2022 Lexus LX 600: Return of the Toyota Land Cruiser

Matt Posky
by Matt Posky

When Toyota announced that the Land Cruiser wouldn’t be coming back to the United States, off-road people shrugged and got back into their clapped-out 4Runners. Despite being incredibly capable wherever pavement is in short supply and having a pedigree that rivals Jeep’s Wrangler, the Land Cruiser is a prohibitively expensive vehicle. Toyota’s penchant for overbuilding vehicles merged with the model’s luxurious bent, resulting in a product that retailed at $87,030 before adding a single option, and sales volumes reflected this.

It was just too rich for most Americans and sales suffered as a result. But Lexus has confirmed the Cruiser-based LX will be returning and recently teased the new model’s next-generation online. While the manufacturer hasn’t confirmed that the 2022 Lexus LX 600 will be a rebadged version of Toyota’s off-road emperor, literally every generation of the LX series has been.

The LX 450 was basically J80, the LX 470 was the J100, and the LX 570 was the J200. So there’s no reason to assume that the fourth-gen Lexus will be anything other than a dressed-up Land Cruiser J300 series we saw in June.

For our market, that presumably means the LX 600 will be arriving with a new twin-turbo, 3.5-liter V6 that’s supposedly better than the 5.7-liter V8 that went into the previous model. Lexus customers can expect spec sheets listing 409 horsepower and 479 lb-ft of torque. A hybrid variant has also been rumored, with the LX borrowing powertrains from the Toyota Tundra. However, nothing has been confirmed.

Four-wheel drive is absolutely going to be standard, as will three rows of seating, multiple terrain modes, and a 10-speed automatic transmission. But Lexus isn’t giving us much to go on and remaining absolutely silent since the LX 600 is supposed to make its official debut on October 13th.

Adventure awaits. Experience the all-new on October 13 at 12:30 p.m. EST. https://t.co/jdJ8o9A4Ae pic.twitter.com/vuPozItX4U

— Lexus (@Lexus) October 8, 2021

[Image: Lexus]

Matt Posky
Matt Posky

A staunch consumer advocate tracking industry trends and regulation. Before joining TTAC, Matt spent a decade working for marketing and research firms based in NYC. Clients included several of the world’s largest automakers, global tire brands, and aftermarket part suppliers. Dissatisfied with the corporate world and resentful of having to wear suits everyday, he pivoted to writing about cars. Since then, that man has become an ardent supporter of the right-to-repair movement, been interviewed on the auto industry by national radio broadcasts, driven more rental cars than anyone ever should, participated in amateur rallying events, and received the requisite minimum training as sanctioned by the SCCA. Handy with a wrench, Matt grew up surrounded by Detroit auto workers and managed to get a pizza delivery job before he was legally eligible. He later found himself driving box trucks through Manhattan, guaranteeing future sympathy for actual truckers. He continues to conduct research pertaining to the automotive sector as an independent contractor and has since moved back to his native Michigan, closer to where the cars are born. A contrarian, Matt claims to prefer understeer — stating that front and all-wheel drive vehicles cater best to his driving style.

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  • Crosley Crosley on Oct 08, 2021

    The twin turbo engine will be way more complicated, cost thousands more to manufacture, require Premium, create more heat underhood and not have as good a powerband as the V8 down low, and not last nearly as long. But get 1 mpg better to meet CAFE regulations. Progress!

    • See 2 previous
    • Mr. Fletcher Mr. Fletcher on Oct 10, 2021

      @jmo2 Most of what Crowley stated is true. If a gasoline turbocharged engine is what being spoken of here. The only one completely not the case is NA having a a larger powerband. Diesels are different but NA diesels are really a thing today so it's difficult to make those comparisons to modern versions.

  • Inside Looking Out Inside Looking Out on Oct 08, 2021

    As I understood from comments it is made for 3rd world countries (or 2nd world countries like Russia which lacks roads in most of the country) and not for US customers since there are a plenty of paved roads in USA. May be Canadians similar to Russians will find these kind of trucks useful?

    • See 9 previous
    • GoNavy99 GoNavy99 on Oct 13, 2021

      I live in first world America, and my roads are so great I took the 21" rims off my LX 570 and replaced them with 18" TRD rims and BFG KO2s. Not because I want to go offroad, but because leaving my driveway is essentially going offroad. Between the dirt roads here, the regular roads with 7 inch deep potholes, and the winter, I'm practically driving offroad every day. At least I don't have to worry about bent rims or blown tires any longer.

  • FreedMike This is before Cadillac styling went full scale nutty...and not particularly attractive, in my opinion.
  • JTiberius1701 Middle of April here in NE Ohio. And that can still be shaky. Also on my Fiesta ST, I use Michelin Pilot Sport A/S tires for the winter and Bridgestone Potenza for my summer tires. No issues at all.
  • TCowner We've had a 64.5 Mustang in the family for the past 40 years. It is all original, Rangoon Red coupe with 289 (one of the first instead of the 260), Rally Pac, 4-speed, factory air, every option. Always gets smiles and thumbs ups.
  • ToolGuy This might be a good option for my spouse when it becomes available -- thought about reserving one but the $500 deposit is a little too serious. Oh sorry, that was the Volvo EX30, not the Mustang. Is Volvo part of Ford? Is the Mustang an EV? I'm so confused.
  • Mikey My late wife loved Mustangs ..We alway rented one while travelling . GM blood vetoed me purchasing one . 3 years after retirement bought an 08 rag top, followed by a 15 EB Hard top, In 18 i bought a low low mileage 05 GT rag with a stick.. The car had not been properly stored. That led to rodent issues !! Electrical nightmare. Lots of bucks !! The stick wasn't kind to my aging knees.. The 05 went to a long term dedicated Mustang guy. He loves it .. Today my garage tenant is a sweet 19 Camaro RS rag 6yl Auto. I just might take it out of hibernation this weekend. The Mustang will always hold a place in my heart.. Kudos to Ford for keeping it alive . I refuse to refer to the fake one by that storied name .
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