2025 Toyota Prado Kakadu Gremlins Part II: Diff Locks, Dodgy Seats and Missing Plugs

Sometimes gremlins take their time, sometimes they pounce immediately. Either way, they rarely make sense. The 2025 Toyota Prado Kakadu ($108000 drive away) may be selling like hotcakes, costs a bomb, and comes loaded with gear, but oh darling, the quirks keep coming.

We went four-wheel-driving today. It scrambled over rocks like a capering goat, forded murky pools like a flollopy fish, and even dragged a Hilux off a rock as if auditioning for Priscilla, Queen of the Desert. I gleefully scrolled through every off-road mode before flicking back to road settings.

The squidgy suspension was divine off-road, soaking up nasties far better than its “cruise ship in a nasty swell” antics on tarmac. But then the gremlins struck. I’d switched off the centre diff lock in 4HI. It flashed as usual… except 30km later, it was still engaged. Rookie mistake? Maybe. But unlike the über-posh Range Rover, the Prado requires manual fiddling.

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Two hours later—after cycling drive modes, pressing buttons, and muttering unprintable words—I gave up and consulted YouTube. A friendly American told me: “Wait for the clunk.” Sure enough, once I pressed and held the button while creeping forward, the orange lock disappeared. Mystery solved. Time wasted.

And no, I couldn’t just Google it sooner—our garage has no reception, and I wasn’t about to risk turning the gearbox into confetti out in the street.

But wait, there’s more. Rob, our resident camping bear, tells me the Prado (and Hilux) can tow beautifully, but can’t be fitted with 12-pin plugs. That means no fridge or campy-wampy luxuries powered on the move. Toyota blames the mild-hybrid setup. Workarounds exist, but Toyota warns: meddle at your peril—possibly fiery peril.

And then there’s the “luggage space.” Or should I say: lack of it. The third row of seats gobbles most of the floor, while a bin resembling a cheap flowerpot steals the rest. It’s even worse than the floppy, foldy flippers in the old Land Cruiser 200. Kakadu’s third row? A useless blight on Prado’s otherwise pert bum.

Verdict? The 2025 Prado Kakadu is plush, powerful, and impressive off-road—but still haunted by gremlins that Toyota really needs to exorcise.

Stay tuned, darlings. The saga continues.

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