First new Prado since 2009 has been a long time coming. TX pictured
The National Association of Automobile Manufacturers (Naamsa) sales figures for June, although anything but a rosy overall picture for the local automotive industry, showed one significant surprise related to the all-new Toyota Land Cruiser Prado.
Supposed to have debuted in the first half of the year, only to be delayed for alleged homologation reasons, the first completely new Prado in 14 years received the signatures of 694 buyers last month; its highest in recent memory.
ALSON READ: Here it is: Toyota reveals new Land Cruiser Prado’s price and spec
The second model after the Land Cruiser 300 to ride on the new ladder-frame TNGA-F platform, the internally named J250 Prado‘s official launch involved a similar fanfare in the form of a cross border debut in Mozambique this week.
Styled to resemble to the second generation Prado at the front, with the rear facia and profile paying respective tributes to the Land Cruiser 80 and 60 Series’, the J250, which one observer described as a Lego block, appears suitably more rugged than the outgoing J150, while also gaining on all dimensional fronts.
Measuring 4 925 mm long, 1 980 mm wide, 1 935 mm wide and 2 850 mm long on the wheelbase side, Prado retains its 3 500 kg towing capacity, but loses four millimetres of ground clearance for a total of 216 mm.
In addition, the relocation of the spare wheel from the tailgate to underneath the body has seen the long-range fuel tank being dropped, the knock-off effect being a capacity drop from 150-litres to 110-litres.
Unaffected are the approach, breakover and departure angles rated at 30°, 25° and 17° respectively.
Debuting a more streamlined range comprising three variants initially, all powered by single powertrain for now, only the TX carries over as the entry-level derivative.
Serving as the mid-spec variant, the VX.R replaces the VX while the limited run First Edition takes over from the VX.L.
Restricted to 300 units, all already accounted, the First Edition, although based on the VX.R, sports a Land Cruiser 70-series aesthetic comprising round headlights, special First Edition mudflaps, a Sand Beige exterior colour option, First Edition badges and the option of a bi-tone hue priced at R10 200 that sees a white roof topping the beige body.
Selecting the latter does, however, result in the loss of the sunroof and somewhat strangely, the cooled centre console glovebox offered exclusively on the VX.R.
Unique to the range-topper though is a Chestnut Brown leather upholstery, paddle shifters, white embroidery work on the seats and a special rope-type decorative insert on the dashboard.
Unaffected by the differences of each trim level, the redesigned interior serves an overall massive step-up from the J150.
More modern and chunky with rugged plastic and soft-touch materials presents, Toyota has also resisted the urge to exclusively opt for touch-sensitive switchgear.
As such, physical buttons and dials are prominent, although the lack of a volume knob on the TX means inputs will have to come from either the infotainment system or steering wheel.
Present on the VX.R and First Edition, the presence of the dial – not ideally located at the base of the facia – fails to address the Prado’s biggest shortcoming, its infotainment system.
Measuring seven-inches on the TX and 12.3-inches on the VX.R and First Edition, both proved frustrating to use largely as a result of a ‘Home’ function being absent despite, bizarrely, being present on the former. Instead, shortcut buttons for the relative function features on the flanks of each display.
Although likely to become second nature over time, neither are cutting-edge, with the seven-inch in particular having a poorer layout and look than the 12.3-inch.
More of a success is practicality, especially now that the seating arrangement for the seven-seats involves the third-row folding into the floor rather than against the inner walls.
With a flat surface now present, boot space measures 160-litres with all seven-seats up and 620-litres with the third row lowered. Dropping the middle-row frees up an additional 1 213-litres for a total of 1 833-litres.
On the spec front, Toyota has made 18-inch alloy wheels standard across the entire Prado range, along with dual-zone climate control, heated and ventilated front seats, a multi-function steering wheel, centre diff-lock, push-button start and keyless entry.
Further included are folding electric mirrors, a drive mode selector with three settings; Eco, Normal and Sport, side-steps, an electric tailgate and a revised Crawl Control function.
The inclusion of the latest Safety Sense 3 system means the Prado’s array of safety and driver assistance system consists of Blind Spot Monitoring, front and rear parking sensors, a reverse camera, Adaptive Cruise Control, tyre pressure monitor, Rear Cross Traffic Alert, Lane Trace Assist, Downhill Assist Control, Hill Start Assist, Lane Keep Assist, Trailer Sway Control and Safe Exit Alert.
Reserved for the VX.R and First Edition are heated and ventilated second row seats, a heated steering wheel, an electrically folding third row, a digital rear-view mirror, a sound system with four additional speakers for a total of 10, Head-Up Display and a wireless smartphone charger.
More significantly on the off-road side is the fitment of the Multi-Terrain Select system that adds a transparent frontal camera, the Multi-Terrain Monitor and five modes; Auto, Sand, Mud, Snow and Rock.
Compared to the TX, the VX.R and First Edition receive Adaptive LED headlights as opposed to the standard diodes, a disconnect function for the rear stabiliser bar, a surround-view camera system, a Torsen limited slip rear differential and a split tailgate in which the glass section opens separately from the main bootlid.
Given that the event took place over three days, a rare opportunity to experience every derivative was provided, starting with the TX.
Negotiating the chaos of the capital Maputo before making it onto the highway to Ponta Mamoli 122 km away – which involved crossing the breathtaking Maputo Katembe Bridge – the immediate topic of interest involved the Prado’s ride.
Despite the road being smooth and devoid of pothole, the combination of an independent double wishbone design at the front and four-link at the rear, translates to a sorted and plush ride unlikely to be phased by the hazards found in South Africa.
What’s more, Toyota has done away with hydraulic power steering for an electric setup, which felt weighted and with good feedback for a vehicle of this type.
On the refinement side, the 2.8 GD-6 turbodiesel engine, now the only powerplant available as the normally aspirated 4.0-litre V6 petrol has been dropped entirely, emits a raucous note that fizzles out at the national limit.
Unlike the Hilux and Fortuner, the unit omits the 48-volt mild-hybrid system and as such, produces the same 150kW/500Nm as in the J150.
Mated to a brand-new eight-speed automatic gearbox, the unit felt stronger and with a better power and torque spread now that two additional ratios feature.
This also stead the Prado in good standing as the second day, behind the wheel of the First Edition, involved not only sand driving, but traversing a mud-laden section of Mozambique savanna.
With the tyre pressures lowered and Sand mode engaged, the Prado made the twisty sandpit section easy, although by the time my driving partner and I’s arrival, the course had become badly cut-up.
Getting stuck, not helped by a lack of momentum, ultimately happened, although it must be said, this was the result of human error.
Not wanting to be bitten twice, taking the mud section was done more vigorously, resulting in the First Edition emerging from the mud pool caked on the driver’s side.
Rutted worse than the sand section when our convoy arrived, selecting Mud mode couldn’t prevent one of our colleagues’ VX.R bogging down, again due to not enough momentum.
The final day behind the wheel of the VX involved not only the sand route that lad to our accommodation, but a section of road that once had a tar surface decades ago.
Broken with pothole-like dongas and the gravel surface underneath visible, the Prado’s suspension coped equally well in addition to ironing-out a series of preceding corrugations that failed to shake our bones to pieces inside.
Back on track, it was smooth sailing as before with the indicated fuel consumption hovering around the 8.5 L/100 km mark.
High expectations are tough to live-up to and while disappointing on the infotainment front, the Toyota Land Cruiser Prado lives-up to the hype by being a proper junior Land Cruiser than ever before.
Admittedly, it now comfortably breaches the R1-million mark, yet lacks for little and given the massive demand as evident by the sales figures, will prove a runaway success as more units become available.
Included in each Prado’s sticker price is a three-year/100 000 km warranty and a nine-service/90 000 km service plan.
NOW READ: WATCH: New Prado’s cabin from up close and personal
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