2022 Toyota Fortuner

Toyota Fortuner 2021-2022 Review

While it may be a model that hasn’t exactly seen the spotlight in more recent years, the Toyota Fortuner is one that still deserves a level of respect – especially when you consider that it’s the most potent and robust SUV available in the current model range, and that anything more luxurious with off-road capabilities are only available through parallel import channels.

Despite being around since 2004, there have only been two distinct generations for the model, with a number of facelifts along the way. This is because the Fortuner is based on the Hilux platform, essentially fighting other SUVs based on pickup truck platforms. The most current generation was put forward in 2015, with a facelift born in 2020.

Where the Toyota Fortuner may have started as a slightly more refined, closed rear version of the Hilux, the most current version that you see today definitely has higher luxury aspirations in mind, both in terms of overall design and functionality. It’s also telling of the times that the Fortuner is offered in three different variants, each with a different engine – one of which Is only offered in East Malaysia.

It’s surprising that there isn’t as much of a take-up rate when you consider that the Fortuner isn’t the outright most expensive model in Toyota’s range, but it does present itself as the largest off-road vehicle currently available.

Toyota Fortuner 2021-2022 Specifications

There are three engines available for the Toyota Fortuner, so let’s go through them starting with the smallest. The 2.4-litre turbo diesel variant is only in the 2.4 AT 4x4 variant, and only sold in east Malaysia. This engine makes 150 PS and 400 Nm of torque, channeling power to all four wheels through a six-speed automatic transmission with sequential shift functionality.

Next up is a 2.7-litre petrol engine making 166 PS and 245 nm of torque, also paired with a six-speed automatic transmission with sequential override and delivering power to all four wheels. The top-of-the-line variant is the 2.8 VRZ AT 4x4, packed with a 2.8-litre turbodiesel powerplant making 204 PS and 500 Nm of torque, also paired with the six-speed automatic transmission with sequential override.

All variants have an automatic disconnecting differential, designed to provide traction when necessary without completely destroying the drivetrain if you’re on tarmac surfaces with little slip between the front and rear wheels. The 2.7 SRZ AT 4x4 and 2.8 VRZ A/T 4x4 get rear differential locks, while the East Malaysia only variant does without.

Dimensionally, all four variants are identical. They have the same 2,745 mm wheelbase, same 4,795 mm length, 1855 mm width, and 1835 mm height, with identical ground clearances of 279 mm. Kerb weights are hefty at over two tonnes for all variants, with the lightest being the 2.7 SRZ AT 4x4 at 2,020 kilograms, and the heftiest being the 2.8 VRZ A/T 4x4 at 2,160 mm. The turning radius is a surprisingly tight 5.8 metres, and the fuel tank is 80 litres large.

Toyota Fortuner 2021-2022 Exterior

You wouldn’t believe that the Toyota Fortuner is based on something generally seen as utilitarian, with a ladder on frame platform. The impressively designed front and rear end with slim headlights and tail lights set up the Fortuner as something that punches it far above its weight. The headlights in particular are bi-LED for the 2.4 AT 4x4 and 2.7 SRZ AT 4x4, and quad-LED for the top-spec 2.8 VRZ A/T 4x4. The daytime running lights for all variants are LED units, as are the fog lamps. There’s a power back door for the top two variants as well. Wheels start at 17-inches in size for the 2.4 AT 4x4, going up to 18-inches for the remaining two variants.

Toyota Fortuner 2021-2022 Interior

The entry level Toyota Fortuner gets fabric door trims and seat materials, while the rest of the variants have leather in this place. Beyond this, the feature list is flat – with a good sized head unit sitting front and centre on the dashboard and well thought out and placed switchgear throughout the cabin. There’s no doubt that the interior is similar in design somewhat to the Hilux, but the fit and finish as well as the soft touch materials take it a step further in terms of comfort and refinement.

Toyota Fortuner 2021-2022 Safety Features

Across the range there is a decent amount of safety functionality for the Toyota Fortuner. Common to all variants are items like vehicle stability control, hill-start assist control, active traction control, downhill assist control, as well ABS with EBD and brake assist. Seven airbags are also standard for every model, as are ISOFIX child seat mounting points for the outboard seats in the second row.

Specific to the top spec 2.8 VRZ A/T 4x4 variants are advanced safety items like a pre-collision system (warning and braking autonomously), lane departure alert, and dynamic radar cruise control. Also included is a blind spot monitor with rear cross traffic alert that happens to be standard on the 2.7 SRZ AT 4x4, and optional on the lowest spec variant.

Toyota Fortuner 2021-2022 Strengths & Weakness

There has been a lot of effort put into the Toyota Fortuner to differentiate it from its pickup truck roots, and we mean that both in terms of the way it looks from the outside as well as the inside. It’s an impressive vehicle that is perfectly livable in a variety of situations, at home in the city or bumping down a gravel road in an oil palm estate.

Unfortunately, the Toyota Fortuner can’t shed the issues of its past. The powertrains offered with the Toyota Fortuner just aren’t fuel efficient – they never have been, nor will they ever be as a result of the weight and the drivetrain by nature. This criticism has been levelled against the Fortuner from generation to generation, facelift to facelift – though it isn’t something that owners usually mind as much.

Toyota Fortuner 2021-2022 Price

Getting into Toyota Fortuner ownership is the cheapest if you’re specifically living in East Malaysia, where you can purchase the 2.4 AT 4x4 variant at a price of RM 167,357.40. The 2.7 SRZ AT 4x4 variant sets you back RM 172,244.00, while the top-spec 2.8 VRZ A/T 4x4 goes for RM 203,183.00 – all prices inclusive of the tax exemptions currently in place.

Toyota Fortuner 2021-2022 Features

Between the 2.7 SRZ AT 4x4 and 2.8 VRZ A/T 4x4, your feature list is quite nearly identical – and impeccably healthy. Automatic air conditioning for the front and rear, cruise control, a glove box cooler, door courtesy lamps, eight-way power adjustable front seats are all specific to these two variants. If that seems like a short list, it’s because we’re going to talk about what’s common to all three variants.

All variants get a nine-inch capacitive touch screen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity, with USB and Bluetooth options too. There’s a six-speaker sound system, an electronic 4WD transfer dial, a 4.2-inch colour TFT for the multi-information display, keyless entry and start, three 12v power outlets, ambient lighting for the interior, and a front digital video recorder.

Toyota Fortuner 2021-2022 Fuel Consumption

There are currently no manufacturer quoted fuel consumption figures for any of the variants of the Toyota Fortuner, and we cannot find equivalent variants in other markets save for the top spec 2.8 VRZ A/T 4x4 that will return roughly 14.42 kilometres per litre.