While rumours originally pointed to the debut of a new generation Land Cruiser Prado in 2022, sources now say a facelift is more likely
Toyota is set to unveil a facelifted version of its Land Cruiser Prado in August this year according to recent reports out of Japan.
The new generation Prado was originally rumoured to make its debut in 2022 but Japanese Toyota dealers say the new model will be “partially improved” but not an all-new model, according to media outlet Creative311.
With the 150 Series dating back to 2009, the changes made to the four-wheel-drive will primarily revolve around updating the safety suite to comply with modern standards.
There will also be a new grille and mild changes to the exterior design, along with material changes like synthetic leather wrapping for the armrest and interior colour changes.
Such updates, particularly in regards to safety, will help the Prado fight off newer rivals such as the Isuzu MU-X and the new-generation Ford Everest.
It comes after Best Car Web reported back in September 2021, that the new-generation Land Cruiser Prado had been delayed from 2022 until 2024.
The issue is said to lie with both the resilient popularity of the current-generation Land Cruiser Prado and the potential to steal the thunder from its newly-introduced and supply plagued bigger brother the Land Cruiser 300 Series.
Toyota is also grappling with significant semiconductor shortages that have forced it to shut down some production lines for weeks at a time, a crisis that could divert resources away from future development.
The new-generation Land Cruiser Prado is said to bring a slew of improvements to this iconic 4WD including a series of key elements borrowed from the 300 Series.
These include the 3.3-litre turbo-diesel V6 engine and the new GA-F platform that has led to a considerable step up in refinement for the 300 Series.
Rumours also point to a hybrid joining the line-up, likely mated to a 2.4-litre turbo-diesel four-cylinder engine with a combined system output of 294kW.
All prices listed are before on-road costs.
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