thinking of selling my tacoma to get a 4runnner

Our 2006 4runner with the V8 doesn't have that cruise control issue.

 

The 4runner has better build quality than the tacoma, while still sharing the majority of the components that contribute to the Tacomas longevity and durability. The little things, interior component quality, fit and finish, etc. If you can, check a few out. It should be pretty easy to notice as you spend more time around them.

According to the things that seem most important to you, the only con I can see is what you mentioned, losing the bed of the truck for the dirty stuff.

 

im not sure i agree with that. how is it a better build quality?

 

test drive one, there is a definite difference

 

Have you spent time around them? Why wouldn't you agree?

Edit: highlighted couple aspects in my post that starts to answer your question

 

i have. 3rd gen, 4th gen, and 5th gen

 

I only have experience with the 5th gen, but there is a noticeable difference from the taco in how if feels, no creaks rattles and all that.

 

i actually thought the ride in the 4th gen was the best of them all

 

my dad has a T4R limited same year as mine and I do not like the ride in it, mine is just plush on the roads, his not so much

 

Yeah, it's just a bunch of those types of little things. Plus, the most important difference, 4Runner = MADE IN JAPAN.

 

thanks but im not sure if that's because yours has a v8, or if it really is not a shared cc issue the 4ruuners have as well, I guess only someone with a v6 runner can answer this.

ya, the one thing I will lose that I really will miss, no more using tailgate as a fish cleaning station and hauling fish guts to go dump in the canal will require some extra thought as to how to haul that stuff without spilling it. have to put it in the ice chest instead of a bucket I guess lol

 

Does it have to be a toyota? I ran a grand cherokee with the HO v8 for a few years. Rode better than the 4runners, pulled better, towed better etc. It had roof racks for quick lumber runs and a hitch for the flatbed when I needed real materials to be moved. And they don't have the toyota markup on the used market. Full leather and all the add-ons, ended up selling it for about what I paid for it.

My biggest complaint for going straight SUV was having to get and haul the flatbed whenever I needed something moved vs just dropping it in the bed and driving off.

After the GC, bought a mustang for fun, 2 taco's for off-roading, cj5 to plow and a f250 as my beater/tow vehicle. But I lived on 9 acres and had a 2600 sqft shop, so parking was not an issue. With my hobbies and where I lived there was absolutely no way to get all that done with just 1 vehicle and almost as hard to do with 2.

Then I moved to Florida and into a neighborhood so parking is an issue. So I'm down to a nice BMW DD for business and an old sporttrac for the bed/dump runs/beach/kayak hauling vehicle that can get sand and salt etc inside and not care. If I ever decide to clean it, rubber floormats instead of carpet so out comes the garden hose!

Those 2 vehicles take care of most of my needs now, trying to combine all those needs into 1 vehicle would just make a piss poor everything DD. Kayak racks on top of my car, trying to haul lumber and still have something nice enough to carry clients in. It just wouldn't happen. I'm a big proponent of having 1 nice vehicle, and 1 beater truck to do everything else in. 2k on my sportrac off craigslist was a good investment even considering it took me some time to get a good deal.

A 4 foot bed is more usable to me than a 4 foot enclosed cargo area but obviously ymmv. I do miss my long bed f250 when I'm hauling stuff though. Being able to put the tailgate up on full sheets of plywood or drywall is nice. My dog would like an SUV since he has to ride in the bed when he's wet or when I have the kids with me but being able to put crap outside the passenger compartment is more important to me than making sure my dog is comfy at all times.

 

I run the General Spring Heavy Duty Springs along with the Super Springs Which I just Love.

Don`t cross any bridges but have a few hills pretty flat nothing over 3000 '


Are The 4Runners still made in Japan ??

 

I tend to keep vehicles for 10-15 years and in my mind, if you are hoping to get possibly 300-500k miles out of a vehicle, only Toyotas will do that with any reliable expectations of that being the "norm". the rest I feel are lucky to reach 200-250k max

ya, I put the general HD springs on mine too

I don't know for sure (or really think that much about it) but I "think" everything but the trucks (Tacoma/Tundra) are still made in japan

 

I looked up the specs for the v8, its only 24 more hp and something around 20-30 more torque as well, doesn't seem like that much of a power upgrade for the lesser mpg??????? I was thinking a v8 might be an attractive thing to look for but I only found one for sale and it was a limited version that had 20" rims and leather seats. I sure as hell don't want 20" rims and tires or leather seats so I passed on that one.

thinking on why it should be only that small power increase with the v8, its a v6 4.0 vs v8 4.7 so I guess just a 0.7 jump in size is why. I sure wish if when they did the v8, they would have at least pushed it up to a 5.0 when doing it

 

after doing a good bit more reading on this it seems most guys with v8's get about the same mpg as the v6 guys do so I guess mpg isn't really much of a concern after all when trying to decide if one engine is necessarily better then the other.

I did notice the 4.7 v8's have timing belts just like our 3.4 tacos, but unlike the taco, the 4.7 engine are "interference engines" so a belt failure on one of those means almost certain bent valves or worse, so its not something you can just "wait until it breaks". the 4.0 v6 have timing chains that never need replacing, so that's a nice advantage to those engines. every time I look, there is something good vs something bad when trying to choose one engine over the other.

another problem I am having is finding any v8 in the sr5 trim, most are the sport or the limited with sun roofs and leather seats which I definitely don't want either of those. I like the hood scoop of the sport model but im not a fan of the sun roof since I wouldn't ever use it, around here its hot as hell most of the year so staying cool is the main goal and shade is at a premium and the last thing you want is more light coming in.

 

Seat covers

 

nice thought but seat covers wont stay in place to work on top of leather seats, they just slide off when you get in and out of the truck. the only option would be permanently attached covers stapled in place to the seat frames. I think a salvage yard replacement seats would be another option but on a vehicle you are just buying its not an attractive thought to need to do. then leather seats means the fully loaded package so that also means there is that sun roof I need to get removed and a solid roof panel welded in and painted lol

 

What's the big problem with a sunroof? Just curious. And most sports had cloth seats I believe but I'm not sure if most had sunroofs or not.

 

Just a heads up as there was some issues I found when buying used 4Runners. On the V8's there was a air pump issue that can fail and the pump location is under the intake so the whole intake would have to be removed to get to the pump. It's a hassle.

Another common issue is another pump. This time it's the brake pump or accumulator that goes bad. When test driving, you will hear and feel on the brake pedal vibrate as it is priming the accumulator. If it does this at close intervals, the pump is most likely going bad.