Compare the2024 Toyota Land CruiserVS 2024 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport

For enhanced safety, the front and rear seat shoulder belts of the Toyota Land Cruiser have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision and force limiters to limit the pressure the belts will exert on the passengers. The Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport doesn’t offer pretensioners for its rear seat belts.

The Land Cruiser’s pre-crash front seatbelts will tighten automatically in the event the vehicle detects an impending crash, improving protection against injury significantly. The Atlas Cross Sport doesn’t offer pre-crash pretensioners.

The Toyota Land Cruiser has standard driver and front passenger side knee airbags mounted low on the dashboard. These airbags helps prevent the driver and front passenger from sliding under their seatbelts or the main frontal airbags; this keeps them better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. Knee airbags also help keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Atlas Cross Sport doesn’t offer knee airbags.

To provide maximum traction and stability on all roads, Full-Time Four-Wheel Drive is standard on the Land Cruiser. But it costs extra on the Atlas Cross Sport.

The Land Cruiser’s driver alert monitor detects an inattentive driver then sounds a warning and suggests a break. According to the NHTSA, drivers who fall asleep cause about 100,000 crashes and 1500 deaths a year. The Atlas Cross Sport doesn’t offer a driver alert monitor.

Both the Land Cruiser and the Atlas Cross Sport have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, height adjustable front shoulder belts, plastic fuel tanks, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, post-collision automatic braking systems, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning and available around view monitors.

The Toyota Land Cruiser weighs 679 to 865 pounds more than the Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport. The NHTSA advises that heavier vehicles are much safer in collisions than their significantly lighter counterparts.

Toyota’s powertrain warranty covers the Land Cruiser 1 year and 10,000 miles longer than Volkswagen covers the Atlas Cross Sport. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 5 years or 60,000 miles. Coverage on the Atlas Cross Sport ends after only 4 years or 50,000 miles.

The Land Cruiser’s corrosion warranty is unlimited miles longer than the Atlas Cross Sport’s (unlimited vs. 100,000 miles).

There are almost 2 times as many Toyota dealers as there are Volkswagen dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Land Cruiser’s warranty.

The battery on the Land Cruiser is in the trunk, which protects it from hot underhood temperatures that can degrade battery life. By keeping the Land Cruiser’s battery 20 to 30 degrees cooler, its life is increased by years. The Atlas Cross Sport’s battery is in the hot engine compartment.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2023 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Toyota vehicles are better in initial quality than Volkswagen vehicles. With 55 fewer problems per 100 vehicles, JD Power ranks Toyota higher than Volkswagen.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Toyota vehicles are more reliable than Volkswagen vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Toyota above average in long-term dependability. With 34 more problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, Volkswagen is rated below average.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2024 Auto Issue reports that Toyota vehicles are more reliable than Volkswagen vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Toyota second in overall reliability. Volkswagen is ranked 27th.

The Land Cruiser’s 2.4 turbo 4-cylinder hybrid produces 57 more horsepower (326 vs. 269) and 192 lbs.-ft. more torque (465 vs. 273) than the Atlas Cross Sport’s 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder.

On the EPA test cycle the Land Cruiser gets better fuel mileage than the Atlas Cross Sport 4Motion (22 city/25 hwy vs. 19 city/26 hwy).

Regenerative brakes improve the Land Cruiser’s fuel efficiency by converting inertia back into energy instead of wasting it. The Atlas Cross Sport doesn’t offer a regenerative braking system.

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Toyota Land Cruiser higher (6 out of 10) than the Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport (3). This means the Land Cruiser produces up to 23.4 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the Atlas Cross Sport every 15,000 miles.

For better stopping power the Land Cruiser’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Atlas Cross Sport:

The Land Cruiser stops shorter than the Atlas Cross Sport:

The Toyota Land Cruiser’s wheels have 6 lugs for longer wheel bearing life, less chance of rotor warping and greater strength. The Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport only has 5 wheel lugs per wheel.

The Land Cruiser has a standard full size spare tire so a flat doesn’t interrupt your trip. A full size spare isn’t available on the Atlas Cross Sport; it requires you to depend on a temporary spare, which limits mileage and speed before replacement.

The Land Cruiser (except 1958) has an active front sway bar, which helps keep it flat and controlled during cornering, but disconnects at lower speeds to smooth the ride and offer greater off-road suspension articulation. This helps keep the tires glued to the road on-road and off. The Atlas Cross Sport doesn’t offer an active sway bar system.

For greater off-road capability the Land Cruiser has a 1.7 inches greater minimum ground clearance than the Atlas Cross Sport (8 vs. 6.3 inches), allowing the Land Cruiser to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged. The Land Cruiser’s minimum ground clearance is 2.4 inches higher than on the Atlas Cross Sport (8.7 vs. 6.3 inches).

The Land Cruiser’s rear cargo window opens separately from the rest of the liftgate door to allow quicker loading of small packages. The Atlas Cross Sport’s rear cargo window doesn’t open.

The Land Cruiser’s standard towing capacity is much higher than the Atlas Cross Sport’s (6000 vs. 2000 pounds).

The engine in the Land Cruiser is mounted longitudinally (North-South), instead of sideways, as in the Atlas Cross Sport. This makes it easier to service and maintain, because the accessory belts are in front.

The Land Cruiser (except 1958)’s optional easy entry system raises the steering wheel and glides the driver’s seat back when the door is unlocked or the ignition is switched off, making it easier for the driver to get in and out. The Atlas Cross Sport doesn’t offer an easy entry system.

The Land Cruiser’s instruments include an oil pressure gauge and a temperature gauge - which could save your engine! Often ‘idiot lights’ don’t warn you until damage has been done. The Atlas Cross Sport does not have an oil pressure gauge.

The Land Cruiser (except 1958) offers an available heads-up display that projects speed, tachometer, navigation instruction and driver assistance information readouts in front of the driver’s line of sight, allowing drivers to view information without diverting their eyes from the road. The Atlas Cross Sport doesn’t offer a heads-up display.

To improve rear visibility by keeping the rear window clear, the Land Cruiser has a standard rear fixed intermittent wiper with a full on position. The rear wiper standard on the Atlas Cross Sport only has an intermittent setting, so in a hard rain visibility isn’t as good.