A 2000bhp Toyota Land Cruiser is now the world’s fastest SUV , following a 230.02mph (370.18kph) run in California
Turns out a Toyota Land Cruiser has just claimed the title of world’s fastest SUV , having achieved a top speed of 230.02mph (370.18kph) on a 4km runway at the Mojave Air and Space Port in Mojave, California. That somehow puts Toyota’s flagship family hauler up there in the upper echelons ahead of the Audi R8 V10 Plus, the Ferrari F12berlinetta, the McLaren 675LT AND the Lamborghini Aventador SV.
Readers in the Middle East though may be surprised to hear that the 230.02mph (370.18kph) brute does not hail from our region, given the souped up monsters that roam steroid-fuelled quarters of the Middle East. The Land Cruiser is actually a product of Toyota’s Motorsports Technical Centre, through which it received a quite significant overhaul.
First item on the checklist was to add more power. A crap-load more power. While the Land Cruiser’s standard 5.7-litre ‘3UR-FE’ V8 remains, a pair of volleyball-sized Garrett turbochargers capable of producing up to 55 PSI of boost have been added to up the established 381bhp up to a liver-quivering, ‘reliable’ 2000bhp. Understandably, the eight-speed automatic transmission has been scrapped in favour of a three-speed drag three-speed drag racing gearbox with an overdrive that sends the monstrous power figure to the rear wheels.
Turns out that was the easy part, the ‘world’s fastest SUV’ – which made its debut last year at SEMA – also requiring considerable aerodynamic work. Having dropped the ride height by 130mm to reduce the amount of air passing under the car, the underbody was also made smoother and a diffuser was added to reduce turbulence. The wing mirrors were ditched in favour of side-mounted cameras and a new rear wing with extended gurney flap was incorporated to push the rear wheels into the tarmac.
Don’t think this was a one-shot only exercise either. On his first run, former NASCAR Nationwide champion – and former Toyota works driver – Carl Edwards hit 211mph (339.5kph) during his practice run.
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You can check out more Toyota articles HERE, and more Land Cruiser stories HERE
- Shameless plug, but you might want to check out how Wing Commander Andy Green similarly defied physics by pushing a Bentley Mulsanne flat-out on the Bonneveille Salt Flats HERE
