The new Toyota LandCruiser 300 series has landed in Australia and what a splash
it has made. All new from the ground up, 3.3-litre twin-turbo V6 diesel engine
and a broader skill set to match. It's also much more expensive than before,
which begs the question, how does the GR Sport LandCruiser compare with the
enduring Nissan Patrol Ti-L. There's a $43,000 price difference at play here, let's find out.
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The LandCruiser and Patrol have shared loyal followings over the years
and are in extraordinary demand with Australians looking to explore their own backyard.
Each offers 3.5-tonne towing, the option of five or seven seats, and decent off-road pretensions.
Here, we've assembled the flagship seven-seat Nissan Patrol Ti-L
with the second from the top, Land Cruiser GR Sport, which is a five-seater.
We did request a more affordable 300 series for this comparison, but there were none available.
It's about hulking SUVs with sprawling interiors and legitimate off-road and towing ability. Both
are massive in the skin, but it's the Nissan Patrol Ti-L that probably imposes most. That's
because it's big in every key dimension, as well as being 300 kilograms heavier as well.
LED headlights and tail lights, 18-inch wheels,
side steps and keyless entry, are shared between both vehicles.
The new Toyota LandCruiser 300 series made a bold move from V8 diesel power to twin-turbo V6 diesel
power in this latest generation, but you'd have to argue it's been a winning move. This has more
power and torque than the predecessor 200 series and a smarter 10-speed automatic transmission to
match. Over in the Nissan's corner, comes probably the biggest point of difference in this comparison
under the bonnet, a naturally aspirated 5.6-litre V8 petrol engine that produces more power than the
LandCruiser, but pales against its towering torque figure. There's also the small issue of fuel use.
Whereas the LandCruiser claims an 8.9-litre per 100 K fuel consumption average,
the Patrol's is listed at 14.4 litres. The Patrol does get a larger 140-litre fuel tank, however,
compared to the LandCruiser's 110 litre capacity, meaning comparable range on paper, at least.
The LandCruiser offers full-time four-wheel drive with low range transfer case as well as lockable
front, rear, and centre differentials. The Patrol matches with a low range transfer case and
relockable diff. It also gets hill descent control and hill start assist plus various driving modes,
line ball with the LC300. As for suspension, the LandCruiser employs double wishbone front
and four-link rigid reconfigurations with adaptive dampers and a kinetic system,
which independently locks and freeze the stabiliser bars on each axle. The Patrol
gets double wishbone coil springs all round, paired with a hydraulic suspension system
that works with the adaptive dampers to tailor the ride depending on conditions.
Toyota LandCruiser, wow! What a quantum leap forward in terms of its interior comfort,
presentation, and just the overall technology at play. I feel like Toyota have done a great thing
with the touchscreen integration, all the new technology. It's not really an imposing vehicle
despite all the new additions. For instance, all the carbon control switch gear is banked
in one section here, all the off-road switch gear has been banked to another section to the
right of the gear stick. There's great incidental storage and some really clever touches as well.
The new LC300 justifies its price tag inside, such as the attention to detail and inherent comfort.
Ergonomics are generally great and everything is accessible and user-friendly.
There's also a great functionality with that tech as well. There's a 12.3-inch centre screen
fitted to all LandCruiser grades VX and above, as well as a 7-inch digital instrument cluster. The
screen itself is really easy to navigate. You've got these piano keys at the bottom that provide
really immediate on-the-go usage to navigate all of its different menus.
About my only gripe is the lack of a physical volume knob.
Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, heads-up display,
and wireless phone charging are all standard in GR Sport trim. Storage is sound throughout
with handy door pockets and clever compartments and hardy holes.
There's no way to sugar-coat this, the Nissan Patrol feels ancient in this comparison,
daggy displays, lots of fake wood grain trim, too much switch gear, and really finicky menus in the
touchscreen. It's just not that well-resolved and it feels 15, 20 years old. With that said,
the seats are comfortable, there's ample space, storage isn't too bad either.
While the fit and finish is strong in the Patrol and it covers
all the very basics for equipment, the attention to detail simply isn't there.
The infotainment system itself is probably the biggest highlight of the Patrol's age. It's very
finicky to operate, not that intuitive, it's a little bit slow, just not that user-friendly. And
when I went to plug my phone in before, it said, "Your iPod was connected." That is the age of this
system, the age of the software that you're really working with. There is no Apple CarPlay and no
Android Auto. Again, it will match Bluetooth, will do the very basics, but not much more.
In this company, the Patrol also misses out on a digital radio, head-up display,
and wireless phone charging along with many other features. The Patrol isn't quite as well-resolved
with its storage options either. Again, the basics are covered and space is plentiful,
but it's just missing those one-percenters that really make the LandCruiser so impressive.
It's another nod to the Toyota, on paper at least, when it comes to safety, 10 air bags versus six,
a more flexible autonomous emergency braking system, the addition of trailer sway control,
it even betters the Patrol with the inclusion of a digital speedo. The Patrol does call back
some valuable points for rear seat space with slightly better proportions on account of its
larger overall size. Both vehicles have rear air vents, rear USB ports, and interior lighting, but
the LandCruiser goes a step further with vents in the rear console and B-pillars as well as reading
lights, which conveniently blanket one small part of the cabin. The Patrol features rear screens
in this specification as well as seven seats, options available on other LandCruiser models.
It's a clear win for the Patrol for boot space, even with seven seats fitted on our test vehicle.
The boot area is longer and wider than the LandCruiser's and the wheel arches don't
impose as much compromise on space. Both vehicles feature rear tie down points while the LandCruiser
offers a household power outlet and the Patrol, a 12-volt socket connection. Both offer a tumble
function on the second row seat back for access to the third row. The Patrols is still oriented
to left-hand drive markets, while the Land Cruisers is better suited to Aussie curb sides.
The Toyota LandCruiser 300 series makes a huge step forward on its predecessor.
It's more controlled, it's more civilised, it's more refined as well. And I think Toyota have
made a great decision in not making this vehicle any bigger. That was the feedback from customers,
they didn't want a bigger LandCruiser, they just wanted a better version of the existing
200 series, and that is what Toyota has delivered. It feels really manageable,
and in this company, it feels just easier to gel with with its size, with its proportions
and with its low-speed mannerisms as well. It's definitely the easier vehicle to live with.
With it's full Cruiser Newton metres on tap from 1600 RPM,
the LandCruiser offers excellent transition from rest to around town speeds while its 10-speed auto
is clinical in facilitating overtaking manoeuvres or reaching highway passage.
The electro-hydraulic steering fitted to all LandCruiser grades VX and above offers great
accuracy, great directness, and it is immune to mid-corner kickback as well. Elsewhere, I just
feel like the LandCruiser is better tied down, the structural rigidity in this latest variant
is such that there's no shimmying, no flex over bumps. It just feels like a stronger car on the
road and you're way more connected to the bitumen underneath than you ever were before. And even
something as mundane as the brake pedal, it now has a really nice consistency in its modulation.
The predecessor's one was quite long and cushy. You get a really nice direct bite with the 300
series, just one of those little one-percenters that elevates this car into a new paradigm.
The LandCruiser reaffirms its positioning with a refined and settled ride and excellent
suppression of outside noise. It offers four outward cameras compared with the Patrol's two,
each offering greater clarity and functionality.
Otherwise though, the LandCruiser does everything really well. The
diesel engine is a page. I said it before, but I'll say it again,
you do not miss the extra capacity or two cylinders of the predecessor V8 diesel
because this one works wonders with its two turbo chargers, one for low RPM, one for middling RPM,
and the 10-speed automatic gearbox is equally well geared towards performance or efficiency.
The Nissan Patrol physically feels like a larger vehicle on the road,
both in terms of its sheer size and just the way that it deals with things, its regular mannerisms,
the steering is a little bit slower, requires a little bit more input than the Toyota LandCruiser,
and it tends to be afflicted more by larger obstacles in the road.
If I'm honest, it kind of feels outdated as well. You've got a foot-operated parking brake,
cameras that don't quite offer the same level of clarity, and obviously those cabin elements
that I spoke about before, you could easily be driving a vehicle from 10 or 15 years ago.
Although it boasts an additional 71 kilowatts of power over the LandCruiser, the truth is,
you have to explore the middle to upper reaches of the Patrol's rev range to really benefit from it.
The Nissan seven-speed automatic also feels the slower, less intuitive option in this company.
At 100 kilometres an hour, the Nissan's V8 hovers at 1700 RPM, 400 revs higher than the LandCruiser.
Tip the Patrol into a corner, and you do notice that additional 300 kilograms in heft, both in
terms of lateral movement and also pitching and heaving under brakes and acceleration.
It's certainly controlled and there are no unwieldy body movements or anything else,
but it just doesn't offer that same tied down sensation or composure as the LandCruiser 300
series. Same deal with the steering, it's fairly accurate, but it doesn't quite offer the same
weighting and feedback as the LandCruiser. It's also more prone to mid-corner kickback.
Definitely not a bad dynamic impression with the Patrol, this is a large car after all,
but it just doesn't quite feel as polished as the Toyota.
A 200-millimetre longer wheel base in the Patrol means it happily lopes over broken bitumen
and is rarely fast by larger washouts. We've found it to be marginally more
sensitive to bumps than the LandCruiser, owed partially to less structural rigidity,
but the truth is, both are comfortable all-day tourers.
Overall the Nissan Patrol is quite a strong proposition in isolation.
It's fairly inoffensive. We know that it's a big bus,
so yes, it drives accordingly on the road, but it doesn't really do anything that wrong.
Unfortunately, the big sore point with the Patrol is probably its petrol engine. I love a V8 as much
as the next person, but for me, this engine clearly lacks the immediacy, the efficiency,
and the breadth of performance of that new 3.3-litre twin-turbo V6. And unfortunately,
the older style gearbox in the Patrol kind of exacerbates the problem because it's slow with its
shifts, not as intuitive, won't kick down gears as fast as the LandCruiser, and for that reason,
it really does highlight the torque holes with this engine. It needs to rev to make its power.
That brings us to arguably one of the most important aspects of this entire test,
towing. We've got a 2.8-tonne caravan ready to throw behind both the LandCruiser and the Patrol.
These two both boasts 3.5-tonne braked towing capacities,
but there is no hiding in this part of the test.
The Toyota's new diesel engine shone brightest with a trailer in tow, offering more immediacy
and accessible grunt than the Patrol's petrol V8, which comparatively didn't muster a lot of
enthusiasm before 4000 RPM and was blunted by a seven-speed gearbox that hunted for geese on
climbs and felt less decisive. The Patrol dropped visibly more in the rear with a caravan attached,
taking weight off the front axle and affecting steering feel. By comparison,
the LandCruiser feels more connected to the road and offers more stability.
As for all-important fuel efficiency, across our 400-kilometre comparison, the LandCruiser averaged
12.5 litres per 100 kg unladen while the Patrol averaged 15.5 litres, much closer than expected.
The Toyota also wins valuable points where servicing is concerned. Almost $1000 cheaper
over three years. Disappointingly both vehicles are subject to short six-month 10,000-kilometre
intervals. A five-year unlimited kilometre warranty applies to both. There's also the small
issue of supply. Order a LandCruiser today, and you're likely to be waiting at least six months.
Forty-odd thousand dollars is a heck of a lot of money in anyone's language and
while there is an army of dedicated Nissan Patrol aficionados out there, it is the
Toyota LandCruiser 300 series that takes the cake in this comparison.
Smarter, safer, and swifter in all scenarios as well as being our preferred towing option,
the LandCruiser out classes the Patrol and asserts itself at the top of the off-road pile.