Toyota Land Cruiser powers into 2026 with first electrified powertrain
Toyota’s at it again. Just when you think the Land Cruiser couldn’t get any tougher, it rocks up for 2026 with a bit of electrical wizardry under its belt. Say hello to the new Land Cruiser 2.8D 48V, the first electrified Cruiser and, more importantly, the smoothest and most civilised one yet… without losing its talent for climbing mountains, wading through rivers, or embarrassing your mate’s shiny “lifestyle SUV” at the first sniff of mud.
Under the bonnet sits the familiar and well-respected, if not noisy, 2.8-litre turbodiesel, now paired with a 48V motor-generator, lithium-ion battery and a beefy DC-DC converter. Toyota’s placed everything high, tight and well out of water’s way, so the Cruiser still wades through 700mm of the wet stuff without breaking a sweat, or a fuse. Not as deep as the Grenadier (800mm), or Defender (900mm), but still decent.
All this electrification isn’t here to turn the Land Cruiser into some delicate eco-puff. What it does do is make everyday driving smoother, quieter and more responsive. Stop-start is faster and way less juddery, acceleration is more linear, and the whole thing just feels more refined, whether you’re trundling through town or negotiating an off-road obstacle that resembles a collapsed cow shed.
Toyota’s even engineered the system to shrug off grit, heat, dust and the kind of rough-road abuse Land Cruisers live for. The motor-generator doubles as a clever bit of regenerative kit, harvesting energy when you lift off, charging the battery, and helping you move off with a nice, torquey shove. And, yes, there’s even a little graphic on the dash telling you whether you’re charging (CHG), being sensible (ECO), or hoofing it (PWR).
The 48V system also transforms stop-start performance. Instead of that awkward “Did someone just nudge me?” restart shock you get in some cars, the Cruiser fires back into life cleanly and almost instantly. Fancy it a bit slower or faster? You can tweak the stop-start behaviour in the settings—NORMAL or LONG—depending on how much you value silence versus air-con.
A two-arm belt tensioner keeps everything working properly even when you're bouncing around green lanes. Toyota’s even made the belt out of fancy high-strength cotton and cord to keep noise down and grip up, even when it’s soaked. That’s more than can be said for most of us.
Power from the battery tops out at 12kW and 65Nm, just enough to perk up low-speed manoeuvres but not enough to tempt Toyota into calling it a “hybrid” (and thank goodness for that, no one needs that argument down the pub).
The new Land Cruiser is now a five-seater only, offered exclusively in Invincible trim in the UK, which feels about right, because if you’re not invincible in a Land Cruiser, when are you? Standard kit reads like an off-roader’s wish list crossed with a luxury hotel inventory: 20” alloys, roof rails, panoramic roof, leather upholstery, 12.3” touchscreen, head-up display and a JBL sound system with enough speakers to annoy every campsite within a half-mile radius.
Off-road credentials? Don’t worry, they’re intact. Multi-Terrain Select, Multi-Terrain Monitor, rear diff lock, Toyota’s new Stabiliser Disconnect Mechanism, and the usual collection of Safety Sense gizmos give it everything from rock-crawling ability to motorway composure. It’s still the dependable, rugged, go-anywhere beast it’s always been, just a bit calmer, a touch posher, and a lot more pleasant to live with.
As for price, the updated Cruiser starts at £80,740, with customer deliveries beginning in March. Not cheap, but since when has legendary reliability come at bargain-bin prices?
In short: it’s still a Land Cruiser, still built for the apocalypse, just now with a bit more finesse and a smidge of electrical cleverness. And honestly? We’re here for it.
