For the last year I have daily driven a 200 Series Land Cruiser. A 2020 Heritage Edition that I drove from Dallas, Tx to Peoria, IL to purchase. In my haste and excitement, plus the fact that I journeyed that far I did not do my diligence on really looking it over nor did I know what to expect or necessarily look for in the first place. To keep this as short as possible that truck while fine, was not exactly everything I hoped for. It had rust on many spots along the frame, rear axle/diff, and all the nuts and bolts. The paint was good but could have been better, and the interior while nice felt a bit underwhelming based on what I had read around here about everything being tight as drum, free of creaks, rattles, etc. I was firmly fixed on just driving this one until I could purchase either a 550 OT+ or a 250 with all of the trimmings. However with the V35A recalls, plus the GX being a step down in the luxury department and the 250 being an unknown at this point I re-considered and told myself I may just get another 200 HE if I could find one that was either silver or gray, low mileage, one owner, southern owned and totally stock. (I much prefer doing my own mods so I know exactly what has been done and who did the work). Well it just so happens that I found one... a '21 HE 2 row in Classic Silver, 12k miles, first sold by Ed Martin and then spent it's time between SoCal and Northwest Arkansas.
So what does this truck have that my last one didn't? First and foremost a clean frame, no rust. Better paint (and color IMO), I didn't mind Blizzard Pearl and it was a huge QOL improvement coming from black but I think silver is a good look on a cruiser and it should be easier to maintain. It could use a paint correction to clean up a couple of spots my eagle eyes can see and there is one fairly deep scratch on the drivers door I'd like to address but I admit this is just me being VERY meticulous. Where things really improve is the interior. My previous one looked nice but didn't feel nice. This new one looks and FEELS the part. All of the trim pieces are very tight and secure along the doors and dash. The center console is sturdy, the shifter and surrouding plastics and knobs are eqally sturdy and just have a nice sounding thunk or click when operating them compared to a creaky center console lid, and crunchy sounding plastics when pushing around on buttons, the shifter, the hand brake, etc. The seats look and feel better as well although I'm sure those will break down over time with use as I have heard that is a pretty common theme with the 200. I'm not sure why my last one felt the way it did, my only thought is that it was not cared for the same way I care for my things and that once you pull panels and pieces apart they don't go back together quite the same as when they rolled off the assembly line? One thing I could use a recommendation on is a good product to remove a couple of scuffs and re-color the black plastics inside. Something caught the rear HVAC control surround pretty good and there are some marks along the drivers side door next to the speaker grill I can't just wipe away.
Driving it home felt like a different truck as well. My last one had a Bilstein lift on it which I thought handled well and offered a comfy ride but I could not tell you exactly which springs, or settings were used on the shocks. It was pointed out to me by my shop when getting my new tires first rotated and balanced that whoever did the alignment did not have the toe properly set. The truck never pulled or acted up on the road so I never addressed it. Overall I really enjoyed and preferred the OEM ride and improved fuel eco (18.2avg while cruising at 65-70 on the highway heading home!) but admit I cannot get over the stink bug stance and am already planning on doing a mild lift, most likely Bilstein 5160/6112 with standard springs and a slight rake. 285/65/18 AT's and call it a day.
One other big difference I found between the two is the audio system. I orginally thought the JBL system in these was just a "not too shabby" system as I had a really nice, low end thump in my previous cruiser. I tuned the EQ with a couple clicks to the right on the bass, and one click right on both the mids and highs and was really happy with how it sounded. This new cruiser sounds very muddy to me which means tells me one of the 3 previous owners on my last truck had aftermarket audio installed, or a sub at the very least. Sigh... I will probably end up doing the same in this one unless my ears are able to adjust to the OEM sound.
Oh and the best "feature" about this cruiser compared to my first one? It's paid off. Looking forward to starting with about as blank of a slate as possible given that you cannot buy these brand new anymore, adding my own personal touches to it and knowing the who's, what's, and when's and hopefully, ideally, wishfully having this thing for a long time. I admit I am still interested and tempted by the new stuff and will be looking to test them out but I want to let them marinate for at least a couple years and see how the early adopters get on with them.
TLDR: Had a 200 that was good, but no cream puff. Traded it for one that is. Found myself pleasantly surprised at the overall better condition of my new one.
So what does this truck have that my last one didn't? First and foremost a clean frame, no rust. Better paint (and color IMO), I didn't mind Blizzard Pearl and it was a huge QOL improvement coming from black but I think silver is a good look on a cruiser and it should be easier to maintain. It could use a paint correction to clean up a couple of spots my eagle eyes can see and there is one fairly deep scratch on the drivers door I'd like to address but I admit this is just me being VERY meticulous. Where things really improve is the interior. My previous one looked nice but didn't feel nice. This new one looks and FEELS the part. All of the trim pieces are very tight and secure along the doors and dash. The center console is sturdy, the shifter and surrouding plastics and knobs are eqally sturdy and just have a nice sounding thunk or click when operating them compared to a creaky center console lid, and crunchy sounding plastics when pushing around on buttons, the shifter, the hand brake, etc. The seats look and feel better as well although I'm sure those will break down over time with use as I have heard that is a pretty common theme with the 200. I'm not sure why my last one felt the way it did, my only thought is that it was not cared for the same way I care for my things and that once you pull panels and pieces apart they don't go back together quite the same as when they rolled off the assembly line? One thing I could use a recommendation on is a good product to remove a couple of scuffs and re-color the black plastics inside. Something caught the rear HVAC control surround pretty good and there are some marks along the drivers side door next to the speaker grill I can't just wipe away.
Driving it home felt like a different truck as well. My last one had a Bilstein lift on it which I thought handled well and offered a comfy ride but I could not tell you exactly which springs, or settings were used on the shocks. It was pointed out to me by my shop when getting my new tires first rotated and balanced that whoever did the alignment did not have the toe properly set. The truck never pulled or acted up on the road so I never addressed it. Overall I really enjoyed and preferred the OEM ride and improved fuel eco (18.2avg while cruising at 65-70 on the highway heading home!) but admit I cannot get over the stink bug stance and am already planning on doing a mild lift, most likely Bilstein 5160/6112 with standard springs and a slight rake. 285/65/18 AT's and call it a day.
One other big difference I found between the two is the audio system. I orginally thought the JBL system in these was just a "not too shabby" system as I had a really nice, low end thump in my previous cruiser. I tuned the EQ with a couple clicks to the right on the bass, and one click right on both the mids and highs and was really happy with how it sounded. This new cruiser sounds very muddy to me which means tells me one of the 3 previous owners on my last truck had aftermarket audio installed, or a sub at the very least. Sigh... I will probably end up doing the same in this one unless my ears are able to adjust to the OEM sound.
Oh and the best "feature" about this cruiser compared to my first one? It's paid off. Looking forward to starting with about as blank of a slate as possible given that you cannot buy these brand new anymore, adding my own personal touches to it and knowing the who's, what's, and when's and hopefully, ideally, wishfully having this thing for a long time. I admit I am still interested and tempted by the new stuff and will be looking to test them out but I want to let them marinate for at least a couple years and see how the early adopters get on with them.
TLDR: Had a 200 that was good, but no cream puff. Traded it for one that is. Found myself pleasantly surprised at the overall better condition of my new one.
