Toyota Prado
The Toyota Prado is a huge 4x4 that’s actually one of the best real off road machines you’ll ever come across. It can eat mountains, deserts and jungles for breakfast and will make minced meat of British roads. Also quite capable doing the weekly shop or school run, there’s no challenge it can’t overcome. If you want durability and hardiness, here it is in abundance.
Known by various different names around the world, including the Land Cruiser, the beast first reared its head in 1984 and has been one of the most popular and capable 4x4s since its inception. A huge number of generations are available, and the years of trekking through awful conditions have clearly taken their toll because the most modern ones are massively muscular and robust. With some equally as powerful engines such as a 4.0 litre V6 petrol or 3.0 litre diesel, there’s no question it’s a dominator.
You’ll look at the Prado and think ‘wow’, mainly due to the sheer size of the thing; at almost 5 meters long and 2 meters high, it’s certainly not going to blend into the background. But then again you don’t buy such a car and expect it to be anonymous. The strong lines, and bulky shapes make it look tensed up like a bodybuilder, and there’s certainly a lot of muscle to flex. The cabin is just huge and is actually quite refined. With 7 comfortable seats, a gargantuan amount of kit across the LC3, LC4 and LC5 trims, and a functional, easy to use cockpit, it’s got everything you’d want.
For a car that’s made to conquer Mother Nature, the Toyota is very high quality, although the driving experience on road isn’t that hot to be honest. It’ll gladly take to the tarmac without any fuss, but you get the feeling it’s not totally at home. At speed it’s not particularly agile, and the steering is rather slow. Take it off road however and it’ll perform better than you could have imagined. Clever kit, a big ride height and pure grunt can take it almost anywhere.
It’s been around for a while, and as such there’s no shortage of second hand Toyota Prado cars around. Whether you’re looking for the latest and greatest or something a bit more basic from back in the day, Motors.co.uk is by far the best place to look. Not only will you pay much less thanks to some hefty price discounts, but quality will be superb as well. What this adds up to is one amazingly good deal.
The simple fact is that hardcore 4x4s are becoming increasingly rarer these days, but the Toyota Prado keeps the genre brimming with pride. It’s a bone fide explorer that relishes going into the wild and getting dirty. You’ll pack it in before it does, and the durability really is astonishing. Capable as a family run around too, it’s multi talented and always eager.