Toyota mini Land Cruiser 2025: Countdown for this off-roader

If there's one car we've talked about at length this year, it's the Toyota mini Land Cruiser. As you may already know, it's a small compact SUV that is expected to be unveiled soon. The bad news is that it may not be coming to Europe to inherit the role of cheap 4x4 from the defunct Suzuki Jimny. 

Aesthetically, the car should be based on the prototype Compact Cruiser EV, although we consider it as its name implies, as a scaled-down Land Cruiser. Do you like it? The truth is that the vintage aesthetics in a reduced format seem perfect to us. 

Gallery: Toyota Mini Land Cruiser 2025 render

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Source: Cartoq

With all-wheel drive and rugged solutions

And now we move on to the rumours section. It is said that the mini Land Cruiser will be called Toyota Land Cruiser FJ and that it will share the platform and chassis with the Hilux Champ, a 'low cost' pick-up that is manufactured in Thailand, the country where the off-roader will also come from.  

Mechanically, there is talk of the Hilux's turbodiesel engine, a 2.8-litre four-cylinder block with light hybridisation, but it seems strange that a compact model would be powered by such a large engine. 

All-wheel drive would have to be available for off-road adventures and there would also have to be hill descent control and a variety of driving programmes, including one or more for off-road use.

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A lot of mystery

The mini Land Cruiser could be around 4.5 metres long, so it would not be as niche a vehicle as the Jimny, with a three-door body, very small rear seats and a boot reduced to a minimum. 

In August, it was rumoured that production of the car might start this November, but we don't think this date is real, as the car has not yet been officially unveiled (we don't know if it is already known internally at the company). 

In the end, we can only remain patient and see if Toyota decides to show it in public. We know you'd love it to come to Europe, but would you prefer it to be a small Land Cruiser like the one we're showing you in this article, or would you prefer it to be more like an evolution of the Compact Cruiser EV?

Source: Cartoq