If you’re an aid worker heading into a war zone, you can now get your hands on the new four-cylinder Toyota LandCruiser 70 Series.
It’s being offered by Toyota Gibraltar Stockholdings (TGS), a specialised division of Toyota that is responsible for outfitting, upgrading and selling vehicles to the world’s aid agencies.
As the name suggests, the division is based in Gibraltar, giving the specialist division quick access to the Middle East, Europe or Africa – in case aid fleets need to be bolstered quickly.
The updated 2.8-litre turbo-diesel LandCruiser was revealed at the 2023 AidEx Aid & Humanitarian Conference, with the four-cylinder engine being offered in single-cab and dual-cab ute and five-door wagon body styles.
The engine – shared with models like the Toyota HiLux – has almost as much power as the existing turbo-diesel V8 offered in Australia (150kW vs 151kW) and more torque (500Nm vs 430Nm).
“The LandCruiser’s legendary robustness and reliability is set to live on with this new model, which brings additional significant benefits such as improved fuel efficiency and safety features, contributing to lower carbon footprint of the aid and humanitarian organisations, up to 30 per cent, and better road safety in the field,” says TGS.
The 1GD-FTV 2.8-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel engine is mated exclusively to a six-speed automatic transmission and a part-time four-wheel drive system.
As this is a rugged fleet-only variant, the interior has been stripped back even more compared to the LandCruiser customers can buy.
The 6.7-inch touchscreen infotainment system is absent, replaced with an empty cubby, so customers can spec their own unique radio systems.
To support organisations that work in the most remote of destinations, TGS still offers the 70 Series LandCruiser with an engine that can be diagnosed without modern scan tools: Toyota’s 1HZ naturally aspirated 4.2-litre inline six-cylinder diesel.
The bush-proof 1HZ-powered 70-series makes 96kW of power and 285Nm of torque and has a 130-litre fuel tank.
Other models in TGS’s line-up include the two-door 78 Series LandCruiser ‘troopy’, the much newer LandCruiser 300 Series, as well as the HiLux, HiAce Commuter, Prado, RAV4 Hybrid and Corolla.
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