300 Series Toyota Land Cruiser Pickup Conversions Are Happening
The new Land Cruiser isn’t offered with a bed from the factory, but this shop fixed that.
It's been too long since a proper Toyota Land Cruiser pickup has been sold in the United States; heck, we don't get the Land Cruiser here at all anymore. Instead, we're left to gawk and ogle at the rigs that are sold elsewhere in the world, namely Australia. The country that can still buy an old-yet-new 70 Series is Land Cruiser crazy, as proven by Creative Conversions and the shop's 300 Series chassis cab builds.
The newest Land Cruiser was never meant to become a pickup. It does share its TNGA-F platform with the Toyota Tundra, but even then, plans for the 300 Series only involved a trunk—no bed. That makes these conversions a whole lot trickier, and since they're only offered with four doors like the Land Cruiser SUV, wheelbase modifications are still required to fit the tray out back.
You can pick between a 27.5-inch or 31.5-inch frame extension, meaning you can install either a six-foot bed or a seven-foot bed. These are all converted from millimeters, so while the math isn't quite exact, you should have a good idea of the type of utility it provides. It can also tow and haul more than the factory Land Cruiser as Creative Conversions even has the builds federally certified for increased work capacities.
A normal Australian-market 300 Series can tow 7,716 pounds, and the entry-level model of this Land Cruiser pickup can manage the same. However, the top-shelf variant can pull 9,259 pounds with what the company calls "a federally approved GCM (gross combination mass)." Creative Conversions markets its services as second stage manufacturing, which Australia has precise legislation on. In turn, the shop can have new payload and towing limits set and approved.
The final product is one that any self-respecting four-wheeler would pay plenty of money for. They'd have to in order to own one, of course, as new Land Cruisers cost roughly the Australian equivalent of $65,000 USD in their most basic form. Creative Conversions hasn't announced pricing for this specific job, though for a similar swap on a 200 Series, it costs about $26,000.
No matter the price, you're getting a handy dandy tray bed pickup that's iconically capable off-road with more utility than you can get from the factory. And don't forget that the Australian 300 Series gets a twin-turbo 3.3-liter diesel power plant as standard. An overlanding truck with 304 horsepower and 516 pound-feet way down low sounds pretty great, huh?
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