The lumbering 5.7-liter V8 underscores the old-school aesthetic. The ratings are prodigious, 381 horsepower and 401 pound-feet of torque, but the Heritage Edition weighs 5,715 pounds. It takes a minute to get going, and the eight-speed automatic transmission is a methodical shifter. The brakes are touchy. There’s a lot of pedal travel followed by a lot of stopping power. The cliche of being on your toes applies. The suspension is expectedly bouncy, which is reinforced when you jam on the brakes. I didn’t do any off-roading, but the chassis tuning is amazing for comfortably floating over pock-marked roads in metro Detroit. The steering is numb, offering little communication, but turning these meaty off-road tires is still a workout. If you want a better daily driver, the Lexus LX 570 (same underpinnings, different styling, available adaptive air suspension) is the way to go.
There’s nothing overtly retro about the Land Cruiser’s design. The circular shapes of the headlights, the flares of the fenders, the contoured hood, the off-road tires — they all create an identity — though it’s not out of line with looks of say, the Toyota Highlander. The Land Cruiser requires you to embrace the little things, take them together and reflect on the past. Then you see it. The design, the image, the very idea of the Land Cruiser is why you buy a nearly $90,000-Toyota SUV. In addition to the driving character, the LX’s interior is a bit nicer and you get a well-respected, if ubiquitous luxury badge. On the other hand, think of the Lexus SUVs. Which one is the LX? Counter that with two words: Land Cruiser.
The moniker has been synonymous with rugged capability for nearly 70 years. Sales volume, not so much. While 10 million Land Cruisers have been sold around the world over its long history and the SUV was an early standard bearer for Toyota in the United States, the company has sold just 614 of them this year through the first quarter in America. The Heritage Edition is limited, though you can spec one out on Toyota’s website, no problem, and it appears to be still available. Numbers don’t tell the tale of the Land Cruiser. There’s plenty of large SUVs with off-road chops that are cheaper, more richly appointed and/or better to drive. You buy the Land Cruiser because you seek it out, you want to feel something and nothing else will do. Someday, there will be a better Land Cruiser, but this final generation, flaws and all, will be remembered fondly. Nostalgia is indeed powerful.
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