Toyota Off-Road Club Shines Bright at the Chicago Auto Show
Toyota trucks and SUVS are joined by Lexus SUVs in the large club display at McCormick Place.
One of the aspects of the Chicago Auto Show that helps it stand apart from other large shows is the inclusion of private groups and one of those clubs at the 2020 Windy Show is that of the Chi-Town Toyota Off-Road Group. This was easily the most unique group display at the show for a variety of reasons. It was the only to be comprised entirely of off-road vehicles while also being larger than the other non-OEM displays. Of course, it was also the only one that could serve as a comfortable camping location, thanks to the innovative upgrades of these Toyota and Lexus owners.
Chi-Town Toyota Group
While someone from outside of the Chicagoland area might not expect to see many off-roaders in the Windy City, the group of Toyota and Lexus owners alone is quite impressive. Not only is it a large group, but there are individual groups for the various models within the community. This includes groups for the FJ Cruiser, Land Cruiser, Tundra, Tacoma, 4Runner and Lexus GX, as well as a group for Overland fans.
The group began back in 2005 and since then, they have grown to include more than 1,000 members. At the 2020 Chicago Auto Show, 11 of those vehicles were on display, providing a look at a little of everything that the club has to offer.
Off-Roading Lexus SUVs
The two vehicles which might come as the biggest surprise to the average show-goer are a pair of Lexus SUVs. While these are premium luxury models, they offer excellent capabilities in stock form. More importantly, when you modify them, they can hang with the non-luxury models in the woods.
The Chi-Town Toyota Off-Road Group showcases a GX470 and an LX470, both of which have been upgraded for the rigorous fun.
The Pickups
Next up, we have a 1983 Toyota pickup and a 2012 Tacoma. The compact pickup was the predecessor to the Tacoma, so these two modified vehicles show the evolution of the small Toyota pickup.
The Tacoma is considerably bigger and in many off-road situations, the newer truck is surely more capable, but in looking at these two privately owned machines, we can see how the company’s approach to the segment has changed over the years.
The Cruisers
The Toyota Land Cruiser is one of the best known SUVs around the world and any large off-road crowd is sure to include at least a few of these legendary 4x4s. These big, plush SUVs were originally introduced to compete with the large American SUVS like the Blazer and the Bronco, except the Land Cruiser outlasted all of the big American models.
Of course, the Land Cruiser lasted by changing with the times, including a bit of downsizing. As a result, the vehicles changed quite a bit over the years, but they are all excellent off-roaders, living up to their name. Along the way, Toyota introduced the FJ Cruiser. It featured unique exterior design from anything else in the lineup, but like the Land Cruiser, the FJ was engineered to handle rough roads.
At the Chicago Auto Show, Land Cruisers and FJ Cruisers came together to show off the capabilities of these similarly-named SUVs.
The 4Runner
There aren’t many SUVs sold in the United States with a stronger off-roading pedigree than the Toyota 4Runner, so it should come as little surprise that it is the most common vehicle in the Chi-Town Off-Road display. However, the club has brought out four vehicles that are each about a decade apart from the next.
The oldest 4Runner on display is from 1986, followed by one from 1997, one from 2006 and one from 2015. That spread covers four of the five generations of the 4Runner, excluding only the second generation models that were offered from 1989 through 1995.
On top of offering a look at four generations of the 4Runner, these four vehicles offer varying levels of modification, with the oldest truck having the fewest upgrades while the newer models are heavily modified.
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