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MM Retro-Write-Up: Toyota FJ Cruiser.
(Original 1960s Land Cruiser)
Unlike what we have seen quite a bit of in the 21st Century from companies such as VW, Chevy, Ford, and Chrysler, Toyota, with its design-philosophy, has never been a big one for retro-designs. So, when the (concept) FJ Cruiser was unveiled at the 2003 Detroit North American International Auto Show, and met with very enthusiastic response from the public and auto-press, Toyota planners made the decision to put it in production. It debuted, in production form, at the same Detroit show in 2005, and went into production in 2006 for the 2007 model year. It was also sold in the Japanese and other markets over a different time period, but I will concentrate on the American-spec version here. It carried on in the U.S. market through 2014, and in Japan through early 2018, so it is now considered retro both in design and in the time-period.
The basic idea for this retro-design goes back to the original Toyota Land Cruiser of the 1960s. We Americans had first developed the Jeep (GP, or General-purpose) in 1941, which became a military workhorse during World War II, the British we’re impressed enough with it to do their own restyled/enclosed-body version after the war in the Land Rover, and, some years later, when the Japanese auto industry was given free reign again following a period of Allied-oversight after the war, Toyota developed their own enclosed-body Jeep-type vehicle (not of direct Jeep origin, though), called the Land Cruiser.
Only, back then, in the 1960s, the term “Made in Japan” was not the quality-epitaph that it would become by the late 1970s and early 80s. Toyota, Toyopet, Datsun (Nissan), Subaru, Mitsubishi, and other Japanese products were often, by American standards, little more than primitive motorized toys. Indeed, when Consumer Reports evaluated and tested a Land Cruiser from the 1960s (I don’t remember exactly which model-year), it was so poorly-engineered that the lines from the fuel tank to the fuel-pump and carburetor actually ran INSIDE the passenger cabin, where they could become a fireball under some accident-conditions. Needless to say, CR rated the vehicle Not Acceptable.
I don’t have to go into the story, however, of how the Japanese auto industry went from a joke to arguably the highest-quality in the world in the space of only about 15 years or so…..that is quite well-known, and I won’t spend any time on it here. The Land Cruiser itself, over the years, went from a potentially hazardous joke to one of the world’s most-durable and respected SUVs/off-roaders. Its classic 1960s styling, however, became the inspiration for what was to become the 2007 FJ Cruiser.
However, the Land Cruiser had physically grown so much over the years, and had become so expensive (along with its Lexus-badged twin, the LX), that Toyota’s designers, for the FJ Cruiser, decided to use the smaller platform shared by the Toyota 4Runner, Toyota Tacoma, Toyota Land Cruiser Prado (smaller than the full-size Land-Cruiser), and Lexus GX. The body-on-frame, truck-based RWD/4WD mechanicals of that platform/chassis were overlaid with a radically different body and interior, offered in a variety of bright and interesting paint-colors, that, especially in front-end styling, was strongly-suggestive of the original 1960s Land Cruiser. Some ideas were also taken from Honda’s popular (at that time) Element….doors on the side that opened outward, without central pillar, to allow easy entry/exit and loading large, bulky items, and a simple, hose-it-out interior, without fancy or ornate trim, that used rubberized materials, for the times it was expected to get dirty from off-road use. Large, simple controls were designed to be used with gloved hands. Unfortunately, the extremely wide C-pillars also hampered a bit of the rear-quarter visibility….at a time before some of today’s cameras and electronic blind-spot monitors had been developed. Underhood, the 4.0L 1GR-FE DOHC V6 was used, which produced 239 HP and 278 ft-lbs. of torque., although those figures supposedly required 91 Octane fuel. Full-time 4WD versions got a 6-speed manual transmission. RWD (where available) and Part-Time 4WD versions got a 5-speed automatic.
Not surprisingly, the FJ shared the well-known mechanical durability and longevity of its sister 4Runner and Lexus GX. 200-300K, or even more relatively trouble-free miles were possible with reasonable care and service. Like with the 4Runner, Toyota dealerships had so much confidence in these vehicles that, although some of them had far too many miles on them to ever qualify as Certified-Previously-Owned (CPO) vehicles, they would still sell them used, with at least a dealer-warranty, with as many as 175-180K miles on them.
Being a medium-sized truck-based SUV, though, one generally did not buy or lease an FJ for ride-comfort. The firm off-road suspension did produce some discomfort and harshness on all but glass-smooth roads, although the relatively long wheelbase (for its length) helped somewhat, and the ride was nowhere near as bad as the smaller truck-based SUVs like the Chevy/Geo Tracker (which almost drove me nuts on the road when I sampled one) or Suzuki Sidekick/Vitara. The FJ was clearly a truck in its driving-manners……but that is probably what most of its owners were looking for, and was almost unstoppable off-road as long as the break-over-angle for the wheelbase and underbody-components allowed it. Some relatively light/cheap plastics and textures were used for outside hardware like the side-mirror-housings, but this was a relatively minor issue compared to the durability of most of the rest of the vehicle…and, for reasons explained earlier, it was not intended to have Lexus-levels of fit/finish. And some Special-Edition versions, with unique color and trim patterns, were also offered over the years.
Initially, sales were pretty good….56,000+ in the first year in the U.S. market, 55,000+ the second, but then dropped in half, to 28,000 the third year, and between 11,000 and 15,000 for the rest of its production life in the U.S. It was a classic case of the initial novelty of a retro-design, and then a loss of public-interest. The FJ, though popular at first, clearly did not have the lasting attraction of a retro-design like, say, a Mustang/Charger/Challenger, which just keeps on going, or, for that matter, even the VW New Beetle. As a result, don’t bet the rent money on Toyota doing many, if any, more classic retro-designs, at least in the near future.
And, as Always, Happy Vehicle-Memories.
MM
__________________
DRIVING IS BELIEVING
(Original 1960s Land Cruiser)
Unlike what we have seen quite a bit of in the 21st Century from companies such as VW, Chevy, Ford, and Chrysler, Toyota, with its design-philosophy, has never been a big one for retro-designs. So, when the (concept) FJ Cruiser was unveiled at the 2003 Detroit North American International Auto Show, and met with very enthusiastic response from the public and auto-press, Toyota planners made the decision to put it in production. It debuted, in production form, at the same Detroit show in 2005, and went into production in 2006 for the 2007 model year. It was also sold in the Japanese and other markets over a different time period, but I will concentrate on the American-spec version here. It carried on in the U.S. market through 2014, and in Japan through early 2018, so it is now considered retro both in design and in the time-period.
The basic idea for this retro-design goes back to the original Toyota Land Cruiser of the 1960s. We Americans had first developed the Jeep (GP, or General-purpose) in 1941, which became a military workhorse during World War II, the British we’re impressed enough with it to do their own restyled/enclosed-body version after the war in the Land Rover, and, some years later, when the Japanese auto industry was given free reign again following a period of Allied-oversight after the war, Toyota developed their own enclosed-body Jeep-type vehicle (not of direct Jeep origin, though), called the Land Cruiser.
Only, back then, in the 1960s, the term “Made in Japan” was not the quality-epitaph that it would become by the late 1970s and early 80s. Toyota, Toyopet, Datsun (Nissan), Subaru, Mitsubishi, and other Japanese products were often, by American standards, little more than primitive motorized toys. Indeed, when Consumer Reports evaluated and tested a Land Cruiser from the 1960s (I don’t remember exactly which model-year), it was so poorly-engineered that the lines from the fuel tank to the fuel-pump and carburetor actually ran INSIDE the passenger cabin, where they could become a fireball under some accident-conditions. Needless to say, CR rated the vehicle Not Acceptable.
I don’t have to go into the story, however, of how the Japanese auto industry went from a joke to arguably the highest-quality in the world in the space of only about 15 years or so…..that is quite well-known, and I won’t spend any time on it here. The Land Cruiser itself, over the years, went from a potentially hazardous joke to one of the world’s most-durable and respected SUVs/off-roaders. Its classic 1960s styling, however, became the inspiration for what was to become the 2007 FJ Cruiser.
However, the Land Cruiser had physically grown so much over the years, and had become so expensive (along with its Lexus-badged twin, the LX), that Toyota’s designers, for the FJ Cruiser, decided to use the smaller platform shared by the Toyota 4Runner, Toyota Tacoma, Toyota Land Cruiser Prado (smaller than the full-size Land-Cruiser), and Lexus GX. The body-on-frame, truck-based RWD/4WD mechanicals of that platform/chassis were overlaid with a radically different body and interior, offered in a variety of bright and interesting paint-colors, that, especially in front-end styling, was strongly-suggestive of the original 1960s Land Cruiser. Some ideas were also taken from Honda’s popular (at that time) Element….doors on the side that opened outward, without central pillar, to allow easy entry/exit and loading large, bulky items, and a simple, hose-it-out interior, without fancy or ornate trim, that used rubberized materials, for the times it was expected to get dirty from off-road use. Large, simple controls were designed to be used with gloved hands. Unfortunately, the extremely wide C-pillars also hampered a bit of the rear-quarter visibility….at a time before some of today’s cameras and electronic blind-spot monitors had been developed. Underhood, the 4.0L 1GR-FE DOHC V6 was used, which produced 239 HP and 278 ft-lbs. of torque., although those figures supposedly required 91 Octane fuel. Full-time 4WD versions got a 6-speed manual transmission. RWD (where available) and Part-Time 4WD versions got a 5-speed automatic.
Not surprisingly, the FJ shared the well-known mechanical durability and longevity of its sister 4Runner and Lexus GX. 200-300K, or even more relatively trouble-free miles were possible with reasonable care and service. Like with the 4Runner, Toyota dealerships had so much confidence in these vehicles that, although some of them had far too many miles on them to ever qualify as Certified-Previously-Owned (CPO) vehicles, they would still sell them used, with at least a dealer-warranty, with as many as 175-180K miles on them.
Being a medium-sized truck-based SUV, though, one generally did not buy or lease an FJ for ride-comfort. The firm off-road suspension did produce some discomfort and harshness on all but glass-smooth roads, although the relatively long wheelbase (for its length) helped somewhat, and the ride was nowhere near as bad as the smaller truck-based SUVs like the Chevy/Geo Tracker (which almost drove me nuts on the road when I sampled one) or Suzuki Sidekick/Vitara. The FJ was clearly a truck in its driving-manners……but that is probably what most of its owners were looking for, and was almost unstoppable off-road as long as the break-over-angle for the wheelbase and underbody-components allowed it. Some relatively light/cheap plastics and textures were used for outside hardware like the side-mirror-housings, but this was a relatively minor issue compared to the durability of most of the rest of the vehicle…and, for reasons explained earlier, it was not intended to have Lexus-levels of fit/finish. And some Special-Edition versions, with unique color and trim patterns, were also offered over the years.
Initially, sales were pretty good….56,000+ in the first year in the U.S. market, 55,000+ the second, but then dropped in half, to 28,000 the third year, and between 11,000 and 15,000 for the rest of its production life in the U.S. It was a classic case of the initial novelty of a retro-design, and then a loss of public-interest. The FJ, though popular at first, clearly did not have the lasting attraction of a retro-design like, say, a Mustang/Charger/Challenger, which just keeps on going, or, for that matter, even the VW New Beetle. As a result, don’t bet the rent money on Toyota doing many, if any, more classic retro-designs, at least in the near future.
And, as Always, Happy Vehicle-Memories.
MM
__________________
DRIVING IS BELIEVING