can be enjoying a welcome — if niche — alternative in the midsize SUV category. Just be prepared to pay upwards of $60k, if you want some of the creature comforts drivers of less rugged crossovers take for granted.