one thing for sure is Toyota doesn't need to compete with Kia on pricing since Toyota has an advantage and that's not the only reason. that other reason is related to all Toyota is including with the TJ, even a base TJ won't be as basic as a base Soul.... that's if my assumptions are right.

 

Around $22k for the TJ Cruiser would be ideal, but that won't happen if Toyota gives it a comprehensive list of standard features similar to what we see on the concept. Even without all the sliding panels and whatnot, the sheer amount of moving parts from the body alone will drive the pricing up.

I wouldn't be surprised to see it sit around the new Wrangler's prices.

 

Making it sit around the new Wranglers price would put it more geared towards competing with the Wrangler opposed to the Soul and Renegade. There seems to be a toss up between what this TJ Cruiser will be competing with. Baby FJ would position it lower down opposed to Wrangler rival.

 

That would do Toyota no good because that's why they have the FJ.

The only way you can have both an entry-level Wrangler and TJ in the same discussion is if a high spec TJ ($23k?) isn't as great as an entry-level Wrangler ($23k)

 

I thought it'd be more of a Wrangler rival since the TJ cruiser was to have some off-road capability, but if that's not the case then the Renegade would be a more apt competitor.

 

Toyota had to plug that "off-road" mention somewhere just to let people know its no snowflake CUV. Yeah its a compact but its just as capable as something larger, or at least brings something new to the CUV segment.

Ultimately you have to start with which segment it sits in. Even a sedan/wagon can have off-road capabilities (ex. Audi All-Road A4)

 

Renegade in Trailhawk form would be best to go against it I guess.

Really gotta see how capable it is when they bring it in production spec. Without knowing much about what suspension they're running, axles and diffs, etc. we can't really make too much of a judgement on it

 

Off-road capabilities can mean many things..

Could mean that it's good enough to literally go off-road and hit a trail. You can take an Accord on a trail essentially. But it is a word that everyone loves to hear and especially in this segment. Of course I'm sure it'll be more competent than an Accord but you get the point.

 

I was under the assumption that off-road refers to cars that can take on the odd rocky and mud filled trail. I'm guessing Toyota wanted to shoehorn that word somewhere just so they can justify a higher price.

 

Well they have to categorize it somehow especially with the way it looks. Naturally you would think it has it should have off-road capabilities in its own respect.

Everything from a Jeep Renegade to a lifted truck with 3 feet of ground clearance is classified as off-road, it just all depends.

 

With the Renegade as its main rival, I would assume that the TJ Cruiser's off-road capabilities will be on par with the competition. Nothing drastic like mountain climbing, but to ford through some muddy trails in comfort.

 

I'll be more than happy if a high trim TJ (TRD Pro?) can perform similar to the Renegade Trailhawk as we see here;

 

Once it can perform like the Trailhawk, I'd be extremely content as that's essentially more than I'll ever need to put it through, but it's good to know it can get er' done if needed as on the odd occasion, I do feel "adventurous"

 

The Renegade Trailhawk's capabilities are perfect for me, couple that with bash plates and I'm golden. Once decided to go on an adventure with a sedan and that didn't go well for the bumper...
If the TJ Cruiser can perform just as well over uneven terrain then I'll be very satisfied.

 

Skid plates are definitely something I will opt for and if they don't have options for it, there's a guy in California that I know makes them for various vehicles so I'll definitely be giving him a ring to get them done.

 

By the way here's what a TRD FJ looks like.

Starting to think the TJ could use a lift and these FJ TRD wheels, as long as bolt pattern is the same which at this point is a 50/50 chance:

 

Those FJ TRD wheels are really nice though. As far as bolt pattern goes, I don't think Toyota has changed their bolt patterns for quite some time. Lugs should be the same size as well. It's just offset and width that'll really be the determining factor I think.

 

Completely missed that part, FJ Cruisers have a drastically different bolt pattern (hence being body on frame) so FJ wheels are a write off for us. What we can do however is find something with a similar design. That is with the expectation TJ's will have a 5 bolt setup.

 

The TJ Cruiser looks like it has pretty good ground clearance already, so I don't think it needs to be lifted. But that may be necessary if you decide to get some beefier tires.

Back when the 2014 FJ Cruiser was still sold at dealerships, it had an MSRP of around $27,680 - $29,270 and more for the 2014 Trail Teams Ultimate Edition. Think we'll see a similar price for the TJ?

 

But that's just a concept and its easy to give it better ground clearance. Compare that to a production model where you're dealing with certain axle models and that changes. I just hope the axles they use don't impact ground clearance too much.

 

It'll be cheaper because it's not an FJ and not as big as an FJ. Not competing in the FJ segment, it'll be maybe in the $22-$24k?

 

The differential would hang lower than the axles will, so hopefully they can bring everything up high enough to give us much room as possible. Then we'll have to look at the lower control arms or rear subframe to see what it'll be like on the two ends

 

Too bad for us that ground clearance on this product isn't a priority, so at best we'll see mediocre clearance like the FJ. Anything more will be dependent on higher trims (think TRD) and our own customization. Just look at what FJ owners are doing, many threads on the FJ Cruiser Forums.

 

I think mediocre ground clearance would probably still be better than what the rest of Toyota's SUV/crossover lineup is offering aside from the 4Runner. Great if they can price the base trim reasonably so buyers will have a bit of money left for modifications if needed.

 

The C-HR has about 6 inches of ground clearance, which honestly is really not that bad. Even if they bump it to 7 inches to try and play with the whole adventuring sort of theme, I'll be alright with that.

 

I think the 4Runner has up to 9.6inches of ground clearance, something I would like to see in the TJ Cruiser though it is highly unlikely. I'd be very happy with 8 inches.

 

8 inches would probably be my ideal that I would be fully content with. Anything more is a plus, slightly less would be a little disappointing but won't deter me ultimately as we all know, we can install some sort of lift kit whether it's just springs or a complete lift kit system setup.

 

Will wait and see if they will offer it in a TRD and if that changes the ground clearance at all.

Currently running 14" of ground clearance to the front skid and 11" to the bottom of the rear diff, so will I have to lift the TJ---- you betcha!!! However if I were to use it as it is intended 7" of clearance would get you pretty deep into the back country.

Now for what I would be willing to pay for one, well that's multi dimensional. Giving that a base price in the range of 22K is about a third of what I have in the FJ then I could see myself having a whole lot of fun with a TJ dependent upon it's capabilities of course. If that base price creeps up to the 25K range and putting a TRD variant closer to 28-30K then the capability per dollar isn't as much fun, and some serious upgrades will have to come with it.

 

I can imagine the TRD edition (if it comes out) will get a different suspension setup. With that, it'll be some changes to the ride height. Being something meant for "adventure" I'd assume they'll be going UP instead of DOWN

 

There very well could be a $4k difference between the base model's MSRP and the TRD trim, at least that's what I assume will be the case looking at the 4Runner's new TRD Pro edition compared to the standard one. But it does come with Bilstein Shock Absorbers and TRD Remote Reservoir Suspension Kit along with other goodies. Guess it's up to the individual buyer to judge if the features is worth the extra cost.