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Toyota did it quite simply by putting 5 airbags, including curtain & knee, a stiffer stronger frame, & high tensile steel side rails. I'm almost certain the envelope they had to work with was not much more than the Defenders, and was not exactly a new design having first been introduced in 1984, & of course it's predecessor had been around for 25 years before that.
I have noticed a lot of differences between my 1955 Series 1 to the 2000 TD5 110, and then on from that to my MY16 Puma 90.
Scrambler, have a look at a 98 Jeep Wrangler, less space(or Cherokee for that matter) than a defender between driver and wheel, the doors are far weaker, yet they got abs and a drivers airbag to enable continued sale in USA. The old box shape Cherokee had a fixed wheel that was far closer to the driver than a defender, but it still had airbags.
The d1 (and2)had a RRC chassis dating from the late 60's with crush cans /airbag sensors as an afterthought 25years later. Same drivetrain gear as a d90 or series 3 /2swb.