It was clearly deceptive of Toyota. We've always had the Prado in the 4R/GX. They drop the $90k+ 200 series rather than giving us a poverty pack Qatari version and then tease this as the "return". For 14 years, they offer only a fully decked out 200 to abysmal sales numbers.Your example is more like akin to turning the LC into a crossover or some entirely different vehicle all together in form and function which is not what they are doing here. Also Mercedes names their models in classes such a A, C, E, G, etc. No X though, that’s BMW.
Land Cruiser is a family of vehicles. It’s not just the 200 Series. There are plenty of enthusiasts around who don’t like the 200 and believe the 100 or 80 is better. Then there are those who think it’s FJ40 or bust. You don’t have to buy a 250 if the marketing doesn’t speak to you. (That’s kind of how marketing works) You can keep driving your 200 for the next 15-20 years and have plenty of peace of mind that you’re in a great vehicle. Just keep lots of money set aside for gas.![]()
Now, it "returns." What returns? Certainly not what we've always known as the "Land Cruiser" in this market (that's the wagon: the 60, 80, 100, 200). So the return of the Land Cruiser is NOT the next gen wagon. Not the logical next step from the 200 series. What has "returned" is the badge. That's it. But they dropped the Prado qualifier, on purpose. Prado conveys "light duty". "Diet Land Cruiser" is how the public would perceive it.
But that's exactly what this is: a Prado, and it has always been called such in other markets. That's fine. Just don't say it's "returning" to the US market. Because it has always been here.
It will smoke the 200 series sales though because it's 40% cheaper and is a Bronco competitor with the heralded LC badge that allegedly gets 27mpg. Toyota knows what they're doing. I just wish I could order a bare bones Qatari 300 series and have it shipped.