2024 Toyota Land Cruiser 250 Launched in Japan, Series 70 Also Returns Home

Aside from the virtual premieres in the United States, on the Old Continent, and in Australia, the Japanese company also featured a physical unveiling at home in Toyota City, Japan. There, it presented the new Land Cruiser 250 to the world in prototype form. By the way, note the moniker.

As far as explanations go, this is obviously not the same model as the J3100 Land Cruiser introduced by the automaker in June 2021 – that one is only available in some regions of the world, such as the Middle East and at home in Japan. In America, the nameplate returns after a three-year hiatus and keeps things simple – the 2024 Land Cruiser moniker, an exclusive 326-hp i-Force Max hybrid inline-four turbo powertrain shared with the 2024 Tacoma, plus a side profile akin to the 2024 Lexus GX 550 and different front fascia according to grades.

In Europe and Australia, the Land Cruiser is sometimes dubbed Prado, depending on the market and region, and comes with a completely different powertrain – a 2.8-liter turbo diesel with 201 hp hooked to a new eight-speed automatic transmission. On the Old Continent, that diesel mill will receive electrification technology (MHEV) starting in 2025.

Now, as far as the home market of Japan is concerned, Toyota plans to call its new generation the 2024 Land Cruiser 250 and will send it to nationwide dealerships starting with the first half of next year. Interestingly, the big event that featured the entire Land Cruiser family on stage also welcomed the arrival of the old-school, heavy-duty Land Cruiser 70 that is set to return to Japan this coming winter and become a regular fixture of the Land Cruiser model range (with 70, 250, and 300-series options).

Also labeled as the Light Duty Series, the Land Cruiser 250 adopts the TNGA-F body-on-frame platform and will be offered in Japan with two different front fascia styles – classic round LED headlamps or the squared looks. Curiously, while other regions only get one powertrain choice, there's an abundance of low-key options in Japan.

For example, North America and China get the hybrid, the Middle East has a choice of 2.4-liter gasoline with 278 hp or 2.8-liter diesel with 201 hp, Western Europe rocks only the latter, and parts of Eastern Europe also gets a base 2.7-liter gasoline mill with 161 hp (plus the 2.8L diesel and 2.4L turbo gasoline), Japan has the least potent choices – the 2TR-FE 2.7-liter gasoline with 6 Super-ECT packing 161 hp and the 1GD-FTV 2.8-liter turbo diesel with Direct Shift-8AT and 201 hp.