Toyota FJ Cruiser (2007)

July 26, 2006 - Toyota has a long history in off-roading, muddying its tires and hopping rocks for decades and the most enduring name in Toyota's offroad prowess has to be Land Cruiser. Whether ferrying soldiers through battle, weekend beer-soaked rock-crawling or bringing medical supplies to remote locations, the Land Cruiser name has always meant durability and utility. In recent generations, Toyota has taken the Land Cruiser marquee decidedly away from its hardcore roots and converted it into a still capable off-roader but with more of a family vibe to it. Toyota fans have been waiting for a car like the FJ Cruiser to fill the fun, brutish void for years. The 2007 FJ Cruiser is Toyota's funky mid-range off-roader (the RAV4 is still in play on the low-end) put in place to attract a generation that has grown up maybe coveting a Jeep or in more recent times a Nissan Xterra or Honda Element. While those choices have similarly bold design, it's the FJ that's the real head-turner of the moment. The FJ is offered in three models: a 2WD automatic, a 4WD automatic and a 4WD manual. The manual 4WD is four wheel drive all the time while the automatic is only 4WD when user-initiated. The 2WD model features an automatic limited slip differential. Starting price points are, for the 2WD model $21,710; the 4WD manual at $22,890; and the 4WD automatic at $23,300. Our model came with a heap of options and the total settled in the neighborhood of around $28,000.