More details of the highly-anticipated 300 Series Toyota LandCruiser have potentially been confirmed, with outputs leaked for the 3.3-litre V6 turbo-diesel and 3.5-litre twin-turbo V6 petrol.
We’ve heard about these two engines in the recent past. They’re expected to be the main offerings, while a petrol V6 and hybrid are also likely in select markets. But the diesel, in particular, is a brand new unit and one that we know little about. As far as we know the engine is codenamed F33A-FTV and features a capacity of 3.3 litres. However, the layout has been a bit hazy, with some rumours suggesting an inline-six, others saying V6 and some even suggest a big-bore four-cylinder.
Now, according to a report by Japanese outlet Creative311, the engine is a V6. The report says the unit produces 227kW (309PS) and 687Nm. With the current 4.5-litre twin-turbo V8 diesel set for the chopping block, this new V6 seems like it will be a worthy successor – the V8 produces 200kW and 650Nm.
What will also help with performance and versatility, and likely economy, is a new 10-speed auto. This will replace the current six-speed auto and should provide a broader torque spread. With so many ratios to choose from, the transmission could be quite beneficial in really technical and tricky off-road situations as well.
As for the ‘V35A-FTS’ 3.5-litre twin-turbo V6 petrol, it’s been long-believed this will replace the 4.6L and 4.7L naturally aspirated V8 petrol engines, where available. The aforementioned report claims an output of 309kW and 589Nm, which is slightly down on the Lexus LS 500 that currently uses this engine, producing 310kW and 600Nm.
It’s unknown if the twin-turbo will be offered in Australia, given our demand for diesels in products such as the LandCruiser, although it could be offered in select variants only. It too uses a 10-speed auto, like in the Lexus LS. Again, these outputs are higher than the 4.6L and 4.7L that it’s set to replace, while there should be some decent fuel consumptions improvements in comparison.
A hybrid will join the range at some point, as Toyota has previously confirmed it will be offering an electrified option for all of its core models in the future. The most likely candidate is the 3.5-litre petrol V6 hybrid as seen in the Lexus LS 500h. In that, the package develops 264kW and offers an official fuel consumption average of just 6.6L/100km.
In other news, the 300 Series is set to be offered in a number of grade levels, spanning from the GX, AX, and VX, and then ZX and GR-S at the top. These names could be for certain markets only, such as Japan and Middle East, but the interesting one is GR-S. It suggests some influence from Gazoo Racing, which would be a first for the LandCruiser.
Toyota is apparently planning to reveal the all-new model later in April, however, the repercussions of coronavirus may cause some delays here. Production is slated to commence in July.
