Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current, May 14, 2008, Page 16, Image 16

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    May 14. 2008
11,1’ ^Jnrtkxnb (D bacrin'r EDUCATION < \K I I K'
Page B8
p or ulani 1 Ok s e rv e r
2 0 0 8 Toyota Land Cruiser
King of the Road
K athleen C ark
T o y o ta 's iconic L and C ru ise r
e n ters its seventh g en e ratio n for
2 008. p o sitio n ed o n ce again to be
the sta n d a rd -b e a re r am ong the
ran k s o f tru e o ff-ro p d -c a p a b le
sp o rt u tilitie s . T o y o ta 's L an d
C ru ise r is fam o u s fo r its g lo b e ­
tro ttin g o ff-ro a d prow ess.
It's unusual to find S U V s in
to d a y 's m a rk e tp la ce that are still
e n g in ee re d for m ore than o rd i­
nary use. The all-new 2(X)8 T oyota
L and C ru ise r is o n e o f tho se few
rem aining that are capable in m ore
than one venue.
T he L and C ru ise r is d esig n ed
to tran sp o rt peo p le and g ea r o v er
any k in d o f ro a d o r p rim itiv e trail,
in any kind o f w e a th e r, w ith
speed, co m fo rt and secu rity . It
can tow up to 8500 p o unds w ith
the right eq u ip m en t. It o ffe rs in ­
te g r a te d c o m fo r t an d c o n v e ­
nience features to rival luxury cars
in th is price range.
T he 2008 L and C ru ise r looks
p retty m uch the sam e as the p re ­
vious L and C ru ise r, but m ake no
m istake: it has been com p letely
re-en g in eered from the fram e up.
R efinem ents include a suite o f
safety featu res, sta te -o f-th e-art
electro n ics, m ore pow er w ith b et­
ter m ileage, and innovative e n g i­
neering adv an cem en ts that p e r­
m it ou tstan d in g perfo rm an ce in
co n trastin g circu m stan ces.
Because o f its iconic exterior
design. Land Cruisers never seem
to look dated o r go out o f style. The
by
2008 T oyota Land Cruiser, with its
upright bodyw ork and w ide, fiat
hood, is unm istakable. The slightly
reduced, m ore sophisticated front
headlam ps are the m ost obvious
differences, as is the lower, more
fluid beltline as view ed from the
side. LED tail lights are another
contem porary touch.
W hile the in te rio r is not o p u ­
lent in design , th ere is n o thing
cheap o r garish ab o u t it. A tte n ­
tion to detail can he seen in the
stitch in g on the leath er and the
tight seam s betw een the c o m p o ­
nents o f the dash an d co n so le.
T h ere is no b lin g fac to r in the
Land C ru ise r d esig n , w hich is
so lid , sta b le and g ro u n d e d in
every sense o f the w ord. It is
d esig n ed to be im p ressiv e m ore
for w hat it is, than how it looks.
T o drive a L and C ru ise r is to
feel secure and in com m and. Press
the start button and the g auges
light up, n eed les b o u n ce once,
the steerin g w heel and m irrors
return to p rev io u sly set p o sitio n s,
and the V8 q u ietly hum s to life.
F ind R everse, and the b ack -u p
cam era d isp lay s w h at's behind
you on the n av ig atio n screen.
C i v i l i z e d r id e q u a l i t y is
a c h ie v e d by use o f c o il- o v e r
sp rin g -an d -sh o ck co m b in atio n s
in the front, and a fo u r-lin k /co il
spring setup in the rear.
Throttle response is im proved
due to the use o f the 5.7-liter V8, a
381 -hpengine shared with the T un­
dra full-size pickup. T oyota has in­
corporated the latest variable valve
tim ing technology, cam lobe de-
i : \
lito R e v ie w
News and reviews on new motor vehicles
ness varied.
A n o th e r s ig n ifi­
cant advancem ent is
a new, very clever sus­
pension control tech­
nology. T he suspen­
sion is built around a
robust stabilizer bar
that en h a n ce s h an ­
d lin g on sm o o th ,
paved surfaces. The
system is not e le c ­
tronic, but hydro/m e-
chanical, and requires
no pow er source.
Safety features in­
clu d e m u lti-te rra in
ABS with Electronic
Brake Force distribu-
tio n (E B D )an d Brake
A ssist; V S C e le c ­
tronic stability control
w ith c u to ff sw itch;
A ctive T raction C on­
trol (A-TR AC); dual­
sta g e
advanced
a irb a g s ,
s e a t-
m ounted side-im pact
airbags and front knee
Specifications: 5.7-Liter 32-Valve Dual WT-i cam 381-hp @ 401 Ib-ft. torque V8 engine: 4WD: 6-SpeeO uuai
airbags for driver and
0 /D w/sequential shift mode automatic transmission: 13-City 18-Highway MPG: $71,385. MSRP
front passenger; sec­
s
e a t- m o u n te d sid e
A new T oyota system , Crawl o n d -ro w
sign, and intake m anifold tuning to cluding a super overdrive top gear
airbags;
three-row
roll-sensing side
optim ize the engine for pow er out­ that accounts for the sm ooth, effi­ Control, acts like ABS on steep
curtain
airbags
with
roll-sensing
put, fuel econom y and reduced cient highw ay cruise mode. The downhills. It keeps the vehicle from
cutoff
sw
itch;
tire-pressure
m oni­
em issions. Like any good truck autom atic is com puter controlled, rolling too fast, allow ing the driver
toring
system.
engine, the 5.7-liter m akes more constantly cross-checking with the to select from three speed settings,
T he Land Cruiser's brick out­
torque (4 0 1 pound-feet) than horse­ engine's com puter, to determ ine a depending on the surface co n d i­
house
reputation for durability and
tion
and
steepness
o
f
the
hill.
No
power, allowing the Land Cruiser to shift pattern based on driving co n ­
long-term
value is still intact. Used
braking
is
needed;
the
driver
sim
­
loaf around at low rpm and sti II offer ditions.
Land
C
ruisers
are scarce and co m ­
ply
steers
the
vehicle.
W
ith
prac­
A nd for those m om ents w hen
ready throttle response.
mand
high
prices.
But for those
tice,
we
found
we
could
select
from
A good part o f the drivability push d o es co m e to sh o v e, the
who
aspire
to
the
best
and can pay
the
three
Craw
l
C
ontrol
settings
on
im provem ents are due to use ol a L and C ru ise r lives up to the c a p a ­
the
price
at
the
pump,
the Land
the
fly,
using
the
system
to
m
ain­
slick six-speed autom atic transm is­ bility requirem ents o f a traditional,
C
ruiser
has
no
equal.
tain
a
com
fortable
speed
as
steep-
sion. The transm ission offers a very au th en tic fo u r-w h eel-d riv e truck.
low first gear for heavy loads, and
tw o overdrive gears at the top, in­
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$16,888
Lucky
Customer
Referral
2003 Jeep Grand Cherokee Overland
$14,888
Over 25 Vans
in Stock
2007 Ford Focus - $11,888
Anyone can receive $100®*
for each customer
referred to Gage Auto.
2001 Dodge Ram 1500 - $8,888
2000 Subaru Legacy Outback Limited
$9,888
Over 50 Trucks
to choose from
2002 Honda
Odyssey EX
$11,888
2002 Honda Odyssey EX - $11,888
2004 Saturn Ion Level 3 - $8,888
|
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(Requirements: Referrals
must meet Credit A pproval and
Purchase a vehicle from G age Auto.)
2005 Ford Freestar SES - $10,888
2005 Jeep Wrangler X
Mileage: 47,061
2002 Ford L ariat
$12,888
2005 Mercury Mariner
Mileage: 47,648
2005 Chrysler Pacifica Touring
Mileage: 60,121
2004 H um m er H2
V8,6.0L, Automatic, 4WD,
Mileage: 78,815
Our price $24,888
inish Speaking Help (espanol)
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ask for Lucky
503-515-8628
2002 Honda Accord EX
Mileage: 85,330
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wallerlouis@yahoo.com
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over 3 0 0 cars
GAGE AUTO SALES 13432 SE McLoughlinBlvd. Portland. OR 97222
All Vahlcles Are Safety
Inspected With Free
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