Toyota Land Cruiser BJ40

If there’s one reason this Toyota would be less successful than the Jeep Wrangler and Land Rover Defender, it’s because of its name. While the opponents opt for a powerful, sometimes even crushing description of their 4×4, Toyota casually calls the off-road legend “Land Cruiser”. Thanks to Prins there’s a great opportunity to discover how much better (and more fun!) the Toyota Land Cruiser is than its name. The classic SUV has a 3.0 diesel engine linked to a 4-speed gearbox (previous series had one gear less) and 2 benches in the back. This makes the Land Cruiser BJ40 an even more inviting machine for those who would like to take friends and family to the beach or straight through the jungle. The off-road capabilities won’t hold you back!

History
The Toyota Land Cruiser BJ40 started its career in 1960 and was last manufactured in Brazil in 2001. It descends from the J40 series and succeeded the J20. The BJ40 features a hardtop and comes with a shorter wheelbase. Our version has a Spanish history: it was driven to the Netherlands by its former owner and registered here. The man still enjoyed his Land Cruiser as much as always, but drove a little too less with it to really exploit its potential. This is why he chose something completely different at Prins: a Maserati Levante. Swell too!

Exterior
Looking at its profile, the similarities with the original Land Rover and Jeep are very clear. While the rear part is mainly comparable to the Land Rovers Series – the predecessor of the Defender, we see a lot of Jeep CJ influences in the front; the model that preceded the Wrangler. Nevertheless, the Japanese has enough character of itself to match the British and American, who more or less invented the SUV. For example, Toyota opted for a design with 2 separate opening doors at the back. As a result the spare wheel was mounted on the left or right side of the rear instead of the middle. Also striking are the “floating” flashers on top of the front mudguards. The round headlights, which are placed in the same white frame as the grille, make it unmistakably a genuine Land Cruiser. Moreover, the white finish corresponds perfectly with the white wheels plus roof-top. The soft beige tint on the bodywork could be used as camouflage in the sand. Yet a Toyota like this is impossible to miss, even during an adventure on the beach…

Interior
A super thin 3-spoke steering wheel, instruments directly mounted on the frame and a front screen attached to the “dashboard” with nuts and bolts; every tiny detail points into the direction of some really pure engineering. The overall condition is neat and the radio / cassette player is even a bit modern, but the coolest thing about the interior are the back seats, facing each other like you’re in a restaurant. We certainly hope you’ll have someone kind in front of you. Luckily everyone smiles during a trip in the Toyota Land Cruiser!

Technique
Our classic 4×4 is powered by a 3.0 liter diesel engine, producing 80 hp. The number of gears in the manual transmission shows that this is a later version: it has 4 instead of 3. Does that have any positive effect on the fun factor? Let’s put it this way: a two-wheel drive Land Cruiser would also be less spectacular, now wouldn’t it? Do yourself, friends and family a favor and come visit Holland to experience this surprisingly entertaining Toyota at Prins!

With kind regards,
Prins Classics.