Let’s face it, people either get a vehicle like the Toyota FJ Cruiser, or they don’t. by the way, as much as I like this truck, adding Cruiser to the name is, well, dumb. Cars like the PT Cruiser come to mind and that is not a thought Toyota wants entering your head.
The FJ is modeled along the lines of the original FJ, which was Toyota’s attempt back in the fifties to give the country’s military and police forces a vehicle like a Jeep, but homegrown.
It was a wonderful blunt instrument that was bigger than the Jeep, but just as crude. It was a very charismatic beast and one look at the old one tells you why it looks the way it does.
But some don’t like the awkward rear doors, which are really awkward to hid the fact that they are even there. They don’t like the rear blind spot that’s only slightly smaller than Nebraska.
They think the suspension is too rough on pavement and the 4-liter V6 with it’s 239-horsepower is only just adequate. And so on with their sissy whining.
Well I say, balderdash. Well, actually, I never say that, but if I did, it would apply to these panty-waist milquetoasts. This is a truck, albeit one based on the very compliant 4Runner platform. It is meant to go off-road where there is rarely anyth8ng in that blind spot except a tree or medium-sized bear.
The interior is meant to look more basic than it really is, but just plain looks right. As usual, the folks who would rather drive a Prius find it too basic. Well, the nice thing is that it is so basic, that when you spill your Chardonnay, it is easy to clean up.
Our FJ with the cool green army paint job cost $31,500 with several very nice options.
As you can guess, I like the FJ Cruiser despite the name, and it is one of only a handful of vehicles that could actually pry me out of my old Wrangler…maybe.