In a serious car dilemma, help wanted.

Just wanted to use this thread to tag on a question because it's already got plenty of people. I installed a K&N open intake on my car. Any of you running them? How will it do when i go through puddles? I noticed the original filter sucked from a cutout in the side of the car.
I did it because of my supercharger- didn't really think about the cons.

 

And today, at the age of 33 months. 100% trouble free. Hope Toyota doesn't mess up the formula with the 6th gen.

 

Big number, congratulations

 

That's no shit. I don't have the pro, but my Trail Premium rocks.

 

All 4 Runners (except the ugly as sin LIMITED ) > Taco.

If I didn't need the bed, I wouldn't have the crappy American quality built Taco. I prefer the JDM Bulletproof 4runner, just like how bulletproof all my LC has always been.

I am jealous of your 4runner, just wish it was orange

 

I'm not a fan of how any of the T4Rs look (except for some of the mod versions on here) but, having owned several Tacos, I still think the Limited version of the T4R is > than a Taco.

 

The rear diff can only be locked when in 4lo, so I doubt it was locked, maybe he thought it locked too. You can only go to 4lo after switching into 4hi and it locks in place. Kinda dumb to only be able to use it in 4lo, but whatever.
I have read this entire thread in interest as I am seriously contemplating trading in my 16 Tacoma OR for a 4Runner pro or OR.
You may ask, why? Well, here goes. I bought this truck because I have always loved tacomas and pickups in general. I needed 4x4 and a truck to haul crap. I did my research and test drove several. Yes the tranny is a little shift happy, but it's liveable. Also, this is my first new vehicle, so I really searched hard for issues, bugs as I knew a new model would have some. The tranny moves as quickly as possible into the 1200 rpm range because this is where gas mileage increase comes in, but often shifts too soon and gives a bogged down feeling. You have to be active in skinny pedal management to get it to react the way you want. Sport mode helps alleviate it, use s4 in town and s5 on everything except interstate, and it helps the tranny hold gears a little longer. Push ECT, and it will change tranny mapping even more and will provide a much more down low torquey, quick response. Gas mileage seems to be about the same no matter what mode I use, but I also only put ethanol free gas in it. I love the redesign interior and exterior, and quicksand is just an awesome color. I didn't get the extra tech package, this thing has way more tech than I will ever use anyways, and don't care about power heated seats. The 4x4 shifter is an electronic turn knob, I much prefer the manual transfer case lever that is in the 4Runner. Much more reliable, and no electronic actuator switches locking up. Several people have had this happen and even a few transfer cases needing replaced on 3rd gens. The steering wheel is nice and beefy, seating position is fine as I'm no giant. The truck is heavier than the previous gen with a slightly smaller motor, but still performs well. The engine likes to hit high rpms, when you get above 2k, it will really showcase the power potential it has. Use ECT and it will stay above 2k which provides the torquey fun drive experience, just not used to hearing a truck wind out like a sports car, lol.

I have had several problems with my truck, some not resolved yet. It began having harsh shifting and rev hang problems indicative of low tranny fluid. After wrangling with the dealership and headaches there, I went through corporate, and finally got the tranny fluid manually checked......it was 2quarts low! I had nearly 800 miles on it before this was rectified......I was awarded a free platinum extended warranty from corporate due to this issue, as a customer service good will offer to an unsettled consumer. The lower control arms howled like a banshee, until tsb fixed it, as well as the driveablility tsb corrected some hesitation issues when going from R to D when engine is cold. I have a squeaking front bushing that hasn't been replaced yet since it quit when cold weather came rolling in. It will reappear when it gets warm again, several owners have found their bushings to be completely shot in just a few thousand miles. I do have a slight rear diff howl in the 55-65 mph range when off the throttle, no remedy yet, but mine is still not very loud yet. I have the slight rumble strip vibration in the brakes when slowing under 30 mph, will bring up at oil change. Also the leather wrap on the steering wheel seems to be coming unglued in the exact place I put my hand to drive, so this will also be brought up at the oil change. Most of these are minor annoyances, but are there nonetheless.
Also, front passenger dash rattle, lest I forget! Very annoying but mine was easily resolved by pushing in and forward on the a pillar and it snapped back in place. Others have had to tear the dash apart to fix the plastic adhesive holding parts together, so I guess I got out easy on that end, lol.

I test drove a 4Runner a while back, and was really surprised at how well it rode and drove. My taco has a good ride on and off road due to the suspension, but the heavier bodied runner felt smoother. The taco rides like a truck, heavy nose, light rear, but I expected that in a truck so no issue there. Put some concrete and lumber in the bed and it smooths out just fine. The runner interior is nice, a little less fancy but I don't care, I'm more utilitarian anyways. The seats are definitely more plush than the taco, but an SUV expects such. The 4.0 has more low end grunt feeling and better throttle response than the 3.5. It shifts more like expected, as opposed to the quick upshifting taco. The drivetrain seems to just flow together better than the taco drivetrain. We know the 4Runner drivetrain is proven, the taco will probably be so in the long run, but for now it's a little iffy to those of us with issues. No leaf springs is probably a good thing, as quite a few taco owners have old ford sounding squeaky leaf springs on a new truck that can't seem to get resolved. I haven't had the cps issue yet, but that is always in the back of my mind. No vehicle is perfect, but some stuff shouldn't be an issue, like howling diffs and low tranny fluid. I also love the fact that the 4Runner is made in Japan, my 2008 Scion xB (in a manual tranny!!!) has been flawless, it also has the Camry motor in it, and it will fly! It is a much lesser and cheaper vehicle than many toyotas, yet is has been in the shop less in 9years than my new taco!! I'm just waiting on the airbag replacement recall to be installed. All scions are made in Japan, and it shows. I have 140k+ miles on it, even the original clutch in it, and it runs perfect. My taco has only 2800 miles and it has been in the shop 5-6 times, oh, and the issues weren't present when I tested it and bought it, they showed up later. Find a video on Japanese QC, they are meticulous.
So, after my experience, I do still love my taco despite the issues, but now that I have a beater truck, I am looking to possibly trade in or sell my taco and get a 4Runner. I love Japanese made vehicles, love the transfer case manual selector and drivetrain of the 4Runner and the roominess of it, so I may very well be getting one soon. I will keep researching and thinking hard on any decision, as I don't want to be too hasty. I tend to keep my vehicles till they croak, so I'm looking at the big picture.
Sorry about the long post, OP. I just wanted to share my experiences, thoughts and observations on the 3rd gen I own vs the 4Runner I have tried out. Hope this helps give you some insight as to what you are looking at.

 

In short I do not like my 16 taco trd or dbcb sb. I've owned it only 3 month, put 10k miles on it and I can't stand driving it. I've had it at the dealer several times (including now as I type this) for warranty work. The motor is gutless until about 4k rpms, the motor sounds terrible imo, it shifts terribly and when you don't want it to...even after the "update", its loud, doesn't have enough room on the inside, and not what the tacomas use to be as far as quality imo. I'm not planning on keeping it very long. I'm either going with a full size pick up or a 4runner trd pro. I hope this helps.

 

I was in the same situation a few months ago. Always wanted a Tacoma, really don't need a truck though. I loved my LC80, and the current 4runner is about the closest modern iteration to the LC80 you can find. Some luxury, about the same size, weights less and has more power.

Taco Pros:
-can cost slightly less
-available with a manual trans
-I think the front looks better
-maybe better fuel mileage

4Runner Pros:
-Larger brakes front and rear
-Disk rear brakes
-Coil springs vs. leaf springs
-manual transfer case lever in Trail/PRO, AWD in the limiteds
-4.0l/5AT proven drivetrain
-Entire platform has been around for long enough, it's well known and sorted
-No direct injection issues/possibilities
-larger standard tires, easier to fit larger tires
-The optional Tacoma tow package items, all come standard on all 4runners (except the tiny 2nd trans cooler)
-Larger fuel tank

The only thing I wish was different about the 4R driveline is the gearing, the 3.73s are good, but 4.10s or 4.33s would be nice for adding larger tires.

 

Yeah, but will it win a drag race on the street or get sideways in the dirt roads?!

Sicky gnar!

 

I'm in the exact same boat right now. I own a 08 tacoma with roughly 140k on it. I was looking to replace it with either a new tacoma or a runner. I'm going with the runner because it is the last year of the generation and is bullet proof. The taco's just have to many growing pains right now for me to justify spending that kind of money. In 8 years or so when the runner has 200k+ on it and they've worked out all the bugs of the tacoma, i'll go back to one.

 

So, OP, what did you decide?? Don't leave us in suspense, lol.