[Autohome Overseas Test Drive] In the automobile industry, every major manufacturer will inevitably have a few classic models. For Toyota, the Land Cruiser is recognized as one of the classic models. fact. Strictly speaking, the Toyota Land Cruiser is not a car. It has always bee

[Autohome Overseas Test Drive] In the automobile industry, every major manufacturer will inevitably have several classic models. For Toyota, the Land Cruiser is recognized as one of the classic models. fact. Strictly speaking, the Toyota Land Cruiser is not a car. It has always been divided into two parallel car series: one specializes in hard-core off-road driving, and the other takes into account road driving. The first generation of Land Cruiser dates back to 1951, and the current generation J200 was launched at the end of 2007. What we tested in the United States this time was the J200 that had just undergone a mid-term facelift.

About the author of the article:

Brother Chao has lived in the United States for more than 10 years and once worked in the petroleum and investment management industries. Good at combining technology and consumer psychology to evaluate cars. He currently founded the automotive media YouWheel.com and serves as CEO. I have contributed to Autohome many times before, and have published test drive articles on the Ford Mustang and Lincoln Navigator, as well as articles introducing car purchases in the United States.

would like to add something here: In order to write good-looking articles, you must be in a good mood when editing and writing. I think it’s a bit awkward to name the Land Cruiser the Land Cruiser in China. I still like the majestic name “Land Cruiser” the most, so I’ll call it “Land Cruiser” for short in this article.

First, let’s briefly introduce the Land Cruiser car series. The hardcore off-road branch of Land Cruiser includes the J20/30/40/70 series. Among them, the "latest" J70 was launched in 1984, and is still in production and sold in some countries (such as Australia); the daily comfort branch models include J50/60/80/100, as well as this review The protagonist J200 is sold in both branches. The car name will be followed by the car series number. For example, in the Australian market, "Land Cruiser 70" refers to J70, and "Land Cruiser 200" refers to J200.

Whether in the Chinese or American markets, what we see most frequently are basically those models that take into account the road driving experience. For example, most of the two generations of Land Cruisers that have made a name for themselves in China's Qinghai-Tibet Plateau are the J80/100. Therefore, what most consumers call "Land Xun" actually refers to models such as J50/60/80/100/200 in a narrow sense.

Land Cruiser is very expensive in the United States. The suggested retail price of the 2016 model we tested this time is close to $84,000, which is several thousand dollars more expensive than the 2016 BMW 740i. On the one hand, most consumers cannot accept the fact that they spend so much money just to buy a Toyota. On the other hand, not so many people have serious off-road needs, so naturally the sales of this car in the United States are not much better. There are about 2,000 to 3,000 units every year. However, being highbrow does not mean that its products are not good. To some extent, it even supports the image of SUV products of the entire Toyota and Lexus brands. Toyota can cancel the FJ Cruiser due to sales reasons, but it is absolutely impossible to cancel the Land Cruiser.

As the latest generation Land Cruiser in the road experience branch, the J200 was launched at the end of 2007 and has been in business for eight years now. The 2016 model we are testing this time is a mid-term facelift. This facelift is very timely, because to be honest, looking back at the 2015 Land Cruiser, the appearance and interior alone give me the feeling of "going back in time." The 2016 Land Cruiser has important changes and upgrades in appearance, interior, electronic equipment/functions, machinery, etc. I will introduce them in detail in each separate chapter below.

● Appearance introduction

Land Cruiser is positioned as a medium to large SUV, but it is actually not as "big" as you think. For example, its wheelbase is only 2850mm, which is nearly 120mm shorter than the short-wheelbase F10 BMW 5 Series; and the total body length of the Land Cruiser does not exceed 5000mm (North American version), but its width is wider. The advantages of this arrangement are: the short wheelbase and short body are conducive to passability and flexibility when off-road; the wider body makes it less likely to roll over when walking on a road with a large angle of roll.

Five years ago, Toyota The exterior design of most Lexus models is relatively conservative. I'm not saying they're not good-looking, but they're just mediocre and featureless. Starting from the launch of the Lexus CT series in 2010, Toyota has tried to go down the road of youthfulness in appearance design.

There is a slightly exaggerated chrome-plated horizontal bar in the middle of the grille that extends to the left and right sides and runs through the two headlight assemblies. The lampshade is divided into upper and lower parts - the upper part is the high beam and the lower part. Parking lights.

Daytime running lights and low beam headlights share the same lens and LED light body, the only difference is the brightness. The parking lights are used when you are temporarily parked on the side of the road. If you turn on this light, the oncoming vehicle can see your position and will not hit you. This light is not as bright as the low beam.

It is worth mentioning that the 2016 Land Cruiser sold in the US market has low beam, high beam and fog lights all equipped with standard LED luminous bodies, and the effect is extremely good. Due to the height of the car, the illumination distance is very long. According to feedback from colleagues who drive work vehicles, its low beams can even dazzle the eyes of the driver of the vehicle in front.

There are two longitudinal arches (muscle lines) on the engine hood of the current Land Cruiser, giving people an effect of energy and strength; in the 2016 model, these two arches continue to be widened and increased, so that the middle part of the engine cover A deep V-shaped groove is formed, which makes the visual effect very special when viewed from the driver's seat, emphasizing the muscular feel of the car.

The taillights have a tougher shape, and the sharp-edged LED light strips and brake lights bring a capable and refreshing style. Similar to the headlights, the two taillights are connected by a chrome-plated horizontal bar with the words Land Cruiser on it.

The rear shape of the car is relatively square, with an obvious hardcore SUV style. The taillights use LED light sources, and the luminous strips and brake lights give the car a capable and refreshing style at night.

The original factory of the 2016 Land Cruiser in the US market only provides one tire size: 285/60R18. Our test car was equipped with Dunlop's GrandTrek AT23 tires. As a serious off-road vehicle, Land Cruiser also provides a full-size spare tire. We test-drove this Land Cruiser for a total of 1,188 kilometers this time. Except for climbing over big rocks, we basically tried it on all road conditions. Generally speaking, this tire meets my requirements for use: it has low tire noise when driving on paved roads; it has good grip on sandy roads; upon inspection after driving on gravel roads, no obvious damage from sharp stones was found. trace.

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[Video: Brother Chao explains the appearance of the Land Cruiser]

Although the Land Cruiser with 18-inch wheels does not look good, I sincerely advise you that there is no need to modify it. Because the rim and tire size affect the whole body, the original size and tire pressure are the results of optimization by the R&D team based on the car's driving experience, performance and application scenarios.

● Interior and electronic equipment

The interior style of the 2016 Land Cruiser is very different from that of the 2015 model. Unlike the convex curved outline of the current center console that resembles a nanny car, the lines of the new center console are straight and crisp. Strong sense of modernity and fashion.

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[Video: Brother Chao explains the interior and configuration of the Land Cruiser]

Interior materials are indeed not easy to deal with for the Land Cruiser in the US market. Due to its high pricing, which has entered the price range of full-size flagship sedans of several major luxury brands, most consumers must have high expectations for its interior.But the problem is that Land Cruiser already has an older brother who focuses on luxury: Lexus LX, so its interior cannot be made too good, otherwise the younger brother will quarrel with the older brother; at the same time, Toyota also has a large SUV with strong off-road capabilities. ——Sequoia. Sequoia’s three configuration models (SR5, Limited, Platinum) are in the price range of US$40,000/50,000/60,000 US dollars respectively, so the interior of Land Cruiser cannot be too bad, otherwise it will be It doesn't seem worth it anymore.

This situation results in a very narrow space for Land Cruiser's interior design and materials, and even compromises can be made in some places. Despite this, I still feel that the interior of the 2016 Land Cruiser is in line with its pricing, but it is still far from "great value". What I feel is a bit regretful about the interior is that most areas of the center console and door interior panels are only made of soft plastic instead of the leather stitching wrapping that is common in cars at this price. This greatly weakens the Land Cruiser. The interior feels luxurious.

Other hard plastic parts that try to imitate metal materials (such as door handles on the inside) are not visually realistic, and it is easier to tell that they are imitation plastics.

Despite this, there are still many places in the Land Cruiser's interior that are quite good. For example, the lower part of the center console, both sides of the air conditioning/audio buttons, and the armrests next to the door handles are all wrapped in leather. And the leather texture of the seats in the car is quite good, using semi-aniline leather. The visual texture of the air-conditioning outlet, the feel of the blade adjustment and the tactile feel of various buttons are first-class, just like Lexus models.

Generally speaking, the interior of the 2016 Land Cruiser can be regarded as a downsized version of the Lexus LX. The main part of the downgrade is that the upper part of the center console is made of soft plastic, and hard plastic appears in some other parts.

There are many electronic functions in the Land Cruiser. The electronic functions added in the 2016 model are:

1. The collision warning adds the function of detecting pedestrians (the previous 2015 model could only detect objects the size of cars);

2. Added blind spot detection and lane departure warning system;

3. Added automatic high beam/low beam switching (after turning on this function, you only need to push the light control stick on the left side of the steering wheel forward to the high beam state, and the system It will automatically switch to high/low beam at night under the premise of detecting whether it will sway to the front or oncoming vehicle);

4. Qi wireless charging for mobile phones;

5. The display screen on the center console has changed from the previous 8-inch Upgraded to a 9-inch screen; the operating system added Siri voice control functionality.

Regarding wireless charging, currently only some mobile phones and mobile devices support Qi wireless charging, such as some mobile phone models from HTC, Motorola, Nokia, Google, and Samsung. It should be noted that Apple iPhone currently does not support this charging format (picture is a diagram). If your mobile device does not have wireless charging capabilities of its own, but you want to take advantage of this feature, your only option is to connect a corresponding receiver to the device. But this also defeats the purpose of wireless charging (your phone still has to be connected to something). Because the Land Cruiser has a USB interface, I personally don’t think there is any extra trouble in charging the phone through the USB cable. Therefore, this wireless charging function is the icing on the cake in my eyes and does not affect the experience of using the Land Cruiser.

In addition to the above, such as navigation, surround sound, radar dynamic cruise, automatic ventilation/heated seats (the second row seats only have heating function), steering wheel heating, front/rear parking radar, and surround Various functions such as camera assist, memory electric seats, and a small refrigerator under the center armrest are all carried over to the 2016 Land Cruiser.

It involves mechanical/driving functions and controls (mainly related to four-wheel drive off-road settings). Please see the following chapters introducing power and four-wheel drive systems.

● Seats and seating space

In order to meet the needs of off-roading, the wheelbase of the Land Cruiser is designed to be relatively short. Obviously, space in the third row has to be sacrificed.The Land Cruiser's first- and second-row seats are quite spacious, with plenty of head and leg room. Due to the relatively tall body, the second-row floor is basically flat, and the drive shaft under the chassis does not occupy the space in the passenger compartment.

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[Video: Brother Chao introduces Land Cruiser Space]

The third row of seats, when folded, is vertically separated on the left and right sides of the rear of the car. Due to the short wheelbase and hard-axle rear suspension, the rear of the chassis has to be raised significantly. Therefore, the third row of seats is not only close to the backrest of the second row, but also very short. The seat cushions are basically close to the backrest. It touches the floor and looks like a small horse, which is not suitable for adults to ride long distances. However, I believe that the consumer group that Land Cruiser targets does not consider the space of the third row of seats as the primary factor.

If the second row is moved to the farthest back position, the space in the third row will be relatively cramped, and the legs are basically completely pressed against the backrest of the second row. If the second row is moved to the farthest forward, the third row has slightly more space, but because the seat cushion is too short, the ride is still uncomfortable.

The backrest angle of the third row can also be adjusted, but the adjustment angle is not large, and the seat itself is not very comfortable, so if there are people sitting on it, it is usually adjusted to the maximum angle. When the third-row seats are stowed away, there's plenty of space in the trunk for luggage.

● Trunk space and various combinations

When all seven seats are in use, there is still a certain amount of room in the trunk, and two 28-inch suitcases can be placed vertically. Since the third-row seats are side-mounted and foldable, they take up no floor space at all after being stowed away, and the trunk floor is completely flat.

[GIF: Showing the third row of seats folded down]

After the third row of seats is opened, the remaining space in the trunk is not visually large; but beyond my expectation, two seats can be placed vertically. A big suitcase with some extra space.

As for storage space, you usually don’t have to worry about this kind of medium and large SUV, especially Toyota’s cars, which have always been considerate of the car-using habits of American consumers.

● Storage space

When you drive a long distance in the United States, you are likely to be in a deserted area on the highway during lunch time. If you are hungry, you will go to a chain brand fast food restaurant on the roadside (usually McDonald's, KFC, Taco Bell, Wendy's, Subway etc.) to solve. Drinks are refillable for free, so after eating, many people will fill up a glass and take it to the car. Drivers who are in a hurry don't even get out of the car, but drive to a special takeout window, pick up food and drinks, pay and leave. Luxun is very considerate in setting up a cup holder that is large enough to accommodate several people's cups. In this regard, some European imported cars lack consideration.

I won’t introduce the storage compartments and cup slots in conventional positions. For example, there are cup slots on the inside of the door panels. There is definitely no problem in placing ordinary mineral water bottles. What is more user-friendly is the third row, which provides cup slots on the side, and there are two on each side, which is very good.

● 5.7L naturally aspirated engine

Open the engine hood of Land Cruiser and you will know why Land Cruiser has such a legendary status in the off-road world: top-notch off-road performance, mythical durability and stability are one of them. . In addition, the reasonable layout of components in the engine compartment provides great convenience for maintenance, which is precisely what many competitors of the same type ignore. There are no additional body structures blocking the Land Cruiser's engine compartment, so most maintenance/repair work is easy to perform.

The engine of the 2016 Land Cruiser in the North American market has not changed, it is still the 5.7-displacement 3UR-FE naturally aspirated V8. When this engine is used on the Land Cruiser, it has a maximum output of 381 horsepower and a peak torque of 544 Nm/3600rpm.It is a V8 with a 90-degree angle between the cross crankshaft. Since the crankshaft is equipped with a balance weight, it runs very smoothly with very little vibration. It is even smoother than many V6s with a 60-degree angle. You can feel it through personal experience. No wonder some people are so obsessed with cross-crankshaft V8s.

Although this is a naturally aspirated engine, because the displacement is large enough, there is no shortage of low-end torque. According to information released by Toyota, this engine can output about 80% of the peak torque at 1,200 rpm; if the speed is increased to 2,000 rpm, 90% of the peak torque is available instantly. Displacement is king.

This engine uses an all-aluminum cylinder block and cylinder head, and weighs nearly 220 kilograms. It is heavier than other naturally aspirated V8 machines of the same era (for example, the M156 V8 on Mercedes-Benz's previous C/E-Class AMG weighed about 200 kilograms). But this comparison is a little unfair: the cooling fan on the front of the 3UR-FE is driven by the crankshaft, and this large fan is also included in the weight calculation.

Speaking of this fan: If you stand outside the car when the Land Cruiser starts the engine, you can hear a very loud and deep "boom" sound. Part of this sound effect is created by the large fan blowing when it is started.

Although it has been some years since the Land Cruiser was launched in 2007, this engine is not far behind among truck V8 machines. In addition to not using direct fuel injection, it has all the other mainstream technical features of naturally aspirated engines: for example, its intake and exhaust valve timings are variable, and the length of the intake manifold is also variable. 3UR-FE does not use direct injection, and the compression ratio is only 10.2:1. This is because the manufacturer takes into account the harsh operating environment it may face (low-grade gasoline, poor oil quality, etc.).

● 8AT gearbox

The gearbox can be said to be the biggest change in the mechanical part of the 2016 Land Cruiser. Toyota has finally used the Aisin 8-speed automatic transmission in this new car; at the same time, this is also the first time that the 3UR-FE engine has been matched with the 8AT.

To obtain the best acceleration performance, move the gear lever to the "S" position. It should be noted that the "+" and "-" in S gear do not mean that you can manually select a gear; their function is to allow you to adjust the gear range of the transmission. For example, if you push "+" a few times, the instrument panel will display "S7", which means you allow the transmission to change from 1st gear to 7th gear; if you then pull "-" three times, the instrument panel will display "S4" ", which means that at this time you only allow the gearbox to change between 1-4 gears, and are not allowed to move to 5th gear or above.

We all know that Aisin 8AT has been used in many models. For example, AA80/81E is used in Lexus cars from IS to LS; TL-80SN is used in Cadillac CTS; TR-80SD is supplied to Porsche Cayenne and Volkswagen Touareg. However, we know from the gear ratio data that the 8AT used on the Land Cruiser this time is not a copy of previous products, but a specially designed model AE80F.

Aisin’s series of 8-speed automatic transmissions are fundamentally different from ZF’s 8HP and universal 8-speed transmissions: it uses a common planetary transmission and a composite planetary transmission, plus 7 shift units To combine 8 forward gears (ZF and GM use 4 planetary rows and 5 shift units to achieve this). The advantage of Aisin's design is that it can make the gearbox more compact. But there is a price. For each gear, Aisin's design requires that 5 of the shift units be released (ZF only needs to release 2), which will cause additional resistance to the operation of the gearbox. Therefore, the transmission efficiency of Aisin's 8AT is slightly inferior to ZF's 8HP. But this doesn't matter, because basically all luxury cars use this transmission, and as long as the fuel consumption is within a reasonable range, consumers don't care about this.

● Suspension and steering system

In my previous article evaluating the Lincoln Navigator, I mentioned that for vehicles with a non-load-bearing structure (truck chassis), the front suspension is suitable for a double wishbone structure. This is not the case for the Land Cruiser. is also like this.

For the rear suspension, Land Cruiser uses a non-independent hard axle design.The hard axle of the rear wheel is connected to the car body through four connecting rods and a Panhal bar (transverse stabilizer bar). The Panhard rod is responsible for transmitting lateral forces, and the other four connecting rods (an upper and lower trailing arm on the left and right) are responsible for handling longitudinal forces. Although it is a non-independent suspension, it is a relatively high-end design among the hard-axle types: because there is no front and rear displacement in the movement trajectory of this suspension, it is helpful to enhance the car's control.

adopts a hard axle design. If one wheel is raised when off-road, the hard axle will automatically raise the differential and other bottom components, thus reducing the possibility of chassis components being damaged by ground obstacles; in addition, the hard axle itself The tolerance for various bumps is also relatively high. This is why many hardcore off-road vehicles use hard-axle suspension.

Land Cruiser's suspension is also equipped with a dynamic suspension adjustment system (KDSS), which operates in a purely mechanical manner. The idea of ​​this system is quite clever. When driving on the road and cornering, the hydraulic mechanism will resist the downforce on the outside of the car body and reduce roll. When off-road, once a wheel is raised/lowered significantly, KDSS will automatically weaken the effect of the anti-roll bar to increase the travel of the wheel without affecting the wheel on the other side. This allows each wheel to contact the ground as much as possible, increasing overall adhesion.

Land Cruiser still uses traditional hydraulic power steering and is also equipped with VGRS variable gear ratio steering function. VGRS adds a gear mechanism to the steering wheel's rotation axis so that the steering ratio can be dynamically adjusted according to the vehicle's driving speed. When the car is driving at low speeds, the steering ratio becomes smaller, and the steering wheel only needs to turn a small angle to complete the turn, which is convenient for maneuvering in a parking lot or on a slow road in a residential area; when driving at high speed, the steering ratio becomes larger, even if the steering wheel is slightly turned, The straight-line direction of the car will not be significantly affected, enhancing the car's sense of stability and solidity when running at high speeds.

● Four-wheel drive system

Let me introduce the highlight of Land Cruiser - the four-wheel drive system. The situation of the North American version of Land Cruiser is as follows: it uses a full-time four-wheel drive system, the transfer case has two gears, high speed and low speed; it uses a Torsen C-type center differential and can be locked manually. Both the front and rear wheels have open differentials, and there is no limited-slip mechanism at the hardware level. The limited-slip of the front/rear wheels is realized through the software method of the driving computer controlling the brakes of each wheel.

Readers who have a certain knowledge of four-wheel drive may feel that the hardware of this Land Cruiser's four-wheel drive system does not seem to be up to the most "hardcore" level, right? In fact, this is not the case, please see my analysis below.

One of the characteristics of the Torsen center differential used in Land Cruiser is: the asymmetric torque transmission of the two output ends in the default state (front 40% and rear 60%). This is because of the sun gear in the Torsen planetary gear structure. The diameter of the ring gear and the ring gear cannot be equal, so it cannot achieve the default torque distribution of 50:50.

Torsen differential has a great advantage compared with other limited-slip differentials: other limited-slip differentials can only play a limited-slip role after slippage has occurred; but Torsen can do it after slippage has occurred. The adhesion of the wheel at one end begins to decrease, but it can be sensed before slippage occurs, and the torque is instantly transferred to the end with higher adhesion. For Torsen, it can allow up to 58% of the power to the front axle, or up to 72% of the torque to the rear axle. I won’t go into details about the specific technical principles here. Generally speaking, Torsen not only has the function of “limiting slip”, it can actually achieve “anti-slip”.

Although the Torsen differential is so sophisticated, it also has a weakness: it cannot achieve 100% locking. In other words, if one of the output ends of the Torsen differential loses almost or completely its adhesion, it will immediately be equivalent to an open differential, and the other end will not get any torque. This is because the mechanical principle of Torsen is to dynamically adjust the ratio of torque output at both ends; if the torque at one end is zero, then no matter how much the proportion coefficient is multiplied by the other end, the result will still be zero. For the Land Cruiser, this means that without the help of center differential locks and brakes, once its two front or rear wheels slip at the same time, all four wheels will lose power at the same time.

Therefore, Land Cruiser added a manually controlled center differential lock to the Torsen C-type center differential. If you encounter the situation mentioned above, you press the center differential lock button on the center console. After the center differential lock clicks and locks, the power distribution between the front and rear wheels is forcibly locked at 50:50, and the problem is solved.

Although the mechanical lock ensures limited slip in the middle differential, the front and rear wheels of the Land Cruiser are open differentials, and limited slip is achieved at the software level through braking. This goes back to the previous question: What is its overall level? Is it capable of "hardcore off-roading"? The simple answer is: off-road is only one of the four-wheel drive applications. The design of the Land Cruiser allows it to cope with a wider range of applications that require four-wheel traction besides off-road, such as cities with a thin layer of snow on the ground. When driving on the road (where road adhesion frequently occurs and disappears), Land Cruiser's Torsen center differential + brake limited slip design is definitely more suitable than locking the front/middle/rear differential to limit slip. many.

Furthermore, Land Cruiser is not an ordinary limited-slip brake. It introduces the off-road low-speed crawling (Crawl Control) function, and also provides 5 different off-road terrain modes (Multi-terrain Select) for the driver to choose.

Multi-terrain Select is very powerful. If the crawling function is not turned on, you can manually select five modes: 1. Mud/sand/snow; 2. Gravel road; 3. Hilly road; 4. Very high. A potholed dirt road; 5. Rocks. After selecting one of the terrain modes, it is equivalent to telling the car what kind of road conditions it is currently on, so the driving computer can set the aggressiveness to prevent tire slippage according to different modes.

In the mud/sand/snow mode, the control logic allows more wheel slip; the subsequent modes are more and more aggressive in limiting slip. In the rock mode, once the tires spin off the ground, the brakes will tighten tightly. Make sure the wheel on the other side can get enough torque to meet the needs of climbing rocks.

After the crawling function (Crawl Control) is activated, the computer will guess/judge and automatically set the corresponding terrain mode based on the speed you currently set (at this time, the terrain selection knob acts as the crawling speed setting). As long as you set a constant speed, the trip computer will automatically control the brakes, accelerator, and limited-slip mechanism to maintain this speed and the driver only needs to concentrate on controlling the direction of the car.

In addition to the crawling function and multi-terrain mode selection, the Land Cruiser also has some useful electronic functions in off-road mode. For example, because the engine compartment blocks the line of sight, there will be a blind spot in the front of the car. Therefore, the center console display will use the camera under the front logo to display the road conditions in front of the car, and there will be a dynamically adjusted prediction line to tell you where the tire trajectory will go in the current direction. This auxiliary display has a variety of different modes, and the three-axis tilt angle of the car will also be displayed on the screen with a three-dimensional effect.

also has a function called "Turn Assist", which can help you pass some very narrow curves smoothly. In some particularly narrow and large angle corners, even if you turn the steering wheel to the end, the car still cannot turn around at once. With the help of the turning assist function, once the Land Cruiser's steering wheel turns a large angle while crawling, the computer will automatically brake the inside wheel, causing the car to produce an effect close to "rotating on the spot" to help you turn around smoothly at once. Of course, this function will only work after crawling mode is turned on.

Generally speaking, because this Land Cruiser is designed to take care of both off-road and daily highway driving, Toyota has adopted this four-wheel drive system design. Its advantage is that it has a wide range of applications and is effective; but it also has advantages and disadvantages: in intense off-road situations, because the braking system needs to intervene frequently and vigorously, it may overheat and cause excessive wear of the brake pads.

● Driving experience

Because the body weight is close to 2.7 tons, the Land Cruiser cannot be as flexible and stable as a car when driving on the road.When driving at high speeds, its steering wheel directionality is a bit blurry, and when driving over undulating roads, it vaguely gives people the feeling of being on a boat.

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[Video: Brother Chao introduces power and driving experience]

During the test drive, we once drove a section of highway through the mountains and needed to pass various winding mountain bends. . At this time, I clearly felt the weight of the car. My hands needed to hold the steering wheel firmly to maintain the correct direction. Otherwise, the car would give you an uneasy feeling of "not sticking" to the road. In addition, due to the large side area of ​​the Land Cruiser's body, strong crosswinds will disturb the stability of the vehicle. Of course, this is not just an isolated phenomenon of Land Cruiser. This is more or less the case with SUVs of the same type.

Although the high center of gravity weakens the handling; but because the Land Cruiser has a front-engine rear-wheel drive layout, and with the help of KDSS, its roll angle when turning is comparable to that of ordinary cars, and it is even more impressive than SUVs of the same level. confidence. Coupled with VGRS variable gear ratio steering and a relatively short wheelbase, land cruising on ordinary streets in the city sometimes shows unexpected dexterity and smoothness.

Land Cruiser's suspension is soft, the tire size is 285/60R18, and the sidewalls are relatively high. Coupled with the non-load-bearing body structure, it filters the bumps on the road quite well. Our work vehicle is a sports sedan. When we drove it on the poorly maintained highways in Southern California, which were full of potholes, the bumps were like sitting on a massage chair; but when driving the same stretch of road in the Land Cruiser, I felt Basically, you can't tell how bad the road conditions are, and it's a calm experience. It is worth mentioning that the sound insulation effect of Land Cruiser is very good. I personally feel that it is similar to the quietness of Lexus cars.

Due to the soft suspension and heavy body, if the brakes are a little sharp, the front of the Land Cruiser will sink hard, then lift up, and then shake up and down a few times. This phenomenon is fine for the driver, but the passengers in the car may feel uncomfortable. Therefore, when driving Land Patrol, I recommend not to get too close to the car in front and brake early.

The actual use experience of large-displacement V8 engines is quite different from those of small-displacement, highly supercharged 4-cylinder/6-cylinder engines. The power output of a naturally aspirated V8 increases steadily and continuously as the speed increases, giving a sense of confidence; the deeper you press the accelerator, the more force you exert. This is the so-called "linear throttle". It's just that the 2.7-ton body has a lot of inertia, so the driver will have a special feeling of heaviness when accelerating/decelerating when driving this type of heavy SUV.

8-speed automatic transmission shifts smoothly and quickly. After Land Cruiser changed from the 2015 6AT to the 2016 8AT, the acceleration performance or fuel consumption data may not be significantly improved, but the driving smoothness will definitely be perceptibly improved. If it's not accelerating violently, and you don't pay attention deliberately, you won't even feel its shifting action in many cases.

Based on the design purpose of this Land Cruiser J200 (taking into account both off-road and on-road driving comfort), generally speaking, I think it reflects the consistent level of Toyota's high-end products. After all, it is one of the representative products, so you have to use your special skills.

● Acceleration performance test

The test site was 43 meters above sea level and the temperature was 21 degrees Celsius. Despite the heavy body of the Land Cruiser, driven by a 381-horsepower V8 engine and an 8-speed gearbox, it only takes 7.45 seconds from 0-100km/h. The four-wheel drive system eliminates the possibility of wheel slippage when starting.

● Braking performance test

100-0’s braking performance is also very good. In addition to the obvious sinking of the front of the car due to the relatively soft suspension, the braking performance is 41.35 meters. This is a pretty good result for a car of this weight class.

● Article summary

As a legendary model of a generation, the Land Cruiser has established Toyota's overall reputation as a civilian off-road vehicle. The 2016 Land Cruiser has been further integrated into the new trend after its facelift. From the objective performance of this actual test and my subjective feelings, I think it has indeed inherited the tradition of this classic model very well and represents Toyota's production of civilian off-road vehicles. Strength.It strikes a suitable balance between serious off-roading and on-road driving: it has thoughtful and relatively complete off-road equipment, and it also has good on-road driving and handling performance, even for hard-core users such as straight-line acceleration. For off-road vehicles, it performs very well in all indicators that are not important at all.

The only thing that I think is a fly in the ointment of this car is the materials used in the interior of the passenger compartment. Some parts could be more upscale, but considering its price and the cost of the mechanical parts, some concessions in the interior are understandable. After all, the same type of SUV on the market, if the interior and machinery are well matched, will be much more expensive than it. There are several SUVs with similar prices but higher-end interiors than the Land Cruiser, and the mechanical configuration of the four-wheel drive off-road vehicle is not the same. Lu Xun is so awesome. The sales volume of this car in the US market is average. On the other hand, Toyota has no intention of making the Land Cruiser into a street car suitable for all ages. After all, Luxun is first and foremost a serious off-road vehicle. It has to spend a lot of money on hardware facilities that most consumers rarely use on a daily basis. Therefore, this is destined to be a professional model. is a very narrow consumer group. (Text/Autohome Chao Ge Photo/Photography Li Jia)

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