Toyota Land Cruiser Prado is a mid-size four-wheel drive vehicle in the Toyota Land Cruiser range. It is produced by the Japanese car maker, Toyota Motor Corporation.

The Prado is one of the smaller vehicles in the range. The Toyota Land Cruiser Prado may also be referred to as Land Cruiser LC70, LC90, LC120, and LC150. These depend on the platform.

Different Toyota Land Cruiser For Diferent Markets

In North America, the Prado it is not part of the Land Cruiser range. Toyota 4Runner replaces the Prado with basic trim. The rebadged Lexus GX occupies the Prado’s position in luxury trim.

The GX uses practically identical body panels and V8 engine. Toyota Land Cruise Prados have ladder frames, two-speed transfer boxes and rear beam axles. The J70 platform has a front beam axle. On the other hand, the J90, J120, and J150 platforms have front independent suspension.

As of 2014, the LC Prado was available in every Toyota market. This was with the exception of the US, Canada (both available as the Lexus GX), Mexico, and South Korea.

4th Generation Toyota Land Cruiser Prado

The fourth generation Toyota Land Cruiser Prado has been available in some markets since 2009. There are two base variants, five-door and three-door. The five door variant in the general market is offered in TXL & VXL grades.

They are much more option packed. This generation of Prado features advanced 4WD and an array of electronic gadgets. This generation of the Prado is offered in the US badged as the 2010 model year Lexus GX 460 with luxury trim.

The fourth generation is available with an under-floor mounted or rear door mounted spare wheel. This is dependent on the, e.g. UK vehicles have the spare wheel mounted under the floor. In Australia and Argentina the spare wheel is mounted on the rear door.

This leaves space for an auxiliary fuel tank. This is desirable in countries where long journeys in isolated areas may be required. The fuel capacity of the dual tank series four is 150 L compared to 179 L of the series three.

The removable third row three-seaters of the J120 were replaced by fold-into-floor seats. These seats can only take two people. This is also responsible for a loss of cargo capacity. It is also the reason for reduction in dual fuel capacity and usable height in the cargo compartment.

On the higher end VX and Kakadu models, there are six camera positions. This enables viewing to the front and down, to the side both front and rear, and to the rear.

The engine remained the same, although the automatic gear change points were altered. This was for maximum fuel economy rather than maximum performance, even in sports mode.