It is said that the most sought-after SUV in any country turns out to be the most versatile car. Yes, it is right and well-applied in Toyota Fortuner. This is further demonstrated by the fact that Toyota shifted 966 units of the Fortuner in March 2021. Central to its popularity lies in people’s love for travel afar and their ambition to explore and sail.
Six months ago, Toyota rolled out the updated model, 2021 Toyota Fortuner. This all-new model has maintained the usefulness and practicality while making major improvements. The test team in Autofun picks up the flagship 2.8 GD-6 VX 4x4 model on test, and mainly focused on the technical change in the engine room. Everyone is no stranger to the 2.8-liter four-cylinder motor, an engine that is often found in SUVs. Thanks to a larger turbocharger, this engine can produce 150kW and 500Nm of power and is quieter and lighter than before. The car accelerates more smoothly, and climbing steep hills becomes easier. In addition, the 2021 Toyota Fortuner can drive even with a full load of seven passengers, and at the same time, it can also tow 3,300 kg without strain. And the towing weight of old-gene Toyota Fortuner is 3,000 kg.
The 2021 Toyota Fortuner has a larger chrome bar separated by dual led lights and a black grid pattern grille on the edges. It has a Lexus-style look and feels so it is easily recognizable. This upgrade also adds new cutting-edge technology, such as active cruise control automatically controls the throttle and brakes at speeds above 30 km/h. Gone are the days of using rudimentary instruments. It can also control digital menus via a 20.3 cm touch screen. All of this is wrapped up in a luxurious, supple leather dashboard. Modern devices like Android Auto can be easily connected to a smartphone to send navigation commands via the phone’s SMS function. What’s more, the 2021 Toyota Fortuner also offers road trip music streaming. On a recent trip to the border of South Africa and Mozambique, the quiet equipment and sound insulation were good, blocking out most mechanical and ambient noises and making the driving experience more comfortable.
But then we discovered that the noise was still audible when the road conditions weren’t so good. Once you hit a rough gravel road, the saggy rear seats creaked and rattled, and we had no choice but to suffer in silence. So I still don’t understand why Toyota still prefers this military infantry seat configuration to the traditional forward-facing bench. The noise from the rear seats can’t be masked even by the standard refurbished JBL sound system. Other drawbacks include the fact that the power rear fender can’t be opened remotely via a key card, and the adaptive cruise control is old-fashioned and only works above 30 mph. I guess these drawbacks may have been created to keep costs down.
But as the saying goes, small flaws don’t cover up merits. These minor shortcomings do not affect its popularity and do not in any way diminish people’s avid love for it. People love its practicality, which can be closely matched with daily life; love the safety and comfort it brings. Use a popular sentence in Thailand to end my article: เอ ฟ เวอร์ เร ส คือชีวิต! (in English Toyota Fortuner is life !)
