3 minute read • Mater Cars For Cancer, Mater Lotteries, Car News, Cars For Cancer
Win a LandCruiser GR-Sport and make your Great Escape
Regardless of whether your cup is full, or you’ve had a gutful of the grind, making a great escape to the wilderness is high on many people’s agenda. Leaving the lights of the city for the big skies of the outback is soul cleansing, but how do you do it on a budget? You could brave the elements with a wobbly old fourby and a tent, or you could give Mater Cars for Cancer lottery No. 120 a crack for as little as $30 for the chance to win a Toyota Landcruiser GR-Sport, a caravan and some cashable gold bullion to fund it.
Toyota’s legendary LandCruiser hasn’t achieved its reputation by accident. Decades of testing and real-world feedback in the LandCruiser’s most popular market—that would be Australia—has ensured that the machine’s been fit for purpose throughout the last 66 years. But any new model, like the 300-series LandCruiser which came out late in 2022, must rebuild that reputation from scratch.
Toyota’s engineers are fully aware that any misstep is likely to affect the LandCruiser’s standing as there are plenty of capable peers in the market. The Nissan Patrol, Jeep Grand Cherokee Trailhawk, Land Rover Defender 110, Ineos Grenadier, even Toyota’s own 70 Series LandCruiser could easily step in if the 300-series fell over itself with issues. So, how good is it? Read on, but you might find out firsthand if you’ve got the winning ticket.
The LandCruiser’s 3.3 litre twin turbo V6 diesel lacks a bit of power compared to the 5.6 litre V8 diesel of the Nissan Patrol (227kW vs 298kW respectively), but torque is what you need when you’re towing a van or crawling over rocks, and the LandCruiser GR-Sport has that in spades. With 700Nm, it eclipses allcomers—even the V8 Patrol—and has double the torque of the Jeep Trailhawk, despite having the smaller engine.
The release of the GR Sport LandCruiser saw one of the first local examples of what Toyota calls electronic Kinetic Dynamic Suspension System or eKDSS. That’s marketing speak for swaybars that disconnect, a feature normally supplied by the aftermarket rather than as factory fit. Getting wonky on some rocks requires extreme amounts of suspension travel, but swaybars don’t allow this to happen. Conversely, swaybars on road cars are a necessity, ensuring handling is solid and body roll is controlled.
The eKDSS system is currently exclusive to the 300-series LandCruiser GR Sport—not even other ‘Cruiser variants get it—and although the Cherokee Trailhawk has a similar system overseas, the GR Sport remains the only rig off the Aussie roads that can cast off the shackles of swaybars at the touch of a button. Here’s another important button; it could aid your great escape if you purchase the winning ticket.
The LandCruiser hasn’t really taken a step wrong in the last six-plus decades, with a minor software update to the transmission being the only notable fault since the 300-series release a couple of years ago. Likewise, Mater Cars for Cancer rarely takes a step wrong, priding itself on combining the best of the best, hence the 300-series LandCruiser GR-Sport. With all that torque, it’ll comfortably tow the 20-foot On The Move Traxx Off-Road Family caravan, itself one of the ultimate ways to accommodate you and your family on your great escape. They’re even throwing in $120K of cashable gold bullion to ensure you’ve got the funds to do so; all that’s left is to grab a ticket and make sure you give yourself the chance.
