TFLTruck was the first to report that the Land Cruiser has a better fuel economy rating than most rivals, such as the Ford Bronco Badlands, Land Rover Defender, and even the plug-hybrid Jeep Wrangler 4xe, when considering only the gasoline part of the powertrain.
The 2024 Land Cruiser for the US market is powered by a hybrid drivetrain that combines a 2.4-liter inline-4 combustion engine with an electric motor placed in the eight-speed automatic gearbox.
The inline-4 engine has a total of 326 horsepower and 465 pound-feet of torque and should be no slouch in terms of performance, although Toyota did not reveal acceleration times. However, what stands out is its impressive manufacturer-estimated fuel economy.
2024 Toyota Land Cruiser (Euro-spec). Overall length is 4,920 mm, width 1,980 mm and height 1,870 mm; the wheelbase is 2,850 mm.
As per the EPA, the Ford Bronco Badlands equipped with a 4-cylinder 2.3-liter engine gets an EPA-rated fuel economy of 17 MPG, whereas the Land Rover Defender 110 with a 2.0-liter 4-cylinder engine receives an EPA-rated combined fuel economy of 18 MPG. The plug-in hybrid Jeep Wrangler 4xe has a fuel economy of 20 miles per gallon when using the 2.0-liter 4-cylinder engine, and 49 miles per gallon equivalent when running on a full battery.
The recently revealed SUV will be available in Europe and Australia with a 2.8-liter diesel engine that produces 201 horsepower and 369 pound-feet of torque. Additionally, units sold in Western and Eastern Europe will have a 2.4-liter turbocharged gasoline engine that produces 278 horsepower and 316 pound-feet of torque. Meanwhile, the eastern European market and Japan will have access to a naturally aspirated 2.7-liter gasoline engine rated at 161 hp and 181 lb-ft. But we don't know how efficient these powertrains are yet, so we can't compare them to the US 2.4-liter hybrid combo.
We are not sure how the manufacturer's assessment will compare to the official EPA rating for North America. However, Toyota appears to have an advantageous option at hand, at least in terms of fuel usage.
