2025 Toyota Land Cruiser vs 2025 Ford Bronco Sport

The 2025 Ford Bronco Sport, built on the C2 unibody platform shared with the Ford Escape, embraced a rugged aesthetic distinct from its sibling. Its design featured a rectangular grille with inset round headlights and "Bronco" lettering, reminiscent of the larger Bronco model. While it lacked the convertible and removable doors of its bigger counterpart, the Bronco Sport maintained a square silhouette with a long, flat hood and upright greenhouse, giving it a cute yet rugged appearance. For 2025, the styling remained largely unchanged, except for the introduction of off-road packages like the Black Diamond and Sasquatch, which added modular steel bumpers, D-rings, and underbody protection. The interior, though less distinctive, was functional, with new center-console grab handles and auxiliary switches for off-road accessories, ensuring durability for its adventurous purpose.

The 2025 Toyota Land Cruiser, offered in two trim levels, continued to pay homage to its heritage with the base 1958 model, featuring retro styling, cloth seats, and basic equipment. The more modern Land Cruiser trim, however, boasted a sophisticated look with additional color options, a refined interior, and essential off-roading hardware. Our test vehicle, equipped with the Premium Package, showcased a Heritage Blue exterior, 20-inch wheels, and a roof rack, elevating its MSRP to $71,004. Despite its utilitarian design, the Land Cruiser's interior was enhanced with Java-colored leather and dual 12.3-inch digital screens, providing a technologically advanced feel. While the Land Cruiser excelled in off-road capability, its handling on twisty roads was less impressive, but it offered a comfortable and commanding driving experience in urban and suburban settings.

The 2025 Ford Bronco Sport retained its powertrain options from the previous year, with most trims featuring a 1.5-liter turbocharged three-cylinder engine producing 180 horsepower and 200 pound-feet of torque. The Badlands models, however, were equipped with a more powerful 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine, delivering 250 hp and 280 lb-ft of torque. Both engines were paired with an eight-speed automatic transmission and all-wheel drive, with the 2.0-liter models offering manual-shifting capability. The Bronco Sport's AWD system included a dual-clutch rear-drive unit for torque vectoring, enhancing its off-road prowess. The new Sasquatch Package added features like Trail Control, a one-pedal driving feature, and off-road suspension, making it a serious contender in the compact crossover segment. Despite its off-road focus, the Bronco Sport impressed with its composed and comfortable on-road performance, offering a balance of capability and drivability.

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, enabling a maximum towing capacity of 6,000 pounds. The Land Cruiser's full-time 4WD system, equipped with electronic locking differentials, provided excellent off-road capability. Standard features like Downhill Assist Control and Crawl Control further enhanced its off-road performance. However, the Land Cruiser's real-world fuel economy fell short of its EPA rating, achieving only 15.7 mpg during testing. Despite its impressive off-road capabilities, the Land Cruiser's handling on twisty roads was less agile, but it excelled in urban and suburban environments, offering a comfortable and commanding driving experience.

The 2025 Ford Bronco Sport offered practicality without compromising its off-road focus. It provided more headroom in both the first and second rows compared to competitors like the Jeep Compass Trailhawk and Subaru Forester Wilderness. While it excelled in first-row legroom, it lagged in second-row legroom. The Bronco Sport offered 32.5 cubic feet of cargo space with the rear seats up and 65.2 cubic feet with them folded, although higher trims had slightly reduced capacity. It featured convenient storage solutions, including a device tray with USB ports and mounting points for recording off-road adventures. The Bronco Sport's towing capacity ranged from 2,200 to 2,700 pounds, depending on the engine, with towing packages available for enhanced capability.

The 2025 Toyota Land Cruiser, when upgraded from the 1958 model, featured SofTex artificial leather upholstery, 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 support, the second-row seats lacked comfort, with limited thigh support and an uncomfortable backrest angle. The Land Cruiser's rear window design was less practical, and the center console's cool box seemed unnecessary. It offered 46.2 cubic feet of cargo space, expanding to 82.1 cubic feet with the rear seats folded. However, the high load floor required effort when loading heavy items.

The 2025 Ford Bronco Sport received a significant technology upgrade with the introduction of the Ford Sync 4 infotainment system, replacing the outdated Sync 3. The new system featured a larger 13.2-inch touchscreen and a 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster, providing a more premium feel. Wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity were standard, enhancing convenience. The infotainment system's graphics were impressive, with detailed animations and easy-to-read text. The available 360-degree camera system served as both a safety feature and an off-road aid, offering multiple views to spot obstacles.

The 2025 Toyota Land Cruiser, when upgraded from the 1958 model, featured two 12.3-inch displays with a sophisticated appearance. The Toyota Audio Multimedia system offered wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, SiriusXM satellite radio, 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 2025 Ford Bronco Sport received a five-star overall safety rating from the NHTSA, with top scores in frontal and side crash tests and a four-star rollover rating. The IIHS awarded it top "Good" scores in several tests, with an "Acceptable" rating in the updated side-impact test. Standard safety features included Ford's Co-Pilot360 suite, offering forward collision warning, automatic emergency braking, blind spot monitoring, and more. Optional features included reverse automatic emergency braking and traffic sign recognition.

The 2025 Toyota Land Cruiser came equipped with Toyota Safety Sense 3.0, featuring advanced driving assistance systems like forward-collision warning, automatic emergency braking, and pedestrian detection. It also included lane-departure warning, lane-keeping assist, and adaptive cruise control with lane-centering assist. Additional safety features included a road sign reader, automatic high beams, and Predictive Driving Assist. The Land Cruiser received a four-star overall rating from the NHTSA, with a three-star rollover resistance rating.