2019 Toyota Fortuner vs 2021

What's the difference?

The Toyota Fortuner GX offers a low entry price, and if that matters a lot to you then it will probably appeal - especially if you need a hardcore off-roader with strong reliability prospects. 

However, serious competition in this part of the market means there are better options out there if you can afford to spend just a little more. In some cases, you mightn’t even need to stretch the budget to get a considerably better off-road seven-seater.

Adventure Off-Road Ranking: Medium

The new Toyota Fortuner is a family-friendly wagon that is still a very capable 4WD, but it’s also much nicer to drive on-road than the previous-generation version.

It’s practical and easy to live with as a daily driver, and in GX spec it makes a lot of sense as a basic, functional off-road tourer.

Toyota has once again seemingly done the bare minimum to keep buyers happy but these few small changes have made a huge difference.

You mightn’t be able to tell that the Fortuner is based on the HiLux ute (as the MU-X is based on the D-Max, Everest is based on the Ranger, and so on…), and that could be good or bad, depending on your take on things.

Where the HiLux looks a bit more muscled and edgy, the Fortuner is aimed to appeal more to those who appreciate curves and sweeping lines. To my eye, it doesn’t quite work.

The model you see in the images is the GX, which misses out on the privacy glass (tinted windows) offered on the models above, and likewise lacks roof rails (which make fitting roof racks a cinch), and it has colour-coded door handles, rather than chrome - there’s no chrome on the grille or rear door garnish, either. There are no fog lights, no daytime running lights, and the headlights are halogen units. Yeah, so it looks a bit… like a base model. 

You still get side steps - which were put to good use by my niece and nephew, and my mum (she’s only 149cm) - and there’s a rear spoiler. Hey, if you want a full body kit, Thailand has some eBay sellers you should check out. 

Sadly, Toyota decided that all Fortuner models should come with alloy wheels, so the 17s fitted to this model (and the GXL above it) have a little bit of bling about them, but not as much ‘go anywhere’ cred as earlier base models, which were fitted with black steel wheels.

The previous Fortuner was looking stale and its interior didn’t set any hearts a-racing either.

The Fortuner’s very-welcome styling refresh has mostly involved ‘sexing up’ the front end with a revised black grille, sleeker LED light arrangements, and a tough-looking and pronounced skid-plate – but please note that while that skid-plate looks rugged, it doesn’t feel like it could cope with much of a knock.

Overall, I reckon the Fortuner looks better than it did before.

As mentioned, that exterior colour is feverish red, if you’re interested, and it costs $600.

With seven seats as standard, the Fortuner offers a more affordable alternative to the Prado above it, and a more hardcore option if you’d prefer to get dirtier than is possible in a Kluger.

It isn’t as roomy as either of those models, though, because the cabin space is compromised by the ladder-frame chassis and a poorly designed seven-seat layout. The rearmost seats never allow you to make full use of the entire width of the boot because they fold up into the D-pillars - and in the process, you can bank on any over-shoulder vision being cancelled out completely. 

Make sure you clip those seats in and tighten the straps, as we had them fall down on occasion, such is the sharpness of the the suspension. Just imagine if you had something fragile (or, worse, a pet or a child's limb) under the seat when that happened...?

You won’t get the best boot space in the Fortuner. There’s 200 litres of cargo room with the third row seats in place, and that apparently jumps to 716L with the third row clipped up. The space expands to 1080L if you fold the second row seats forward.

The 60:40 second-row seats have a flip and tumble trigger for both sides (the larger portion is on the kerb side) and they slide fore and aft to allow better space for those in the back row. You’ll need to make sure those in the front row don’t have their seats set too far back, otherwise the second-row tumble function won’t work as the headrests will hit the seat backs in front. 

During my time in the Fortuner I put all seven seats to use, so these criticisms come with a solid foundation. My eight-year old nephew and 12-year old niece fit in the back row just fine, and my mum, dad and sister could fit across the second row, but I wouldn’t use the word ‘comfortably’ to describe the experience. In fact, it was quite the opposite, as all five rear occupants complained about space, storage or comfort levels at some point. The ceiling-mounted centre belt was annoying, too - many other seven-seaters have the middle lap-sash belt built into the seat.

I even had a stint as second-row passenger on this test, and being 182cm tall, found it pretty unpleasant. I’m a good 15cm taller than the rest of my family, though, and they had no such issues with headroom.

Some good things to note, though - there is air conditioning for all three rows, with roof-mounted vents and a separate fan controller for the five back seats, and being a Toyota, the A/C is superb at cooling down a hot car very fast. 

There are cup holders in a fold-down armrest in the second row, and some storage nooks in the third row but no cup receptacles. Also, the bottle holders are hard to access in the second row doors if you have three abreast. 

Up front, the storage is okay but not great, with a pair of cup holders, reasonable bottle holders in the doors, and a very handy twin glovebox - the top portion of which has cooling, and it works (it stopped some roadtrip chocolates from melting).

All the controls are logically laid out, but the 7.0-inch touchscreen media display is pretty average. Some of the buttons are small and hard to locate, there is no volume knob, you can’t connect to Bluetooth unless you’re at a standstill, and there’s no nav in this spec. Add to that the fact the Bluetooth was glitchy on test (dropping out/failing to reconnect at times) and there’s no Apple CarPlay or Android Auto, and you can see that the Fortuner is hardly a class-leader for cabin comfort and convenience.

The GX is the entry-level Fortuner so it has a basic cabin, but that’s okay with me. 

The biggest news, in terms of changes to the interior, focus on the new 8.0-inch multimedia screen, an 1.0-inch bigger than the unit in the previous Fortuner.

From the rear to the front of the cabin, it’s a rather practical space, with cloth seats, carpet floors (topped with rubber mats, if that’s your fancy) and durable plastic surfaces.

The interior is about function not fashion.

The Fortuner’s seven seats are in a 2-3-2 configuration. The 60/40 split-fold second-row seat has a one-touch, tumble feature while the 50/50 third-row seats are stowable, sort of.

Boot space is claimed to be 200 litres with the third-row seats in use, and in that area there are cargo hooks and a 12V socket.

Stow away the third-row and cargo space increases to 716 litres but the seats reduce your real load space and they also obscure a lot of driver vision to the rear.

With the second-row down and mostly out of the way, there’s a claimed 1080 litres of cargo space.

It’s pretty ordinary back here – the seats are flat and unsupportive – and, even for a vertically-challenged bloke such as myself, the space back there is on the wrong side of squeezy. 

All three rows get aircon – there are ceiling-mounted vents – and there are a few handy storage spaces in the third row, but no cup-holders. 

It’s reasonably comfortable in the second row; I sat behind my driving position and I had plenty of head and knee room.

The second row has cup holders in this fold-down armrest, ceiling-mounted controls for the aircon, and two ISOFIX and three top-tether anchor points.

Up front, there’s now an 8.0-inch upgraded multimedia system, with USB-connected Apple Carplay and Android Auto, and a 4.2-inch colour driver’s display.

There are the usual storage spaces – including glovebox, centre console, tray for your smartphone, pop-out cup-holders on the outboard edges of the dash – and as well as a USB port and a 12V socket for charging purposes.

The Fortuner 4x4 diesel GX, which we tested on this occasion, is the base spec of the three-variant Fortuner line-up.

Our test vehicle has a few extras – including a sat nav pack ($1000), premium paint (feverish red, $600) and a towing package (towbar, wiring, tow ball $1143.51), so the price as tested ($51,823.50) is a little more than the Manufacturer Suggested Retail Price (MSRP) of $49,080, previously $45,965. The GX price has increased by $3115.

All Fortuners have an upgraded 2.8-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel engine, a six-speed automatic transmission, part-time four-wheel drive and a rear diff lock. 

Standard features on the GX include cloth seats, 17-inch alloy wheels on all-terrain tyres, as well as a new 8.0-inch multimedia screen (that’s an 1.0-inch bigger than the previous unit), air-conditioning, a six-speaker stereo system, plus front and rear parking sensors.

New driver-assist tech includes upgraded autonomous emergency braking (with vehicle and pedestrian detection day or night plus daytime cyclist detection), lane departure alert with steering assist, and high-speed adaptive cruise control.

The Fortuner line-up also now has Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

Maximum braked capacity is up 300kg, from 2800kg to 3100kg.

Under the bonnet of the Fortuner is a familiar 2.8-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel engine - the same one used in the HiLux and Prado. 

It produces 130kW of power (at 3400rpm) and 450Nm of torque (from 1600-2400rpm), and it has a six-speed automatic as standard. Those outputs are decent for the class, but it’s not the best engine out there…

Towing capacity for the Fortuner is rated at 750 kilograms for a trailer without brakes, and up to 2800kg for a braked trailer. All of its diesel rivals offer better towing capacity.

The Fortuner’s new version of its 2.8-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel engine now produces 150kW at 3400rpm and 500Nm at 1600-2800rpm – that’s a 20 kilowatt and 50 Newton-metre increase over the previous Fortuner.

It's matched to a six-speed automatic transmission, and the combination works better than it did previously, no longer a sluggish-feeling combo, it now has a fair bit of zip about it.

The 4WD set-up is very effective, with good low-range gearing, a quietly efficient off-road traction control system and a rear diff lock.

The diesel fuel use claim for the Fortuner is 8.6 litres per 100 kilometres, and you can bank on using more than that in pretty much all situations.

Over more than 1300km of driving over the Christmas/New Year period I saw no better than 10.0L/100km, with a mix of country, highway, city and back road driving, and between one and seven people on board.
 
A new addition for 2019 models is a diesel particulate filter (DPF) burn-off switch that is designed to allow owners to perform their own burn-off sequence, rather than relying on the automated system (which has developed a reputation for problems, and could soon be subject to a class-action law suit).

Fuel consumption is a claimed 7.6L/100km on a combined cycle – that’s 1.0L/100km less than the previous-generation Fortuner.

Our actual fuel consumption on this test was 9.3L/100km.

The Fortuner has a 80-litre fuel tank. 

I know there are more convincing ute-based SUVs out there for similar money, so I have to admit my time behind the wheel of the Fortuner was sullied somewhat.

The engine felt underdone at times, revving harder than its outputs suggested it should, even with the Power mode engaged. The six-speed auto had some odd actions at times, upshifting too soon and even feeling a bit clunky on occasion. 

But the transmission’s grade braking system (exhaust brake, essentially) worked well descending steep hills, allowing you to go easy on the actual brakes if you’re loaded up or doing a lengthy downhill run - it’s particularly handy when towing, though we didn’t get a chance to do that this time around. 

The steering is true enough, and at higher speeds it is nicely responsive, even if there is a lot of wallow and body roll, but at urban pace it requires a bit of wrestling as it’s quite heavy.

The suspension is, I have to say, fierce. It is sharp, largely uncomfortable in town or on the open road, and it never settles as much as you might want it to. The front suspension is a copy and paste job from the HiLux, while the rear suspension is a five-link setup that should deliver a more pliant drive experience than it does. 

According to my family, it’s unpleasant to be a passenger in. As mentioned above, every single occupant that I had in the car over the test period had a gripe with it, ranging from “it feels a bit gutless” (from an owner of a 2011 HiLux diesel manual) to “I don’t want to get back in there” from the middle-seat passenger second-row passenger. “Why is it so bumpy?” was a common refrain, too. 

I’ve driven the Fortuner in some serious terrain in the past, and I know it does quite an impressive job in that environment. This time around the extent of my off-road review was a few sections of unsealed gravel road, where there was barely any noticeable difference in terms of dynamic behaviour. It was still firm and not very comfortable, but the way the suspension behaved over washed out sections of road and big, open potholes was adequate. 

If you're interested in the off-road specs of the Fortuner, here they are: approach angle - 30 degrees; departure angle - 25deg; break-over angle - 23.5deg; ground clearance - 225mm (not 279mm as Toyota originally stated); wading depth - 700mm; tare weight - 2095kg. 

I’ll give it this, though - the Fortuner is relatively quiet. There’s not much road noise, and the diesel engine is louder outside than in. Some competitors can’t claim that.

Much better than it was before.

For those of you into measurements, the GX is 4795mm long with a 2745mm wheelbase. It is 1855mm wide, 1790mm high and it weighs 2130kg. It has a 11.6m turning circle.

On-road, the Fortuner is now pretty good for a ute-based wagon – well, it’s better than it was before, anyway.

It’s all sitting on a HiLux ladder-frame chassis, so the Fortuner does have a very firm ride, bordering on harsh at times. Having said that, you do get used to it quite quickly and the Fortuner's coil-spring suspension set-up does manage to mostly take the full sting out of surface irregularities, except for more severe dips and bumps.

I dropped the too-high air pressures (40 psi, pounds per square inch) on the Dunlop Grandtrek ATs (265/65R17) to a more agreeable road-running 32 psi and that further softened the ride.

Driver position in the Fortuner is commandingly high and there’s ample visibility – although the A-pillars are still bulky and the third-row blocks vision to the rear when it’s folded up to the sides.

It’s generally quiet although there remains noticeable wind noise around the wing mirrors as there was in previous Fortuners and engine noise builds to a piercing pitch when you go heavy on the right boot.

Steering – a new variable-flow power-type set-up – is a whole lot better than the old arrangement. It’s now sharp, light, and precise and changes to suit the speed – a big improvement. The steering wheel is reach- and rake-adjustable.

Acceleration, from a standing-start or for overtaking, is still a bit laggy although that extra power and torque do come in handy during those moments and general driving though, making the Fortuner much more drivable all-round.

The unchanged six-speed auto is still generally right for the job, but it downshifts quite harshly every now and again, especially when going up or down long, gradually sloping highway stretches.

All versions of the Fortuner have a maximum five-star ANCAP safety rating, based on the latest 2019 standards.

Safety gear includes seven airbags, autonomous emergency braking (with vehicle and pedestrian detection day or night plus daytime cyclist detection), two second-row ISOFIX child-restraint anchorage points and three top tether anchor points, reversing camera and rear parking sensors, high-speed active cruise control, lane-departure alert with steering assist, and road sign recognition.

A recent bump to the brand’s warranty plan - now a five-year/unlimited kilometre set-up - is a welcome and overdue move from Toyota. It is now on a level playing field in that regard, while the brand also offers the opportunity for up to seven years of cover if you service your car at a Toyota dealership.

Servicing intervals, though, are short - six months/10,000km, whichever occurs first - and that means you’ll be visiting the dealer more often than if you’d bought any of the competitor ute-based SUVs. 

The cost of maintenance, at least, is reasonable. Expect to pay $480 per year.

The Fortuner range has a five-year/unlimited kilometre warranty. Service intervals are scheduled for every six months/10,000km and cost of service is $250. The capped price servicing is up to three years/60,000km, so the first six services.