Toyota is busying reimagining some of their past icons. Aside from bringing back the WRC spirit in the Celica-inspired GR86 Rally Legacy, they’ve now done the same with the Land Cruiser 250 (aka Prado) with the Land Cruiser ROX or Recreation Open eXperience.
This concept seamlessly merges the Land Cruiser experience with the outdoors; a design and engineering feat more easily imagined than done. Over 50 percent of the vehicle had to be reinvented and fabricated. The Calty Design Research time worked closely with the Toyota Technical Center in created the stamping tools needed to produce the body panels and components. The result is a fully functional, one-off “factory” vehicle—something only an OEM could do.
The open-air cabin is accessed via custom-fabricated “skeleton” doors with open upper and lower sections. It also gets high-clearance rocker panels and rock rails. The custom front-to-rear sliding soft top can be opened for passengers to thoroughly enjoy the outdoors. Further blurring the line between cabin and environment, a functional mid-gate allows pass-through from the cabin to the truck bed for access to the integrated tailgate seating and extra storage space behind the cabin.
To ensure the Land Cruiser Prado ROX is ready for the elements, the interior features custom SLS Nylon 3D printed bits including front and rear doorsills. The interior has been updated with Heritage Orange leather, and door panels have integrated safety kits and catch-all webbing for sunglasses and other adventure gear. The exterior body color is inspired by “Spring Green,” a vintage Land Cruiser paint color that pays homage to the model’s iconic legacy.
Up top, a custom integrated triple-bar roof rack and sports bar with molle panels provide a means to secure anything that doesn’t fit in the bed or attach to the molle panels. In the back, a custom jerry can next to the rear spare carrier provides secure storage and transportation of liquids. Custom fabricated, high-lift front and rear steel bumpers with D-rings and brush guards provide fore and aft protection. At each corner, specially designed, widened fenders are filled with massive tires mounted to custom Calty-designed, 18-inch 1-piece machined billet wheels.
This one-off Land Cruiser Prado ROX also gets customized TRD suspension with a 4-inch lift. The team also increased the track width by 8 inches by way of forged aluminum control arms at both the front and back. All in all, it provides greater suspension stroke and a more menacing stance.
The Land Cruiser Prado ROX may be a one-off model, but Toyota says it can easily be envisioned as a future production model. Fingers crossed.
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