Toyota axes 70 Series Land Cruiser V8, last deliveries due in 2025

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Toyota Australia today announced that the popular V8 versions of its long-running 70 Series Land Cruiser are being phased out.

The importer is accepting “no more orders,” says Toyota Australia Vice President Sales, Marketing and Franchise Operations, Sean Hanley. Orders for V8 70 Series have now been paused for two years.  

Final production for all versions of V8-powered single-cab and double-cab WorkMate and GX pick-ups, Wagon and ‘Troopy’ 70 Series vehicles will occur in September.

Customer deliveries of the above versions are expected by the end of this year or Q1 2025.

Specifically, V8 production of the GXL-grade 79 Series pickup, in both single and double-cab body styles, will continue for a limited time into 2025. Deliveries for these variants will finalise in the fourth quarter of 2025.  

According to Toyota Australia, Australians have bought 346,742 examples of the 70 Series since its 1985 introduction, with “almost half” of sales – specifically 171,100 units – powered by the 1VD-FTV 4.5-litre diesel V8 that was introduced in 2007. 

The 70 Series will continue to be offered with 1GD four-cylinder turbo-diesel for the foreseeable future in both existing automatic and newly introduced five-speed manual guises.    

Many existing 70 Series order holders set to miss out on V8  

Many of the existing order holders who have been waiting for years for delivery of their V8 Series are set to miss out, as the current order bank for bent-eight 70 Series outstrips the current and final allocation for Australia. 

When asked by local media exactly how many order holders will fail to secure a V8 Land Cruiser, Hanley responded that “a lot will miss out” without quoting any specific numbers.

Toyota Australia has been “planning this [cessation of V8 70 Series] for a long time,” says Hanley, with the decision to “bring down the curtain on the V8 … inevitable due to changing regulations and community expectations”.

Hanley says that the decision to axe the V8 was not directly related to the federal government’s recent New Vehicle Emissions Standards mandates.  

New high-torque five-speed manual for four-cylinder 70 Series  

The 70 Series is set to continue sales in Australia, now with the addition of a five-speed manual option.

The four-cylinder’s newly introduced H153F manual transmission is based off of the outgoing V8’s H150F unit albeit adapted for use behind the 150kW 1GD four-cylinder engine, which offers 20Nm more than the bent-eight.

Technical changes include shorter first-, second- and third-gear ratios as well as a taller-ratio fifth gear to “improve fuel economy” on the open road. 

Other changes include a triple-synchro mechanism for the first gear and a revised clutch flywheel. 

Hanley forecast that it will be “a small market for manual transmissions” in 70 Series moving forward, with projections that buyers will continue to favour the automatic choice in the Land Cruiser range.