2008 FJ Cruiser - Great Vehicle For On or Off Road Driving

For those considering buying a new vehicle, don't forget to check out the new 2008 Toyota FJ Cruiser. Great for adventures off road, just for cruising around town, or running to the store.

The new 2008 Toyota FJ Cruiser seats five and comes in two-tone with a Voodoo Blue, Titanium Metallic, Black Diamond, Sun Fusion, Sandstorm or Brick body color and White top. The interior fabric color is Dark Charcoal, while the dash, center instrument panel trim and the door inserts match the body.

It is a two door SUV with a pair of smaller, reverse opening back seat doors. Has a comfortable front seat, a center console with a storage area and cup holders. The back seat is a little crammed compared to the front, but just as stylish.

The driver seat has an eight way manual adjustable seat with an armrest, while the passenger seat has a four way adjustable seat. The rear has 60/40 seats with removable bottom cushion and fold down. The seats are water resistant with adjustable headrests. Both the driver and front passenger have duel stage airbags, front seat mounted side airbags and front and back seat side curtain airbags.

The FJ Cruiser comes standard with an AM-FM CD player with MP3 and WMA playback capability and six speakers. Upgrade would include either eight or nine speakers including a sub-woofer. Power door locks, and rubber floor and deck mats are standard.

Safety features include 4-wheel anti lock brakes, with electronic brake force distribution and brake assist and vehicle stability control and traction control. The side door beams are made to withstand impact. The cruiser also come equipped with daytime running lights, rear parking assistance and a hight center mounted stop light.

The FJ Cruiser has a large top that makes for not the greatest visibility, mainly when backing up, as well as the spare tire mount on the tailgate. Their is also no sunroof on this vehicle.

Available in either 2-wheel drive of 4wheel drive, with a 4.0 liter V-6, 239 horsepower at 5200 rpm and 278 pounds-feet of torque at 3700 rpm. Choose between a five speed automatic or a six speed manual transmission. Most automatics come with a part time 4 -wheel drive system and manuals have a full time 4-wheel drive system. There are skid plates on the engine, front suspension, fuel tank and the transfer case on the 4-wheel drive models.

The FJ Cruiser comes standard with 17 inch black steel wheels with P265/0R17 mud and snow, steel belted radial blackwall tires and a full spare tire. This option can be upgraded to 17 inch 6 spoke aluminum alloy wheels with the same tire.

The gross vehicle weight for the 2-wheel drive models is 5330 pounds and for the 4-wheel drive model is 5570 pounds. The Cruiser has a towing capacity of 5000 pounds and a 19 gallon fuel take, with an estimated mileage of 16 to 20 for 2-wheel drive, 15 to 18 for 4-wheel drive manuals and 16 to 20 miles per gallon for 4-wheel drive automatics.

The prices start at $22,545 for the standard 2-wheel drive, $23,725 for the 4-wheel drive manual and $24,135 for the 4-wheel drive automatic. Additional upgrades are available for a higher amount.

U.S. new has ranker the FJ Cruiser number 5 out of 24 in affordable mid size SUVs. and scores an overall 8.3 with 7.7 being in performance, 9.0 in exterior, 7.0 in interior and 9.5 in Safety. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration gave it five out of five stars for front driver crash protection and four out of five for passenger.

The 2-wheel drive and 4-wheel drive models earned three stars in the NHTSA rollover rating, and the Insurance Institute of Highway Safety gave it a rating of "good" for frontal offset test results and side impact test results.

Sources:

www.toyota.com

www.cars.com

www.usnews.rank

www.edmunds.com