Released down under in 1984, it has certainly withstood the test of time.

Over the past 40 years the vehicle has undergone numerous updates, however the choice of cabin layouts has remained stable, with wagon (76 series), troop carrier (78 series) and cab-chassis (79 series) options.

These have been powered by both petrol and diesel engines, with diesel the preferred fuel source for the past two decades.

The design brief for the 70 series was originally tailored towards the agriculture and mining sectors, with the aim of delivering a rugged and reliable vehicle capable of withstanding the day-to-day abuse these industries often subject their vehicles to.

It was, however, Toyota’s move to introduce a coil sprung live axle in the front end of the LC70 series in 1999, followed by the introduction of the 4.5-litre turbo diesel V8 engine in 2007 that garnered widespread interest in the vehicle among 4WD enthusiasts, who saw high potential as a rugged and reliable touring vehicle.

Despite fairly modest power and torque figures relative to displacement, the V8 engine in particular has proven incredibly popular.

This is largely due to the ever-evolving number of aftermarket power upgrades now available for the vehicle, allowing owners to tap into the engine’s full potential – the thong slappin’ exhaust note extracted by the addition of a three-inch exhaust system being the one that is increasingly popular!

So, you might ask yourself, why mess with what appears to be a winning formula?

Since COVID, demand for the LC70 series increased so much that Toyota Australia instructed its dealers to stop taking orders in July, 2022.

However, ever-tightening vehicle emissions standards in Australia since then have created a major issue for the V8 engine, and with the forthcoming introduction of the Australian New Vehicle Efficiency Standard (NVES) in early 2025, it appears unlikely that the V8 engine will remain a viable power option; it simply emits too much CO2.

With this in mind, it is not surprising that Toyota is now offering a new engine option for the LC70, the 1GD-FTV 2.8-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel engine used in the HiLux and HiAce range (but with some mechanical changes to suit the 70 series, particularly cooling for towing heavy loads), mated to a six-speed automatic transmission, the first time an auto box has ever been offered in the 70 series range in Australia.

Toyota lists the 4.5L V8 as still available to order as well, however this is only available in the traditional five-speed manual format, and there is still a substantial backlog on orders, meaning that even if you were able to order one now, it’s unclear if it could even be delivered prior to the introduction of NVES in 2025.

Power figures for the two engines are extremely similar, despite the lower displacement of the 2.8L, with it producing an impressive 150kW of power (only 1kW less than the V8) and 500nm of torque (70nm more than the V8).

In addition to the new engine and transmission, Toyota has also updated the 70 series front-end and introduced more modern comforts to the cabin, but the basic platform of the vehicle remains unchanged; it retains the proven ladder-rack chassis and dual live axle suspension with radius arms.

As someone new to the 70 series (I’d never driven one before), but well versed in the additional refinement and control offered on and off road by modern automatic transmissions, my interest was certainly piqued by Toyota’s new 2.8L variant, and when Busselton Toyota called with the offer of a new 79 series GXL test vehicle for a fortnight, I was quick to accept.    

My first impressions of the new 79 were very positive.

The front end has been revamped, with the bonnet sitting noticeably higher and sporting distinct styling lines that complement the rugged design brief.

Headlights are now LED, modernising the front-end appearance, and importantly, putting out far more light spread than the old versions which were frequently likened to candles by their owners.

With the 2.8L model incorporating a water-to-air intercooler, there is no longer a bonnet scoop, and by adopting this style of intake cooling I would imagine cooling efficiency will be improved, especially at lower speeds.

The engine bay, although spacious, does lack space for a second battery; however, this certainly isn’t a major issue as the lithium setups most 4WD enthusiasts run these days are not suitable for under-bonnet installation and there is plenty of space behind the rear seat of the 79 for one of the new slimline battery options.

An empty fuse block is also provided under the bonnet, ready to run wiring for auxiliary lighting, etc, while maintaining a factory appearance.

In standard form, the 79’s ride height is more than enough for 4WD touring work, especially if you decided to upgrade the supplied 31-inch tyres to 33s, which will easily fit in the guard space with some minor trimming to the front mudflaps.

A polarising issue for some, the differing front and rear wheel tracks unfortunately remain in place on the 79, despite the 2.8L turbo diesel engine under the bonnet.

For those who aren’t aware, to fit the V8 engine Toyota had to widen the front wheel track, and this setup is now standard across all engine variants of the 70 series throughout the world.

Although I can certainly imagine that the associated costs would be high to redesign the front axle to match the rear or vice-versa and offer this with the 2.8L model, I wonder if this is something Toyota will consider if they do completely phase out the V8 engine.

Regardless, there are plenty of aftermarket offerings to resolve this, ranging from running different wheel offsets front and rear (which means you really need to carry two spares) to complete axle replacement, which roughly costs from $6000 to over $15,000, plus installation depending on whether the standard leaf suspension format is retained or not.

One other obvious addition on the new 79 is the massively over-sized indicators.

These are requirements on light truck vehicles, with the 79 now falling into this category thanks to the new GVM of 3510kg, an increase of at least 110kg for some variants, and almost half a tonne for others.

This will be welcomed by 4WD enthusiasts wanting to add a three-quarter to full-sized canopy to their 79, as this may have previously required additional outlay for a GVM upgrade.

Moving towards the cabin, the 79 has missed out on the electric mirrors now standard on the GXL 76 and 78 series, instead retaining the old manual mirrors.

Apparently this is due to the extra length the mirrors need to protrude from the body to provide coverage of the tray.

The aftermarket sector has this gap covered though, with plenty of power options available.

Inside the cabin the 79’s dash has been redesigned with a retro-inspired style that features a seven-inch touch screen with wired Apple car play.

The intuitive menus were easy to use and I was able to sync my phone to the car without issues.

The dash cluster maintains the traditional LC 70 series-style analogue gauges, but now includes an electronic gauge on the far right, with a range of more modern features, such as distance to empty, average fuel economy and a full trip computer.

You also get a lane departure alert system as standard on the GXL and autonomous emergency braking is now included across the LC70 series range.

The steering wheel is the same as the one used in the HiLux and has a nice feel in hand, with audio and trip computer controls incorporated.

The cabin feels spacious upfront with a panoramic view over the bonnet thanks to the high seating position.

Seats are fairly comfortable, however the centre console is small and too low to use as an armrest – the driver’s door also has nothing to really use as an armrest, but similar to the manual mirrors, there are aftermarket options to take care of these issues.

The backseat is the typical bench style seen in most dual cab utes, with a very straight back and not a lot of leg room, especially for an adult if the driver is tall like myself.

Accelerating out of the Toyota carpark the engine felt powerful and responsive, working nicely with the automatic transmission to bring me up to 60kmh in no time.

However, initiating a 90-degree turn shortly after resulted in significant understeer, something that I did get used to over the testing period, but it still caught me out a few times while parking, resulting in several unexpected three-point turns.

Ride quality is not a selling point; I would describe it as agricultural, with an almost ‘hoppy’ feeling at times thanks to the very firm suspension – clearly the vehicle is designed with heavy load carrying in mind though.

Fuel economy after 58km of city driving came in at 11.2L/100km, so not bad at all for a vehicle this size and weight.

As a keen boat angler, I was excited to test the towing ability, so I hitched my 1.7-tonne boat to the back and pointed the 79 in the direction of Ocean Reef.

The extra weight on the back was certainly noticeable, but the engine and auto combination handled it well, especially using the power haul feature, which seemed to modify the shift pattern on the auto, allowing the vehicle to hold gears longer when required, and having more pronounced engine braking while decelerating.

Fuelling back up after 55km of towing saw figures of 18.9L/100km, however, I should note that this is only for city driving and I would expect highway consumption to be markedly better.

With a good weather forecast looming, I decided a Walpole trip was on the cards and figured this would be an ideal test for the 79’s long distance manners.

The engine and auto combination continued to work really nicely together, cruising comfortably in sixth gear at 110kmh on the freeway and dropping back gears when needed during the many uphill sections on the South Western Highway.

I was able to simply leave the car in cruise control the entire 440km run down, including up both of the larger hills near Greenbushes and Bridgetown.

Overtaking was also an effortless task with the engine having plenty of punch to quickly get around slower vehicles.

One thing I will note though is that the comfort level offered by the seats, although fine around town, certainly began to diminish after a few hours behind the wheel.

D’Entrecasteaux National Park was my chosen proving ground to test the 79’s offroad prowess, a location that features everything from high-speed dirt corrugations to soft sandhill climbs and plenty of off-camber opportunities to test out suspension flex in between.

Rolling over the corrugations on Mandalay Beach Road on the way to the Banksia Camp track entrance, the 79 was surprisingly comfortable, especially considering I had not aired down at this point; with such firm suspension, this was not something I was expecting.

Dropping the tyres to 15 PSI, I selected low range and pushed on into the track towards Banksia Camp.

In low range, the car was effortless to drive, with truly supreme control on offer by the auto box.

Wombat hole sections were handled with ease, with no wheel lifts, despite my best efforts to achieve this.

Coming around the headland and down the steeper section of track onto the beach at Banksia Camp the car did start to run away from me in drive when I didn’t apply enough brake pressure, but I expect either activating the downhill assist control feature or attempting this in manual mode first gear would help resolve this.

After enjoying the incredible scenery on offer, engaging the second start feature resulted in a smooth take off in second gear low, producing plenty of momentum to move through the softer sand initially; this is a really nice addition to the auto model.

Climbing back up the steep headland track I left traction control on to slowly tackle the midway off camber jump-up, deliberately trying to find wheel slip in the softer sand.

With limited traction on offer the traction control system at crawl speeds wasn’t able to get me up and over, but a quick turn of the switch to engage the rear diff lock quickly resolved this problem.

Fuelling back up in Perth, the figures for the Walpole trip came in at 12.6L/100km after over 1000km of combined highway, city and offroad driving; impressive figures for what is now considered a light truck.

So, for $83,500 (before on-roads), will the new 79 2.8L find a place in the Australian 4WD market?

Well, despite the agricultural ride qualities and lack of many modern comforts, the 70 series clearly has a cult-like following, with Toyota barely being able to keep up with market demand for the vehicles over the past three years.

The real question is though, is this cult-like following for the vehicle in general or the V8 engine?

I think the new 2.8L auto version will certainly find a place in the mining and agriculture sectors, where the improved fuel economy and comfort offered by the 2.8L/auto combo, combined with increased GVM and lower price will have strong appeal.

The automatic gearbox will also sing to these markets, as it will mean drivers don’t need a manual licence and reduced maintenance in terms of clutch replacements.

As for 4WD touring, the new 70 series is the cheapest automatic dual live axle turbo-diesel option in the market by almost $25,000.

I think the new 79 will appeal to 4WD enthusiasts after a rugged and reliable dual cab 4WD, ready to accept a canopy, who don’t crave the exhaust note that you can extract from the 4.5L V8 engine (and the reality is, wanting a V8 is likely to soon be a moot point with ever tightening vehicle emissions standards).

Although the vehicle still comes up short in terms of many modern comforts, you essentially are getting a tried and tested blank canvas that you can then add to as you wish through the aftermarket sector to create your ideal touring setup.