Toyota's numerous surprises

Toyota announced at the Australian International Motor Show, that a near stock-standard Aurion TRD will tackle Australia's premier tarmac rally in 2008.

News of the competitive future for the locally developed performance car follows the announcement the TRD Aurion will go back on sale next week, after being withdrawn three weeks ago while the company investigated an engine failure in one car.

The Toyota Racing Development-designed-and-built 3.5-litre supercharged V6 Aurion, which has been prepared for Targa by the Neal Bates Motorsport team; the same group behind Toyota's multiple-championship-winning TRD rally outfit.

Former Targa winner Bates was an integral part of the TRD Aurion's development; and believes the car has the potential to knock off some of its race-bred competitors on the 'testing Tasmania roads.'

“We have only made minor modifications to the standard car, like fitting a roll cage, racing seats and safety equipment,” Bates says.

While the TRD Aurion may have supplied the flash and dash of Toyota's motor show presentation, the most significant event was the world premiere of the next-generation 200 Series LandCruiser.

Toyota's senior executive director for sales and marketing, David Buttner, says the LandCruiser has been a pivotal part of the company's history in Australia.

“New LandCruiser has been tested and evaluated here for several years over more than 200,000km,” he says.

The all-new 200 Series LandCruiser features a twin-turbocharged V8 diesel engine; with more than 600Nm of torque, and will also be a delivery platform for some of the world's most advanced off-road technology.

High on the features lists are the Australian-designed Kinetic Dynamic Suspension System (KDSS), which provides greater stability on all surfaces and an extended suspension stroke in off-road driving.

The LandCruiser will also feature the world's first 'crawl control' system for negotiating surfaces such as rocks, sand or steep hills (petrol models only), a Torsen limited-slip centre differential and a multi-terrain anti-skid braking system.

Safety advances include a stronger body structure, standard vehicle stability control and up to 10 airbags; front, side and knee airbags for the driver and front passenger, side airbags for the outboard second-row seats and curtain shield airbags for all three rows.

For the first time in Australia, LandCruiser 200 has four-zone climate-control airconditioning at the top of the range. This system gives first- and second-row passengers access to individual climate controls on both sides of the vehicle with air being distributed through 28 vents.

Toyota also announced the arrival of the RAV4 V6 which is now on sale in dealerships.

The new model continues the growth of what was once Toyota's small off-roader for the funky-inclined. “Last year, we launched a new RAV4; and this month we add more than 200kW of V6 power to the range,” Buttner says.

The company also confirmed that the second TRD-badged Toyota will be the 4.0-litre supercharged HiLux.