Anyone leave a 5th gen 4Runner for a 3rd gen Tacoma?

Seriously, if you are gonna primarily haul people, get a 4Runner. If you primarily gonna haul stuff, get a Tacoma. They really are not comparable. 4Runner is a much better people hauler. Tacoma is a much better rock/mulch/wood/dirt/supplies/pipe/etc hauler.
I had a 2010, 2013 and 2015 4Runner. One SR5 and two Trail Editions. My kids were still home. They went to college and I got back in a truck. I hauled people for a long time. Now I haul me, my wife and stuff. Lots of stuff.

 

Not having power seats, rear seat leg room, the crappie backup camera resolution and length are my issues with the Tacoma. I don't have any complaints about the engine or the transmission on either of the vehicles. The driver seat in the 4runner would put my leg to sleep on long drives no matter how much I adjusted it and in the Tacoma I really haven't had that issues yet.

 

My fiance just got a 2019 TRD Offroad Premium on Monday. She absolutely loves it!





It's the best of both worlds!

That said, I much prefer my Tacoma. I have the Premium so I have all the tech stuff that she doesn't. I drive 30 miles a day too and from work so I much prefer having the creature comforts that isn't on the 4Runner.

While the 4Runner does ride better, it handles very much so like an SUV.

The Tacoma handles, to me, more like a car, in a sense. I can easily take corners at higher speeds, and maybe that's because of my offset, but it feels better planted the the 4Runner.

All in all, both are AMAZING vehicles and the people complaining about the 3rd gen, aren't driving them right. You have the ACTUALLY PUSH THE GAS PEDAL and your be shocked at how different it drivers. I much prefer the 6 speed and the 3.5.

 

You can get away with hauling a lot of that shit with a trailer.

The one place the 4runner simply can’t match the Tacoma, is hauling certain stuff into the wilderness and back. For instance, hauling an enduro bike pretty deep off the beaten path then using it. There are other examples. A fully rigged 4Runner and offroad trailer will go nearly everywhere a Tacoma will, but the Taco excels at the convenience of load and unload for a lot of stuff. Especially stinky dead or skunked up stuff.

As everyone here has indicated already, the runner is the superior people mover. Taco wins nearly everything else.

 

Do what I did, buy one of each.

 

I tried to get my fiance to get a silver one...

 

I went from a 2013 GMC Sierra, I know not a 4Runner, but still went from a bigger people/junk hauler to a Tacoma.
I did this mostly because of an investment reason.
Every month I would pay $450/month to the bank, and the value of the truck went down every month by a few hundred dollars.

I did all the research like any educated consumer would do, watched a crap ton of youtube videos, and read forums everywhere.

I was in debate for a 2016 4Runner Trail Edition, or a 2017 Tacoma OR DCSB, you can obviously see which one I went with.
the biggest debate for me was, SUV or Truck.
Went with the Tacoma, because it was updated in 2016, and the 4Runner is still the same since 2010 (I believe)
There were some cool features on the Tacoma that the 4runner did not have.
I was always a truck kind of guy, I've had almost every brand of truck (1993 Ford Ranger-first truck, 2002 Dodge Ram 1500, 2013 Ford F-150 FX4, 2013 GMC Sierra 1500 z-71)
this debate over which one to get is what is the purpose of the vehicle.
I still go out to the deer lease, but I am not towing or pulling anything from town to the ranch.
I get better gas mileage, and the truck retains more value down the road.
I do miss the power, size, and stance of my GMC, but its just a truck.
you can always buy another one later on.

in my opinion, get whatever you want. haha

 

Taco wins everywhere else EXCEPT:
- build quality
- drivetrain
- creature comforts
- day to day practicality

For anyone that doesn't need a bed in their day to day use, the T4R is a much better choice all around.

 

Spot on.

 

One thing to keep in mind if you concerned with safety features and all that kind of stuff:

The 4Runners did not get updated with lane departure warning. They also do not come with radar cruise or blind spot monitoring. As far as I know, Toyota added these features as standard for all Toyotas. Except for the 4Runner... Also, I'm not sure if the 4Runner has cross traffic alert. It might... I haven't checked. But this is an option for the Taco.

The Tacoma's seats can be heated and leather, but they are not powered and cannot move up/down vertically. I've taken my Taco on trips that rounded about 1200 miles. Surprisingly, the seats were fine. Didn't get any back or butt fatigue. But if you need power seats, it's the 4Runner.

Another thing is that the 4Runner still uses the 5 speed transmission. People argue over which one is better, the 5spd or the updated 6spd. I think they both have their issues and benefits. Ultimately, the newer 6spd and the 3.5L engine does get better gas mileage, allegedly.



I personally hope that the 4Runner gets an update sooner than later. Other than that, it's still the king of body-on-frame midsize SUV, as far as I'm concerned.

 

I had a 2016 TRD Pro 4Runner, I loved that truck but it just wasn't for me. I need the truck bed space for utility. I tried talking my wife into taking the runner so i could keep them both, but that didn't work. Ive had 5 different toyotas since the 90s.

 

How do you figure it has more creature comforts? My premium Tacoma has more features than the premium 4Runner.

Minus homelink, remote start, and power seats.

 

Thinking of trading in my taco for a GX460.

 

What's your reasoning for switching?

 

I went from a '14 VW Jetta Sportwagen diesel to a '16 T4R off-road premium and really disliked it. I felt for how big of a vehicle it was, it really wasn't that spacious. Plus, as others have said, it didn't have the creature comforts of my current '18 Tacoma. I like the better sound system in the Taco, the wireless charger, interior storage areas, and I think he truck is quieter than the T4R. The small infortainment was terrible and the display in the instrument panel was technology from 10 years ago. I thought the storage area in the T4R was way too small. Right now in the bed of my Tacoma, I have some stuff for snow (snow brush, shovel, etc.) and a large plastic tote with random stuff and still have lots of room in the bed for other stuff. With that same stuff in the T4R, I'd have almost no trunk room. Had I gotten the KDSS, I might have held onto the T4R a little longer, but overall, I'm much happier with the Taco.

 

Space is a bit tight to haul around my three boys. And not using the bed as much as I thought I would. The 4runner is also on the list but the v8 and the full-time 4WD on the GX460 seems interesting... Gas mileage cant be that much worse than the taco. lol

 

LOL my wife calls the prius a fagot wagon

 

Honest question (and perhaps a dangerous one in today’s non-binary times):

Is there something more feminine about a 4Runner or its functionality?

Why is Taco/Runner families is the Runner always the wive’s/GF’s/fiance’s and the Taco for the dude?

Is the 4Runner essentially a “chick truck” for whatever reason?

Not trying to be controversial or a pot-stirrer. Just something I keep reading over and over here, and elsewhere, which has formed this question in my mind.

 

Because women typically take care of the babies and the 4Runner is the family SUV?

 

Good point.