Australians hope to order one Land Cruiser FJ or HiLux Champ from their local Toyota The dealer may not get this chance.
The FJ compact SUV, known as the Baby LandCruiser, and the HiLux Champ ute – also sold as the HiLux Rangga in Indonesia – are among several models Toyota has banned from sale in Australia.
Toyota Australia sales, marketing and franchise boss Sean Hanley has ruled out any chance of the LandCruiser FJ – which is based on the same platform as the HiLux Champ – being sold here in its current form.
“You won’t see the FJ, okay, I can say that categorically… under the current specifications of that vehicle – which was built primarily for Asia,” Mr Hanley said Daily Sparkz.
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“Unfortunately the powertrain in this vehicle does not comply with Euro 6 (emissions) standards – this has nothing to do with NVES (New Vehicle Efficiency Standard) but is actually Euro 6 (emissions regulations) compliant. So we cannot integrate that into this engine,” he said.
“If the engine changes at some point and becomes Euro 6 compliant, that would be a different project (for) Australia.
“But right now, FJ – no-go zone.”
Mr Hanley also ruled out adding the HiLux Champ to the company’s commercial vehicle range.
While a HiLux Champ was recently spied in Australia,Daily Sparkz can confirm that a particular vehicle was imported from Fords Technical department for evaluation.
Industry rumors also suggest there may be multiple HiLux models in the country in preparation for the model to be sold locally by Toyota Australia – however the company has dismissed the claims, saying there is no chance of the small model joining its local range.
Likewise, Mr. Hanley says there is no chance of that happening Toyota Crown Return to Australia.
After a nearly four-decade absence – the last Crown was sold by Toyota in Australia in 1988 – the latest Crown is not currently being considered.
“Crown – no, no, no,” Mr. Hanley said, ruling out the model, which is available in Japan as a sedan, station wagon, SUV and SUV coupe.
However, Mr Hanley confirmed this Daily Sparkz The plug-in hybrid Prius is being reconsidered for a local release, alongside the ultra-luxury Century brand – which may be sold by Lexus dealers in the future.
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