[hnav]

It's meant for spirited driving. If it wasn't so expensive it'd be an amazing car for tooling around on gravel roads with some skidplates. Electric won't take you out to the boonies, you can't bring more juice with you and ultimately an electric package that will consistently produce 300hp while weighing 3200lbs does not exist. As far as Land Cruisers's I feel that the externalities of those and other neo-vintage boxes on 33" tires are greater than anything else on the road. Horrible mileage, makes everything less safe, less agility, less visibility, all to cosplay.

[caconym_]

> If it wasn't so expensive

It's too bad that Toyota and Honda don't have a WRX analogue sitting below their STI analogue, but I guess the demand for that kind of car isn't what it used to be.

I'd settle for the Civic SI having a bit more power on tap. Budgetizing the GRC might be a bit more problematic.

[hnav]

If they could shoehorn the Prius drivetrain into a Corolla hatchback (not sure of packaging, a Corolla hybrid sedan already loses 2 gallons of gas vs the normal car, maybe with solid-state batteries), that could be a great, if sonically unpleasant, middle ground. The hybrid Civics already give the Si a run for the money (though the 6 speed and LSD are great). I could see Honda being able to punch the engine out to 2.3 (they shrank the bore on the hybrid to 81mm for efficiency) and with updated battery tech eek out 230hp. Add an LSD, type R control arms/spindles/sway bars and that'd be an incredible 40mpg combined daily though dangerously close to $40k.

[maxerickson]

The US Corolla Cross Hybrid pretty much has the Prius AWD drivetrain.

[stasomatic]

I didn't think I'd live to see a $50K Corolla. No disrespect to what's under the hood, but it's still a plasticky Corolla. It does its job at $25K for A to B. Stick to Priuses, Toyoda-san. VW Golf R still exists, thanks Odin.

[ashdksnndck]

Have you driven a Land Cruiser? They’re substantial better than the average pickup truck on most of the issues you listed. For example, the current F-150 crew cab which is the most popular vehicle in the US is 3 ft longer and has a taller hood. So it’s a little weird to single out a niche SUV as the worst thing on the road. Modern Land Cruisers handle pretty well, while the old ones with live front axle are harder to drive but also smaller. Everyone I know with that type of car uses it to go see cool stuff in the mountains, although I’m sure cosplayers exist.

[hnav]

I'm mostly just lamenting people gravitating towards living rooms on wheels. Makes roads worse for everyone, esp peds and cyclists.

[Fuzzwah]

If you're talking about the US Landcruiser it's actually what we know as a Prado over here in Australia. My dream midlife crisis vehicle is a 2025 Landcruiser 79. Mostly for towing capacity and being able to access more offroad areas of Australia, but admittedly a lot of the appeal is just how awesome they look when decked out for "adventuring".