Toyota Mega Cruiser
Encyclopedia
The Toyota Mega Cruiser is a large, heavy-duty sport utility vehicle
introduced by Toyota in 1995. The largest SUV ever built by Toyota, it resembled the Hummer H1
, and like the Hummer, was designed primarily for military use with the Mega Cruiser seeing duty (as the HMV) as infantry
transport
s equipped with mounted howitzers and mobile Surface-to-air missile
s in the Japan Self Defense Forces. The civilian version is known as a BXD20 and the military version as the BXD10.
Exclusively sold in Japan, the Mega Cruiser also was used by prefectural police and fire/rescue departments, although a limited number were sold to civilians. This vehicle was intended to test designs that would eventually make their way into mass produced Toyota SUVs (like the Land Cruiser
), but was financially unsuccessful for Toyota.
The Mega Cruiser featured a 4.1 L turbodiesel
I4
engine. The engine focused on producing high amounts of torque at low revs. The SUV featured front, center, and rear differentials, as well as four wheel steering.
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Sport utility vehicle
A sport utility vehicle is a generic marketing term for a vehicle similar to a station wagon, but built on a light-truck chassis. It is usually equipped with four-wheel drive for on- or off-road ability, and with some pretension or ability to be used as an off-road vehicle. Not all four-wheel...
introduced by Toyota in 1995. The largest SUV ever built by Toyota, it resembled the Hummer H1
Hummer H1
The Hummer H1 is a civilian off-road vehicle based on the M998 Humvee, which was created by AM General. The vehicle was produced from 1992 through 2006, and was the first of what became the Hummer line...
, and like the Hummer, was designed primarily for military use with the Mega Cruiser seeing duty (as the HMV) as infantry
Infantry
Infantrymen are soldiers who are specifically trained for the role of fighting on foot to engage the enemy face to face and have historically borne the brunt of the casualties of combat in wars. As the oldest branch of combat arms, they are the backbone of armies...
transport
Transport
Transport or transportation is the movement of people, cattle, animals and goods from one location to another. Modes of transport include air, rail, road, water, cable, pipeline, and space. The field can be divided into infrastructure, vehicles, and operations...
s equipped with mounted howitzers and mobile Surface-to-air missile
Surface-to-air missile
A surface-to-air missile or ground-to-air missile is a missile designed to be launched from the ground to destroy aircraft or other missiles...
s in the Japan Self Defense Forces. The civilian version is known as a BXD20 and the military version as the BXD10.
Exclusively sold in Japan, the Mega Cruiser also was used by prefectural police and fire/rescue departments, although a limited number were sold to civilians. This vehicle was intended to test designs that would eventually make their way into mass produced Toyota SUVs (like the Land Cruiser
Toyota Land Cruiser
The is a series of four-wheel drive vehicles produced by the Japanese car maker Toyota Motor Corporation. It is not related to the Studebaker Land Cruiser car produced in the US from 1934-1954....
), but was financially unsuccessful for Toyota.
The Mega Cruiser featured a 4.1 L turbodiesel
Diesel engine
A diesel engine is an internal combustion engine that uses the heat of compression to initiate ignition to burn the fuel, which is injected into the combustion chamber...
I4
Straight-4
The inline-four engine or straight-four engine is an internal combustion engine with all four cylinders mounted in a straight line, or plane along the crankcase. The single bank of cylinders may be oriented in either a vertical or an inclined plane with all the pistons driving a common crankshaft....
engine. The engine focused on producing high amounts of torque at low revs. The SUV featured front, center, and rear differentials, as well as four wheel steering.
External links
- Toyota Mega Cruiser Presentation - Megacruiser.com
- Toyota Mega Cruiser Specifications And Photographs - ToyotaOffRoad.com