Toyota Land Cruiser Commercial Is the Back-to-Basics SUV We Want

Car and Driver

13 hours ago

Toyota has turned the Land Cruiser into a commercial work vehicle for the United Kingdom.
The Land Cruiser Commercial ditches the rear seats, slaps steel panels over the rear windows, and packs a stout diesel engine and permanent four-wheel drive.
Sadly, this practical-minded Land Cruiser will be offered exclusively in the United Kingdom.
While the previous-generation Land Cruiser sold in the United States was a pricey, luxurious off-roader, the latest Land Cruiser offered stateside is actually akin to the smaller Land Cruiser Prado sold overseas, bearing a tougher, more practical personality. Now, in the United Kingdom, Toyota is taking that capability-first approach even further, launching a new bare-bones Land Cruiser Commercial model that gets back to the SUV's workhorse roots.
The Land Cruiser Commercial is converted from the passenger-carrying version and is virtually indistinguishable from the outside, but steel panels instead of rear windows are a dead giveaway to the SUV's utilitarian purpose. Toyota says this version of the Land Cruiser is targeted at workers who need to be able to get off the beaten path but don't need the open-bed abilities of the Hilux pickup.
Toyota UK
Inside, Toyota rips out the rear seats and installs a full-height metal bulkhead with a mesh section up top. A heavy-duty load tray sits behind this divider, and the Land Cruiser Commercial has a cargo capacity of 71 cubic feet. That's far less space than a commercial van—such as the compact Proace City that Toyota sells in Europe—but the Land Cruiser is vastly more capable over rough terrain. The Land Cruiser can also tow over 7500 pounds. We bet the Land Cruiser would have looked pretty cool on a set of steelies, but Toyota kept the commercial model looking more stylish with grey 18-inch alloy wheels.
While the Land Cruiser Commercial is a workhorse, it still packs many of the same comfort and safety features as standard LCs. The Toyota Safety Sense package is present, including blind-spot monitors and parking sensors at the front and rear, and the SUV also includes a power-adjustable driver's seat, an auto-dimming rearview mirror, and automatic dual-zone climate control. The rear hatch is power operated, and even the seats and steering wheel are heated. That's quite a bit of content for a work vehicle. The dashboard features a nine-inch touchscreen with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto capability.
Toyota UK
Under the hood lives a diesel 2.8-liter four-cylinder engine—not offered in the U.S.—paired with an eight-speed automatic and permanent four-wheel drive. For navigating unpaved roads, the Land Cruiser comes with Crawl Control, Hill-Start Assist Control, and Downhill Assist Control. Toyota says it will later add a 48-volt hybrid system to the diesel engine in the European-spec Land Cruiser, including the commercial variant.
The Land Cruiser Commercial is, right now, offered exclusively in the U.K. in a single five-door, long-wheelbase configuration, with the conversion completed at Toyota's manufacturing facility in Burnaston, Derbyshire, England. The Land Cruiser Commercial goes on sale in the U.K. this fall. Sadly, we doubt we'll ever see anything like it in the U.S., and while the current Land Cruiser sold here is already more down-to-earth than the previous model, we will still yearn for a back-to-basics SUV like Land Cruiser Commercial.
Caleb Miller
Associate News Editor
Caleb Miller began blogging about cars at 13 years old, and he realized his dream of writing for a car magazine after graduating from Carnegie Mellon University and joining the Car and Driver team. He loves quirky and obscure autos, aiming to one day own something bizarre like a Nissan S-Cargo, and is an avid motorsports fan.