According to Japan’s Best Car, the all-new Land Cruiser, which will reportedly go on sale in 2020, will feature a new ladder-frame chassis and improved Multi-Terrain Select four-wheel drive system, but crucially retain the dimensions posted by the @hamad1two3 Instragram page, in the form of an overall length of 4 950mm, wheelbase of 2 850mm, height of 1 920mm and width of 1 980mm.
On sale since 2007 and updated twice in 2011 and 2015, the article further claims that the newcomer will finally do away with the 200 suffix and be known as the Land Cruiser 300, and incorporate a full suite of new safety and driver assistance systems such as Adaptive Cruise Control and Autonomous Emergency Braking with Pedestrian Detection.
The biggest departure from the 200 though will be a switch to hybrid power for the 300, and also the end of the V8 petrol engine that first debuted in 100 back in 1998.
While no details on whether the 300 will keep its diesel engines was made, the publication states that petrol power will be a V6 only affair in the form of the 3.5-litre (despite displacing 3 444cc’s) twin-turbo used in the Lexus LS, which produces 310kW/600Nm and comes linked to a 10-speed automatic gearbox.
For the rumoured hybrid, the Land Cruiser will likely borrow from the LS again and receive the above mentioned engine, although with an electric motor instead of the twin-turbos for a total system output of 257kW. In the LS, the amount of twist is send to all four wheels via a unique gearbox known as Multi Stage Hybrid, which combines a traditional four-speed torque converter with a CVT for an effective 10-speed ‘box.
Given its launch date in Japan in just over two years, expect the 300 to make its local debut only in 2021 or even in 2022.
