Toyota's Land Cruiser ROX Brings Soul To SEMA

Toyota is taking enthusiasts on a nostalgia-fueled desert trip with the reveal of the Land Cruiser ROX concept, an open-top twist on its hybrid off-road SUV.

The Land Cruiser ROX—short for "Recreation Open eXperience"—was designed by Toyota's Calty Design Research team and will debut at this week's SEMA show in Las Vegas.

Calty started with a 2024 Land Cruiser as a base before transforming more than half of the SUV, adding a convertible sliding soft-top roof and reshaping the rear into a pickup-style bed. The ROX is notably wider and taller, with an eight-inch-wider track and a four-inch lift that gives it a muscular stance. Trapezoidal fender flares house chunky off-road tires mounted on custom 18-inch billet wheels, ensuring it’s as rugged as it looks.

According to Toyota, the A-pillars were redesigned to mimic the look of a trestle bridge, while the sloping rear pillar integrates Molle panels for attaching gear. There’s a functional midgate that allows longer items to pass through to the cabin and even includes integrated seating in the tailgate.

The rear-mounted spare tire and custom jerrycan add even more throwback appeal, while red tow hooks, steel bumpers, and beefy brush guards reinforce its off-road readiness. The ROX is topped with a roof rack and seven auxiliary lights for night running.

Inside, the Land Cruiser ROX brings durability and style together. Custom 3D-printed components make it more weather-resistant, while touches of Heritage Orange leather add a nod to Toyota’s classic models. There are built-in safety kits in the door panels, along with webbing for securing essentials like sunglasses, gloves, or vape pens.

While Toyota hasn’t signaled any plans to bring the ROX concept to production—and will likely never—it’s a refreshing look at how the brand could expand the Land Cruiser lineup if the auto industry still had a soul. Toyota says creative experiments from the ROX project could pave the way for unique, special-edition Land Cruiser models down the road.

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