Written by Automotive journalist here and hopefully this helps people make a decision if they’re looking at the new Prado.
Overall: Good car, could use more power and dealer could’ve done better speccing.
In details:
The new shape looks brilliant. In every angle, I find something cool and quirky about the design. It works really well and the retro shape is great.
We get 4 trim levels in the UAE, two of which get a Futtaim-made “First edition”. All trims share one engine: 2.4L Turbo (Non-hybrid) with 267hp and 430Nm.
Lowest to highest: TXR, GXR, GXL and Adventure.
Prices: 199,900 | 219,900 | 229,900 | 254,900
The latter two get the final edition trim (234,900 and 264,900) which basically give you a painted front skid plate (Instead of unpainted), painted hood plastic trim, different color grill and center console, mud flaps, different tires (265/70r18 instead of 265/65r18).
The only mechanical benefit you get with the Adventure are Rear diff lock and stabilizer disconnect. otherwise, everything else is mechanically the same.
Only the Adventure gets different wheels, projector LED headlights, cooling 2nd row seats and the large driver screen/gauges. (Here is why I think the speccing is unfair).
Now to how it feels and drives:
Electric power steering so it’s super smooth, you don’t get much feedback yet it feels nice and comfortable.
It has a rear live axle, but with a shock and spring so the suspension is somewhat soft. It feels comfortable on the road and it can definitely be upgraded in the future***
On the highway at 140 KM/h, I didn’t feel wind noise from the body. The hood was rigid with no shaking (Unlike the Landcruiser). I used a GPS speedometer to see the difference of actual speed and the gauge speed. It was a solid 10 km/h difference after 120. So if I’m doing 130 on the car, I’m actually doing 120. 140 was 130. So I set my cruise control to 148 and I was fine. Big gap in my opinion.
The power was decent for the road. Hp and torque were more than enough if you’re an A to B person. At slower speeds, the engine is good enough to react to slower maneuvers, but once you go higher speeds above 100, you’ll find it lacking and notice how the 4Cyl is pushing itself to deliver whatever it can.
Once we took it offroad, for some reason the driving team didn’t deflate and kept us on full tire pressure. It did surprisingly good …. for a 4 cylinder. Still it wasn’t as enjoyable as I had hoped but it actually took us places and proved its capability. The lack of power was clear, it needed an oomph bit more power. Transmission was alright but on the edge of overheating (I can’t judge it fully though as it was 50C and depends on what the driver is doing).
I tow a racecar on a trailer so towing capacity is important for me. Unfortunately nobody had the numbers for the towing capacity for this powertrain. The US only get the Hybrid option so different numbers.
I LOVED the interior. It’s modern and straight forward except for not having a volume knob. It’s either using the touch screen or from the steering wheel.
Most of these cars that are more likely to be purchased by an enthusiast, are expected to have aftermarket parts in the future. I feel it’ll be difficult for this car when it comes to suspension work or even powertrain work .. the engine is pushing all of its power… But who knows? Maybe someone will come up with something in the future.
I just wish it had the 3.5L V6 Twin turbo engine.
I liked it very much, it looks great and I would love to have one but not for that price. All cars are getting more expensive.
***Important note: The US only get the Prado (They call it Landcruiser) in one engine option: The 2.4L Turbo Hybrid. That weights significantly more than the one we have, so if you’re thinking of getting any suspension modifications from the US, the spring rate and load rate are completely different. Maybe NZ/AUS market will have the same ones we do.