Despite the fact that you get a smaller engine, the prices have actually gone up in the 2023 Toyota Kluger.
Prices kick off from $51,120 before on-road costs for the front-drive GX, step up to $60,640 for the mid-tier GXL and top out with the Grande at $73,010.
Buyers can also opt for all-wheel-drive versions of the same grade for another $4000 in GX and GXL form, and $3110 for the Grande.
We’ve been testing the GXL AWD, which also comes with the Saturn Blue Metallic premium paint option that adds $675 to the asking price.
To be fair, Toyota updated the Kluger line-up this year, adding more equipment and better in-cabin technologies, so that does ease the sting a little.
Standard equipment in the base 2023 Kluger GX includes 18-inch wheels, rear privacy glass, three-zone climate control, a 7.0-inch driver display and an 8.0-inch multimedia touchscreen with wireless Apple CarPlay and wired Android Auto.
Step up into the mid-tier GXL like we have here, and you score better looking 18-inch alloys, roof rails, power-adjustable and heated front seats, a powered tailgate and a larger 12.3-inch multimedia touchscreen.
Meanwhile, the top-spec Kluger shares its name with a pop-star queen and Starbucks coffee size, and adds niceties like a wireless smartphone charger, cooled front seats, synthetic woodgrain interior, a surround-view monitor, panoramic glass roof, head-up display and up-rated sound system.
However, the biggest inclusion in the spec sheet might be Toyota’s new Connected Services suite, which buyers are given 12 months of free access to when they take delivery of their new Klugers.
This service allows access to features such as an Automatic Collision Notification that will alert and direct emergency services to your location in the event of a serious accident, remote vehicle start up, a handy vehicle locator function in case you get lost in the maze of Chadstone’s carpark, and pushing navigation data from the car to your phone for when you have to continue your journey on foot.
And to be honest? This equipment list isn’t all that impressive for a $65,000 family SUV in 2023.
While it’s nice to have things like heated front seats and a powered tailgate, this is pretty par for the course in this price bracket, and it would have been better to see some features from the top-spec Grande like the wireless charger and surround-view monitor be made available here in the GXL.