Toyota Land Cruiser vs BMW X3

What's the difference?

The Toyota LandCruiser 300 GR Sport is a total knockout when it comes to its looks, comfort and practicality. It’s stupidly easy to drive and has a fuel efficiency that should make you swoon but the servicing is a bit annoying and it’s not the most affordable option on the market. However, even though it hasn't benefited from any updates this year, you don't feel like you're missing out on any luxuries.

My son adores it, wants it and will be very disappointed when we hand it back. Naturally, he gives it a 10/10.

The X3 xDrive30e is a sporty SUV with fantastic ride quality and slick driving characteristics, although its specs seem a bit behind on the electrified front despite it being the most expensive PHEV of its peers.

This leaves it with an odd split personality of being particularly limited to tight city driving to make the most of its EV features, while its engaging nature beckons more to the open road than some of its rivals. A jack of two worlds perhaps, but a master of neither.

Design is 100 per cent subjective. I love the look of the LC300 GR Sport because it features what I feel is a timeless, handsome shape.

For some, it may look too big and brutish, because you could throw a bunch of beefy words at it, and somehow, they’d all fit the roadside presence of this extra-large SUV.

What visually sets the GR Sport apart from its siblings are the multitude of black accents across the body from the rear badging, wheels and arches, door handles and roof racks. The grille is also distinctly different in its horizontal design with the Toyota badging capitalised in a bold white font for extra effect. 

Head inside and the cabin looks ruggedly capable with the dimensions of the centre console and dashboard complementing the external looks.

Technology looks upmarket, joinery is solidly put together and the leather upholstery adds to the plush comfort of the seats but there is a sense of capability in the physical buttons and dials still found on the dashboard.

Which is where I start to really like the LC300 GR Sport because everything is where you expect it to be - this is not a car you’ll get flustered in but nor does it have that generic Toyota look.

The X3 is iconic BMW, having come to be the face of the brand for many buyers, the mid-size SUV exemplifies the Bavarian marque’s ‘kidney grille’, sharp and tall lines, and strongly defined body.

It’s part dainty luxury car and part buff Germanic tourer in equal measure. Suffice it to say fans of the brand will love it, but it’s not going to make converts of anyone else.

Newer design elements which adorn the X3’s body include the striking tail-light design, and little plastic fills below which combine with its contrast bumper and dual-exhaust ports to make for a sporty looking SUV.

The wheels look enormous and add enough chrome to the picture to keep it looking sleek, while subtle badgework has always been a hallmark of a good BMW.

BMWs have always had a relatively minimalist take on the interior design, and overall this is a space in which progress has been made at a glacial pace throughout the brand’s history, wild 7 Series limos being the exception to the rule.

This means the X3 gets the iconic centre-panel, ever so slightly oriented to the driver which houses the two centre air vents and climate control buttons, and a small panel below which houses the volume knob and shortcuts for the radio.

The digital revolution has very much come to the interior of this SUV though, as the top of the dash is adorned with a single enormous panel, and a second one set in the instrument binnacle in a classic fashion. It will all be quite familiar, even if you’ve skipped a BMW generation or two.

The wheel is a key touchpoint, clad in a lovely soft padded leather but with a chunky three-spoke design and massive notches at 10 and two for you to rest your hands on.

I don’t like this wheel in the brand’s more dainty sports cars like the Z4 where it feels too big, but it definitely feels at home in the X3.

Quality materials with plenty of soft-touch plastics and leather trims extend their way into the door, while the software is appealing in its design and fast to respond; clearly backed by strong hardware.

A final thing worth noting is the X3 has one of the more dated interiors in the BMW range. While it has been augmented with digital upgrades over the years, it doesn’t feel as contemporary as the incoming range of cars with the next-gen design elements. Take a look at the iX’s spectacular interior for what you’re missing out on.

The front row is roomy and even with a co-pilot, you feel like you have yards of space to settle into. The seats offer a wide seat and plush padding, as well as heat and ventilation functions which adds comfort for longer trips.

Individual storage is good with a large glove box, two cupholders, two drink bottle holders and a large middle console that also features a 'cool box' function for drinks or snacks.

The comfort of the front is replicated in the backseat, which deftly accepts the height of my 183cm father. The width of the seat can easily accommodate three adults in relative comfort or, if you have a few tots in tow, three child seats.

Amenities and storage in the back row are what you'd expect for a top model in this class. The rear outboard seats feature heat and ventilation functions and there is dual air-conditioning and climate control, as well as, four directional air vents.

The fold-down armrest features two cupholders while the doors hold a drink bottle each and a small storage bin. There are also two map pockets and you can access the middle console cool box with a rear-mounted button.

The GR Sport does remind you that it's a big car with its 235mm ground clearance and my seven-year-old son declared I needed to hold all of his stuff this week as getting in and out is a ‘two-handed- operation'. Like him, I too am grateful for the grab handles and side steps in this car.

The technology is well-rounded and simple to use. The 12.3-inch touchscreen multimedia system looks great and is responsive to touch. It has built-in satellite navigation and a Toyota Connected Services app with three years of complimentary updates. There is also wired Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, AM/FM radio and DAB+ radio but there’s not much else to access in this system.

The mostly analogue instrument cluster features a 7.0-inch tech screen and this is where you can do a lot of your customisations with display and safety.

The charging options are solid up front with the choice of a USB-A and C port, 12-volt socket and a wireless charging pad. The rear gets two USB-C ports and a 12-volt socket as well.

The boot is cavernous with its 1131L of luggage capacity and that’s with all seats in use. The squared shape of the boot and the 90-degree angle the boot lid opens to are quite practical, especially when fitting bulky items or loading things in the rain.

All GR Sports come with a powered boot lid and a domestic 220-volt socket for charging larger items while adventuring.

The X3 is reasonably large on the inside, with a commanding road view and healthy space for an adult in both front seats. The tall roofline leaves plenty of room for someone my 182cm height, while leather-clad soft-touch finishes are present for your elbows and knees.

There’s a large bottle holder and thin bin in each of the front doors, and a wide centre console with a further two bottle holders with adjustable ridges and a large storage bay suitable for a phone below the climate cluster.

This area also houses a USB port and a little shaped notch for you to place the key, and the whole area can be covered over with a retracting lid.

Like all BMWs there are well hidden shortcut buttons for many of the functions which integrate into the design, and there’s a multimedia screen function for most functions, too, controlled through the centre dial system, or via touch.

It’s nice to have both, unlike some Mazdas which use a similar control system, but force you to rely on the dial.

The second row looks a bit flat from a distance, but you do sink into the leather-clad seats nicely, and unlike some rivals in this category, the second row is fixed and not on rails.

Room for a 182cm tall adult is decent, with a little more than adequate knee room and excellent headroom.

The leather trims continue, and true to the sense of being a premium brand the intruding piece of wheelarch is also clad in padded leather. No touching plastic in here.

A single bottle holder appears in each of the rear doors, with a further two in the drop-down armrest, and there’s a netted pocket on the back of each of the front seats.

Rear passengers get their own climate zone with an independent control panel as well as a 12V outlet and two USB-C ports.

Luggage capacity in the boot is rated at 450-litres (VDA), significantly down on the combustion versions of this car. Note in the pictures the stepped boot floor, which is adorned with a chrome trim piece for some reason, as though the car is always reminding you of the lost room.

Still, the squared-off space managed to fit our three-piece CarsGuide luggage set with relative ease and room to spare. There is a thin and narrow slot under the boot floor which serves as a location to place your charging cables.

This plug-in version of the X3 sits near the top of the X3 range, eclipsed only by the M40i performance variant and the fully-electric iX3. This means a starting price of $104,900, which initially doesn’t bode too well for the BMW given its rivals can be had at a lower price.

The similarly-specified Mercedes-Benz GLC 300e starts from $95,700, the Volvo XC60 Recharge starts from $97,990, and the impressively-specified newcomer on the block, the Lexus NX450h+ is the best value of the lot at just $89,900.

You’ll note all of those plug-in models are of the higher specification in their respective ranges, with each manufacturer clearly trying to draw buyers into this tough-to-understand tech by compensating the curious with gear which would otherwise be optional on a pure combustion car.

There are technical elements which play into the value of each when it comes to the PHEV drivetrain which we’ll look at later in this review (it’s particularly important when it comes to how you use and park your car) but we can at least say the X3 xDrive30e comes with a healthy amount of equipment.

Most of this matches the xDrive 30d below it, including large 20-inch alloy wheels, a set of M sport trims, brakes, and adaptive suspension, 'Vernasca’ leather interior trim, adaptive LED headlights and LED tail-lights, ambient interior lighting, a 12.3-inch multimedia touchscreen with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity and built-in navigation, a second 12.3-inch screen for the ‘Live Cockpit’ digital instrument cluster, tri-zone climate control, a head-up display, electrical adjust for the driver and front passenger seats, a 12-speaker sound system, and the functionality for over-the-air updates.

The specific inclusions for the xDrive30e include free optional paint colours, a panoramic sunroof, lumbar support in the driver’s seat, front seat heating, wall socket to Type 2 and Type 2 to Type 2 public charging cables, and specific i-branded interior elements.

Normally the sunroof and premium paint are part of a $5400 option pack, while the heated seats, steering wheel, and lumbar support seats are normally a $1200 option, meaning the PHEV variant only leaves you $3400 and a set of ‘Laserlight’ LED headlights worse-off than if you were to apply the same options to the xDrive30d.

Not bad considering it also packs a 12kWh Lithium battery under the boot floor, and a secondary electric motor integrated into its transmission. More on this later.

The LC300 models all share the same 3.3-litre V6 twin-turbo diesel engine that produces a hefty 227kW and 700Nm of torque. Making it powerful enough to easily handle its 3.5-tonne braked towing capacity.

The GR Sport has a 10-speed auto transmission and has a full-time 4WD system with high and low range. It also has front, rear and centre diff locks, so adventuring pursuits should be a breeze but check out Crafty’s off-road review on this model for more 4WD insights.

The PHEV version of the X3 pairs the brand’s usual 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbocharged petrol engine with a relatively powerful electric motor integrated into its eight-speed torque converter automatic transmission.

On its own, the engine produces 135kW/300Nm, while the electric motor is capable of punching out 80kW/265Nm. When working together, the EV components can provide a further electrified boost, for a total of 215kW/420Nm, allowing for a 0-100km/h sprint time of 6.1 seconds. This makes the 30e only slower than the M40i and 30d variants in the rest of the X3 range.

The xDrive30e is capable of travelling up to 135km/h under electric power alone, with a surprisingly small 12kWh battery delivering around 41km of pure EV range.

As the electric motor is mounted in the transmission it is capable of driving all four wheels via the brand’s 'xDrive' system with torque vectoring.

Somewhat amusingly, the German documentation for the X3 includes a section for “off road characteristics” (I suppose it is an SUV after all…) and for those interested the xDrive30e can ford at up to 500mm depth, has an approach angle of 25.6 degrees, a departure angle of 22.8 degrees, a breakover angle of 20.0 degrees and a ground clearance of 204mm. Enjoy the trails.

It's big and has a lot of power, so it should be pretty thirsty ... right?

Wrong! The official combined fuel-cycle consumption figure is 8.9L/100km and my real world usage came out at 9.8L/100km after doing a mix of long open-road trips and some urban stuff.

Based on the official combined fuel cycle and the two fuel tanks, which equal 110L, you’d be able to get a theoretical driving range of 1236km.

Here’s the tricky bit. The X3 xDrive30e has an official combined fuel consumption of just 3.2L/100km, but this will depend heavily on how you drive it.

You see, the BMW hybrid system is very keen to drive under electric power alone, even in the so-called ‘hybrid’ driving mode. This will mean you will extinguish the battery’s 41km driving range (or 35km according to our test vehicle on a full charge) quite quickly, whether you like it or not.

Plus, the charging capability is a bit slow. At 3.7kW, the PHEV X3 charges its 12kWh battery up in 2.6 hours on a faster public outlet or garage wall box, or around five hours on a wall socket.

To put it in perspective, the Lexus NX 450h+ showed me nearly double the amount of electric driving range on a single charge (65km as-tested) and was capable of charging up at a rate of 7.2kW, meaning a two hour flat charge for twice the range on a public outlet.

The summary boils down to: If you charge up at home, this won’t be as much of a problem, if you need to rely on public charging, it could make a difference to the PHEV you pick.

You can prolong the life of the battery using the ‘battery level’ mode which lets you set a target for battery life and have the car switch to primarily combustion at that point.

This can come in handy if you have a lot of open-road driving, and want to conserve the battery for driving around town where it is most efficient.

On my week with the car I saw an impressive consumption figure of 2.2L/100km according to the trip computer, under the official number, while my energy consumption came in at 20.7kWh/100km against a claim of 16.4kWh/100km. I did make sure to charge the car up at every opportunity, however.

Like all BMWs the X3 xDrive30e requires mid-shelf 95RON unleaded fuel, and has a 50L fuel tank despite the addition of its high-voltage battery.

The GR Sport is a massive car but it doesn’t handle like one. That's not to say it handles like a small car but it doesn't feel like a truck to drive.

The power is effortlessly gutsy and there's no issue keeping your speed consistent on hills. The 10-speed auto transmission manages its gear changes and power hits smoothly. The rumble of the V6 engine is also quite therapeutic when it comes time to tackle an overflowing causeway or muddy road.

The GR Sport feels solidly grounded and even on winding roads, the roll in corners isn’t bad at all. Less so than a Prado, actually. 

The ride comfort is very good in the GR Sport grade as it has special adaptive suspension and that means that you really aren’t bothered by the road surface. Besides some whistling from the roof racks, there’s also little outside noise and it feels refined in the cabin because of it.

The wide windows and high seating position offers great visibility all around but I'm very aware of how large the car is as I can't see my son when he walks around it. The sensors alert you but make sure all kids are accounted for before you start moving.

Despite its size, the GR Sport is very nimble to manoeuvre with a small 11.8m turning circle and steering that is responsive.

Parking has been no issue for me this week and while the 360-degree view camera is a bit too fish-eye lense for me, its clear and you get used to it pretty quickly.

One of the things I came to love most about this version of the X3 is how seamless the hybrid system is, and how unusually quiet and comfortable this car proved to be.

Sure, it’s a luxury mid-size SUV, but I came away particularly impressed with how the adaptive suspension tune pairs so nicely with the electrified acceleration to make for a sleek driving experience.

Despite its dimensions, the xDrive30e feels light and springy over bumps, filtering out the worst of the road while keeping a good level of control at the wheels.

The stock steering tune in the car’s standard ‘hybrid’ driving mode is nice and light, too, making this mid-sizer feel smaller than it really is to pilot, and you don’t feel the extra weight of the battery pack at all.

The combustion engine is so quiet it is at times difficult to tell when it enters the mix, aside from the fuel consumption meter on the dash suddenly coming to life.

It too is a smooth unit, providing partially electrically-assisted acceleration in most modes which makes it hard to tell when the transmission changes cogs. It’s as though you get the best of both worlds this way.

The car is a bit too keen to rely on its electric driving, and, as mentioned earlier, this will mean it drains its battery relatively quickly unless you take extreme measures like the battery saver mode.

The result is a car which is far better suited to shorter city-based journeys than long tours through the country. At least the turbocharged engine and BMW driving dynamics are left intact should your battery run dry.

The regen braking is mild (able to recoup a max of 20kW at any given moment), although the indicators on the dash are neat for letting you know the limit of your electric acceleration and how far you’ve travelled without using the combustion engine.

On my week with the car I managed over half the distance with the engine completely off. Think of the fuel savings.

Elsewhere the X3 offers great visibility thanks to a boxy shape with big windows, and solid electric acceleration, with decent handling, too. I’d say it feels sportier than the Lexus NX or Merc GLC equivalents, with the ride a bit more forgiving than that of the Volvo XC60 Recharge.

As an EV then the xDrive30e is notably limited, but as an SUV which threads the needle of being both engaging and comfortable, it’s possibly the best of the current premium mid-size SUV PHEV pack.

The X3 range has a healthy list of standard active safety equipment, with items like freeway-speed auto emergency braking, rear auto emergency braking, lane departure warning with lane keep assist, blind-spot monitoring with rear cross-traffic alert and adaptive cruise control.

It also has a speed limit assist function and a rather cool parking suite which gives you a 3D surround picture of the car capable of adjusting to particular angles when objects get close.

The X3 has the standard array of dual front, dual side, and dual head curtain airbags, as well as seatbelt pre-tensioners. There are dual ISOFIX points on the outboard rear seats, or three top-tether mounts across the rear row.

The base X3 offerings have a maximum five-star ANCAP safety rating to the 2017 standard, although this plug-in hybrid variant was not available at the time.

The GR Sport comes with a five-year/unlimited kilometre warranty and if you stick to your service schedule, you get an additional two years of engine coverage.

There is capped-priced servicing for up to five years or 100,000km, which entails a total of 10 services or two a year as servicing intervals are a pain at every six months or 10,000km, whichever occurs first.

Services are $400 which equates to $800 per year, which is a bit expensive but not outrageous for the class.

BMW languishes with just three-years of warranty coverage. The brand along with its Mini subsidiary has become a notable laggard in the space now, its last remaining Audi rival has moved on to match the five-year and unlimited kilometre promise of its VW parent.

Servicing on BMW models is ‘condition dependent’ meaning the car’s computer will keep track of when servicing needs to happen based on how the car is driven and other factors.

A five-year ‘basic’ service pack is available inside the first 12 months of purchase and covers visits inside this period or 80,000km whichever occurs first. It costs $2010, or $402 a year.