Orders for the iconic Toyota LandCruiser 70 Series V8 may not reopen after the company paused orders two years ago.
However, Toyota Australia says it plans to honour orders placed prior to the cut-off point in mid-2022.
Amid rumours the V8 Toyota LandCruiser 70 Series was going to be axed, Australian V8 fans rushed showrooms to secure one before it was too late.
Demand out-stripped supply to such an extent Toyota stopped taking orders for the V8.
Toyota has since added a four-cylinder version of the 70 Series, using the 2.8-litre turbo diesel and six-speed auto from the Toyota HiLux ute.
The four-cylinder is expected to replace the V8 once it eventually reaches the end of the line in the next year or so.
In a media briefing this week about Toyota Australia’s switch to hybrid-only power for most of its car and SUV range, the company’s head of sales and marketing said:
“We’re filling (V8) orders as we speak. So that’s good for the customers that have been waiting, and we expect to be able to fill those orders at this stage.”
When asked if V8 LandCruiser 70 Series orders would ever reopen, the executive said:
“I have no clear vision of that order bank opening again anytime soon.
“We’ve still got a way to go to clear (the orders) we’ve got.
“So I don’t foresee that order bank for V8 Landcruiser 70 opening anytime soon.”
Toyota says demand for the 2.8-litre four-cylinder diesel variant – available with automatic transmission only, versus the V8 turbo diesel which is manual transmission only – is “better than expected”.
“The take-up rate (of the four-cylinder Toyota LandCruiser 70 Series) is improving by the day,” said Mr Hanley.
When asked again if there is a chance V8 orders will never reopen, the executive said:
“I don’t have an answer on re-opening that order bank. I don’t see it in the foreseeable future.
“What we are focused on, though, is delivering every single one of those cars to the customers who put orders in until the time we closed it off … two years ago.
“So that gives you an idea how big that order bank was. But we have nothing to announce on V8 (LandCruiser 70 Series) today that we haven’t said previously.
“I don’t see a date anytime soon of that order bank opening up.”
Joshua Dowling has been a motoring journalist for more than 20 years, most of that time with Fairfax (The Sydney Morning Herald), News Corp Australia (Herald Sun and News.com.au), and most recently Drive.com.au (owned by Nine Media). He is also a World Car of the Year judge, has won numerous journalism awards, and test drives up to 200 cars per year.
