WATCH the television news from a remote hotspot anywhere around the world and the people sent to sort out the trouble will probably arrive in a Land Cruiser.

Need to cross the Sahara without an escort of mechanics? You'll be wanting a Land Cruiser then. Ditto anywhere else that involves extremes of endurance.

Patient development over decades has made this huge Toyota the must have machine when the going turns near impossible.

It's resulted in a car that's so hard to break it's become a legend in the bush, the outback and anywhere else where the favourite garage tool is a hammer and spares are anything that fits, just about.

But this dedication to the unstoppable off road has consequences when most, or all, of your driving will be on the smoothly surfaced roads of Europe, where even a UK-sized pothole would go unnoticed in downtown Dar es Salaam.

It means the development of the Land Cruiser has progressed at a glacial pace compared to the 4x4 opposition from the likes of Land Rover and BMW, both of whom know their cars will be used as tall saloons, not off-road heroes.

So the Toyota clings to a suspension design dropped for something smoother (but more fragile) by everyone else decades ago. It will laugh at rivers and cliff faces but show it a B-road bump and things turn to jelly.

It's the same under the bonnet;  a mere four cylinders to the six in other cars and so loud at a cold start idle it will wake the neighbours. Does the job, though, and feels it will last until hell freezes over, or Britain joins the euro (whichever is first).

There's what Toyota calls a 'new look' for 2014, with what its makers term a 'heritage-inspired grille', new lights and colours and a dashboard redesign with new display screen.

And, take a deep breath, also on board are "Rear Cross Traffic Alert, Blind Spot Monitor, Trailer Stability Control, Pre-Collision System and Adaptive Cruise Control." So, lots going on inside.

It still doesn't feel like a fifty grand car, until you take a closer look. Then you discover leather upholstery with the depth of an elephant hide and plastic fittings that look solid enough to unscrew and use as makeshift weapons, should you ever be ambushed in the bush.

You might not like the look of so much plastic wood, especially where it makes the steering wheel slippery, or switches apparently applied where they would fit, even if it leaves them invisible to the driver.

But press switches in the boot and a third row of seats whirr out of the floor. Touch a button on the dash display and a DVD screen winds itself out of the roof, perfectly placed for the occupants of rows two and three to watch The Jungle Book.

The middle row even has its own air con controls, with vents in the roof to blow cooling air as the sun head for yet another oven-like equatorial midday. Or warmer air in the depth of a British winter, of course.

From the driver's seat the Land Cruiser feels like captaining a smallish ship from the bridge, with long views ahead and the friendly thrum of a diesel engine from somewhere down below.

That engine provides adequate progress and actually drops away to a hushed whisper when you lift off the throttle. A week's driving, with no fuel gulping off-roading, saw 27mpg on the trip computer. So this heavy car likes a drink.

I waved it goodbye with a surprising feeling of loss after my 500 miles at the wheel. Yes, a Discovery does the on-road bit better and a BMW has more style, but neither feel as honestly made for a job as this gentle giant from Toyota.