The Japanese automaker Toyota has so many legendary off-road and/or family SUVs that it is sometimes hard to know where to begin when discussing them.
Should we kick off with the latest official teaser that paves the way for the impending reveal of the company’s first-ever, all-new Toyota Grand Highlander mid-size crossover SUV? Or are we better off talking about a more hardcore approach to the segment, aka the off-road-focused Toyota 4Runner?
As far as fans of rock-crawling and dune-bashing overlanding adventures are concerned, we already know the answer. So, let us meet with Marouane Bembli, the virtual artist better known as TheSketchMonkey on YouTube, who is keen on unofficially imagining the next iteration of the Toyota 4Runner ahead of any OEM announcement.
And the CGI gist is simple, at least apparently. The pixel master has decided the N280 fifth-generation 4Runner, which is still an extremely popular SUV even though it was first introduced back in 2009, does not need a lot of CGI love to look prim and proper for the sixth-generation lifestyle.
Instead, taking advantage of Toyota’s decision to retire the Land Cruiser nameplate from America, the CGI expert borrowed the latter’s face (in GR Sport guise) and combined it with a fifth-generation Toyota 4Runner TRD Pro version. The result is not bad, per se, but maybe people would see too easily through the ruse and start asking too many questions.
Well, no worries, until there’s any official word from Toyota, this ‘4Runner TRD Pro Land Cruiser GR Sport’ (not quite a catchy name, right?) remains merely wishful thinking. Hopefully, when the time is right for Toyota to start refreshing its mid-size lineup, they will think better than to simply steal the J300 Land Cruiser DNA and blast it all over best-selling models such as the 4Runner, or even the upcoming Tacoma pickup truck, right?
Aurel has aimed high all his life (literally, at 16 he was flying gliders all by himself) so in 2006 he switched careers and got hired as a writer at his favorite magazine. Since then, his work has been published both by print and online outlets, most recently right here, on autoevolution. Full profile
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