J200 refers to the Toyota Land Cruisers produced from 2007 to 2021. When it was released for the 2008 model year, it was a material upgrade from its predecessors, offering options like leather seats and rear-view camera, plus an impressive roster of standard features like Crawl Control, Downhill Assist Control, multi-terrain ABS, and Kinetic Dynamic Suspension System.

The refresh in 2013 further upgraded the list of standard features with elements like pushbutton start, HID headlights, heated and ventilated leather seats, rear-seat DVD entertainment system, and Multi-Terrain Select to take on rock, snow, sand, and mud with the turn of a dial.

While some enthusiasts decried the somewhat pedestrian design, the J200 was an amazingly capable machine loaded with features with seating for 7 or 8 passengers thanks to the signature fold-up third row jump seats.

But alas, when Toyota announced the successor – the J300, offered for the 2022 model year – they stated that the Land Cruiser would no longer be sold in North America.

Why was the Land Cruiser discontinued?

For North American 4x4 enthusiasts, having the Land Cruiser taken away was a major slap – but not much of a surprise. The starting MSRP for a ’21 Land Cruiser was $85k, more than $20k over the loaded 2021 Toyota Sequoia TRP PRO that had the same engine, more inside area, similar fuel economy, better ground clearance, and similar features.

Over the years, the Land Cruiser had gotten bulkier and more luxurious to appeal to North American buyers, but the price tag forced the Toyota model to fight far above its weight. In the end, it yielded its position to its production line partner, the similarly-equipped Lexus LX.

Despite the exit of the Land Cruiser, Toyota still rocks the SUV game from top to bottom with the RAV4, Highlander, 4Runner, and Sequoia (the latter two being the ones equipped with 4-wheel drive).