If you've spent any time in the 70 Series community, you already know the nameplate covers a much wider family of vehicles than the 76 wagon, 78 Troopcarrier and 79 single and dual-cab utes that Australians can walk into a dealership and buy. Toyota quietly sells versions of this platform across the Middle East, South America and parts of Asia that most local owners have never seen in the metal. A newly released Toyota video, featuring LandCruiser chief engineer Masaya Uchiyama and Dakar Rally driver Takamoto Miura, has brought one of the most intriguing of those variants back into the spotlight: the short wheelbase, three-door 70 Series. Three of them appear in the video, and the one everybody stopped on was the soft-top. Its windscreen unlatches and folds completely flat onto the bonnet, because a station hand throwing a lasso from a moving vehicle does not want a windscreen in the way. That single detail tells you more about who this vehicle is built for than any spec sheet will.
For a deeper look at the full range of regional 70 Series variants produced around the world, our earlier piece on LandCruiser 70 Series worldwide and regional variants is a good place to start. This article focuses specifically on the SWB and what that compact footprint actually means in practice.
At a Glance
- The showpiece of the video was a soft-top convertible. Its windscreen unlatches and folds flat onto the bonnet, there is a roll-over structure behind the front seats, and side-facing rear benches take capacity to seven.
- The SWB 70 Series rides on a 2,310mm wheelbase, only about 60mm longer than a three-door Suzuki Jimny and well short of the LandCruiser FJ's 2,580mm.
- Toyota showed three builds: a no-frills commercial hardtop, a lifestyle-spec wide-body hardtop, and the soft-top.
- Roughly 90 percent of SWB production is exported to the Middle East, with the balance going to select South American and Asian markets.
- Chief engineer Masaya Uchiyama said there are no immediate plans to add the SWB to the Japanese lineup, though he made no secret of wanting one there himself.
- It is not sold in Australia and there is no indication that will change.
A Wheelbase That Changes Everything
At 2,310mm, the SWB 70 Series is a remarkably compact machine by modern standards. To put that number in perspective, it is only around 60mm longer than a three-door Suzuki Jimny, and sits noticeably shorter than the classic LandCruiser FJ's 2,580mm wheelbase. That tight measurement has consequences that run in both directions.
On the positive side, a shorter wheelbase improves the breakover angle, which is the angle that determines whether the vehicle's belly will ground out when cresting a sharp ridge or rock feature. In genuine technical terrain, particularly the kind of boulder fields and steep gully crossings found across the Middle East and parts of South America, that improved breakover is worth more than almost any aftermarket modification. The turning circle also tightens considerably, making it far more manoeuvrable in confined spaces: narrow tracks, yards, and the kind of dense scrub where swinging a long-wheelbase vehicle around means a three-point turn turns into a ten-point one.
The trade-off is equally straightforward. A shorter wheelbase means a shorter load area, which limits what you can carry. For extended touring, that reduction in cargo and water capacity is a genuine constraint. Australians who load a 79 Series dual-cab for a month on the Gibb River Road or across the Simpson are accustomed to using every cubic centimetre of tray and interior space. The SWB simply does not offer that, and that is not a criticism so much as an honest acknowledgement of what it was designed for.
Three Very Different Builds
Toyota's video was notable for showing the SWB across three distinct specifications, which illustrates just how wide the intended use cases are.
The first was a black narrow-body hardtop built squarely for work: steel wheels, a snorkel, manual wind-up windows and vinyl trim throughout. No frills, easy to hose out, built to run hard in commercial fleet applications. This is the specification that police and security operators across the Middle East typically run, where the short wheelbase and tight turning circle matter more than passenger comfort or cargo volume.
The second was a wide-body hardtop in a sand finish, fitted with guard flares, power windows, leather and suede interior trim and a multimedia screen. This is a lifestyle and patrol vehicle for buyers who want the capability of the short wheelbase but are not willing to sacrifice comfort. It is closer in spirit to what Australian 70 Series owners are used to expecting from the platform, just in a dramatically shorter package.
The third, and arguably the most striking, was a soft-top convertible. The windscreen on this variant does not simply tilt: it releases and folds completely flat onto the bonnet. There is a roll-over structure behind the front seats, and side-facing bench seating takes capacity to seven. Toyota noted in the video that the fold-flat windscreen configuration is particularly favoured on cattle stations, where workers need to throw a lasso from a moving vehicle without obstruction. It is an application that makes immediate practical sense once you hear it, and a reminder that the 70 Series family has always been built around specific working demands rather than marketing demographics.
Who Is It Actually For?
The buyer profile for the SWB is genuinely different from the long-wheelbase variants most Australians know. Police patrol units, cattle station operators in tight terrain, and government and utility fleet buyers in the Middle East account for the overwhelming majority of demand: roughly 90 percent of SWB production is exported to that region alone, with the balance going to select South American and Asian markets.
For those operators, the physics of the short wheelbase, better breakover, a tighter turning circle, a narrower overall footprint in some configurations, make it the correct tool for the job. The trade-off in load space and touring range simply does not matter when the vehicle is working a defined route or patrol area rather than being loaded for a remote expedition.
For the typical Australian 70 Series buyer, who is often weighing up long-range fuel capacity, tray dimensions, and the ability to carry gear for weeks at a time, the SWB trades poorly. That is not a failing of the vehicle. It is a vehicle optimised for a different set of priorities, and it does that job very well.
Not Coming to Australia
To be direct: the SWB LandCruiser 70 Series is not available in Australia. Uchiyama said in the video that there are no immediate plans to add it to the Japanese lineup either, though he made no secret of wanting one there himself. There is no indication from Toyota that it will ever be offered here, and it would be irresponsible to speculate otherwise. This is a vehicle worth knowing about as part of the broader 70 Series story, not one to build purchase plans around.
For Australian owners and buyers, the platform that matters is the 76 Series wagon, the 78 Series Troopcarrier, and the 79 Series single and dual-cab ute. Those are the variants our fitment work at PVS Automotive is built around, covering everything from steering wheel upgrades to interior and technology accessories designed specifically for the vehicles actually sold here.
