2024 Toyota Land Cruiser Vs. Ford Bronco, Jeep Wrangler, Land Rover Defender

The 2024 Toyota Land Cruiser is here, debuting at the Land Cruiser Heritage Museum in Salt Lake City, Utah. The new LC, known internally as the 250-Series, borrows some of its hard bits from the Lexus GX and Toyota Tacoma, but with a starting price in the mid-$50,000 range, it’ll go toe to toe with the likes of the Land Rover Defender 110, Jeep Wrangler, and Ford Bronco. So how does it stack up against that excellent competitive set?

We’re pitting the 250-Series up against the base-model Land Rover Defender S 110, a nicely equipped Ford Bronco Badlands four-door, and a Jeep Wrangler Willys 4xe four-door, all of which can be had for about the same price as the Land Cruiser’s estimated $55k base. As is usually the case, the Land Cruiser is better in some specifications and worse in others. And of course, we’ll have to wait and see how the 250-Series performs in the real world before we can truly name a winner in this newly revitalized off-road SUV segment. But one thing’s for sure, the Bronco, Wrangler, and Defender have some new competition.

Off-Road Geometry

The Land Cruiser comes with 8.7 inches of ground clearance, with a 31-degree approach angle, 22-degree departure angle, and 25-degree breakover. It’s equipped with a conventional double-wishbone front, multi-link rear suspension with a fixed ride height. It’s 193.7 inches long and 84.2 inches wide, riding on a 112.2-inch wheelbase.

The Land Cruiser’s off-road measurements roughly stack up against its primary rivals, with notable exceptions like the Land Rover Defender’s impressive departure angle and the Jeep Wrangler’s excellent approach angle. Of note, the Defender is also offered with an air suspension that increases its numbers dramatically.

Powertrain

The 2024 Toyota Land Cruiser will offer one powertrain: a turbocharged 2.4-liter inline-four hybrid. It will make 326 horsepower and 465 pound-feet of torque, routed to the ground through an eight-speed automatic transmission. The Land Cruiser will be able to tow up to 6,000 pounds.

Off-Road Equipment

The 2024 Toyota Land Cruiser will come standard with hill descent control and low-speed crawl control. Opt for the mid-level model and you’ll also get Multi-Terrain Select and a disconnecting front sway bar for maximum articulation. Full-time four-wheel- drive with a selectable low range is standard, as is a locking rear differential and limited-slip center diff.

The $55,220 Ford Bronco Badlands 2.7L offers a disconnecting front sway barl, which can be had for about the same price as a base Land Cruiser. It also gets Trail Turn Assist, which brakes the inside rear wheel for maximum maneuverability. Locking front, center, and rear differentials are standard on the Bronco Badlands, among other trims, and all Broncos get Terrain Management as well.

The $56,530 Jeep Wrangler Willys 4xe comes with solid front and rear axles, center and rear differential locks, and impressive off-road ground clearance and angles. To get advanced features like the front sway bar disconnect and locking front axle, you’d have to upgrade to the $62,975 Wrangler Rubicon 4xe.

The $62,075 Land Rover Defender S 110 comes standard with a low-range transfer case with a locking center differential. Getting terrain management software requires spending an extra $2,350 on a package that also includes low-speed cruise control and air suspension. Meanwhile, an active rear differential is part of a $1,550 option pack that bundles a 120-volt socket in the cabin and all-terrain tires.

Bottom Line

While the 2024 Toyota Land Cruiser offers a decently impressive spec chart for its estimated mid-$50,000 starting price, it’s definitely not the only game in town. Folks looking to save some cash can get lesser Broncos with the Sasquatch package, which boasts much of the same off-road kit as the Badlands model. And the Jeep Wrangler Rubicon can be had with a less powerful, non-hybrid engine, cutting some cash out of the equation at the expense of power and efficiency. Meanwhile, the pricey Land Rover Defender 110 nevertheless offers excellent performance on- and off-road, as well as some country-club cachet.

Picking a winner based on specs alone is all but impossible, so we’ll just have to wait until the Land Cruiser hits the pavement so we can line it up against its rivals and choose our favorite. Till then, we’ll just be dreaming about dusty grins and mud puddles and rocks the size of small cars.