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Comfort in Harsh Environments
In the 1980s, Mitsubishi Motors' Pajero captured well the direction of four-wheel-drive vehicles for enjoying off-roading as leisure. Chief engineer Sadayoshi Koyari, then a young engineer, looks back that it was a period when the Land Cruiser's direction was reconsidered, since Toyota also had vehicles that were highly reliable, durable, and able to drive on rough roads. Up to the 70 Series, rigid-axle suspension and leaf springs were the norm for off-road vehicles, but the 80 Series adopted coil springs, familiar from passenger cars. According to Fukuoka, only when a vehicle has the basic performance to handle harsh surfaces can the people riding in it drive with ease. The theme Fukuoka and the development team pursued in the 80 Series era was how comfortably it could be driven in harsh environments.
