Toyota Land Cruiser 200 Series 2020 off-road review

This is the seven-seat Sahara, the top-spec 200 Series* in a four-variant range and, as tested, it costs $124,996 ($124,396 plus $600 Premium Paint), plus on-road costs. (* The limited-edition Sahara Horizon costs $129,090 (plus on-road costs), but there are only 400 of those, so I’m not counting those in the mainstream line-up.)

It has a 4.5-litre V8 twin turbo-diesel engine, a six-speed automatic transmission, full-time four-wheel drive with dual-range gearing, a limited-slip centre diff and a stack of driver-assist tech including Toyota Safety Sense (which incorporates Pre-Collision Safety System with Pedestrian Detection, High Speed Active Cruise Control, Lane Departure Alert and Automatic High Beam), as well as blind-spot alert, rear cross-traffic alert, a multi-terrain system (with various drive modes to suit different terrain), a multi-terrain monitor, crawl control (low-speed off-road cruise control), hill descent control and more. 

As expected for a top-of-the-range 200 Series, it is packed with gear including a 9.0-inch touchscreen multimedia system with sat nav, a wireless smartphone charger, a cool box between the front seats, woodgrain-look steering wheel and throughout the cabin, ventilated front seats, heated front and second-row seats, driver’s seat memory settings, four-zone climate-control air-conditioning, 11.6-inch entertainment screens for rear passengers, a nine-speaker audio system, and a moonroof.

Up front is a 9.0-inch touchscreen multimedia system with sat nav, but misses out on Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

It also has daytime running lights, a horizontal-split tailgate, side steps, and 18-inch alloy wheels.

The 200 Series does not have Apple CarPlay or Android Auto.

The 200 Series has a 4.5-litre V8 twin-turbo diesel engine (200kW at 3600rpm and 650Nm at 1600-2600rpm), a six-speed automatic transmission, full-time 4WD, and a limited slip centre differential, as well as a whole bunch of driver-assist trickery. 

The 4.5-litre V8 twin-turbo diesel produces 200kW/650Nm.

The engine is very torquey, with plenty of that on tap at lower revs, and the auto is a smooth-shifting unit.

The Sahara is a seven-seater divided in three rows – two at the front, three and two at the rear – as does the second-from-top spec, the VX. The base-spec 200 Series, the GX, has five seats; the next spec up from the GX, the GXL, has eight.

The Sahara has a listed kerb weight of 2740kg, as do all the other 200s, except the GX, which is 2640kg.

The 200 Series is a big unit on the outside, but has quite a small interior. It is a bit of a premium space though with leather inserts on seats and around the cabin, woodgrain highlights on the steering wheel and dash, plus chrome-look finishings throughout. 

The Sahara features heated and ventilated front seats.

Let’s work our way through the interior, from the back to the front. 

With all three rows in use, there’s not a lot of space at all. Toyota does not have an official figure for the rear area's cargo capacity, but it’s plain to see that there isn’t much room. We packed in a first-aid kit and a portable air-compressor and there wasn’t much room left over. You could probably fit a few other bits and pieces, but not much. There are cargo hooks and a 220V power socket. 

When the third row (side folding, 50/50 split seat backs) is stowed away, the cargo capacity is officially listed as 1276 litres, but the reality is those seats protrude into the cargo area, taking up a lot of useful space. Folding those seats away, or deploying them, is accomplished by way of a slightly annoying sequence of moves. (With such a high price-tag on the Sahara, you'd expect that when you purchase one, a Toyota bloke, whose sole job it is to fold away and deploy those third-row seats, would then always follow you around. Or at the very least, for that sort of money, shouldn't those seats be electrically operated?)

No cargo capacity figure is officially listed for when the second- and third-row seats are stowed away.

Getting into the third row is not difficult as the door opens wide and there is a side step on the Sahara to aid your ingress, but once you’re in the third row, space is a bit pinched and the seats are rather flat and not really that supportive. It’s comfortable enough and really a kids-only zone, but that’s not a newsflash for a third-row. Bonus: you can watch the second-row 11.6-inch DVD screens, one each on the driver and front passenger head-rest.

There are plenty of storage spaces back there: two cup-holders on each side, stash-away spots for bits and pieces, cup holders in the middle, directional air vents, and lights. 

The third row seats are rather flat and not really supportive.

Passengers in the second-row (40/20/40 split folding feat backs) have access to a lot of controls: air con, seat-warming (outer seats), and DVD remote (hidden in the fold-down centre arm-rest, which also has cup-holders and a shallow grippy tray for the DVD remote or a smartphone). There are also directional air vents, lights and storage spaces in the form of hard-plastic door spaces and mesh pockets on the back of the driver and front-passenger seats.

As mentioned, the DVD screens are on the driver and front passenger head-rests.

The seats here are, as expected, more comfortable than the third row with plenty of support.

Second-row passengers are spoiled with DVD screens on the driver and front passenger head-rests.

Upfront, it seems like a bit more of a premium space, and it’s all well laid-out and easy to navigate – to quickly establish which controls are where – but the dash and centre console is all starting to look and feel a bit dated. Especially when the Sahara carries such a hefty price tag.

That 9.0-inch multimedia touchscreen doesn't help either, because it's a bit clunky to use, with its mix of controls, on-screen and dials.

There are a fair few storage spaces though: glove box, door pockets, the cool box (in between driver and front passenger), and cup holders (with a flip-top lid). There is also a wireless smartphone-charging tray.

Upfront, it seems like a bit more of a premium space, and it’s all well laid-out and easy to navigate.

There are USB charge points upfront, as well as a 12V power socket.

The Sahara also has a moonroof if your passengers want to look at the sky, night or day, while you’re on the move.

Overall, it’s a well put-together cabin, build quality is very impressive and there’s nothing terribly wrong with the interior, but it just doesn't feel like a prestige space, worthy of a $125,000 price-tag.

As mentioned, the Sahara is 2740kg, but it surprisingly doesn’t feel like it’s so big and heavy, most of the time.

Steering is reach-and-rake power-adjustable and it’s pretty sharp on and, despite its bulk, the 200 is generally easy to manoeuvre in city and suburban settings, although it does feel its every now and again. Turning circle is 11.8m and, on squeezy city streets, quick turnarounds can become a challenge.

But the 200 Series turbo diesel V8 is a simple, powerful and effective engine and it works supremely well with that six-speed auto. 

Nothing much has changed dramatically about the LandCruiser’s appearance in years.

Acceleration is particularly smooth, making for easy off-the-mark blasts from a standstill and also overtaking moves on the highway.

The coil-spring suspension yields a spongy, comfortable ride but the 200 Series never feels as huge and lumbering as you’d imagine.

All-round, it’s very comfortable as a daily driver, if not entirely practical in terms off cargo space, for its size, and for its price.

But, is the 200 Series still as capable off-road as it has been in the past? 

Fuel consumption is listed as 9.5L/100km (combined). 

I recorded an actual fuel consumption of 12.8L/100km on this test, but I did do a lot of low-range 4WDing.

The 200 Series has a 93-litre main fuel tank and a 45-litre sub tank – that’s a total of 138 litres. 

As of 1 January 2020, the service pricing for a LC200 Sahara turbo-diesel under Toyota’s capped price servicing is $300 per service for three years/60,000km (up to the first six services). The service interval is every six months/10,000km.

The warranty period for any new vehicle bought after 1 January 2019 is a five-year unlimited kilometre warranty that covers any part, panel and accessory made by Toyota. In addition to this, Toyota will extend your engine and driveline warranty from five to seven years if the annual service schedule is adhered to.