2024 Toyota Land Cruiser Is Cool, Affordable, Yet Honors the Original

• The 2024 Land Cruiser comes in 1958, Land Cruiser, and First Edition grades, with the base price for the 1958 model teased at the mid-$50,000 range.

• Every Land Cruiser features a turbocharged 2.4-liter four-cylinder hybrid powertrain that delivers 326 horsepower and 465 pound-feet of torque.

• All TLCs have full-time four-wheel drive with locking center and rear differentials; a disconnecting front anti-roll bar and 33-inch tires are also available.

Toyota formally pulled the wraps off the new 2024 Land Cruiser today, in a rebirth that was hardly surprising considering the enduring cachet this nameplate enjoys across the world. Now off-road enthusiasts with sights set on backcountry travel will be able to hit the trail in a new Land Cruiser instead of waiting years for the price of a used high-mileage Land Cruiser to fall within reach.

It is to be expected that Toyota would not walk away from this iconic vehicle. Instead, the automaker called a time out and used it to engineer a clean break from the Land Cruiser's increasingly expensive and bloated mall-cruiser trajectory. This desirable off-roader has stayed faithful to the original concept, but Toyota made a determined effort to return this off-road SUV to a more mainstream price point.

An Affordable Land Cruiser

Toyota isn't disclosing full details, but the starting price will be in "the mid-$50,000 range." Compare that to the $87,030 minimum cost of entry for the discontinued 2021 Land Cruiser, and you can see why Toyota expects sales to increase significantly over the paltry 3000 to 4000 units per year they typically moved over the past decade. They're not saying how much sales will increase, but we find it telling that they plan to sell all 5000 examples of the First Edition—a number they haven't hit in an entire year since 2004—within the first three months. After those are built, production will shift to the less expensive base Land Cruiser 1958 (so named for the first year of U.S. Land Cruiser sales) and the simply named Land Cruiser variant.

To bring the price down, the new Cruiser rides on a version of Toyota's new global TGNA-F truck platform, a modular workhorse that underpins Tundras, Sequoias, and even the new Tacoma. It's the foundation for the world-market 300-series Land Cruiser, and under another acronym it appears under the Lexus LX600 (a U.S.-spec 300-series Land Cruiser variant) and the upcoming Lexus GX550. It also helps that the new model is strictly a five-passenger machine, which saves cost by eliminating the need to engineer third-row climate distribution ducting, passenger controls, and other accommodations.

What Kind of Land Cruiser Is It?

In the Toyota geek-speak that Land Cruiser aficionados love, the new Land Cruiser is technically a 250-series. It's not near as big as the pure-300 Lexus LX600, but it is newer than the 200-series Cruiser that left the scene in 2021. All three of these share a 112.2-inch wheelbase, but the new TLC is nearly seven inches shorter than the LX from nose to tail. Compared to the old 200, the new model shares an overall width of 78.0 inches, stands only 0.8 inch shorter, and is just 1.2 inches stubbier front to back. That said, the differences appear huge in real life because the 2024 Land Cruiser has a narrow body, grille, and greenhouse with prominent fender flares that cover a comparatively broad track. It's a clearly skinnier vehicle that looks like it has been modded to give it a tougher stance.

Despite the narrower body, the accommodations feel more generous than the current 4Runner. Interior dimensions are not yet available, but the vehicle feels right-sized. That's because this smaller Land Cruiser is still not as small as the current Toyota 4Runner, which still has a place to live in the hierarchy in its usual place below this new Land Cruiser. Toyota is mum about any new 4Runner specifics, except to say it's not going anywhere. We think the new 4Runner, when it arrives, will slot in at a lower price point by using the Tacoma's part-time four-wheel-drive system and its base and midlevel engine offerings. A high-performance TRD Pro will probably continue, as that would distinguish it from the more overland-focused Land Cruiser.

Downsized Hybrid Powertrain, Better MPG

All 2024 Land Cruisers will be powered by the same 2.4-liter turbocharged four-cylinder hybrid iForce Max powertrain and eight-speed transmission that will power the high end of the Tacoma model range, most notably the TRD Pro. This powertrain's output of 326 combined horsepower represents a dip below the old 5.7-liter V-8's 381 ponies, but its mighty combined torque of 465 pound-feet betters the old model's 401 pound-feet where it counts off-road—especially since the iForce generates peak torque at just 1700 rpm instead of 3600 revs. An integrated tow hitch is standard, but this smaller and less powerful Land Cruiser's tow rating does drop from the prior model's 8100 pounds to a still-respectable 6000 pounds.

Toyota won't release fuel-economy estimates until later this year, but we expect huge increases over the 2021's appalling 14 mpg combined (13 city/17 highway). The reformulated hybrid Cruiser should also handily outclass the larger LX600's 19 mpg combined (17 city/22 highway).

The use of this engine is a big reason why the Land Cruiser is strictly a five-passenger machine. The hybrid system's 1.87-kWh nickel-metal hydride (NiMH) battery sits atop the axle where a third row would go, and it even creates a load floor that's a bit higher than we like to see. Still, the cargo area is voluminous, and we appreciate how the hybrid setup enables the fitment of a standard 2400-watt inverter and power delivery system.