Best-looking Toyota SUV; spacious and refined inside; value
Doesn’t match the segment’s best driving dynamics
Toyota Kluger is a star car for the Japanese giant, teaming with the Prado to account for more than 40 per cent of total 2010 sales in our ‘Medium SUV’ segment. On its own the Kluger racked-up 13,117 sales last year – comfortably ahead of its nearest rival the Ford Territory (11,558).
A favourite with families who appreciate its clever, spacious interior, the Toyota Kluger measures-up thanks to its handy size, extensive equipment and value.
Toyota Kluger Overview
Car Showroom tested the mid-range Toyota Kluger KX-R all-wheel-drive (AWD). Your can also get two-wheel-drive (2WD) versions of the Kluger in all grades (KX-R, KX-S and Grande).
While not as large as its Prado sibling, the Kluger is one of the larger mid-size SUVs and Toyota’s stylists have taken advantage of those dimensions to deliver a smartly packaged, spacious and versatile AWD wagon ideally kitted for family life. Seven-seat or five-seat, the Kluger delivers big-time on interior features and convenience.
Safety is impressive too with a standard reversing camera, active front head restraints, seven airbags, stability and traction control, ABS anti-lock brakes and hill-start assist.
Toyota Kluger Engine
Toyota’s 2GR-FE, 3.5-litre V6 petrol engine has been around for a while but its star still shines brightly. High-tech and silky-smooth as it powers through the five-speed automatic transmission, this 60-degree V6 delivers the goods on-road and is tractable enough to get the job done in some tricky off-road scenarios.
Maximum power is 201kW at 6200rpm, peak torque of 337Nm arrives at 4700rpm and, despite weighing-in at almost 2.0-tonnes, Toyota Kluger accelerates from zero to 100km/h in under eight seconds.
Toyota Kluger fuel consumption is rated at 11.0l/100kms – better than the current Ford Territory and Mazda CX-9.
Our only fault for the Toyota Kluger’s powerplant was its noise, which does become intrusive under full acceleration at maximum rpms.
Toyota Kluger The Interior
Toyota Kluger exerts its value-for-money credentials inside thanks to its massive space, comprehensive equipment and a luxury look/feel, which we think, actually eclipses the larger, more expensive Prado.
Tilt and telescopic adjustment for the steering wheel provides a nice driving position and instrumentation is typically Toyota with conventional gauges and nice, modern backlighting. The center stack controls for audio (six-speaker USB/MP3/CD unit with Bluetooth connectivity), climate control and the 3.5-inch, colour multi-function screen (also the reversing camera image) are slanted rearwards for easier use.
There are some clever touches for the 40:20:40-split second seat row. It slides for and aft through 120mm for extra legroom and you can remove the center seat to provide two individual seats with inboard armrests – there’s even a stowable center tray, which can be inserted between those seats (great for families of four).
With its larger overall dimensions, the latest Toyota Kluger delivers more than 10cms of extra legroom than the previous generation model.
Storage boxes are plentiful and luggage capacity is enormous.
Toyota Kluger Exterior & Styling
Styling is a personal thing, but the Car Showroom team reckons the Toyota Kluger is best-looking Toyota SUV (apart from the just-launched FJ Cruiser). We like its extra curves - compared to Prado and ‘Cruiser – and we like its proportions…Toyota Kluger is definitely less intimidating, especially for family or first-time SUV buyers.
At the front, Toyota Kluger leads with a ‘Toyota family’ trapezoidal grille (body colour on the KX-R model tested) and modern, curved combination headlights/indicators which blend into the flared front fenders.
The side view is dominated by those fender flares (for the rear wheels as well), nicely formed glasshouse and impressive 17-inch alloy wheels (19-inch on range-topping Grande).
From the rear, Kluger looks wide and purposeful with a stylish look for the tailgate, which features a separately opening glass hatch.
Toyota Kluger On The Road
Like all of its siblings, 4WD versions of the Toyota Kluger are genuine SUVs (they’re not ‘crossovers’) and are capable – we know from previous experience – of tackling some extremely tough conditions. Equally, the Kluger is admirably at home in the city, where most see duty as family transports…and Toyota has the Kluger impressively specified accordingly.
Around town that translates into lively acceleration (Toyota’s five-speed auto detects if you’re traveling up or downhill and holds gears longer for better acceleration) – handy for freeway merging.
Likewise, over our high-speed mountain roads test loop, using the sequential manual shift, the Kluger was nicely responsive.
On the chassis front, as you would expect, Toyota has the Kluger nicely set-up with a coil-over, independent MacPherson strut layout fine-tuned by Toyota Australia engineers for local conditions. While it’s nicely balanced and predictable, the Kluger’s off-road requirements dictate a tad more softness and body roll than Mazda’s sportier CX-9.
We did like Toyota’s new EPS (electric power steering) which is speed sensitive and provided nice feel/assistance at all speeds.
Female and first-time SUV buyers will be comfortable maneuvering the Toyota Kluger around town. While the 11.8-metre turning circle isn’t compact, good all-round visibility and the standard reversing camera make for parking confidence.
Toyota Kluger Challenges
Ford is very serious about the new Territory lineup, headlined by its V6 turbo-diesel engine – so Kluger will face a challenge with lots of marketing dollars and advertising from the ‘Blue Oval’ company.
As for the Toyota Kluger product, we can only deduct points on two fronts.
Firstly that 3.5-litre engine which gets noisy under full acceleration.
And secondly, the ride and handling is a tad too soft for our tastes, especially when driven back-to-back with Mazda’s CX-9. Of course the offset is Kluger’s off-road prowess and towing ability.
Toyota Kluger Verdict
You can’t argue with Toyota’s SUV credentials – LandCruiser, Prado, FJ Cruiser, Kluger and RAV are all outstanding, well-engineered and comprehensively equipped vehicles supported by a nationwide dealer network that champions customer satisfaction.
Kluger’s late-2010 facelift improved the value equation with both KX-R models decreasing by $800 to $42,690 (2WD) or $47,190 for the 4WD version we tested. Combine that with the improved looks inside and out, plus extra versatility for the seven-seaters, and certainly overall the Kluger is better than ever.
Refined and comfortable, 2.0-tonne towing capacity and – in our eyes – the best looks of any Toyota SUV…well the Kluger ticks our boxes.
Toyota Kluger The Competition
Apart from its larger sibling the Prado, Kluger squares-off against the Territory and Mazda’s CX-7 and CX-9. Competition will intensify with the imminent arrival of the new Territory while the Mazda pair get the nod for their sporty on-road dynamics.
For American style, the Jeep Cherokee is definitely worth consideration and the Kia Sorento is a Car Showroom favourite.
