Quote:
Originally Posted by Jetboy
It really does feel more like a major refresh than a new generation to me. It looks about the same. Is nearly identical in size. Has very similar suspension and overall chassis setup. Would have been really nice to see the keep the same overall dimensions by stretch the wheel base out to around 116" to push the tires forward/aft and improve the approach/departure angles.
Locking diffs are a great addition. I agree, probably not going to be very useful in the Lexus version. Hopefully at least the front is just a bolt in swap with the LC200. Rear is at least a little different axle housing (you can see they moved the drain plug to the other side), but could still be a swappable diff. And it's a 6 lug now. So the outer axles will be different on the rear at least.
Cool part about the 6 lug for the 4R folks is that it's now a super easy rear swap and can be ordered with an E-locker. Gearing is unknown as far as I can tell, but I'd expect OEM gears to be around 3.3 since it has the 10AT. So that's not very compatible unless the normal 9.5 gear sets fit.
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The problem with stretching wheelbase is breakover angle will be worst, which can be just as bad. I think that LC200 breakover is 24 degrees, which is already very good. I still think that the best way is to clean up the front and rear bumpers, like Defender and G-wagen…and since those two can do it (and still achieve crash test worthiness), then Toyota can do it too! Cleaner bumpers would have been more useful than lockers (at least for my needs) since CRAWL has been great for my off-roading.
I agree with you 100% that this is more a refresher than a ground up redesign.