After its debut at this year's Guangzhou Auto Show, the all-new Toyota Prado has recently been updated with a wave of new news. A blogger broke the news that the domestic version of the new Toyota Prado may be pre-sold on February 29, 2024 and open Xiaoding, but this time Xiaoding can only choose low-end models, and high-end models will be opened at the Beijing Auto Show that will open on April 25, 2024, and the final launch time is set on July 16.
After discontinuing production in 2020, the Prado, which is produced in China again after three and a half years, has undoubtedly added another fire to the off-road market, and many fans are also looking forward to the return of this classic product. However, three and a half years will change a lot of things, and the new Toyota Prado will have to face a new off-road market.
Why anyone is looking forward to the new Prado.
Do you still remember the grand scene of Prado on the Sichuan-Tibet line?At that time, the Prado was almost a standard option for driving the Sichuan-Tibet line. The reason why it was recognized by many off-road enthusiasts at that time was due to Prado's comprehensive product strength and good user reputation.
First of all, in terms of off-road performance, the existence of full-time four-wheel drive, ** differential lock, and low-speed four-wheel drive makes the Prado not top but enough to deal with most car scenarios. In addition, the Prado doesn't stumble on paved roads like many hardcore off-road cars, and the large-displacement naturally aspirated engine, five-speed automatic gearbox, and front double wishbone suspension ensure comfort for the daily commute. At the same time, the Prado is also a non-picky eater, and in the no-man's land where there is less high-grade gasoline, coarse grains can also feed the Prado. More importantly, the huge number of holdings allows Prado to have a very high value retention rate, and even some second-hand cars that are not long in age and in good condition can be close to the guide price of new cars and proper financial products.
Perhaps because life is too comfortable, the Prado model update frequency has become unusually slow, and when many competitors began to shift to more user-friendly travel needs and introduce new engines that meet emission standards, the Prado still has not been updated. Finally, in 2020, Prado officially announced the discontinuation of production, and the first-generation god car was separated from the Chinese market for three and a half years.
Has the off-road market changed today?
In fact, when Prado officially announced the discontinuation of production, the hard-core SUV market was no longer very hot, except for some hard-core, senior off-road enthusiasts, most users were more inclined to choose urban SUV models. However, in the past two years, the market for hardcore SUV models has become hot again.
The Tank 300 is undoubtedly the most important catalyst, and the Tank 300, which still hung the Wei brand logo at that time, was definitely a phenomenal model, and now on the Sichuan-Tibet line, the Tank 300 has become one of the models with the highest visibility. With a price of 20-200,000 yuan, enough hard-core styling, coupled with a good four-wheel drive configuration and intelligent experience, the Tank 300 has instantly been favored by many young users. The launch of subsequent models such as the Tank 300 City Edition and the Tank 500, as well as the independence of the Tank brand, officially gained a firm foothold in the hardcore SUV segment.
The resurgence of the off-road market has attracted many young people to join. These young people like to toss and turn, and are open to new things, but at the same time, their life scenarios are more diverse. In addition to camping on weekends and holidays, you also have to commute to work during the week and go shopping in the evening. In other words, these young people choose hard-core off-road models not for all kinds of crossings and sand washing, but for self-driving and camping and leisure. It is precisely to cater to this demand that many hardcore models choose to switch to load-bearing models to meet the comfort of daily commuting.
In the face of this complex and changeable car use scenario, Chinese brands have used new energy technology to find a better answer. With the blessing of the hybrid system, displacement is no longer the most important thing, the addition of the electric drive system can make these hard SUVs have more excellent power performance, such as the recent popular model Leopard Leopard 5, the comprehensive power of the system has reached 505kW, the maximum torque has reached 760N·m, and the zero hundred acceleration can even break through the 5 second mark5T turbocharged engine.
When commuting in the city, the Formula Leopard Leopard 5 and other models of the same type can achieve pure electric driving, which can not only reduce the cost of using the car, but also avoid the shortcomings of insufficient power and strong frustration of large cars. When it comes to non-paved roads, the response speed of electronically controlled four-wheel drive also has good off-road performance, and the operation is more convenient. Coupled with the external discharge function that many models are equipped with, it will also bring higher playability in outdoor camping and other scenarios.
Overall, today's hard-core off-road market has become more diversified and intelligent, and new energy is also a major trend. Will the all-new Toyota Prado, which is back in the market, be able to adapt to these new changes?
The return of the king or was he swept up to collapse?
In the face of more economical, smarter and more powerful Chinese new energy hard SUVs, what has the new Toyota Prado prepared?In terms of powertrain, the all-new Toyota Prado brings a set of 2The 4T diesel-electric hybrid system, with a comprehensive maximum power of 243kW and a maximum torque of 630N·m, is better than the fuel version of the same level, but it is slightly inferior to those plug-in hybrid models.
In terms of off-road performance, the new Toyota Prado still arranges two differential locks in the middle and rear, as well as high-speed and low-speed four-wheel drive that can amplify torque, and multi-terrain control and creep mode are not absent. At the same time, the all-new Toyota Prado also has good geometric parameters, with a maximum approach angle of 31°, a maximum departure angle of 22°, and a ground clearance of 221mm.
In terms of exterior design and body size, the new Toyota Prado also has a good hand, square shape and enough exquisite detail design, which is very in line with the current aesthetic trend, 4920 1980 1860mm in length, width and height (excluding the wheelbase of the external spare tire mm), which also has a small advantage in the face of the mainstream hard SUV on the market.
At the same time, judging from the currently known news, the configuration performance of the new Toyota Prado is also remarkable, with seat heating and ventilation, steering wheel heating, mobile phone wireless interconnection, panoramic sunroof, JBL audio, three-zone air conditioning and other configurations have good practicality. However, compared to the Chinese brand new energy hard SUV, these are not enough to see. Entering the new energy era, these Chinese brand new energy products have made great progress in intelligent technology, and have achieved more perfect optimization in many details through market accumulation.
For Prado, who has a history of more than 70 years, the practice of focusing on off-road circles in the past is no longer doomed today, and for users who commute most of the time in the city and occasionally go out for fun, the creation of comfort is far greater than the off-road ability. However, for veteran off-road players, the brand accumulation and four-wheel drive technology of the new Toyota Prado should be more attractive, after all, in many harsh environments, these off-road veterans must have less trust in the plug-in hybrid system than the new Toyota Prado. In addition, Prado's higher professionalism and verticality in the past will also be better in the detailed design of many in-depth off-road scenes.
There is also a very important factor, and that is the value retention rate. In the past, the Prado had a high value retention rate, due to stable quality and large ownership, but for the new Toyota Prado, everything has to start again. Judging from the recent news, the starting price of the new Toyota Prado may be as high as 470,000 yuan, to be honest, the competitiveness of this ** is not strong, whether it can reproduce the grand scene of queuing up to pick up the car is still unknown, and the corresponding value retention ability should also be marked with a question mark.
Uncle Che concluded. In fact, from the perspective of off-road performance, the new Toyota Prado is still the one that is strong enough and "domineering" enough, and the technology accumulation over the years should not be underestimated. But today's off-road market is no longer a niche circle, and the influx of many young people has made models in this segment no longer only focus on off-road, but also focus on the intelligence, comfort and fuel economy required for urban commuting. And these are the advantages of Chinese brand new energy models, more abundant intelligent interconnection functions, coupled with the smoothness, energy saving, and response speed of electric drive, which have a stronger attraction for young users. The all-new Toyota Prado is back in the market and needs to adapt to this shift, and it's not enough to just focus on the off-road circle. How to make good use of its own advantages and carry out differentiated competition is a problem that the new Toyota Prado needs to think about urgently.
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