UPDATE, January 27, 2022: Order books for the 2023 Range Rover plug-in hybrid (PHEV) variants have opened up for Australia.

The first of two PHEV powertrains is the P440e, available exclusively in SE form, which pairs the existing 3.0-litre inline-six with an electric motor for 324kW of power and 620Nm of torque.

A more-powerful P510e powertrain can be added to the HSE and Autobiography grades, bumping outputs to 375kW and 700Nm.

Official ratings have exceeded initial claims made by Land Rover last year, with an electric driving range of 113km and CO2 emissions as low as 18g/km beating the suggested 100km and 30g/km, respectively.

In addition, the flagship Range Rover SV is also now available to order locally.

Priced from $341,300 before on-roads in regular-wheelbase form, the SV gains a unique front design, exclusive materials, a wider colour palette, and greater personalisation – with Land Rover claiming around 1.6 million configurations are available.

Full pricing details can be found below.

The story to here

October 27, 2021: The 2023 Range Rover has launched internationally, marking the fifth generation of the iconic luxury off-road vehicle.

The all-new Range Rover, codenamed L460, is underpinned by Land Rover’s MLA-Flex architecture, which has been designed to work with mild-hybrid, plug-in hybrid, and fully-electric powertrains – as well as a twin-turbo diesel six and BMW-sourced twin-turbo petrol V8.

Three different seating configurations will be on offer from two different bodies – an executive four-seater short-wheelbase, a standard five-seater short-wheelbase, an ultra-luxury four-seater long-wheelbase, a standard five-seater long-wheelbase, or a seven-seater long-wheelbase.

Prices will start from $220,200 plus on-road costs for the entry-level short-wheelbase Range Rover SE D300.

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The first all-electric Range Rover will arrive in 2024 – but, for the time being, buyers can choose between P440e and P510e plug-in hybrid variants, allowing up to 113 kilometres of battery-only driving before the petrol six-cylinder engine takes over.

Four trim levels will be available in the short-wheelbase (SWB) body – known as the Standard body – comprising SE, HSE, and Autobiography, along with the range-topping SV model from the company’s Special Vehicle Operations division.

Meanwhile, the long-wheelbase (LWB) version will only be available in Autobiography and SV trims.

A limited-run First Edition will be included for the first year of production for both SWB and LWB bodies, based on the Autobiography but offering special features unique to the variant.

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2023 Range Rover Australian pricing

Prices exclude on-road costs.

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Features

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Engine, drivetrain and fuel economy

The 2023 Range Rover is offered with six powertrains, with two plug-in hybrid engines acting as the newest additions to the range.

Opening the range is the D300, a mild-hybrid 3.0-litre twin-turbo diesel inline-six producing 221kW and 650Nm, delivering the vehicle to 100km/h from a standstill in a claimed 6.9 seconds.

Those who opt for the D350 get improved performance figures of 258kW and 700Nm, dropping the 0-100km/h time to 6.1 seconds.

Combined fuel economy for the diesel engines is listed as 7.2L/100km, with CO2 emissions as low as 190g/km.

The P400 is a mild-hybrid 3.0-litre turbocharged six-cylinder petrol engine with 294kW and 550Nm, with claimed fuel consumption of 9.1L/100km and a 0-100km/h time of 6.3 seconds, and CO2 emissions of 213g/km.

The first plug-in hybrid, known as the P440e, combines the turbo-petrol six with an electric motor to produce a total system output of 324kW and 620Nm, allowing for a 0-100km/h sprint in six seconds.

Stepping up to the P510e bumps outputs up to 375kW/700Nm, which drops the sprint time to 5.6 seconds.

The company says both plug-in models will produce CO2 emissions as little as 18g/km.

Fuel economy has yet to be certified for the PHEV models, but the carmaker claims a WLTP-rated all-electric driving range of up to 113km – though it will only be available on short-wheelbase models.

The range-topping P530 is a 4.4-litre twin-turbo petrol V8 sourced from BMW, putting out 390kW and 750Nm and propelling the new Rangie to 100km/h in 4.6 seconds, with a combined fuel economy listing of 11.8L/100km.

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Dimensions

The SWB Range Rover is 5052mm long, 2209mm wide, 1870mm tall, and has a wheelbase of 2997mm. Storage is up to 818 litres (or 725L below the privacy cover), and 1841L with the second row of seats folded down.

The model weighs between 2454kg and 2505kg depending on specification.

The LWB Range Rover is 5252mm long, 2209mm wide, 1870mm tall, and has a 3197mm wheelbase.

Storage is up to 1050L in the five-seater (725L below the cover), and up to 2165L when the second row of seats is folded flat.

On the seven-seater model, those numbers change to 312L (229L under the cover) behind the third-row of seats, 1061L with the third-row folded (713L below the cover), or 2601L with the second and third rows folded down.

The five-seater LWB model weighs between 2569kg and 2626kg, while the seven-seater weighs 2666kg to 2725kg.

Towing capacity is listed as 3500kg braked, or 750kg unbraked.

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Safety

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Warranty and servicing

The 2023 Range Rover will come with a five-year/unlimited-kilometre warranty.

Details of servicing have yet to be outlined, but the outgoing model offers five years free.

Availability

Order books for the 2023 Range Rover first opened in October 2021, ahead of first deliveries beginning in June 2023.

Plug-in hybrid and SV models are on sale from January 27, 2023, and are expected to begin deliveries later in the year.

The fully-electric Range Rover will make its debut in 2024.

The first 1000 units of the locally-engineered Nissan Navara PRO-4X Warrior are on track to be produced by the end of March.

Premcar, the Australian company behind the Navara Warrior program, has already built more than 750 examples of the updated ‘Warrior 2.0’ since production commenced in mid-2021.

Claimed to be the ‘world’s toughest Navara’, the PRO-4X Warrior – priced from $67,490 before on-road costs – builds upon the foundations of the factory PRO-4X through extensive re-manufacturing work at the firm’s facility in Epping, Victoria.

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Enhancements to the dual-cab ute include; a Safari-style bull bar, red Navara-branded steel bash plate, 17-inch Cooper Discoverer all-terrain tyres, a 100 kilogram gross vehicle mass (GVM) upgrade (3250kg), increased ground clearance, improved ride and handling, Warrior-specific fender flares, decals, and new interior headrests with Warrior embroidery.

“We’ve been hard at work on Warrior 2.0 from almost the moment we finished the first Warrior, initially in the design and engineering space, and now on producing what we consider to be the world’s toughest Navara,” said Premcar engineering director, Bernie Quinn.

“This is so much more than some kind of sticker pack. This is an extensively re-engineered vehicle that’s designed and built by some of the world’s most talented automotive manufacturing experts, right here in Victoria.”

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The 35-strong employees work to a tight schedule and to OEM standards, with the PRO-4X Warrior put through 10 manufacturing stations from start to finish.

Compared to the five-hour estimate for the original N-TREK Warrior, every PRO-4X Warrior takes approximately 10 hours to complete – with each station requiring around one hour of work to each car.

The factory has the capacity for up to ten cars per day, and runs five days a week, with Premcar stating it has already delivered more than 600 examples to local customers.

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“It’s a buzz for the whole team every time we see a Warrior out in the wild, whether it’s on the road or on a bush track or beach,” added Quinn.

“We know how much hard work and expertise has gone into producing every single Warrior, and to see owners out enjoying the final product is the ultimate in job satisfaction.”

The team evaluating the INEOS Grenadier 2B prototype in Australia recently experienced the extremes Australian weather can throw up at travellers. Heading for South Australia’s Googs Track, which is a sandy track that heads north from Ceduna up into the desert country, the team was caught in a wild storm front that led to flash flooding.

The team sought special permission to use the Googs Track, as it is closed to travellers during summer because of hot temperatures and the risk of getting stranded in such conditions.

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With daytime temperatures exceeding 35°C, it provided perfect conditions for hot weather testing of a new 4×4 vehicle in soft sand. The torrential downpour hit the team after they left the Barton Gold Mine at Tarcoola, which marks the northern end of Googs Track, and it dumped so much rain it closed the Outback roads and severed the East and West rail line.

This forced the team back to the Barton Gold Mine, but it wasn’t long before both the INEOS team and the mine were running low on supplies, so they had to seek out a permit and make tracks to the Stuart Highway.

It was on the highway south of Pimba that the road was blocked and the team witnessed the amazing whirlpool and captured it on video (watch it above). Regular 4X4 Australia contributors Cam Inniss and Cristian Brunelli were on the trip to film the INEOS testing and snapped the whirlpool as well.

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The water over the road again forced a retreat, this time back to the Pimba Roadhouse for the night. The following day the police gave permission for trucks and 4x4s to pass through the floodwaters in convoy, and again the guys captured the spectacle.

The Grenadier prototypes are nearing the end of their global testing phase and have logged more than 1.5 million kilometres in some of the most extreme conditions, just as they found in South Australia.

Order books for the traditional 4×4 vehicle are open now and it will go on sale in Australia in the last part of 2022.

Unless the world takes a massive and seemingly impossible U-turn in its environmental mindset, there will be no next-generation diesels, even if current diesel tech is tweaked to give it a few more years of commercial life.

The brick wall that diesels have run in to is built from ever-stringent exhaust emission regulations and reinforced by broader environmental policies. The future of internal combustion engines – what there is of it – lies with turbocharged petrol engines, in part designed and built with lessons learnt from current diesel technology.

The reason why you’re most likely driving a diesel now has its roots in Europe in the 1990s. In what was – now somewhat ironically – an environmentally driven European Union policy, diesel development was fostered due to its lower carbon dioxide (so-called greenhouse gas) production compared to equivalent petrol engines.

Diesel and petrol fuels produce roughly the same amount of carbon dioxide for each unit of fuel burnt, but diesels burn less fuel to do the same job so win on the greenhouse-gas count.

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Carried by a range of EU-wide incentives, the take-up of diesel cars in the EU went from 22 per cent of new-car sales in 1997 to 50 per cent in 2005, and by decade’s end accounted for the majority of new-car sales in Europe.

The spill-over effect took longer to reach here but can be seen most graphically in today’s new 4x4s where petrol engines are very few and far between. Amongst the overwhelmingly popular 4×4-ute sector, there isn’t a petrol engine anywhere in a mainstream model.

The 1990’s environmental policy-driven preference for diesel laid the platform for the European automotive industry to work on developing diesel engines that could match the performance and refinement of petrol engines of the time.

Over time, the advances in diesel performance – especially in specific power output – have been phenomenal and have come off ever-more sophisticated turbocharging, increasingly higher-pressure common-rail injection, and piezo-crystal (and other fast-switching) fuel injectors, all controlled by smart electronics.

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Before all this happened, things were very different, as a quick look back in time illustrates. Back in 1990, Toyota’s then all-new 3L diesel, first seen in the then-new (fifth-generation) Hilux was a 2.8-litre four. Two engine generations (and three model generations) down the track, today’s Hilux is again powered by a 2.8-litre four but one that’s very different from the 3L, the power and torque numbers telling a stunning story.

Where the 3L 2.8 made 60kW of power at 4400rpm and 183Nm of torque at 2400rpm, the current Hilux’s 2.8 makes 150kW at 3400rpm and 500Nm at 1600rpm to 2800rpm. So that’s that 2.5 times as much power and 2.7 times as much torque. And all the while, and most tellingly, the new 2.8 isn’t revving nearly as high as the old 2.8.

But, as in a late-night TV ad, there’s more to come. As impressive as Toyota’s new 2.8 might be against the old 2.8, the pointy end of current tech is even more advanced.

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The current Ford Ranger, for example, has a 2.0-litre bi-turbo diesel that betters the current Hilux’s 2.8 for power (157kW vs 150kW) and matches it for torque (500Nm) despite being the better part of a litre smaller.

On a power-per-unit-of-capacity (specific power) basis that means Ranger 2.0-litre makes 3.5 times as much power as the 3L. And in terms of specific torque, it’s 3.8 times as much torque of the pre-diesel revolution 3L, a phenomenal, mind-boggling increase.

If you’re driving a bi-turbo Ranger right now, you would be shocked to get behind the wheel of a 3L Hilux … it would feel like two of your four cylinders had died and the third was almost dead. Hills that you couldn’t even see would slow down your 3L and have you reaching for a lower gear. Anything steep would soon have you down to a crawl. Believe me, I’ve been there. And it wasn’t pretty.

UPDATE, January 25: With a week left before February begins, Toyota has updated its January production expectations, announcing 28 production lines across 14 Japanese factories will be suspended.

Toyota had been targeting output of 800,000 vehicles for January, but this number is now expected to reduce by 65,000 due to COVID-related parts shortages.

While many of the models included in this announcement are for models not sold in Australia, production will affect the LandCruiser 300 Series, LandCruiser 70 Series, LandCruiser Prado, GR Yaris, Corolla, Camry, C-HR, HiAce, Prius, and a number of Lexus vehicles.

Most of the 28 production lines will be shut for just two days this week, though six factories will also see shut-downs in February.

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The story to here

January 21, 2022: Toyota’s Japanese website is quoting a wait time of up to four years for the Toyota LandCruiser 300 Series.

The four-year timeframe being advised by Toyota is for Japanese customers there who place an order for a new-generation LandCruiser from this point forward.

“We sincerely apologise for the fact that LandCruiser has been very well received not only in Japan but also around the world, and it is expected that it will take a long time to deliver it after receiving an order,” the translated statement read.

“The delivery time for ordering from now on may be about four years. We will do our utmost to shorten the delivery time for our customers, and we appreciate your understanding.”

But while Toyota Japan has provided an update for its customers, Toyota Australia has yet to explain what the implications are for Australian buyers except to say the two situations aren’t comparable.

“Vehicle allocation is market specific, so suggestions that Japan’s reported LC300 wait times are attributable to Australia is incorrect,” a representative for Toyota Australia told 4X4 Australia.

“We ask our customers to please contact their local dealer for updates on the status of their individual orders. Quoted wait times will vary between dealers, depending on their individual stock situation, which is why you may hear of different advice on delivery times being provided to customers around the country.”

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Toyota was forced to shut down some manufacturing in December, including production for the LandCruiser, impacting output of up to 20,000 vehicles – though the company did not provide any information on how these shut-downs would affect Australian deliveries.

While Toyota has confirmed LandCruiser production will be at full speed in February, the carmaker has been forced to pause production of the Corolla, RAV4, Yaris, Yaris Cross, and Camry next month thanks to the ongoing semiconductor shortage – with up to 150,000 vehicles affected.

“The latest update from this week shows there is currently no plan to reduce production of the LandCruiser 300 for the month of February,” a spokesperson said in a statement.

“Toyota Australia is continuing to work closely with our global production team to support our dealers and our customers. Together with our parent company, we are doing everything we can to get customers into their new Toyota vehicles as soon as possible.

“We apologise to customers experiencing delays and we sincerely thank them for their patience.”

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December 21, 2021: A fifth Toyota factory will suspend production from January, with estimates increasing to 20,000 vehicles affected.

The latest report from news outlet Reuters adds one more factory shut-down to the list, with four Japanese plants already at a standstill due to COVID-related parts supply issues originating in Southeast Asia.

Within a matter of weeks, the Japanese car giant has revised its estimated production impact from 3500 vehicles to 20,000, while also announcing it is expecting to reach its target of 800,000 units in January.

While the shut-downs impact LandCruiser 300 Series output, Toyota Australia has yet to advise what delays – if any – will be applied to local orders.

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December 16: Toyota has increased its expected production losses for December from 9000 to 14,000, according to Reuters.

It’s the third revision upwards in a matter of days, with Toyota originally estimating output losses to be capped at 3500 vehicles for the month – though it’s not clear what percentage is made up of the LandCruiser.

The information comes as Toyota announced production for January was expected to reach 800,000 vehicles. However, the announcement was a carbon-copy of its December production estimates released just weeks before it was forced to shut down a number of its plants.

The current production cuts are said to affect Lexus models and the LandCruiser 300 Series, but Toyota Australia has yet to provide information on whether the shortages will impact Australian buyers.

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December 13: The 2022 Toyota LandCruiser 300 Series has experienced yet another delay, according to Reuters, following a parts shortage from suppliers in Southeast Asia.

Almost a month exactly after Toyota said it would resume full production for December, the company announced late last week it would be halting work at four Japanese factories – with the new LandCruiser 300 Series impacted by the unexpected delay.

Within 24 hours, Toyota’s own expected production losses grew from 3500 to 9000 – less than 0.1 per cent of the carmaker’s forecasted annual production – though it’s not known at this stage whether there will be any delays to Australian deliveries.

4×4 Australia has contacted Toyota for comment.

Earlier this month, buyers on social media reported being contacted by local Toyota dealerships and offered the opportunity to take immediate delivery of LandCruisers in different specifications to the vehicle they placed an order for.

It’s believed some dealerships received a handful of new LandCruisers at short notice, but have since been briefed and have given information on customer order build dates and expected arrivals – with many vehicles currently on their way here.

“The resumption of right-hand-drive LandCruiser production in Japan in November has seen customer orders start to arrive in Australia, following initial demonstrator-only availability in dealerships to support test drives at launch of the LandCruiser 300 Series in early October,” a spokesperson for Toyota Australia told 4X4 Australia.

“The first retail stock of LandCruiser 300 began arriving in dealerships [last] week and dealers are doing their utmost to get customers into a new LandCruiser as quickly as possible. Our dealers have the latest information to assist customers with expected delivery timing on individual orders.”

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The story to here

December 6: The first 2022 Toyota LandCruiser 300 Series has been delivered to a customer in Australia.

Despite worldwide production delays, and some waiting times reported up to 12 months, those who put their orders in early for the new LandCruiser have begun to take delivery of the first batch of vehicles not specifically allocated as Toyota dealership demonstrator models.

“We would like to thank our customers for their understanding. It has been a challenging few months, with COVID-19 causing production stoppages in Japan and elsewhere across the region,” Toyota Australia Vice President of Sales Sean Hanley said at the announcement.

“We are pleased to announce that with Toyota’s production in Japan restored to normal levels in December, LandCruisers are now starting to land in Australia ready to be delivered to their new owners,” he said.

“Our dealers have the latest information on customers’ individual orders and expected delivery timing, and we thank our customers again for their patience.”

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However, some buyers are reporting being offered vehicles different to the specifications they ordered.

According to one person on Facebook, a Toyota dealership offered them the opportunity to take delivery of a new LandCruiser GR Sport in crystal pearl with a black and red interior, despite ordering an arctic white with black interior.

Another person in the group was told a LandCruiser GX they ordered in late October was already on their way to Australia, due for delivery in late December, while others who placed orders months earlier are still waiting to be contacted by their dealerships.

In October, Toyota announced it would resume full production of the new LandCruiser in November.

October 27: Australian deliveries of the 2022 Toyota LandCruiser 300 Series will be delayed, the company’s local arm has confirmed today.

A statement issued by Toyota Australia says it apologises for “any inconvenience caused,” and its dealers will contact customers to provide individual updates on orders already placed.

As reported in August, Toyota has suspended production across 14 of its Japanese factories throughout September, citing a parts supply shortage caused by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Japanese media is reporting waiting times for the LandCruiser 300 Series are expected to be as long as 12 months after initial order placement.

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According to website Response, the company is considering new ways to deliver the four-wheel-drive to customers earlier than currently anticipated – which could mean reducing production of its other models to help free up semi-conductor chipsets required to build the new, technically-advanced LandCruiser.

All major car manufacturers are currently experiencing a supply shortage of the critical semi-conductor computer chips, forcing carmakers to reduce outputs or halt production lines entirely.

Toyota Australia says it is “continuing to work closely with our global production team to provide the latest information for dealers and to support our customers”.

Despite the delay, Toyota says a limited number of demonstrator vehicles will be available in Australian dealerships for customers who want to experience the latest LandCruiser model.

UPDATE, July 2022: New Ford Ranger review – it’s here at last

The new 2023 Ford Ranger is now on sale in Australia, and the local media launch has been run. The Wheels and 4×4 Australia teams have both driven the new Ranger, and you can find their stories at the links below.

Story continues…

UPDATE, April 7, 2022: Australian pricing for the new 2023 Ford Ranger has now been revealed. Get the full details at the link below.

UPDATE, February 22, 2022: New Ford Ranger Raptor revealed!

The new 2022 Ford Ranger Raptor has been unveiled at last, and we’ve got a comprehensive rundown on everything you need to know. Catch our stories and big reveal video at the links below.

January 25, 2022: Ford has continued to drip-feed information on its looming 2022 Ford Ranger, with the Blue Oval’s European arm unveiling key specifications related to the vehicle’s cargo tub.

As the best-selling 4×4 vehicle in Australia in 2021, the Ford Ranger is now the vehicle of choice for families opting for a lap of the map, grey nomads with camper trailer in tow, and even for parents as the daily runabout – so, clearly, it’s not just used to ferry tools to the worksite.

Upgrade your Ranger

To this end, Ford has ensured the cargo area of its 2022 Ranger remains useful and practical for its evolving demographic. To the average eye it mightn’t look like anything special, but dig a bit deeper and it’s obvious the design boffins at Ford put in considerable effort to optimise the cargo space with useful features and accessories. Let’s take a closer look.

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A new drop-in bedliner incorporates functional divider locators, allowing owners to organise the tub using custom-made dividers – which can be added or removed at any time. The bedliner is also said to be more comfy on knees, provide better grip, and be easier to clean.

In addition to external tie-down rails and six fixed tie-down points, internal rails on either side of the tub feature spring-loaded, adjustable cleats, which can slide and lock into nine locations along the rail – making it easier to secure loads of different shapes and sizes. Wildtrak models come with aluminium extrusions that double as tie-down rails.

The easy-lift tailgate doubles as a work surface when lowered, featuring two clamp pockets concealed by spring-loaded caps, and a built-in ruler with 10 millimetre increments (only available when no bedliner is fitted).

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Reaching contents in the tub is made immensely easier – especially for shorter folk – thanks to the addition of an access step, directly attached to it via two steel supports.

To easily attach accessories such as roof racks, the Ranger features roof-top channel mounts – roof load limits are up to 350 kilograms (static) and 85kg (dynamic).

The tub itself features a volume of 1233 litres, with Ford claiming it can accommodate a standard European pallet (1200 x 800mm) between the wheel arches – the load-box length varies from 1544 to 2305mm, depending on the variant.

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A powered roller shutter is available as an optional extra; power comes in the form of 12-volt sockets; and there are better lighting solutions in the tub, as well as “Zone” lighting, which is controlled via the FordPass app.

In addition, Ford has revamped the interior of the Ranger to include more storage space: a new centre console will feature dedicated storage compartments; the rear seats will now double as storage bins (and now also fold flat); and retractable cup-holders have been installed.

Ford has engineered space for a second battery in the engine bay, as well as a pre-wired overhead auxiliary switch panel. At launch, the 2022 Ranger will be available with more than 600 factory-backed accessories, which includes those developed in collaboration with ARB.

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The 2022 Ford Ranger will come with a V6 diesel engine and full-time 4×4 options, as well as a 50mm wider track and 50mm longer wheelbase.

The next-gen Ranger will be on sale in Australia from mid-2022.

4X4 Australia's project builds

Ford has officially taken the covers off its highly-anticipated Bronco Raptor – the most aggressive version of its reborn off-roader yet.

While forums leaked the Bronco Raptor’s existence in September last year, it’s the first time outside of teasers Ford has shown off the dream machine, complete with its EcoBoost engine and massively flared arches.

Adopting the Raptor moniker, which adorn’s all of Ford’s latest and greatest off-road oriented vehicles, the Bronco has endured the same treatment as its Blue Oval cousins such as the F-150 and Ranger – sticking to the simple recipe of bigger engine, fatter tyres and more ground clearance.

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Riding on the body-on-frame T6 platform, which underpins the Ranger and Everest as well as lower Bronco variants, the Raptor gains a 3.0-litre EcoBoost V6, with Ford targeting 298kW – or 400 horsepower in the old money – from the twin-turbo unit. Even though official figures haven’t been released, there’s a chance this engine could push out in excess of 600Nm of torque.

As with a wide range of Ford’s vehicles, power is sent to the wheels through a 10-speed automatic gearbox, coupled with an upgraded transfer case featuring 3.06 4×4 low-range gearing for up to 67.7:1 crawl ratio.

Under its pumped out guards you’ll find massive 37-inch BFGoodrich KO2 all-terrain tyres (the largest fitted to a production SUV in the US), Fox Live Valve shock absorbers (raising the ride height by 12.2 centimetres to 33.3cm) and a 8.6-inch (21.9cm) wider track to make sure its sizeable stance is matched with go-anywhere ability.

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Those Fox shocks aren’t for show – Ford worked with the damper manufacturer to develop its High-Performance Off-Road Stability Suspension (HOSS) system, allowing on-board sensors to work with the dampers and their remote reservoirs to ensure the tyres are provided maximum grip at all times.

Revised control arms also boost the Raptor’s suspension travel by up to 60 per cent at the front and 40 per cent at the rear, now up to 33cm and 35.56cm respectively.

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Despite not being available as a three-door, the five-door Raptor makes up for it by keeping all the mod cons a driver could need, from wireless phone charging to voice-activated satellite navigation, a 12-inch instrument cluster (with Raptor-exclusive Performance View) and Ford’s Sync 4 12-inch infotainment system.

Ford offers the Lux Package for a more refined interior experience, adding a 10-speaker Bang & Olufsen sound system as well as Adaptive Cruise Control.

As had been revealed last year, the Bronco Raptor will be only variant of its range which can be ordered in the Ford Performance-exclusive code orange paint, joining the nine other finishes available, as well as multiple interior options ranging from marine-grade vinyl seats to black onyx neo suede pews.

And yes, just in case you were wondering, it comes as standard with rubberised washout flooring, however carpets are an optional extra.

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Inspired by the vehicles which compete in the extreme off-road sport known as Ultra4 Racing, the Bronco Raptor has been built as Ford Performance’s flagship model, according to CEO Jim Farley.

“Raptor is the apex of our off-road line-up and is now a full line-up with race proven content and design that you can’t get from anyone else,” said Farley.

“Only Ford could create a Bronco Raptor.”

“We had to build the Bronco Raptor – it’s our ultimate vehicle for hardcore off-road enthusiasts who demand something more,” said Carl Widmann, Ford Performance’s chief engineer.

“Like the Ultra4 desert race trucks, the ‘Raptor of SUVs’ conquers desert dunes at highway speeds and is equipped with competition-level off-road technology and hardware.”

While the Bronco is unlikely to come to Australia, we can expect it to play a big part in influencing the next Ranger Raptor, having already been teased with a V6 EcoBoost engine under the bonnet, although the ute has been spied on the road sans massive tyres.

Toby Price is one of the most laid-back, down-to-earth blokes you could ever meet. No matter where the two-time Dakar winner is racing, and whether he’s competing on two wheels or on four, he always finds time for his fans, signing autographs, posing for selfies and having a laugh.

Toby’s positive attitude and never-say-die attitude has won him fans the world over, no matter whether they’re into motocross, enduro, Rally Raid, Stadium Super Trucks, Trophy Trucks or UTVs. The bloke is a machine, obsessed by speed and by racing in just about any format.

Toby was already a legend in the Aussie dirt-bike scene well before his first Dakar win in 2016 made him famous with a wider audience. Before he competed in Dakar, he had already won the Australian Off-Road Championship (AORC) five times, the Hattah Desert Race five times, and the Finke Desert Race four times. He was also a two-time winner of the Australian 4 Day Enduro (A4DE), and he had represented Australia in the International Six Day Enduro (ISDE) squad.

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There’s no denying it’s his Dakar crowns with the Red Bull KTM Factory Racing team in 2016 and then again in 2019 that helped make Toby Price a household name. However, as well as his motorcycle exploits, Toby also has an incredible racing record on four wheels: in 2019 he and fellow Dakar competitor Nasser Al-Attiyah came second in the Baja 1000 race in Mexico, and more recently he won the 2021 Finke Desert Race in his Mitsubishi Triton-bodied Trophy Truck. Oh, and he’s also competed in Stadium Super Trucks and various other forms of four-wheeled racing.

Toby is obsessed with racing and in his new autobiography Endurance: The Toby Price Story, he admits: “If one of my mates said he could finish a sandwich faster than me, it would become a competition. To this day if the word ‘race’ comes up, it flicks a switch in my brain.”

Of course, the road to racing glory is not without its perils, and Toby has suffered multiple injuries along the way that nearly ended his career prematurely, even before his Dakar story had begun … and he has suffered several more since, the most recent of which occurred in closing stages of the 2021 Dakar, in which he broke his collarbone, shoulder and hand.

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Back in Australia after the 2021 Dakar crash, Toby found himself in hospital, quarantining for two weeks, before he could be operated on, and he used this time to work on his autobiography.

“Once I got injured in Dakar (last year), spending two weeks in a hospital quarantining was going to be quite boring, so I thought it might just be a good time to jump on it and kickstart it; and Penguin (Random House Australia) was in step, wanting to do something, and we just took the chance,” Toby explains.

In the beginning

For any fan of motor racing, Toby’s autobiography is an absolute cracker of a read, and the story starts when he was a kid growing up in Roto, near the western NSW town of Hillston.

“It was definitely not an easy childhood, where we grew up, where we lived, but Roto was the stomping ground for where it all kicked off for us,” Toby tells 4X4 Australia. “It was an interesting life to live, and it was definitely a difficult one, but we got to ride motorcycles any day of the week we wanted to and for as long as we wanted, and we didn’t annoy anybody, so that was the best part of it all.”

Toby wasn’t the first Price to catch the racing bug; when he was just a toddler, his dad John and his uncle Jeff had turned an old truck in to an off-road racer to compete in the Australian Off-Road Championship, and they won a national title in 1989. But Toby’s own racing career started when he was just four years old, winning his first race on a PeeWee 50 at a meeting in Condobolin. In his autobiography, he recounts, “I went out there and blew the lot of them to the weeds in my first race.”

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Next up was a state meeting in Albury-Wodonga a few weeks later in which Toby lapped the field. This early racing success would have a big impact on Toby and his family, with parents John and Pauline throwing their full support behind him.

“My parents worked extremely hard to give me all the best that they could,” Toby says. “When you are a little kid, you look at other families that are in a better position and more well-off, their set-up is a lot better and things like that, but we never let that get in the way, and dad always taught me the right way of things, and mum was always full-support, and working flat-out to try and help get me get to events.

“We made it work … sleeping in swags, and we had an old van to start with, then we moved to an old motor coach … it was a decent set-up, but it was nowhere near as flash as the guys coming from the city.”

Having to ‘make do’ no doubt set Toby in good stead for the racing challenges he would face later in his career, including his now famous makeshift tyre repair in the 2021 Dakar, in which he used duct tape and cable ties to repair a damaged rear tyre before finishing second on a 709km stage.

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“Living on the farm, we had to make do with what we had out there,” Toby says. “We couldn’t just go 10 minutes down to a store and buy the parts we needed to fix things, so we were always just trying to MacGyver things up and make the equipment work.

“I’ve always had to work for it, my parents have had to work for it, and it’s made a pretty good story out of it. At the end of the day, the chances of actually making it to full-time racing, the percentage rate, is really low, so to have that dream come true, yeah, it’s definitely worked out in our favour a little bit; it was a lot of hard work along the way.”

As well as bikes, Toby got experience driving cars on the property at Roto as a youngster. In fact, when he was six years old, he used to drive an old Datsun 17km to the bus stop each morning to go to school; his old man had extensions welded on to the pedals so he could reach them!

Bike racing would take up much of Toby’s time before racing professionally on four wheels. As a junior, Toby won state titles in 1998, and from 2000 to 2003, and in 2003 he also won national titles in both the 125cc and 250F classes.

Moving up to senior motocross in 2004 with a factory Kawasaki deal, Toby placed big expectations on himself, but injuries meant he was never fully fit between 2004 and 2007. He was dropped from the Kawasaki factory motocross squad in 2008, but he still ran as a privateer.

A phone call

By this stage, though, he was beginning to think his racing career might be over … then in 2009 he got an offer to race Enduro with Kawasaki in the Australian Off-road Racing Championship (AORC). “Honestly, that phone call in ’09, I don’t even know what I would be doing right now if I didn’t pick that phone back up and accept the ride to go in to Enduro racing,” Toby says.

Toby’s first year in the AORC was a ripper, winning the title in the last round over four-time World Enduro Champion Stefan Merriman, who had returned to AORC that year.

If 2009 was an eye opener, 2010 was quite simply a revelation. Toby signed for KTM and won just about everything on offer, including the AORC title once again and, on his first attempt, both the Finke and Hattah desert races. Toby admits those first Finke and Hattah desert race wins might not have come at all had it not been for the help of teammate Ben Grabham, who up until that point was Australia’s undisputed Desert King.

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“Luckily I had Ben Grabham in my corner, and he definitely showed me the ropes quite quickly,” Toby says. “We had a good tussle and a good duel between myself and Grabbo, and we were able to have some fun with it … I love being at high speed, living on the farm and out middle of Australia in Roto, basically that’s all I had to do, just go full gas to get to the other side of the paddock, so it was really nothing new, but it definitely paved the way to where we are to this day.”

In 2011, Toby won rounds 2, 3 and 4 of the AORC, Hattah and the A4DE, and was selected to compete in the Australian International Six Day Enduro (ISDE) team. In 2012, he won the AORC, Finke, Hattah and the E3 class of the A4DE. While 2013 started well with wins in rounds 2, 3 and 4 of the AORC, a big crash in the Californian AMA Hare and Hound National Championship saw Toby break three bones in his neck, and his thumb. After big dramas in a US hospital, and problems with his insurance company, Toby’s family flew him back to Australia where he underwent a major operation to repair his neck. He was lucky enough to walk again, let alone race a bike or a Trophy Truck.

“All the injuries I’ve been through, the body, I’ve given it a fair old whack and used my body up and all my lifelines” Toby admits. “But at the end of the day, it’s all been worth it, and the hard work and sacrifice have all paid off, but yeah, I’ve come very, very close to not living at a normal life and staying on two feet, but I guess it’s just made for one part of the story that anything is achievable if you put your heart and soul in to it, and have a dig, so it’s worked out well.”

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As well as his 2021 Red Bull KTM Factory Racing commitments in Rally Raid and the Dakar and his Trophy Truck win in the Finke Desert Race, Toby also found time to compete in the Baja 1000 again, although he didn’t experience the success of 2019.

“Unfortunately, Baja didn’t go to plan this year for us, but it was cool to go over there and race,” Toby explains. “We handed the truck off in the lead, I did my job, the perfect part that I needed to do, and unfortunately the next driver made an error … and we all do it, so you can’t bury him for it and be upset, but it ended up down in a ditch, in a gully, and the guys tried to help winch it out and one of the straps broke and the truck rolled in to the hills.”

Another Baja goal

Toby is still keen to add a Baja 1000 title to his collection, and he hopes to head back there this year. “Hopefully one day, fingers crossed, we can add a Baja 1000 to our tally as well,” he says. “In 2019, me and Nasser (Al-Attiyah) had an all-wheel drive Mason that’s probably 1100hp, and we actually finished second overall that year, and shocked a lot of people, and it was cool to get a trophy out of the Baja 1000, but I guess when you’re one step short of that top one, yeah, you want to go back and get the top one.”

As well as Baja, Toby also has unfinished business at Finke. He might be a multiple winner on two wheels, and now he has also won on four wheels, but he is still committed to winning the ‘Iron Man’ Finke double – winning in the bike and car categories in the same year. It’s going to be a busy 2022 …

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“Basically, we’ve got five rounds of the (Rally Raid) world championship we need to do on two wheels, so they’re the goals to try and go for next, and then try and get a world championship back, hopefully Dakar goes well in January; but then, other than that, Finke is always on my list, to try and run the four wheels out there … and run the two wheels out there as well, do the Iron Man, and then I want to do the Baja 1000 again, I want to do the UTV World Championships in America, the Mint 400 America and maybe King of the Hammers or something like that.

“A couple of those events would be cool if we can match them all in, but yeah, the main priority, the main goal, is make sure we do the world championship and Dakar.”

The future

Last year, Toby signed a two-year extension to his contract with the KTM factory, but there’s no doubt he’s keen to follow in the footsteps of desert racers like Stephane Peterhansel, Cyril Despres and Nani Roma who have made the transition from two wheels to four wheels in the Dakar … if the opportunity presents itself.

“I’m not gonna deny it, that it is definitely the goal in the future and, like I said, I just love racing, I love being competitive, and I think that’s definitely the next step for me,” Toby admits.

“I’m only getting older and it doesn’t get any easier each year that you compete and race on two wheels … but yeah, watching Stephane Peterhansel and Nani Roma and guys like that, they’ve done an exceptional job of switching over to cars and off of two wheels, and I’m just trying to get a little bit of a jumpstart on it early.”

A jumpstart is an understatement; some of the biggest names in Rally Raid have already been asking Toby what it’s like to compete in events like the Baja 1000.

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“When I first spoke to Nasser about going to race the Baja (in 2019), it’s been one of the races on his list for many years, one he’s dreamed of wanting to do, and previously I’d run the event twice before that, so to do an event before basically Nasser and Carlos Sainz and all them guys that dream and want to do that event was something quite special,” Toby says.

“Having Sebastian Loeb and all them guys approach you about Baja racing, and wanting to know how it all functions, how it all works, it’s a bit of a shock to the system really. Those guys are well-known all around the world on four wheels, world champions and stuff, and it’s cool to have them come and ask me some questions about an event they haven’t done before, so it’s pretty rad.”

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Of course, making the transition to Rally Raid on four wheels is by no means a given. “Unfortunately, in that four-wheel category, if you don’t show up without a half-million euro it’s definitely quite difficult and hard to get a seat in one of those cars, but hopefully with some connections like with Nasser, racing with him, maybe he might get to put in a word somewhere for us … and then with Red Bull’s connection, hopefully something can come from there.

“It’s just something I’m trying to set up for in the future, and if it works I’m gonna be stoked, and if it doesn’t then at least I’m going to hang my helmet up and put it on the shelf and know I gave it everything I could to succeed on two wheels, and try and make a transition to four wheels and know I didn’t leave nothing on the table.”If you want to learn more about Toby Price, make sure you grab a copy of his autobiography Endurance: The Toby Price Story.

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The ARB connection

ARB 4X4 Accessories is another long-time Toby Price supporter, and this relationship came about thanks to ARB director Andy Brown’s love of off-road racing, and his son Danny’s involvement in the sport.

“Andy and Danny Brown, I’ve known Danny Brown pretty much for 11, 12 or 13 years,” Toby explains. “I’d seen him at some events, and I got to know him a lot more once we started doing the Finke Desert Race in 2010, and that partnership with them just kicked off.

“I love to try and keep myself affiliated with Australian brands and Australian-made companies and ARB is just one of them. I went through the whole workshop facility down there (in Victoria) and watching them fold and bend up bullbars, it’s an amazing set-up for what they do here in Australia, and to have a company like ARB on my side is pretty cool.

“Andy and Danny are a bit wild and love off-road racing and going full gas just as much as me, so it worked out good.”

Toby’s Triton

It’s no secret Toby Price has a close relationship with Mitsubishi Australia, which even launched a limited-edition Toby Price Triton a few years ago, so we asked Toby what it was like to see his initials and racing number plastered all over the back of a ute.

“It’s actually quite strange,” he laughs. “To be known as a motorcycle rider and never had a replica two-wheel dirt-bike series put out after me, to have a car come out, it’s pretty cool and exciting.

“Where I used to live in the Hunter Valley, a local dealer there, they used to help out and look after us – Lancaster Motor Group – they put me in touch with Mitsubishi … and they threw that offer, and that idea of making 500 TP Edition Tritons. I’ve had probably four of them now and everyone knows what my life is like, I usually beat the hell out of everything … it’s a super strong, reliable car and great people to be a part of, and I’m super stoked to have them in my corner.”

Those Icelandic builders of all things cool and capable, the crew at Arctic Trucks, haven’t wasted any time applying their talents to the LandCruiser 300 Series.While some of AT’s wilder glacier-crawling rigs are equipped with tyres that measure more than 40 inches (it recently stuffed a set of 38s on portal hubs under a Hyundai Santa Fe!) the AT35 LC300 wears 35-inch rubber as the model name suggests.

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This is a more practical, everyday 4×4 vehicle, much like the AT35 Hilux and D-MAX vehicles created by the team; but, unlike the D-MAX which enjoys factory backing by Isuzu and is available in dealers in the UK, the LandCruiser is not factory supported … yet.The LandCruiser’s standard 265/65 R18 tyres measure in at around 31.5 inches in the old money, so stepping up to the 35s is not a straightforward swap. It requires re-engineering of the frame rails and the inner guards to allow space for the 35 x 12.5 R17 BFGoodrich All Terrain tyres, which are fitted to deep dish 17×10 ET-25 Arctic Trucks alloy wheels.Even with the optimised AT suspension package, the tyres still require massive flares to cover them.

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All the work is done in-house at Artic Trucks and includes heavy duty corrosion protection against the snow and mud that the trucks are built to endure.The trucks are finished off with model-specific badges and details, and all engineering requirements – for Iceland at least.While not the style of LandCruiser you are likely to see exploring the tracks of the Aussie Outback, we still reckon they are pretty cool rigs. Do you agree?

November 14, 2022: Next-gen Prado imagined

With new reports surfacing that the new Toyota Prado will get hybrid powertrains, we’ve commissioned a pair of artist renderings that might offer a look at the new model’s styling. Get all the details, including everything about the hybrid powertrains, at the links below.

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Story continues

The 2023 Toyota LandCruiser Prado is set to make its debut this August, according to sources out of Japan.

Website Creative311 is reporting the new LandCruiser Prado will be an updated version of the current model, rather than an all-new vehicle as has been rumoured.

The report also says Toyota will be halting orders for the current Prado in the coming weeks.

According to unnamed sources, the upcoming Prado update will see the model receive a revised grille and facia garnish, as well as minor colour and material changes inside.

While the 150 Series Prado has been in production since 2009 – a 13-year run – the four-wheel-drive received its last major facelift in late 2017.

Japanese publication Best Car reported recently the next-generation Prado had been pushed out from 2022 to 2024, with ongoing production headaches blamed for the delay.

Multiple issues from COVID-19, the semiconductor chip shortage, and record-high demand has pushed waiting times for the new LandCruiser 300 Series out by as much as four years – forcing the car giant to postpone the new-generation Prado.

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A report from July pointed to a new powertrain being developed by Toyota for use in the next Prado, HiLux, and HiAce, with a 2.5-litre turbo-diesel four-cylinder engine being mated to a hybrid-electric system.

Like the 300 Series, a GR Sport variant of the next-gen Prado is expected, offering a more off-road oriented option for buyers, while the rest of the range will be slanted towards family comfort.

If the 2023 Toyota LandCruiser Prado does end up being a facelifted version of the current vehicle, more details should begin to filter through in the coming weeks and months.