2024 Chrysler Pacifica vs 2025 Toyota Land Cruiser

The 2024 Chrysler Pacifica maintained its contemporary appeal despite not undergoing frequent redesigns. Its smooth exterior styling, featuring a modest grille, offered a refreshing alternative to the flashier Toyota Sienna and the SUV-like Kia Carnival. The Pacifica's design cleverly concealed sliding-door tracks, providing a clean look without the need for additional styling features. Available in various trims, including the base Touring and the luxurious Pinnacle, the Pacifica came equipped with standard LED lighting and offered wheel options ranging from 17 to 20 inches. The S Appearance and Road Tripper Packages added unique exterior and interior trims, enhancing its visual appeal. Inside, the Pacifica's dashboard boasted a minimalist, sculpted design with well-integrated controls. The Pinnacle trim featured luxurious brown Nappa leather upholstery, though some interior elements felt less premium. The rotary shift knob was a standout feature, though its proximity to the volume knob occasionally caused confusion.

The 2025 Toyota Land Cruiser, available in two trims, the 1958 and the more upscale Land Cruiser, showcased a blend of retro and modern design elements. The 1958 trim, with its round headlights and basic equipment, offered a nostalgic nod to the model's history. In contrast, the Land Cruiser trim presented a more sophisticated appearance with additional color options and a refined interior. Our test vehicle, equipped with the Premium Package, featured Heritage Blue paint, 20-inch wheels, and a roof rack, elevating its aesthetic appeal. The Land Cruiser's utilitarian interior emphasized traditional switchgear, with Java-colored leather adding a touch of elegance. Dual 12.3-inch digital screens enhanced its technological allure, while the intuitive steering-wheel controls impressed. Despite its personality, the Land Cruiser's color palette leaned towards conservative shades, reflecting consumer preferences.

The 2024 Chrysler Pacifica was powered by a 3.6-liter V6 engine, delivering 287 horsepower and 262 pound-feet of torque, paired with a nine-speed automatic transmission. Front-wheel drive was standard, with all-wheel drive available on higher trims. The Pacifica's V6, known as the Pentastar, had a long-standing reputation for reliability and performance across various Stellantis vehicles. It provided sufficient power for brisk acceleration and supported a maximum towing capacity of 3,600 pounds. The minivan's chassis tuning prioritized comfort and stability, effectively absorbing road imperfections and minimizing body motion. However, some weight transfer was noticeable during acceleration and deceleration. The Pacifica offered a quiet and comfortable ride, positioning itself as a refined option compared to competitors like Honda, Kia, and Toyota.

The 2025 Toyota Land Cruiser featured Toyota's i-Force Max hybrid system, combining a turbocharged 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine with an electric motor and an eight-speed automatic transmission. This setup produced 326 horsepower and 465 pound-feet of torque, distributed through a full-time four-wheel-drive system with electronic locking differentials. The Land Cruiser boasted a towing capacity of 6,000 pounds and included off-road features like Downhill Assist Control and Crawl Control. Despite an EPA rating of 23 mpg combined, real-world testing yielded only 15.7 mpg. The Land Cruiser excelled as a daily driver and off-road adventurer, though its handling on twisty roads was less impressive. Its suspension absorbed bumps and rough terrain with ease, while features like the front stabilizer bar disconnect and Multi-Terrain Monitor enhanced its off-road capabilities. The Land Cruiser's powerful and responsive feel was attributed to its electric assist motor and turbocharged torque, though acceleration and braking revealed some ride motions.

The 2024 Chrysler Pacifica offered versatile interior space with its Stow 'n Go seating system, allowing second-row seats to fold flat into the floor, creating ample storage space. The standard configuration included seven seats, with an optional eight-seat layout available on the Touring L trim. However, Stow 'n Go was not compatible with certain seating configurations or all-wheel drive. The Pacifica's passenger space compared favorably to other minivans, with generous headroom and legroom in the first two rows. Cargo space was substantial, with 32.3 cubic feet behind the third row, expanding to 140.5 cubic feet with the second and third rows folded. The Stow 'n Vac built-in vacuum cleaner was a convenient feature, though the center console's storage area was less accessible.

The 2025 Toyota Land Cruiser's interior featured SofTex artificial leather in the Land Cruiser trim, with heated and ventilated front seats and a heated steering wheel. The Premium Package added real leather and a power sunroof. While the front seats provided excellent comfort, the second-row seats lacked thigh support and had an uncomfortable backrest angle. The Land Cruiser's rear window design limited airflow, and the center console's cool box reduced storage space. Cargo capacity was generous, with 46.2 cubic feet behind the second row and 82.1 cubic feet with the seats folded. However, the high load floor required effort when loading heavy items.

The 2024 Chrysler Pacifica came equipped with a 10.1-inch touchscreen running the Uconnect 5 infotainment system, offering wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, Bluetooth, SiriusXM, and Amazon Alexa compatibility. The instrument cluster featured analog gauges with a 7-inch digital display. The Pacifica offered up to 12 USB-C ports, built-in navigation, and a 19-speaker Harman Kardon audio system. The Uconnect 5 system was user-friendly, though accessing the 360-degree camera view required improvement. The Uconnect Theater system provided rear-seat entertainment with dual 10.1-inch touchscreens, wireless headphones, and Amazon Fire TV connectivity. The FamCam allowed parents to monitor rear-seat occupants, though an intercom system was absent.

The 2025 Toyota Land Cruiser upgraded its displays to dual 12.3-inch screens with the Toyota Audio Multimedia system, offering wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, SiriusXM, and access to Apple Music and Amazon Music accounts. Five connected service plans were available, including Drive Connect with cloud-based navigation and a digital assistant. The Premium Package added a 14-speaker JBL sound system, wireless smartphone charger, head-up display, digital rearview mirror, and digital key technology. The voice recognition system performed well, providing accurate directions and responses.

The 2024 Chrysler Pacifica earned a five-star overall safety rating from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), with five stars in frontal and side crash tests and four stars in rollover tests. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) named it a 2023 Top Safety Pick, though it missed the highest award due to lower scores in certain crash tests and middling ratings for headlights and front crash prevention. Standard safety features included blind-spot monitoring, forward-collision warning, automatic emergency braking, lane-departure warning, adaptive cruise control, and rear park assist. Optional features included a 360-degree camera system and park assist.

The 2025 Toyota Land Cruiser featured Toyota Safety Sense 3.0 (TSS 3.0), offering advanced driving assistance systems like forward-collision warning, automatic emergency braking, pedestrian detection, lane-departure warning, lane-keeping assist, and lane-centering assist. The adaptive cruise control and lane-centering assist provided semi-autonomous highway driving. Additional safety features included a road sign reader, automatic high-beam headlights, and Predictive Driving Assist. The Premium Package added front cross-traffic alert, lane-change assist, and Traffic Jam Assist. The Land Cruiser received a four-star overall rating from NHTSA, with four stars in frontal-impact tests, five stars in side-impact tests, and three stars in rollover resistance.