The Toyota Land Cruiser is all new for 2024, and it’s reinvented at a price point that will be less of a deterrent to buyers actually exploiting some of its famous off-road capability. Whereas the base price of the previous generation had risen to nearly $90,000 by the time its production cycle ended, the new model drops that by a third, to $57,445 (including $1,495 destination).
The Land Cruiser once again shares its body-on-frame structure with the Lexus LX. This time around, variations of those bones also underpin the Lexus GX and Toyota’s Sequoia, Tundra and Tacoma — and, presumably, the 4Runner, when the next generation of the Land Cruiser’s little sibling drops. But while the 2024 Land Cruiser’s blocky style is about as different as it gets from the 2021 SUV’s flowing, organic shaping, its proportions, upright stance and airy greenhouse are familiar.
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By the time the last Land Cruiser disappeared from the market, it was one of the last SUVs of its kind still using a naturally aspirated V-8 engine. Displacing 5.7 liters, the V-8 put out a fairly beastly 381 horsepower and 401 pounds-feet of torque, but it returned commensurately ghastly fuel economy, with a 14 mpg combined EPA rating.
Even with hybrid assistance, the 2024 Land Cruiser’s 326-hp, turbocharged 2.4-liter four-cylinder falls 55 hp shy of the old V-8 but betters its torque output by 64 pounds-feet, landing at 465. Fuel economy rockets to 23 mpg combined, according to Toyota, which will significantly stretch the SUV’s backcountry wandering radius. Backed by an eight-speed automatic transmission, the 2.4-liter sends power to a full-time four-wheel-drive system with locking center and rear differentials.
Standard Toyota Safety Sense 3.0
Toyota’s Safety Sense 3.0 suite of driver-assist systems is standard across the 2024 Land Cruiser line. It includes forward collision warning with pedestrian detection, automatic emergency braking, adaptive cruise control, lane departure mitigation, lane-centering steering, road-sign recognition and automatic high beams. Blind spot monitors and rear cross-traffic alert are not lumped under the Safety Sense 3.0 umbrella, but they are also standard on every Land Cruiser.
The 2024 Land Cruiser will be available in three trim levels. The base trim, called 1958 in honor of the truck’s first year on sale in North America, includes retro round LED headlights, keyless entry and start, heated cloth seats, automatic climate control, six speakers, and an 8-inch touchscreen with wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay.
The mid-level trim is somewhat confusingly named Land Cruiser. It gets rectangular LED headlights for a more modern look, as well as a power liftgate, synthetic leather, power-adjustable heated and ventilated front seats, a 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster, a 12.3-inch touchscreen infotainment system and 10 speakers. The Land Cruiser Land Cruiser also boasts a disconnecting front sway bar for increased wheel articulation in extreme off-road maneuvers, a 360-degree camera system for better off-road visibility (and when parking), and adjustable-color LED foglights.
Limited to 5,000 units, the First Edition reverts to the round headlights and fulfills the previous-generation Land Cruiser’s luxury legacy with a power moonroof, leather seats, 14-speaker JBL audio system, head-up display, unique 18-inch wheels and exterior badging, roof rack, rock rails and a front skid plate.
The 2024 Toyota Land Cruiser will go on sale in the spring. Full trim-level pricing is not yet available, but the Land Cruiser 1958 will start at $57,445.
