By Steve & Tamami Laser
The Toyota Land Cruiser recently celebrated a historic global sales milestone of an amazing 10 million units. As the story goes, Australians have bought the most Land Cruisers over the years, with sales topping the 1 million mark.
The current Land Cruiser lineup in Australia includes the rugged 70 Series, with wagon, cab chassis, and troop carrier versions, the 200 Series wagon (also sold in the U.S.), and the 150 Series Prado.
Toyota Prado Kakadu Horizon Special Edition
Making its debut this month in Australia, the new Prado Horizon Special Edition is an enhanced version of the top-range Kakadu model (named for the vast Kakadu National Park in the Northern Territory, a UNESCO World Heritage List site).
Like all Prado models, Horizon is powered by a 1GD-FTV 2.8-liter turbodiesel engine rated at 130kW and 450 Nm torque. It’s teamed with a 6-speed automatic transmission, and 4WD, with Kakadu exclusive 5-speed crawl control, Adaptive Variable Suspension, Multi-Terrain Select, and Kinetic Dynamic Suspension.
On the outside, Prado Horizon is distinguished by a front bumper spoiler, chrome side molding, chrome accented mirrors, and step guard and spats for the rear bumper. It also features Kakadu standards including auto-levelling bi-LED headlights with LED Daytime Running Lights, LED fog lights, heated power-folding mirrors, and a tilt-and-slide moonroof.
At the rear, this Prado gains clear combination lights, plus a special Horizon badge. With the standard exterior-mounted spare tire, fuel capacity is 150L, from an 87L main and 64L sub-tank. Opting for the available “flat tailgate pack” puts the full-size spare under the vehicle, while limiting fuel capacity to 87L.
The 7-passenger interior is dressed with leather-trimmed seats, premium woodgrain steering wheel, illuminated front scuff plates, 3-zone climate control, 8-inch touchscreen navigation system, JBL 14-speaker audio, and a 9-inch Blu-ray rear seat entertainment system with 3 wireless headsets and dual USB chargers.
The Prado Horizon’s suite of standard Toyota Safety Sense features includes lane departure alert, automatic high beams, active cruise control, pre-collision safety system, blind-spot monitor, and rear cross-traffic alert.
While we can’t get the Toyota Prado in the U.S., we do have the option to consider its sibling, the Lexus GX 460, with a 4.6L V8 and abundant luxury features, or the larger Toyota Land Cruiser (200 Series) with a 5.7L V8.
Features and specifications for Australian market models are subject to change without notice
News source and photos courtesy of Toyota Australia
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