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Having nearly a 60-year history, Toyota's Land Cruiser has been sold in 176 countries to 5 million customers. In Africa, the Land Cruiser is even regarded as the King of Africa for conquering the toughest terrain. And now, as things move on, Toyota revealed the brand new 2010 Land Cruiser which is the sixth-generation Land Cruiser, boosting as the most technically advanced Land Cruiser ever made and one of the most capable if not the most capable off-road vehicle in its class.
Based on the Prado platform, the 2010 Toyota Land Cruiser SUV is only for the UK and other Europe market. Sales will begin in the UK on the 1st of December 2009.
Under the hood, power comes from a 3.0-litre D-4D turbo common rail diesel engine mated with a 5-speed automatic transmission, producing 128kW (171bhp) at 3,400rpm and maximum torque of 410Nm between 1,600 and 2,800rpm. This is enough to accelerate the car to reach 62mph in 11.7 seconds and get a top speed of 109mph (175km/h). The average fuel consumption is an admirable (for a heavy SUV) 8.1 liters/100 km (29 mpg US) and the CO2 emissions of 214 g/km.
The UK market will offer the Land Cruiser exclusively as a 5-door model with seven seats as standard while other European countries will have the option of a 3-door model and a 4.0-litre V6 Dual VVT-i petrol engine.
The advanced technical features include the new Multi-terrain Select system which allows the driver to select the terrain that best suits the situation. Four cameras, positioned at the corners of the car, will help to monitor the situation all around. There's also Crawl Control and a Steering Angle display function.
Additionally the new Kinetic Dynamic Suspension System (KDSS) adjusts the front and rear anti-roll bars for optimised on and off-road performance. The electronically controlled rear air suspension system has an auto-levelling function and switchable height control function.
To overtake harsh trails, its body-on-frame chassis has been stiffened by 11% overall. The wheels are either 17-inch or 18-inch and come rolled inside 245/70R17 or 265/60R18 tyres respectively.
Inside the features list is as long as the car's 2.79m wheelbase. The left and right hand seats for instance, can be raised and lowered independently, using the Toyota Easy Flat system. Other features included are USB ports, a 14-speaker JBL Synthesis Premium Surround Sound System, a Hard Disc Drive (HDD) navigation system and a multi-information switch on the steering.
Japanese tuning specialist Wald International has climbed to the top of the ladder of popularity in its 15 years in the industry by tuning all kinds of Japanese or European premium cars. However, Wald’s latest creation, the Wald 200 Land Cruiser Sports Line Black Bison Edition, is the first vehicle they've attacked from Toyota that is not a minivan.
The vehicle also marks the 8th vehicle in the Sports Line Black Bison lineup. Others in the range include four Mercedes-Benz models (S-Class W221, CL-Class W216, C-Class W204, and R-Class W251), the Lexus IS F Sports Line, Toyota Alphard, and of course the Nissan GT-R.
Although the Wald Land Cruiser edition was originally purpose-built for the Russian and Eastern European market, a positive response from the rest of Europe, Australia, and the Middle East means the SUV could show up on three different continents. It's no surprise interest has piqued. The company was trying to build a vehicle that is, "Aggressive, Powerful and [has a] Muscular Style." Often times when a tuner goes after just those qualities, they end up going overboard.
But the engineers at Wald managed to style their Land Cruiser in both a strong and dignified manner. The new front bumper with integrated fog lamps sticks out in a particularly bold way that is matched by the new sidesills. The rear bumper incorporates the same mesh as seen at the front, while also building in new reflectors and space for the interestingly shaped quad-exhaust. Blacked-out Mahora M11C 20-inch wheels match the paint pretty well, but we like the five-point chrome-look wheels for the added contrast. If there is anything that can be removed, it is the rear spoiler, which looks rather out of place.
Overall, the Wald 200 Land Cruiser Sports Line Black Bison Edition is a truly appealing piece of work. But it is still in the development stage and is expected to be released later this year.
