New 2010 Toyota Land Cruiser Prado Review

2010 Toyota Land Cruiser Prado

Toyota's revered Land Cruiser brand of off-road vehicles has been religiously serving for over five decades across various markets. What makes the Land Cruiser series so successful the world over are its supremely engineered mechanicals and its ability to conquer harsh terrain with conviction and of course, Toyota's legendary reliability.

Performance
Toyota's all-new D-4D 3.0 litre Common Rail Direct Injection turbocharged diesel motor that is currently serving the Fortuner. Albeit, under the hood of Land Cruiser Prado the diesel power plant is differently tuned and configured to suit the Prado's bigger dimensions and a 2400kg kerb weight. The motor pumps out 173PS of power and 410Nm of torque, which is adequate for cruising around the city and occasional highway bouts but the engine feels sluggish and strained to haul this behemoth with urgency. The engine is also slightly noisier than we would like.

Exterior
The new Prado gets a slight over haul. The chassis is slightly wider than the outgoing model and has a lower right height to reduce the center of gravity and manage roll over risk that are notorious to the Prado. The head lamps have changed slightly and the tail lights from undergone complete change.

Interior
The global auto industry is in the race to reduce costs and make cars more affordable. The Prado is no different. The interior is very conservative but high tech. Buttons and dials are all over the place which control various aspects of the audio system, electronic 4WD, and climate control. However, the materials just don't match up to this cars price. Toyota has used cheap and flimsy looking plastic that makes it car far from luxury. We also expected that a car this expensive came with leather seats standards, but this isn’t happening with the Prado

Safety and Reliability
The Prado has always been considered as a very safe car. The rigid chassis and standard side curtain and passenger side airbags makes this a very safe car to drive in.

Toyota's have always been known for making cars very reliable, and the Prado is no different. This car can probably outlive you.

Bottom Line
While we think the Prado is a very capable SUV and equally capable off the road, it just does not live up to its heritage. In the past, the Land Cruiser range have always been the flagship of Toyota cars, but the combination of low quality materials, flimsy interiors and simply too bland interiors makes this car a no buy. Furthermore, the car at showroom price retails for almost 1.3 cores, which makes this car even more difficult to justify. Those looking at buying this car should compare the advantages and disadvantages with its main competitors, Mitsubishi Pajero, Nissan Patrol, Volkswagen Tourag.

Price:1.2 - 1.3 Crores