This is the new Toyota Land Cruiser FJ — and it is definitely a baby LC.
After ignominiously dropping the old-school (and big as a house) Land Cruiser from our market, Toyota quickly made good with American buyers through the new “250 Series” model for the North American market. Now, it’s kind of doing the same thing again with this Land Cruiser FJ — a mini-Land Cruiser — built strictly for the Japanese market. That’s right, there’s another new Land Cruiser, and we’re not getting this one either.
Nevertheless, it’s still a Toyota Land Cruiser, so we definitely need to discuss it. In mid-2026, Japanese buyers will get access to this new FJ, representing the latest in a 74-year line since the initial BJ went into production. This latest model essentially follows the “core” Land Cruiser model in its trim and design ethos. There’s a more retro-looking version that throws back to the earlier FJ40 LC, while another takes on the C-clamp sort of design that the non-1958 Land Cruiser sports.
Both Land Cruiser FJ models come packing the same powertrain. Although, despite being a smaller car, it technically gets a bigger engine in the form of a 2.7-liter gas engine. However, there’s no hybrid system at play here, so the unit puts out just 160 horsepower (to the “big” Land Cruiser’s 326 hp) and 182 lb-ft of torque, and pairs up to a 6-speed automatic transmission, rather than an 8-speed. This model also packs a part-time four-wheel-drive system.
As far as technical specs, that is about the sum of what we know right now. That said, Toyota did share a few other juicy nuggets on its design philosophy. Namely, the Toyota Land Cruiser FJ will get “removable, segmented” front and rear corner bumpers, aiming to improve repairability should you bash one of the corners off-road. Not that it’s as likely to happen, since the FJ is positively tiny compared to even the 250 Series. The wheelbase is 10.6 feet shorter than our Land Cruiser, at 101.6 inches (just a smidge shorter than the Corolla Cross, pretty much).
Toyota plans to build the new FJ in Thailand, and sell it throughout Southeast Asia and the Middle East. It may come to South America, too, but the automaker has no plans to sell it in Europe or North America. Hope you had your tiny violin ready, there. According to a spokesperson talking to Automotive News, this is a car originally meant for the “global South”.
