Toyota launches the Tundra in Australia @ AUD$155,990 in a factory backed, right hand drive converted model

Despite the complaints and whinging you often see on reddit, Australians love their utes and off-roaders - something that's made immediately obvious when you look at the sales statistics.

Even with the massive price tag, this thing is going to sell. People are already spending over $100,000 for a 70 Series LandCruiser - it's not difficult to see some shelling out for the Tundra.

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hi_im_bored13@reddit

70 series I totally get, and I'm sure the tundra will sell just as well - I hear folks have been importing them for a good while now anyways

But I quite dislike the current gen LC300 - for a multitude of reasons but particularly because they took out the split tailgate. How can you have an LC without a split tailgate ??

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yeahnahyeahnahyeahye@reddit

The 70series is a heap of shit. I've never understood the popularity of them for anything other than a car to be destroyed on a farm.

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AnonymousEngineer_@reddit

They're popular because they're rugged and utilitarian. It's the same reason so many people liked the old Defender.

Only time will tell whether the Ineos Grenadier also ends up developing the same cult following, and whether it ends up eating the lunch of the 70 Series now the beloved V8 is gone.

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dissss0@reddit

Did anyone actually like the V8? It doesn't have nearly the same reliability rep as the old sixes, and is slow and ponderous compared to the newer fours.

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Thomas_633_Mk2@reddit

Yes

Muh V8 (he says, saving up for a V8 of another kind. I'm a hypocrite)

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hi_im_bored13@reddit

They're popular because they've been the same heaps of shit for the last 40 years, and you know if you buy one it'll be a heap of shit for 40 more

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yeahnahyeahnahyeahye@reddit

Yeah fair enough.

I always hated them when I was working for Toyota Aus

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Evilmoustachetwirler@reddit

Most uncomfortable piece of shit I've ever had the displeasure of driving a long distance in. I don't care how reliable it is, I would rather break down in comfort than do that again.

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It's probably just as well these things are stupid money, sure they have their place, but if they were cheaper they'd start eating into Ranger/Hilux sales and they really are too big to be driven around town safely. I've already witnessed two accidents involving a Ram which would have been easily avoided if the driver could see past their bonnet.

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shrekwithhisearsdown@reddit

i thought we only got lexus lc500 here not lc300

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hi_im_bored13@reddit

talking about australia. LC500 is a lexus coupe. LC300 is the 300-series land cruiser.

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Whisktangofox@reddit

prado

The Prado is the Lexus GX460 in the USA.

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hi_im_bored13@reddit

No, now the prado is just the Land Cruiser in the US. We get the GX550 as well, but for the first time we get the standard prado.

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Whisktangofox@reddit

https://www.motorbiscuit.com/the-2021-lexus-gx-is-an-expensive-toyota-land-cruiser-prado-that-we-can-actually-get-in-the-states/

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ducky21@reddit

These articles you have linked are discussing the prior generation 2020 and 2021 models.

/u/hi_im_bored13 is correct.

/u/Whisktangofox you are not.

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Whisktangofox@reddit

What the fuck are you talking about? The GX460 is an upscale Prado, end of story.

The new GX isn't a GX460.

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ducky21@reddit

You're talking about 5 years ago, and the rest of us don't care about 5 years ago.

We care about now. Unless you see something I don't and the old GX460 you're talking about is somewhere on Lexus' site beyond "Historical Old Shit", again, you're just not correct and /u/hi_im_bored13 is.

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Whisktangofox@reddit

Thats a long winded way to say you are wrong.

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ducky21@reddit

The Prado is the Lexus GX460 in the USA.

Let's check back in on this, this nice, innocuous comment that started this dumbass shitfight.

This is just not true. There is no 2025 GX460. You used the word "is," indicating present tense, meaning that that in 2024, nearly 2025, I should find some GX460 for sale. But I can't, because there aren't, and you can't either so you pulled up 5 year old articles to reinforce your point, because it's more important to you to be "right" than it is to accurately tell the truth.

This is why we're all ganging up on you. This is why you're being downvoted.

Does all that make sense? Do you see this cause and effect? I don't give a shit about being "wrong" or "right", I care about what the truth is. If you can show me where there are 2025 GX460 for sale in the USA, I'm happy to be proven wrong. But I want to be proven wrong.

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Whisktangofox@reddit

I have a GX460. And you might be surprised to discover that tens of thousands of them still exist in America.

Shocking how far you want to not admit you are wrong.

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ducky21@reddit

oh my god this is like talking to my dad about politics. This is exhausting! Why are you being like this!

I have not once, NOT ONCE, claimed the GX460 didn't exist. Quite the opposite! They sold quite well!

PAST TENSE.

There are no new GX460 for sale, aside from leftovers. The new GX is a different thing entirely. That is the entire point of this comment chain. That was the point of the comment you replied to: the new GX is different than the 460. We all fucking know the GX460 existed. That is not a point of contention.

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1PistnRng2RuleThmAll@reddit

Wasting your effort man. Some people will never admit to being wrong.

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Whisktangofox@reddit

The Prado is the Lexus GX460 in the USA.

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ducky21@reddit

The Prado is the Toyota Land Cruiser in the USA.

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hi_im_bored13@reddit

You’d be correct if you said was instead of is.

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Whisktangofox@reddit

They still exist.

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shrekwithhisearsdown@reddit

i thought there was a v6 lc coupe called the lc300 lol. i don't know shit about suvs because they suck arse

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hiyeji2298@reddit

The Tundra is basically an afterthought in the US sales-wise so they’re probably looking for a way to push more out of the factory.

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ainsley-@reddit

100k AUD, nowhere near 100k USD.

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navman_poketrade@reddit (OP)

Shipped from the US to Australia and converted from left- to right-hand drive by Walkinshaw Automotive Group in Melbourne, the Tundra will take on the likes of the Ram 1500, Chevrolet Silverado 1500, and Ford F-150 in the full-sized pickup segment.

New and modified components for right-hand drive Tundra include the steering rack, brake pedal, instrument panel, firewall, headlights, cabling and harnesses.

In addition to the modification of left-hand drive components and introduction of all-new components, parts have also been sourced from other four-wheel drive Toyota vehicles such as the LandCruiser 300 Series and Lexus LX.

This is the first time that Toyota has built a car outside Japan, exported it to a third country, converted it to right-hand drive with a local partner, and then sold it under the Toyota name.

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idontremembermyoldus@reddit

Shipped from the US to Australia and converted from left- to right-hand drive by Walkinshaw Automotive Group in Melbourne, the Tundra will take on the likes of the Ram 1500, Chevrolet Silverado 1500,

One of the interesting things is that all three of these are converted by the same company.

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Thomas_633_Mk2@reddit

Yeah, they're former Holden Special Vehicles, which means they both needed new work and have experience with OEM level vehicle modifications

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Carl-99999@reddit

$100,000 USD. Yikes

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dinkygoat@reddit

Price sounds about right. For context to the Americans, a Chevy Silverado LTZ is ~$130k AUD.

This is why a Ranger (~$60k) is by far the closest thing in how ubiquitous it is on the roads to what a F150 is in the States.

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k20vtec@reddit

40K max

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campbellsimpson@reddit

I am a huge fan of Australia's remanufacturing groups like Walkinshaw bringing these models to Australia and converting them to RHD. It is the best and coolest thing we've done since we had proper local manufacturing.

However - $156K AUD is a stupid amount of money, although it's roughly the same asking price as a Ram 1500 or a Silverado. You could get a top spec Land Cruiser 300, a LR Defender 130, or a PHEV BMW X5 for the same money. You could get two base spec Land Cruiser Prado 250s.

The reality though is that there's enough demand that plenty of people will buy them. Small businesses can write off the cost of a commercial vehicle, and that means every busy tradie wants one.

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Ok-Cardiologist302@reddit

Small businesses can write off the cost of a commercial vehicle, and that means every busy tradie wants one.

God this is hilarious we're in 2024 and people still spout this nonsense.

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Drzhivago138@reddit

The Australian version might be different than IRS Section 179. But I doubt in either case you can just "write off" the entire cost of the vehicle.

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V8-Turbo-Hybrid@reddit

Tundra is also considered truck version Land Cruiser 300, as Toyota never bring Sequoia in OZ/Kiwi. It’s clearly not worth for that AUD, as Tundra could easier have RHD than Detroit trucks.

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navman_poketrade@reddit (OP)

I fully agree with your sentiment about remanufacturing in Australia, although it's just a drop of what the automotive industry used to be in AU.

Not sure why you're comparing this to an LC, LR, or BMW though. This is a full size ute, almost 6 metres long and tows probably a full tonne more. It's pricing is just about right compared to the other big 3 Detroit utes + additional Toyota tax.

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campbellsimpson@reddit

Not sure why you're comparing this to an LC, LR, or BMW though.

Just mentally cross-shopping. Where I live, the Rams and Silverados I see are either pulling a work trailer, or a horse float. The LC and LR in particular would definitely be Tundra competitors for the horse mums down here.

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badMotorist@reddit

Maybe they'll actually be used for truck things down under and not just mall crawlers that take up two spots in a row.

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The_Owl_Man_1999@reddit

The silverados and rams already do both things at once, double parking/hanging out of the parking spot while advertising a business/being used as a (fancy) work truck

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knoxcitybusbays@reddit

Fuck right off our roads do not work with these things

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PrpleMnkyDshwsher@reddit

Everytime I mention how mediocre USDM Toyota pickups of the last 20 years are in every aspect OTHER than reliability and resale value, I usually get downvoted to hell but its true. Especially when you factor in pricing.

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hiyeji2298@reddit

Reliability on the Tundra is sometimes more perception than reality. Up until the new version the interiors were Fisher Price quality and fell apart just as fast. The rest of the truck is okay just horrendously expensive to fix when something does break.

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V48runner@reddit

That engine will last you a good 20k kilometers.

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Safar1Man@reddit

Jesus that's ugly compared to a Hilux, and almost triple the price.

Just get a LandCruiser

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