Siku 1:43 2012 Toyota Land Cruiser and Welly 1:43 2009 Toyota Land Cruiser Prado

The Land Cruiser is one of Toyota's most iconic models for off-road vehicles.  The name started on the line of FJ cruisers sold throughout the world and takes cues from the Jeep in the U.S. for a rugged off-road machine.  By the 1980's times were changing and luxury SUV's like the Jeep Grand Wagoneer and Range Rover were starting to arrive on the scene so Toyota decided to split the Land Cruiser line up: the rugged FJ platform for the basic Land Cruiser offered in various cab configurations, and the luxurious Land Cruiser that was the only model sold in the U.S. to take on the Wagoneer and Range Rover.  Even times have changed as more and more SUV's get the luxurious treatment: even Lexus got SUV's of their own including the Land Cruiser.  Once again another Land Cruiser spin-off, this time a smaller SUV called the Prado, or the GX series by Lexus in the U.S.

Siku 2012 Land Cruiser

The current Land Cruiser went for a major redesign in the 1991 model year for a large SUV that offered top luxury at the time and impeccable off-road durability.  In this generation a Lexus LX SUV was adopted by 1996.  In 1998 another major redesign introduced the first V8 to the Land Cruiser based on the one in the Lexus LS sedan revised for truck duty and in the process finally gave Toyota a more proper full-size truck as the Tundra in 2000.  This recent redesign in 2009 was just an evolution of the current model that still enhanced more on luxury while still retaining it's off road credibility.  The interior offers seating for five with an optional third row and lots of luxury features not even found on any Toyota product.  The powertrain has been upgraded as well now using the new 5.7L DOHC V8 from the Tundra producing 381 horsepower through a six-speed automatic transmission.  It features a two-speed transfer case with automatic locking hubs and locking front and rear differentials and plenty of ground clearance.  After the ill-faced rebadge of 1996 the Lexus LX has finally adopted styling of its own and related to the Lexus family.

This Siku version is a nice surprise and very well done.  The silver on this tester looks much better than the wild yellow colors that were offered when I got mine.  The front has large headlights with a large grille with detailed silver fins and Toyota logo.  The lower bumper has detailed foglights and a typicak Siku European license plate.  This SUV is wide and tall almost in size to 1:55 than 1:64!  The sides have a smooth profile with a slight flare to the fenders, 5-spoke wheels with rubber tires, and running boards.  The rear has large square taillights, Land Cruiser badging, parking sensors in the rear bumper, and it still retains the split hatch design where it has a separate opening lower tailgate.  The doors open up to a gray interior with plenty of nice touches.  The door panels have the proper design details, while the 4-spoke steering wheel and gauge cluster is deep and well-detailed.  The center stack has the large screen for the infortainment with controls for it and the HVAC controls mounted just below.  The center console has additional buttons located near the shifter.  There is seating for five with the third row not in use and the cargo area covered up, and up front is a nice large sunroof.  The base underneath shows off the beefy exhaust and drivetrain that suits the Land Cruiser nature.  This is one big SUV and quite nicely done by Siku.

Welly 1:43 Toyota Land Cruiser Prado

On the other side is a smaller version of the Land Cruiser that is actually based more on the 4runner/Hilux Surf SUV, the Prado.  The Prado started life as a smaller Land Cruiser in 1980 with two and four door models offered.  By 1996 that Prado started to use a platform of its own and also started to diverge styling-wise from the Land Cruiser line.  In 2004 the Prado was offered in the U.S. for the first time as the Lexus GX model and still continues today.  This 2009 model has more flare in the styling department aligning well with both the 4runner and Lexus GX.  On some models, such as the diverse Austrailan Outback, Prado models can have the spare tire mounted on the side-opening rear gate to allow an auxiliary fuel tank to take up the previous spare tire location for long journeys into the unknown land.  The engine is a 4.0L DOHC V6 that produces 278 horsepower through a 5-speed automatic transmission and offers a two-speed transfer case to the front independent and rear live axle suspension setup.

Welly did this 2009 version and it looks quite well for a rugged SUV with street cred.  This black version also looks high-end along with the chrome front grille with vertical bars.  Next to it is large headlights with quad reflectors,  while a lower bumper has foglights and a slight ribbed pattern.  The sides show a typical SUV look with interesting flared rear fenders, running boards, and split 5-spoke wheels.  The rear has taillights mounted high on the D-pillar with the signal and reverse lamps flaring out to the rear fenders.  The rear gate has a chrome plate surround with Land Cruiser Prado badging.  The base has detailed drivetrain, transmission pan, exhaust, suspension, and even the spare tire at the rear of the vehicle despite the pullback motor starting to cover up most of those details.  The interior is nicely detailed of an otherwise odd layout: the center stack has the radio on top, HVAC controls in the middle, and just below more controls on an otherwise boxy dash layout.  The 4-spoke steering wheel is very familiar to 4runner and Tacoma trucks, as are the gauges.  There is seating for five more in the rear with the third row seat, but as usual with pullback vehicles the motor takes up most of the seating space in the two rows.  This is one interesting and unique way to go off-roading in a Toyota bearing the Land Cruiser name without the extra luxuries that makes the Land Cruiser the most expensive truck in the Toyota line.