Learning Experience: Doug DeMuro Crashed His Land Cruiser
Many a great driver has hit a deer, and it’s interesting to see how the Land Cruiser handled the hit.
It’s no secret that Doug DeMuro is a fan of the Toyota Land Cruiser. In various videos over the years, the SUV fan and YouTube star has mentioned the Toyota’s venerable off-roader plenty. Plus, he was a vocal critic of the company’s decision to pull the 300 Series from the American market, memorably calling it a “stupid mistake.” Well, back in January, DeMuro put his money where his mouth is, and added a 2013 Blizzard Pearl example to his formidable fleet, which already includes gems like a new Land Rover Defender, a Ford GT, and an ultra-weird Mercedes-Benz G500 Cabriolet.
Unfortunately, the pair aren’t off to a great start. Less than three weeks after the vehicle was delivered from Kentucky, DeMuro was driving through a heavily wooded area in the Northeast when a deer jumped directly in front of the his new Land Cruiser. Since he was actually wary of just such a thing happening, DeMuro says he was driving well under the speed limit at the time, which greatly minimized the damage to the truck. For the record, I was hoping the reduced speed would have allowed the deer to survive with some minor injuries — but the ending is less happy. Godspeed, forest friend.
That said, “minimized damage” is still damage, and while this looks like a headlight and a bumper should basically do the trick, it actually took $4,000 of parts and labor to set the rig right. As DeMuro explains, that’s because even a nine-year old vehicle like this Land Cruiser has loads going on under the skin. So along with the stuff you can see, there’s a bevy of bits — headlight washers, reservoirs, pre-collision sensors, adaptive cruise sensors — that were likely damaged in the crash. At this point, there’s almost no such thing as a fender bender anymore.
The good news is that by the time the video was posted, everything was good as new, and he’s been enjoying the hell out of it. The bad news, at least for the Land Cruiser, is that it’s not going to have the easiest life. DeMuro bought it specifically because it’s a vehicle that can sit unattended for long periods of time, carry seven people, and tackle brutal off-road trails — and it sounds like he’s resigned to rust killing it at some point. Watch the video to find out exactly what he loves about the Land Cruiser, and where he finds it lacking.
Photos: YouTube