If you're a fan of Toyota's iconic off-roader, the Toyota Land Cruiser Heritage Museum in Salt Lake City, Utah, is a must-see. With the coronavirus pandemic still ongoing, that may not be possible for many people, but the museum now has an online virtual tour that lets you check things out from the comfort of your home.
The museum was founded by Greg Miller, a Land Cruiser enthusiast who has taken his own modified 70-Series Land Cruisers to all seven continents, according to an article in Toyota's U.K. magazine. Realizing Toyota had no official Land Cruiser museum, Miller started his own and set the goal of collecting one of every Land Cruiser model.
He's done pretty well so far. The current collection includes one of each Land Cruiser series, from an early 1953 BJT to a new URJ200 Toyota Land Cruiser Heritage Edition. The collection also includes some related vehicles, such as an Arctic Trucks Toyota Hilux and a Mega Cruiser—Toyota's answer to the Humvee.
Toyota Land Cruiser Heritage Museum virtual tour screenshot
It's possible to see all of these vehicles—plus a large collection of scale models and other memorabilia—virtually thanks to a 3D walkthrough on the museum's website. It works like Google Street View, allowing you to move through the 3D space by clicking on spots on the floor.
While a new 300-Series Land Cruiser is on the way, Toyota has confirmed that it won't be coming to the U.S. The Land Cruiser will exit the U.S. after the 2021 model year. That's not surprising, given the Land Cruiser's paltry U.S. sales, and the presence of the Lexus LX, which is based on the same platform.
The LX is expected to live on with a turbocharged V-6 in place of the current 5.7-liter V-8. The next-generation Land Cruiser is also expected to use a V-6 instead of a V-8, so it's possible a redesigned LX based on that model is in the cards.
