Toyota Land Cruiser Review (2009-2023)

What is the Toyota Land Cruiser?

In the UK, when we think of an off-roader, we think Land Rover. Well, the Toyota Land Cruiser has been around in one form or another for nearly 70 years, so it's only a few years younger than Land Rover. What's more, because the Toyota has a much stronger reputation for reliability than Land Rover, you'll find lots of Land Cruisers working hard in the remotest parts of the world, especially in environments where you really don't want to breakdown.

This generation of the Land Cruiser arrived in Britain in 2009 and was replaced by an all-new model in 2024. Although the new Land Cruiser looked a lot like the previous model, it marked a worthwhile step forward in specification and driver aids.

Some things did not change, though, like the Land Cruiser's old-fashioned body-on-frame construction. This contributes to the car's bulk, and does it no favours on the road.

How practical is it?

The interior finish is another weakness. We're not suggesting the Land Cruiser isn't solidly put together, because it is, but the Toyota doesn't have the plush, upmarket ambience of many rival 4x4s like the Mercedes GLE.

However, if you're more concerned with space and practicality than soft-touch plastics, the Land Cruiser has a lot going for it. There's lots of space in the cabin, with most versions offering seven seats. Grown-ups will be comfortable in the front two rows. The rearmost seats will take adults at a pinch, but are really better suited to children.

With the third row of seats in place, the luggage capacity is tight at 120 litres but fold the two rear seats down and you get a whopping 640 litres.

What's it like to drive?

Feed the Land Cruiser a tarmac-based diet, and you may be disappointed. The four-cylinder 3.0-litre D-4D diesel engine fitted to early examples is tough and reliable, but crude and noisy compared with the six-cylinder diesels in many rivals. It's down on power, too, so don't expect to go anywhere in a hurry. The same is true of the 2.8-litre engine that replaced the 3.0-litre in 2015, although the uprated 2.8 that joined the range in 2020 does offer a useful step forwards in performance.

Even by the standard of other big 4x4s, the Land Cruiser feels ponderous and unwieldy. A contemporary Land Rover Discovery or a Range Rover are more comfortable, while the likes of the Audi Q5 and BMW X5 are far sportier. Vague steering makes it hard to place the car precisely, and if you corner with enthusiasm, you'll feel lots of body roll and the front tyres soon run short of grip.

Technology, equipment & infotainment

The Land Cruiser doesn't just rely on four-wheel drive, chunky tyres, and lots of ground clearance when you head off road. There are plenty of electronic aids to help even the most ham-fisted driver. Multi-Terrain Select, standard on LC5 and the later Invincible models, has various modes – loose rock, mud and sand, rock, and mogul – to tailor the car's systems to the terrain.

Crawl control is another system fitted to high-spec cars that will apply the throttle and brakes to maintain a steady, slow speed so the driver can concentrate on steering. A limited slip centre differential prevents spinning wheels wasting the car's power.

Toyota Land Cruiser running costs

In UK market, this generation of Land Cruiser has always been powered by a diesel engine. But although a diesel engine usually delivers better fuel economy than the equivalent petrol, any Land Cruiser is going to cost you a lot to fuel.

The 3.0-litre diesel has an official combined figure of 34.9mpg, but that's based on the old NEDC test standard which tended to make cars seem more efficient than the really are. You can count yourself lucky if you achieve 30mpg.

Many owners use their Land Cruiser for towing trailers, caravans or horseboxes, in which case economy closer to 20mpg is likely.

A more recent 2.8-litre Land Cruiser will deliver better economy than the old 3.0-litre engine. It's the same 2.8-litre engine used in the latest Hilux pick-up, and manages to improve performance as well as cutting fuel bills. Don't be confused by the official economy figure of 27.6-31mpg, as this is based on the more accurate WLTP fuel economy and emissions tests. In similar driving conditions, the newer 2.8-litre engine will deliver better mpg than the 3.0-litre.

For a big 4x4, insurance bills shouldn't be too scary. In part, that's a reflection on the Land Cruiser's fairly tame performance; plenty of rivals have much more powerful engines. An early 3.0-litre LC3 five-door is in group 31. At the opposite extreme, the latest 2.8-litre Invincible five-door is in group 38.

High emissions mean that annual car tax bills are costly. Depending on the exact spec, early Land Cruiser owners pay £565 or £580 per year. The 2015 2.8-litre reduced emissions to 194g/km, dropping these cars into the £305 tax bracket.

The latest Land Cruiser engine meets the tough RDE2 emissions standard, which helps to keep tax bills down to some extent. However, the second year on the road will cost owners £475 per year in Vehicle Excise Duty, because the £40k- list price means there's a £325 surcharge to pay until year six of the car's life.

Toyota offers pay-monthly service plans to spread the cost of maintaining a Land Cruiser. The Toyota 5+ Club offers a 20% discount on servicing and MOTs at participating Toyota dealers.

Toyota Land Cruiser reliability

From new, the Land Cruiser comes with a three-year, 60,000-mile warranty. That's similar to what most other manufacturers provide, but much less than the seven- and five-year arrangements provided by the likes of Kia and Hyundai, respectively. However, the Toyota's warranty has a big trump card over the rest. Have your car serviced at a Toyota main dealer according to schedule, and your warranty automatically gets extended by a year, up to 10 years old, which makes for a longer warranty that any other manufacturer you care to mention.

If you are looking at an older Land Cruiser, it's worth noting that the Toyota Approved Used scheme covers cars for a minimum of 12 months.

There's a good chance you won't need to make use of the warranty, though. Like most Toyotas, the Land Cruiser is a very reliable car. It's one of the reasons they are so popular in the Australian Outback and other places where you really don't want to be stranded by a breakdown. If reliability is a high priority, the big Toyota is less likely to let you down than the equivalent Jeep or Land Rover.

There have been some recalls during the Land Cruiser's time on sale. Cars made up to 27 September 2016 can have a fault that means the driver or front passenger airbags may not work properly, increasing the risk of injury. The chances are any Land Cruiser you are thinking of buying will have had this fault attended to, but a Toyota dealer will be able to check for you. Or you can enter the car's VIN or registration number to use Toyota's online recall checker.