Possibly Trading for 4Runner

Ever since I was a little kid, I wanted a “Toyota truck.” My wife and I recently purchased a new 2020 TRD Off Road Premium. We’ve loved it and so has our 3 year old. Taking it to the local dunes is everything I dreamed it would be and more, not to mention it’s a BEAST in the snow.

So here’s the set back. We are trying for another kid and the other day, just for fun, we put our infant car seat in the back of the Taco to see how it would fit with the toddler car seat... needless to say it doesn’t fit. So my wife instantly started to panic.. “WHAT IF WE HAVE TWINS???” “THIS TRUCK WONT EVEN COVER OUR BARE MINIMUM NEEDS!!!!”


So here’s my question.. has anybody owned a 4Runner? There’s a 2021 OR Premium at our local dealership with the same trim package as our Tacoma and it seems like it may be a pretty straight across trade.. hopefully. There’s also a 2017 TRD Pro there that we may be able to get a sweet deal on.. any advice? Thanks in advance.

 

What do you mean by straight across trade? There's no way a used Taco is going to be worth the same as a new 4Runner.

 

Your saying the infant seat won’t fit because it’s rear facing? Have you tried test fitting other seats or configurations?

 

It all depends on the car seats. I was able to do a graco booster and a graco infant carrier in mine. But if you can't make it work, then yeah a 4runner or something else might be better.
As far a "straight" trade, I assume even?, if they are going to do that, go for it.
And let us know about this awesome dealership.

 

Look into Diono seats. You can fit 3 across. You will have about the same amount of room in a 4Runner.

 

I also had wanted a Toyota Truck since I was a kid. It’s the Black SR5 from Back to the Future that did it for me. I had a Tundra for 8 years and now an 18 Limited Tacoma. It’s a fine truck but as I told my Buddy who wants one “there’s no way I could have raised my kids with this truck, the car seats wouldn’t fit”. As for the 4Runner, we have a 20 Limited. We basically paid sticker before it was even delivered to the dealer. I’ve never done that before but they were hard to find in August with COVID restrictions. The dealer only had one on the lot (TRD OF) and my wife didn’t want that. Other nearby dealers didn’t have any at all.
I can’t speak for off-roading with it, but it’s a nicer vehicle than the Tacoma. It feels more significant and solidly built, it doesn’t have the squeaks, rattles, and other quirks that my Tacoma has either. Plenty of room in the back seat and plenty of cargo room. As much as I like the look of the Tacoma, I’ll probably keep the 4Runner and send the truck on it’s way when the time comes. Good Luck.

 

My wife has an 18, has been about as equally reliable as my Tacoma so far. It’s def solidly built, worse on fuel than my Tacoma as one would assume. Did you think about a tundra? The rear seating area is considerably larger and you still have a truck if need be.

 

My bro n law has a 4runner and Tacoma. He overall, likes it more as far as functionality and even driveability. He's not hauling stuff all the time. I have 3 kids in mine, 2 in boosters and one in a forward facing seat. I can't speak on the infant rear-facing seats though.

 

Definitely fine with booster seats, but the rear facing baby carriers are enormous and even the toddler seats are huge. The front seats would have to be pretty far forward. I remember barely fitting two toddler seats into my 99 Cherokee years ago and that gd more backseat room than the Tacoma.

 

jump on that 17 pro

 

I have a 2017 dclb tacoma and my wife has a 2019 4runner offroad premium. The 4runner is much better than the tacoma. More room in the backseat. Solid build. Shifts smoother and much more capable offroad. I love my taco, but the 4runner.is the way to go.

 

Strap car seat in truck bed. Plenty of room back there. Problem solved.

 

I also have a 2018 4Runner and I have to say I prefer its transmission. The value of the Tacoma of course is the truck bed, but the 4Runner has a lot of interior space and nice visibility.

 

I would consider ditching the new truck for an older one and a maybe a highlander.

 

At 15k each, you would have a nice taco (albeit older) and a decent highlander for family use.

 

Our 04 highlander has been awesome this far, and it just hit 215k miles. Surely you can find one ( not a 2004!) for 15k with 50k miles or so.

 

I better tell my 9 and 7 year olds that Tacoma's don’t work with kids.. sure will miss them..

 

One word buddy... Sienna. A minivan is in your future. Live on the edge and get the AWD version lol.

 

You must have small kids man.

 

I have basically the same truck as you and wrestled with the same decision but for different reasons (I don't have kids so car seats aren't a factor for me). I used to own an early 2000's 4Runner which I loved but I went with the Taco for the following reasons:

1) I liked not having to carry dirty things inside with me. I hate listening to tools rattle around or smell gas cans. With the Taco I leave those things in the back, although eventually my Taco will be getting a shell for more security.
2) Cost. Where I live a comparable 4unner was 5-10K more than my Taco.
3) M/T For me that was a must-have. Had the 4Runner come with one I likely would have bought one.

If you're just looking for a family-hauler which can do some off-roading it's hard to beat a 4Runner.