New Prado details emerge

LEAKED Toyota documents reveal that Australia’s first three-door Prado will be available here as an all-automatic, diesel-only model.

Full specifications obtained by GoAuto for both the short and long-wheelbase versions of Toyota’s redesigned Prado SUV, which will go on sale simultaneously in November, also reveal full dimensions and vital statistics for both models.

Officially revealed in Sydney in a global first for Toyota Australia on September 14 before the three-door was revealed earlier this month, the 150 Series Prado wagon will be available here for the first time in two body styles.

But while the replacement for the current 120 Series five-door will continue to be powered by (upgraded) versions of the current model’s 3.0-litre diesel and 4.0-litre petrol engines, mated to both (upgraded) six-speed manual and five-speed automatic transmissions, the automatic-only three-door will be exclusively diesel-powered.

Naturally, while diesel versions of the new five-door will also be available in both five and seven-seat configurations, the short-wheelbase three-door Prado will be offered exclusively as a five-seater.

Both models will get an upgraded 3.0-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel that delivers the same 127kW peak power output but improved fuel consumption of 9.0L/100km in the five-door – down from 9.3L/100km.

Meantime, the 4.0-litre petrol V6’s power output will increase by 10 per cent, from 179kW to 202kW at 5600rpm. Again, no V8 version of the Prado will be offered in Australia.

While the current Prado starts at $48,600 for the stripped-out Standard variant, the three-door should be priced from well below that, opening the door for Toyota to enter a new market occupied only by Mitsubishi’s diesel and petrol-powered Pajero three-door.

While the five-door Prado measures 4930mm long, 1885mm wide, 1890mm high and rides on a 2790mm wheelbase (making it 80mm longer, 10mm wider and 15mm lower than before), the three-door is 445mm shorter at 4485mm, 15mm lower at 1875mm and rides on a 340mm-shorter wheelbase (2450mm).

The first Toyota mid-sized three-door SUV since the 1980s Bundera also rides 10mm closer to the ground than the five-door, with a ground clearance of 210mm (versus 220mm).

Standard safety equipment across the range will include seven airbags, electronic stability control (ESC), traction control and ABS brakes.

All new Prados will also come standard with air-conditioning, power windows/mirrors, a sub-fuel tank and remote central locking, while foglights and roof-rails will be standard on all variants except the diesel five-door.

Toyota Australia has also confirmed that alloy wheels and keyless entry/start will be standard on the three-door Prado, and that all but entry-level models will have a reversing camera. Some models will also feature a front-mounted off-road camera and rear air suspension.

As previously reported, the three-door will offer greater braked towing capacity of 3000kg (compared to the five-door’s 2500kg), with both models able to tow a 750kg unbraked trailer.

With a gross vehicle mass of 2990kg and a tare mass of 2305kg (2235kg for the petrol version), the five-door diesel manual’s payload will be 685kg (755kg petrol).

Similarly, with a gross vehicle mass of 2600kg and a tare mass of 2080kg, the diesel three-door’s payload will be 520kg.

All base models will ride as standard on 17x16.5-inch alloy wheels with 245/70 R17 tyres, with 17x7.5-inch wheels with 265/65 tyres and 18x7.5-inch wheels with 265/60 tyres fitted to upstream models for the first time.

All new Prado brakes will comprise 338x32mm front and 312x18mm rear discs.

Toyota says the replacement for the top-selling medium SUV in Australia – the world’s fourth-largest Prado market after the Middle East, Europe and China - underwent 100,000km in local pre-product testing, including hot-climate work, 70 per cent of which was on dirt roads.

Later this year, Toyota expects to deliver its 150,000th Prado since the second-generation 90 series arrived in Australia in 1996.