On those, the brake lights and indicators lived in the bumper while body cutouts handled secondary duties.
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Can It Get Fixed?
Since Toyota uses the same body pressings across its global production lines, undoing the dummy setup has become a popular aftermarket job.
Recent demonstrations from a custom shop in Thailand called Toms Gear show that JDM-spec Land Cruiser 70s keep the factory mounting points hidden behind the blanking covers.
The complication is the wiring.
Since the factory leaves no active light circuit behind the dummy plates, installers have to run jumper wires from the lower bumper up into the quarter panels.
Once that wiring reaches up, the rest is straightforward.
Technicians unscrew the factory dummy plates, connect the leads to genuine taillight assemblies pulled from global-spec models, and bolt the housings into place.
The mod restores full illumination to the upper pillars and gives the truck the rear-lighting look it was drawn with in the first place.
Other Automakers Have Done The Same Thing
The Land Cruiser 70 is not the only model to feature this design workaround.
Suzuki famously adopted bumper-mounted primary lighting on multiple generations of the Jimny, Vitara, and Grand Vitara, leaving upper body cutouts either as non-functional reflectors or blank panels to ensure tailgate-mounted spare tires did not block visibility.
A similar trick was employed in the Mitsubishi Pajero, Nissan Patrol, and Isuzu Trooper / Rodeo off-roaders.
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Even European models got in on it, with the original Land Rover Freelander parking its primary rear lights in the bumper to keep the tailgate spare from blocking visibility.
