Some say Napolean Hill is the best 4x4 trail in New Zealand. It’s 12km between Reefton and Greymouth on the West Coast of the South Island, once a route to a thriving goldmining town and impressively varied in terrain.
Oh, and it’s been wet this week; because we’re on the West Coast of the South Island.
So here’s the question: is Toyota’s self-consciously retro and really quite posh new Land Cruiser Prado Hybrid still the right thing to bring in here?
It's a rhetorical question, because although Toyota has a huge focus on “soft-road” SUVs (RAV4 and Highlander for example), it also knows better than to mess with the cred of a 4x4 icon, no matter how fashionable it has become.
The first new Prado in 15 years remains a ladder-frame chassis machine with a diesel engine and low-range transmission. It’s still a truck in other words, albeit a flash one.
Toyota knows better than to mess with the cred of a 4x4 icon, no matter how fashionable it has become.
But the frame is a new design, closely related to the Land Cruiser 300 and US-market Tacoma, and the diesel has gained 48-volt mild hybrid technology, with a new 8-speed gearbox.
The core engine and 48-volt stuff are familiar from Hilux Hybrid: the hybrid assist handles stop-start, gives a little boost at low speed (up to 65Nm) and recaptures energy from braking and coasting to help run ancillaries. So no, it's not a full hybrid like a RAV4.
On our little adventure at Napolean Hill, there was rarely a time when we weren’t zig-zagging across a river in one way or another.
But Prado does still move the eco-tech on a bit from Hilux. It’s the first Toyota NZ model to have AdBlue, which is automatically fed into the exhaust gas to treat nasty nitrogen oxide (NOx), converting it to nitrogen and water vapour; the 17.4l tank should last 15,000km, through to a service-time top-up.
And that 8-speed gearbox is claimed to not only broaden the performance, but also help with fuel efficiency.
If you’ve been following Prado from launch, you might have twigged there’s something missing from the Kiwi lineup.
It might not look it thanks to those boxy proportions, but the new Prado is 100mm longer and 200kg heavier than the previous model. In fact, it's on the same wheelbase as the mighty Land Cruiser 300, 10mm longer and the same width.
Fuel consumption of 8.7l/100km is nonetheless 5% improved compared with the old Prado, which is often the way with mild hybrid tech: you don’t get massive gains in economy, but it does offset extra size/performance/ability. Tow rating is up 500kg to 3.5t, by the way, so Prado is now up in the big leagues with 1-tonne utes.
If you’ve been following Prado from launch, you might already have twigged there’s something missing from the Kiwi lineup: a version with round headlights, aligning Prado with the updated 70-series and creating what’s arguably the most retro-cool-looking Prado of all.
Toyota NZ made an early decision not to offer a entry-level grade (presumably a "GX" in Kiwi-configuration), but in a quiet moment during the media event it was also acknowledged that nobody truly realised it was the only version to have the round lights as standard. Whether they can be retrofitted or offered as an option for those who want them is yet to be established; a fully kitted-up First Edition model offered in other markets certainly has them.
The Kiwi launch-range opens with GXL, stepping up to VX and VX Limited, then Adventure. Well actually, Adventure sits in the middle of the two VXs price-wise. Bear with us.
VX is a more road-oriented/luxury specification, while Adventure focuses more on off-tarmac ability; it’s in the name.
The $93,990 VX costs $10k more than the GXL but offers equipment such as upsized 20-inch wheels, more tarmac-biased tyres, adaptive suspension and family-pleasing features like a centre-console coolbox and 14-speaker JBL audio. You can spot a VX by its traditional Prado waterfall-style grille.
The $105,990 VX Limited tops the range and adds a Torsen rear differential to the lockable centre-diff standard across the range, head-up display, digital mirror, rear-seat heating/ventilation and a panoramic glass roof.
Both VX versions have additional drive modes: all Prados have Eco, Normal and Sport, but the brace of V-models also get Sport S, Sport S+, Custom and Comfort, maximising the potential of that adaptive suspension.
The $103,990 Adventure is off to the side (or perhaps up a steep hill), moving back to 18in wheels and all-terrain tyres. It also features a front stabiliser-disconnect system for maximum axle articulation and a proper locking rear differential, which is distinct from the Torsen limited-slip unit on the VX Limited.
The cabin styling gives a nod to the 'stacked' console of the previous Prado. But it’s much tider (not difficult, to be honest) and of course all displays are now digital.
Adventure is also the one that embraces the retro vibe most comprehensively, with a “heritage” grille and two unique body colours: Smoky Blue and Sand. For another $1000, you can have a light grey roof; but only on the Adventure.
The cabin styling gives a nod to the “stacked” console of the previous Prado, which is incredibly now 15 years old. But it’s much tider (not difficult, to be honest) and of course all displays are now digital.
However, the main controls are still very much physical. There are buttons and dials for everything and haptic/touch activation for… nothing. It adds to the trad appeal, but it’s also all very functional for a 4x4 that's likely to be bumping across tricky terrain; a nice blend of future-facing displays and touchy feely stuff.
That extra size means a generous cabin front and rear. But something had to give when packaging the hybrid battery at the back and it turned out to be the third row seating, which is still present but mounted awkwardly high. Toyota NZ has made the best of it by adding a storage box behind, which forms a flat load floor when the rearmost chairs are folded… but the boot is not quite the size you might be expecting from a large SUV.
Strangely (suspiciously?), Toyota NZ does not quote cargo volume by litres for its Prado 7-seat, only mm dimensions for width and height. But using eyes, you can see it’s somewhat limited.
If cargo space really is a priority, there are 5-seat versions of the GXL and Adventure coming early next year; pricing yet to be decided, but they’ll likely be slightly cheaper than the 7-chair versions. And no, you can’t simply remove the third row from the existing models; they’re a permanent fixture and the mounting points mean you’d be left somewhat lacking in the… boot floor department.
There’s plenty of time to evaluate the Prado’s on-road credentials from our start-point in Christchurch, through Arthur’s Pass towards the West Coast. As with Hilux, the mild-hybrid system really does enhance the low-speed torque of the diesel engine, filling in the gaps where compression-ignition might otherwise be a bit hesitant.
But unlike Hilux, Prado also now has a truly slick 8-speed gearbox, which is arguably the most transformative aspect of this new model. It shifts unobtrusively, it’s equally adept on up- and down-shifts and broadens the range of gearing without feeling like it’s hunting. This is a Prado with performance polish.
The chassis is stable on-road, but don’t come expecting the settled ride of something like a Highlander. The opportunity cost of a proper 4x4 ladder-frame is a less comfortable ride and a bit of lateral jiggle from the underpinnings on rippled tarmac.
If you like the VX vibe, the lower-profile tyres and adaptive suspension certainly give a lot more scope to tailor on-road handling to your liking. There are discernable steps between the drive modes, especially in the damping response to different road surfaces.
But given the inherent on-road limitations of a separate-chassis 4x4, we preferred the more straightforward character of the Adventure, on its taller tyres and generally more compliant ride.
And on the Napolean Hill trail? In the end we couldn’t go all the way because time was against us, with a drive to Nelson for flights home to be completed before the end of the day. But we articulated in from the Reefton end for an hour or so each way and had lots of opportunity to see what the Prado can do.
You can see why this place is so popular with 4x4 adventure people. It’s not what you’d call extreme, but there’s also no way you’d bring a crossover-SUV through here: there are big rocks to climb over, sections of shingle where forward momentum is a must and lots of water to cross over. Lots.
There was also opportunity to put the Prado’s 700mm wading depth to the test in more than one crossing; in fact, on our little adventure, there was rarely a time when we weren’t zig-zagging across a river in one way or another.
And tunnels, those tunnels: through narrow openings (mind the mirrors) and straight into the wet stuff. It’s a cool place and by all accounts well worth taking the time to do the whole thing, if you’ve got the right vehicle. Like this one.
All but the GXL have Multi Terrain Select, which offers Auto, Dirt, Sand, Mud and Deep Snow modes. There’s also a separate Crawl function with five different steps; essentially cruise control for off-roading.
We tried it all on Napolean Hill, and even the sway bar disconnect on the Adventure.
None of it is strictly necessary on the Prado here, despite the 4x4-only nature of the trail; even the base GXL, which has the core hardware but none of the tricky off-road-tech stuff, romped through. The Prado has plenty in reserve.