Following Successful Tundra, Toyota Opens Opportunity To Bring 4Runner To The Australian Market

Toyota 4Runner. (Doc. Toyota USA)

JAKARTA - Toyota Australia has successfully entered Tundra into the country's market ofTEN, both converting into a right steering wheel and its rising sales. In fact, this model is generally intended specifically for the United States (US) market.

Toyota has acknowledged that Tundra has set a good example, and the company is now confident it can repeat the conversion of the right steering wheel to other models that are currently not sold in Australia.

Toyota Australia's head of sales Sean Hanley, said that the truck's pickup has received a positive response so far and opens up opportunities for models from the US.

Tundra is now a benchmark in the way we bring locally converted cars to the market. This is a very good exercise for us," Hanley said as quoted by Drive, Tuesday, July 16.

This is the first clue from the manufacturer regarding the possibility of other vehicles imported and converted to the Australian market. Following Tundra, Toyota has the potential to present models such as Tacoma, 4Runner, and Sequoia.

The Sequoia model will probably match the Australian market. In addition to its tough dimensions, this car is said to be suitable to be converted into a right steering wheel configuration. However, high import costs and its position in the Land Cruiser 300 class can reduce the chances of this model being presented to the country with the Melbourne capital.

Thus, the model that has great potential to enter the Australian market is 4Runner. Given that Fortuner will stop production in the market in the next 18 months, it opens up the possibility of the SUV debuting in the country.

In Australia, Fortuner lags far behind its competitors by only earning sales of 1,696 units in the first half of this year. Meanwhile, Ford Everest managed to sell 11,276 units in the same period.

In mid-April, the latest 4Runners were born carrying the classic feel of a truck-based SUV in Uncle Sam's country.

The latest Toyota 4Runner is built with a TNGA-F platform specifically for SUVs with a tadder-frame chassis. This architecture is also used on Tundra, Sequoia, as well as Lexus LX and GX.

Toyota aims to bring 4Runner closer to Tacoma. They want to target buyers who want a tough truck-style SUV, as well as place the Land Cruiser back in the SUV as a more luxurious alternative.