Toyota finally understands what its doing!

I have a difficult time recommending the Toyota Land Cruiser. I don’t really understand why people are complaining that they pulled the 300 series from the USA because buying a Land Cruiser new just feels wrong. For me, convincing me to buy 2023 Land Cruiser is like an arranged marriage with someone you’re not interested in. Yes, i understand that it’s theoretically practical in the long run but i just don’t want it, Theres no chemistry! The world is changing from these traditions.

In 2023, for the first time I’ve seen Toyota make a decision that is so genius with the Land Cruiser that i reconsidered my approach towards them.

Now i know that the Land Cruiser has its fans but i’m not interested at all in any bias in this article. I have to keep it real, who was going to buy it? The statistics clearly don’t back it too. The only people who would ever buy a Land Cruiser 300 were the fans and many of them don’t buy them new!! If i’m a car manufacturer, why should i care about pleasing customers if its not making me any money especially if the customer base is a very narrow one. Keeping a car alive for the sake of a legend doesn’t make sense and it’s the reason the G-wagon was almost pulled from production in the late 2000’s, I’m surprised they kept the 70 series Land Cruiser! I understand that there is a market but i also understand the reason they are not replacing it with a new version. I just don’t think it would not be a profitable investment because people are moving on from utilitarian vehicles, It’s a nostalgia thing but nostalgia is not practical for future use.

The Land Cruiser 300 does not make sense realistically. People that can afford a $100000 luxury car don’t care about it lasting 20 years as much as they do the ‘luxury’. Kia is so successful but do you think people buy it because they think it lasts? no!!! Perhaps a small margin care about it lasting 20 years but the reality is Land Cruiser’s also break. A Land Cruiser 300 is still a complicated luxury car and the reality about complicated luxury cars is that they break!! ( Watch High Peak Autos on youtube to understand more). We have first hand experience with Land Cruisers and although they don’t break as much, when they do break, don’t think it costs any less than its competition to fix. It may be a Toyota but its not a cheap one! If you really want an affordable off-roader then go buy a Jeep Wrangler because a Wrangler can be defended.

A Rolex is a luxury that started as a utility but evolved into a luxury. Same with the g wagen but as the price rose, so did the purpose change. Now people are not using Rolex watches for military work and neither are people using G wagens to go off-road or on the battle field. If the Land Cruiser wanted to remain competitive, it would have to up it’s game and where would this leave the Lexus Lx? The Lexus LX is good because it at-least understands its market although it has stiff competition. The Land Cruiser 300 on the other hand is a physical gimmick. It’s a non-luxurious-luxury car that that poses a price tag of one and it’s not fooling anyone especially if it doesn’t have the badge to back it up.

The other reality is these days, very few people are paying full price for vehicles. People lease them or pay by PCP or Hire purchase and that’s set in monthly instalments. Even if they pay full price, the average age of a vehicle is estimated to be anywhere from 8-13 years but with cars like the Land Cruiser, many people will be selling them once the warranty runs out. With a new vehicle, almost all of them come with a warranty and can in many cases be extended. Fact is, a car under 10 years is not as likely to face serious problems as one older than that. With PCP, you have an option of switching the vehicle to a newer one once the 3 or so year agreement comes to an end. Now bearing this in mind, assume your PCP payment is something like $2500-$3000 a month. You want a brand new car and you have a list of options around that price. You a have a Mercedes-Benz G550, Land Rover Defender 110 V8 or Range Rover, Mercedes Benz GLS580, Cadillac Escalade, and even the Lexus LX600, Does the Land Cruiser 300 stand a chance whilst lacking the luxury and brand image? Of-course not and thats why the 300 series Land Cruiser was pulled from the US market. It’s not competent enough and they know it. To choose this over a Kardashian cruiser is not correct. The Land Cruiser is a nice luxury car but at $100000, It’s punching well above it’s weight.

Now Toyota obviously realised the slowing sales and also realised that people are not wasteful so what they did next was genius. I think Toyota has made some amazing decisions in the past 5 years. There was the new Yaris which i like. The Yaris is no longer a symbol of an entry level hustler but is now an appealing car. The Corolla is an appealing deal. The most impressive is the Prius, what they did to the Prius has forever changed it’s reputation and now to add a cherry to the top of the cake, they have released a Land Cruiser that makes sense.

The new Land Cruiser J250 is the first Toyota Suv besides the Fortuner that is Beach Science of swings Approved and why? look at the price, $55000! Look at it and then look at the price. This is exactly what a Land Cruiser should be!!! I have nothing wrong to say about it! This J250 is the most excellent Land Cruiser ever made and top 3 most excellent suv propositions Toyota has made up there with the RAV-4. This is the least expensive any Land Cruiser has been since the early 2000’s and the features and looks match the price. This is exactly the type of thing that the type of person that buys this type of car is looking for! Its Affordable and good! Now it makes sense especially for men not for a misogynistic but because men thrive on respect, If you show up to your equal peers having paid $60000 for this car you will get respect. If however you show up having paid $100000 for a Land Cruiser 300 instead of its alternatives then it’s a different story. Theres also no fooling anyone saying people buy them to be subtle, it’s like buying the playboy mansion as a family home. If people really wanted to be subtle, something like the Volvo XC90 or Q7 does a far better job at it and those will do all the off-roading most buyers need.

The Audi Q7 a compelling suv!

In 2020, Toyota showed us it’s brand new design direction and now they are becoming dangerously appealing vehicles! This is no longer a company that makes utility ‘things’ but is now making products that are lovable. Blog-gable. Before if you wrote a blog about how interesting Toyota is, no one will read it but now, perhaps. All the focus was on Mercedes, BMW and everyones personal favourite, Land Rover. Even of you didn’t like them, you’d be interested in knowing because of that mystique.

About Author