Toyota teases FJ Cruiser replacement, shadowy CUV in Land Cruiser launch
All the hubbub over the new Toyota Land Cruiser has seen an icon refreshed in the updated 70 Series and an icon reborn in the return of the U.S.-market Cruiser. During a presentation on where the automaker plans to take the model, brand chief Simon Humphries previewed a future icon. As Humphries discussed making Land Cruiser more affordable and more accessible to people around the world, slide appeared behind him with three silhouetted vehicles. Let’s start with the vehicle on the upper left that gives us the best shot at identification. It looks like an evolved version of the Compact Cruiser EV Concept from 2021 — that concept a flirtation with the revival of Toyota’s FJ Cruiser.
Buyers appear to have quite the appetite for the FJ Cruiser even though it died here ten years ago. It started at about $30,000 in 2014; Classic.com shows sales this summer in the near or exceeding MSRP for anything under 100,000 miles, going up to around $45,000 or $50,000 for a Trail Teams Edition with under 50,000 miles. If the shadow image in the presentation is derived from the Compact Cruiser, the potential future version has been updated with a few musts for the segment; it sits higher off the ground on much larger tires, and wears a spare mounted on the tailgate. The dimensions look grander than the Compact Cruiser, too. Were a little Cruiser to return, we’re not sure if it would be electric-only as with the Compact Cruiser, or if Toyota would put an ICE in the forward bay.
The larger SUV on the right is more mysterious. It doesn’t have a traditional grille, leading us to believe it’s battery-electric, and the length makes us think it’s a three-row offering. Its lines are reminiscent of those on the bZ5X concept, although more pronounced in places like the deep scalloping on the doors and the punched-out rear fenders. Frankly, square volumes and rakish tailgate make it look most like the Lexus battery-electric three-row SUV concept rumored to be the luxury brand’s version of the bZ5X perhaps called the TZ 450e or TZ 550e.
The last teased vehicle is obvious, a three-wheel mobility scooter, undoubtedly all-electric and kind of all-terrain, one of the “new approaches to mobility” the brand honcho spoke of. Check out Humphries’ comments starting at 18:26 in the video above.
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