The 2021 Toyota Fortuner comes with a more powerful engine, Legender sits at the top of the Fortuner range
Here comes the next launch from Toyota Kirloskar India. The much-awaited Fortuner and the Fortuner Legender have been launched in India with prices ranging from Rs 29.98 lakh and 37.58lakh (ex-showroom Delhi). Toyota Fortuner has always been a benchmark in the full-size SUV segment in India. The SUV has become pricier in its latest avatar, with the base spec overpowering entry-level pre-facelift car by a good 1.32 lakh!
The design as a whole remains unchanged but there are some notable changes to the SUV for sure. The grille has grown bigger, the front bumper has been reworked and the sides have been sculpted in the pontoon shape. All these enhance the commanding identity of the new Fortuner. The sleek and stylish LED projector headlamps houses dual purpose LED DRLs, which further heighten the look of the front fascia. The addition of aluminium finish skid plate further amplifies the toughness. At the rear, there aren’t any major changes but from the revised tail lamps. The combi-taillights now get a sleeker design. The Fortuner sits on a new set of 18-inch multi-layer alloy wheels.
Hopping in, the basic cabin layout remains unchanged though there are some necessary upgrades including, an eight-inch infotainment system with Android Auto and Apple CarPaly and an 11 speaker JBL audio system. The connected car features comprise of the familiar geofencing, locating, sending SOS and the like The front seats get a suction-flow ventilation system, which according to Totoya, cools and heats more rapidly than the conventional ventilation system. In addition, the SUV also gets a wireless phone charger, LED ambient lighting, an updated instrument cluster, a multi-functional steering wheel, and a 360-degree surround-view camera.
The new Fortuner can adapt to different conditions with three driving modes namely, Eco, Normal, and Sport. More exciting is the fact that the SUV gets an electronic lockable rear differential to take extreme offroad trails with ease.
On the safety front, the SUV gets 6 airbags, ABS, Toyota’s safety sense, collision prevention system, lane departure warning, radar-guided dynamic cruise control, etc and was awarded a 5-star safety rating in the crash test by ASEAN-NCAP earlier in August 2020.
The new-gen SUV continues to use the same BS6 compliant petrol and diesel engines from the previous model. The 2.7L four-cylinder petrol engine produces 164 bhp and 245 Nm of peak torque and can be had either with a 6 speed manual or a 6-speed automatic transmission. The 2.8L turbo-diesel churns out 201hp and 500Nm with the 6-speed torque converter automatic box, while the 6-speed manual variant puts out a better 204hp and 420Nm of torque.
Toyota has also brought the Fortuner Legender to India, which is essentially the top-spec variant of the Fortuner. Although both share the same underpinnings and are technically the same, the Legender sports a bigger grille, different bumper design, split quad-LED headlamp with new DRL, sequential LED turn indicators and different set of 18-inch diamond cut alloys adding more luxury to the package. The Legender also gets a lot of additional equipment on the inside and is targetted at the urban SUV buyer.
The prices for the petrol variant starts at Rs 29.98 lakh for the 4×2 manual and goes up to Rs 31.57 lakh for the 4×2 automatic. The prices for the diesel start at Rs 32.48 lakh for 4×2 manual and the top-spec 4×4 automatic will set you back Rs 37.43 lakh while the Legender is available only in a 4×2 automatic option and is priced at Rs 37.58 lakh. The Japanese SUV will continue to compete against the likes of Ford Endeavour, MG Gloster and Mahindra Alturas G4.
