2024 Toyota Land Cruiser Road Test and Review

2024 Toyota Land Cruiser 1958 ・ Photo by Brady Holt

Around the world, the Toyota Land Cruiser is known for mighty capability and unkillable durability. But in the U.S., ultra-luxury pricing and poor fuel efficiency doomed the Land Cruiser to a tiny niche, and Toyota dropped the model after the 2021 model year. 

Now it’s back – but in a different form. The 2024 Toyota Land Cruiser has transformed from a full-size SUV to a smaller, less expensive, and less ritzy mid-size model (known in other parts of the world as the Land Cruiser Prado). Bursting with character and charm, more accessibly priced, featuring a gas-electric hybrid powertrain, and still comfortable and functional, the new Land Cruiser aims to make a bigger splash in the U.S. market while promising to uphold its proud legacy. We just spent a week testing the 2024 Land Cruiser. Keep reading as we explore its pros and cons to see if it’s the right mid-size SUV for you. 

Lower Price, Still High

The 2021 Toyota Land Cruiser had a starting price of $85,655, more expensive than even most luxury-branded vehicles. Now, the 2024 Land Cruiser starts at $55,950 – still more than many luxury SUVs, but in reach for a lot more customers. 

The base Land Cruiser 1958 like our test vehicle focuses on the basics: rugged fabric upholstery and hard plastic interior trim, manually adjustable seats, gray plastic exterior trim, and a manual liftgate. We’ve seen owners jokingly call this the “poverty edition,” but we’re not talking about a budget ride. At it has heated front seats, 8-inch touchscreen, automatic climate control, adaptive cruise control, lane-keeping steering assistance, front and rear parking sensors, front and rear automatic emergency braking, locking differentials, and a crawl-control system. Put all that together, and it’s not so far off the price of a similarly equipped Jeep Wrangler. 

The next-up model, just called Land Cruiser, costs $61,950 and has the luxury features you’d expect: leatherette upholstery instead of fabric, ventilated and power-adjustable front seats, a bigger touchscreen, 10 speakers for the stereo instead of six, a power liftgate, and dressier interior and exterior trim. Extra-cost options include genuine leather, a moonroof, and a 14-speaker stereo. The top First Edition model combines these luxury amenities with the 1958’s rugged exterior for a steep $74,950. 

2024 Toyota Land Cruiser 1958 ・ Photo by Brady Holt

’80s Style

The full-size Toyota Land Cruiser became a glitzy, chrome-covered, rounded-off SUV. The new model reverts back to the utilitarian boxy styling that it wore back in the 1980s. The 1958 and First Edition models even have round headlights inside square housings, while the mid-level Land Cruiser has slimmer rectangles. But whichever 2024 Land Cruiser you choose, it looks better in mud than in chrome. 

The new Land Cruiser drops down from full-size to mid-size, but the change is more apparent in the SUV’s proportions than its dimensions. The 2021 model is only slightly longer and a similar width, and the new generation is taller. You’ll find the same shape but glitzier details in the latest-generation Lexus GX, a model that has always been derived from the Land Cruiser Prado since its debut in 2002. Meanwhile, the Lexus LX 600 is a U.S. version of the latest-generation full-size Land Cruiser (priced at $93,915 and up).

2024 Toyota Land Cruiser 1958 ・ Photo by Brady Holt

Timeless Capability

The Land Cruiser’s styling and iconic name promise mighty capability, and this genuine SUV delivers. You get full-time four-wheel drive, up to 8.4 inches of ground clearance, a body-on-frame construction with a solid rear axle, rear and center locking differentials, a disconnecting and a host of off-road driving modes that include an advanced hill-descent system called Crawl Control. We’re sure that many owners will keep their Land Cruisers on the pavement, like other SUVs. But unlike most SUVs, the Land Cruiser isn’t held back. 

Nor is it painful to drive on the pavement. It won’t rival a BMW X5’s zesty handling or a Lincoln Nautilus’s quiet serenity. But the Land Cruiser has a gentle enough ride without becoming too clumsy. It’s a comfortable, easy-to-drive truck – less cushy than the 2021 Land Cruiser, but not a rough piece of industrial equipment like you’d find from Land Cruisers as recent as the ’80s. To put in a modern context, it drives like a Jeep Grand Cherokee rather than a Jeep Wrangler. 

2024 Toyota Land Cruiser 1958 ・ Photo by Brady Holt

Hybrid Power

One thing that keeps the Land Cruiser from feeling too luxurious is its new engine. Unlike the throaty V8 of the 2021 model, or the turbo V6 in the new Lexus GX 550, every Land Cruiser uses a 2.4-liter four-cylinder gas engine. It’s augmented by turbocharging and an electric motor to reach 326 horsepower and 465 lb-ft of torque, which stacks up decently against the old 5.7-liter V8’s 381 hp and 401 lb-ft of torque. But while it delivers lively acceleration, the engine doesn’t sound beautiful. This gritty-sounding motor is perhaps well-watched to the new Land Cruiser’s overall vibe, but it’s not silky smooth or rich.

As a gas-electric hybrid, the new Land Cruiser is at least able to cut your fuel bill. EPA estimates are 22 mpg in the city, 25 mpg on the highway, and 23 mpg combined (on premium-grade fuel). This is no Prius or Tesla, but it’s pretty good for a fast, boxy mid-size SUV. By contrast, the Lexus GX 550 averages just 17 mpg combined while the 2021 Land Cruiser managed a piddling 14 mpg (though on regular-grade fuel). During our week in the 2024 Land Cruiser, we came up just shy of the EPA estimate, averaging 22 mpg. We averaged 17 mpg in each of two GX 550s we tested. 

2024 Toyota Land Cruiser 1958 ・ Photo by Brady Holt

Simple Interior

Inside the Toyota Land Cruiser is an interior that will divide its audience. To some, our test vehicle’s small 8-inch infotainment screen, hard plastic trim (even on the armrests), and hardy fabric upholstery belong on a vehicle costing half the Land Cruiser’s starting price. To others, its rugged simplicity and user-friendly controls are a welcome departure from high-tech froufrou SUVs. 

We tend to side with the latter group in the Land Cruiser’s case – the interior is in keeping with the SUV’s overall character. But Toyota really should have spent a few extra bucks to pad the armrest in our test vehicle that approached $60,000 with options. Folks who want the padded armrest, leatherette or true leather upholstery, and a bigger 12.3-inch touchscreen can skip the 1958 trim level for one of the upper models. You still won’t get the full luxury flavor of the leather-encrusted, wood-trimmed old Land Cruiser. Toyota now directs you to Lexus for that extra frippery. 

2024 Toyota Land Cruiser 1958 ・ Photo by Brady Holt

Not the Roomiest SUV

Even the downsized 2024 Toyota Land Cruiser is a good-sized SUV. But you won’t necessarily feel that from the cabin. The driver and front passenger get a suitably towering seating position and comfortable chairs. But unlike on the old model, their elbows can bump on the center console. 

You’ll feel the pinch even more when you carry rear passengers or cargo. First, the Land Cruiser is no longer available with third-row seating (though the equivalent Lexus GX squeezes in a tiny third row). Second, second-row knee space is tight for adults unless the front seats are moved forward. And third, you have less room than before for your stuff. There’s 37.5 cubic feet of space behind the rear seat, which is a competitive total but is mostly vertical. The hybrid battery raises the cargo floor, too, for trickier loading and unloading. For maximum space, you can either drop the rear seat flat (resulting in another ledge) or tumble them forward (causing a gully between the rear cargo hold and the front seats). The rear window glass opens separately from the liftgate to grab small items quickly, a handy feature. Overall, this SUV is big enough to fit a family, carpool, or group of road-trip buddies, but no better than a compact Toyota RAV4. At least there's a respectable 6,000-pound towing capacity. 

2024 Toyota Land Cruiser 1958 ・ Photo by Brady Holt

Land Cruiser, GX, or 4Runner

Toyota and its Lexus division sell an uncommon number of mid-size off-road-ready SUVs. Let’s go over the differences between the Toyota Land Cruiser, Lexus GX 550, and Toyota 4Runner. 

The Land Cruiser and GX are the closest cousins. You can see that in their near-identical silhouettes. The GX has a sumptuous interior, a longer list of available features (including a third-row seat), and a more upscale engine note – all for a similar price to an equivalently equipped mid-trim Land Cruiser: $62,900 versus $61,950. But many folks will prefer the Land Cruiser’s tougher attitude or accept a coarser engine to get another 6 mpg. 

We also expect folks to shop the Land Cruiser against the Toyota 4Runner. As we write, the 4Runner is a roomy but archaic machine whose last meaningful upgrade came in 2010. It has devoted followers but carves out a distinct niche versus the more polished, better-handling, fuel-sipping Land Cruiser. However, later this fall, a fully redesigned 2025 4Runner will hit dealers with similar underpinnings to the Land Cruiser and the option for the same hybrid powertrain. It’ll likely be roomier, enjoy a higher ground clearance, and cost less. Once we drive it, we’ll know what the Land Cruiser will offer over the 4Runner besides a different aesthetic. But it’s possible the Land Cruiser will return to filling a small niche in the Toyota lineup.  

2024 Lexus GX 550 Overtrail+ ・ Photo by Brady Holt

Other Competitors to Consider

Outside of the Toyota corporate umbrella, the Land Cruiser faces other rivals that include the Jeep Wrangler and Grand Cherokee, Ford Bronco, and Land Rover Defender. 

The Wrangler and Bronco trade some of the Land Cruiser’s on-road polish for even greater off-road capability, plus the extra character of removable roofs and doors. The Grand Cherokee is another capable off-roader but with a higher degree of polish than even the Land Cruiser, though we prefer the Toyota’s ride, handling, and control layout. And the Land Rover Defender is another boxy high-end off-roader, and it has richer interior materials than the Toyota, but its prices soar quickly past the Land Cruiser’s if you aren’t careful with options. 

Finally, if you aren’t attached to the Land Cruiser’s off-road capability or go-anywhere attitude, you can choose from a host of excellent mid-size crossovers. The Honda Passport, Hyundai Santa Fe, Ford Explorer, Mazda CX-90, and Nissan Pathfinder are objectively better than the Land Cruiser for less money in most ways. They ride and handle better on the road, have more space, and get equivalent or better gas mileage even without hybrid technology. They just aren’t Land Cruisers.  

2023 Jeep Grand Cherokee 4xe ・ Photo by Brady Holt

Final Thoughts

We enjoyed our time with the 2024 Toyota Land Cruiser. We liked the bare-bones vibe of the 1958 trim level (except for the hard plastic armrests), and we appreciated the SUV’s capable ride, handling, and acceleration along with its respectable gas mileage. It’s a vehicle that marries character, comfort, capability, and practicality.

The market is filled with more sensible ways to spend this much money. This isn’t a value winner, even among Toyota’s own lineup. But nothing else looks like the Land Cruiser. This SUV has spunk, and it backs that up with genuine drivability on and off the pavement. If that combination speaks to you, and your budget permits it, the reinvented Land Cruiser is a worthy addition to the SUV universe. 

2024 Toyota Land Cruiser 1958 ・ Photo by Brady Holt