Opinions On Best Generation, Dead Stock 4Runner
- Thread starter CLK Foxhall
- Start date
.tanglefoot
ExPoseur
I would also recommend an AWD crossover like the RAV4, CR-V, CX-5 or a Subaru. Just so much nicer to drive and easier to own if you don't need part-time 4wd and big towing capability.
I have a 1st gen and my parents have a 3rd gen. I love them both but they're both pretty tiresome to drive on a regular basis and expensive to fuel compared to more car-like vehicles. My sister has a Mazda CX-5 and it's a dream...averages 30 mpg and has sports sedan driving dynamics. Looks really sharp too.
I have a 1st gen and my parents have a 3rd gen. I love them both but they're both pretty tiresome to drive on a regular basis and expensive to fuel compared to more car-like vehicles. My sister has a Mazda CX-5 and it's a dream...averages 30 mpg and has sports sedan driving dynamics. Looks really sharp too.
Martinjmpr
Wiffleball Batter
I concur with the above. There's no reason for someone who will never go off road to have a body-on-frame SUV with a low range T-case. An AWD crossover is actually designed for exactly the kind of use you're talking about, i.e. daily driver and all-weather commuter. I'd look at a Highlander or 2007 -up RAV-4.
fireball
Explorer
My wife had a 2004 Legacy wagon that was totaled. We replaced it with the 99 4R. The Legacy got 22-24mpg mixed. The 4R gets 16-18, so not that big of a difference. The Suby was more expensive to maintain as well. She liked driving it a bit better, but the 4R has more room for our family of 4 plus large dog.
If money isn't an issue, a 4th gen stock would likely be a little bit better driver for your niece. But a 3rd gen, particularly the 01-02 with the more advanced traction control devices would be an excellent choice as well. Depending on where she's going to school, the larger size of the 4th gen could be a pro or con...
If money isn't an issue, a 4th gen stock would likely be a little bit better driver for your niece. But a 3rd gen, particularly the 01-02 with the more advanced traction control devices would be an excellent choice as well. Depending on where she's going to school, the larger size of the 4th gen could be a pro or con...
surlydiesel
Adventurer
I vote Subi, CRV, RAV4 or anything small and AWD. Save the gas unless she needs to get into places that call for ground clearance, or she wants to tow.
Cheers,
jorge
Cheers,
jorge
Martinjmpr
Wiffleball Batter
I've heard nothing but complaints about the traction control on the 01-02 4runners. Apparently it has a bad habit of 'kicking in' and disabling the vehicle when on certain types of slippery surfaces, which can happen at a very bad time.
Not certain as my 3rd gen was a 99 and pre-traction control but what I read over at the T4R.org boards would make me nervous - lots of stories about near-accidents when a vehicle stalled in the middle of an intersection, for example.
Fortunately they seem to have ironed out the bugs by the time they got to the 4th gens in 2003.
Again, I'm hearing this 2nd hand, so it is probably overblown (for the simple reason that people who don't have problems don't post about them on a message board) but nevertheless, I have never heard anybody praise the traction control system on any 4runner.
On my 4th gen I can disable part of the system (I think it's the VSC) by locking the center diff. TRAC, which I think is the anti-rollover system, cannot be disabled on a 4th gen without making some mods to the wiring, which I'm reluctant to do.
fireball
Explorer
Martin,
That is interesting info, and something I've never heard of. This is our second 3rd gen, but both of them have been 99s. My interest in the 3rd gens is primarily '00 and older because of the e-locker. I was recommending the 01-02 based solely on the assumption that a more advanced traction control system would do better in daily driving situations than a manual selectable 4wd system.
No consider my recommendation officially retracted!
That is interesting info, and something I've never heard of. This is our second 3rd gen, but both of them have been 99s. My interest in the 3rd gens is primarily '00 and older because of the e-locker. I was recommending the 01-02 based solely on the assumption that a more advanced traction control system would do better in daily driving situations than a manual selectable 4wd system.
No consider my recommendation officially retracted!
paddlenbike
Adventurer
I had a 1st gen for a few years and while I liked the truck, the 22R-E 4 cylinder was just too gutless, I didn't enjoy driving it. Had it been a turbo or a V6, I would have kept it longer. It was pretty rough and not very quiet.
I sold it and bought a 2nd gen V6-speed. People complain about the power of the 3.0 but with the 5 speed it's not bad at all. It didn't sound like it was struggling like the 4 cylinder, the engine was actually pretty quiet and refined. I put a lot of miles on that truck and liked pretty much everything about it. Yes, the power to fuel economy isn't that great, but otherwise a great truck.
When I found a 5-speed 3rd gen 4Runner with the e-locker I jumped on it without thinking. It has everything my 2nd gen had plus more power and better fuel economy. The steering and front suspension on the 3rd gen is better than the 2nd gen, so basically the 3rd gen fixed the short-comings of the 2nd gen. I later supercharged it and now it has more power than the 4th and 5th gens.
I like the 4th gens too, but with no manual transmission, no elocker (or at least rare since they only made it one year on one rare model), very low to the ground compared to the 3rd gen, I don't really see it as an upgrade to what I have. They are quite a bit bigger (if that appeals to you) and the 4.0 makes more power than a non-supercharged 3rd gen. Toyota quality is still there, the interior is nicer than a 3rd gen and they are more luxurious. You basically trade the 3rd gen's out-of-box trail worthiness for luxury. You can get that trail worthiness back with a lift, larger tires and an ARB locker, but you mentioned your desire to not do that.
The 5th gens aren't appealing to me at all. They're too big, too ugly, seem to have some quality issues and generally doesn't have a 4Runner feel to me. It's just not appealing to me, but I think they're a decent rig. I would buy a 100-series Land Cruiser or a Lexus GX470 before I'd buy a 5th gen.
Hope that helps. In general, I like 3rd and 4th gens best.
I sold it and bought a 2nd gen V6-speed. People complain about the power of the 3.0 but with the 5 speed it's not bad at all. It didn't sound like it was struggling like the 4 cylinder, the engine was actually pretty quiet and refined. I put a lot of miles on that truck and liked pretty much everything about it. Yes, the power to fuel economy isn't that great, but otherwise a great truck.
When I found a 5-speed 3rd gen 4Runner with the e-locker I jumped on it without thinking. It has everything my 2nd gen had plus more power and better fuel economy. The steering and front suspension on the 3rd gen is better than the 2nd gen, so basically the 3rd gen fixed the short-comings of the 2nd gen. I later supercharged it and now it has more power than the 4th and 5th gens.
I like the 4th gens too, but with no manual transmission, no elocker (or at least rare since they only made it one year on one rare model), very low to the ground compared to the 3rd gen, I don't really see it as an upgrade to what I have. They are quite a bit bigger (if that appeals to you) and the 4.0 makes more power than a non-supercharged 3rd gen. Toyota quality is still there, the interior is nicer than a 3rd gen and they are more luxurious. You basically trade the 3rd gen's out-of-box trail worthiness for luxury. You can get that trail worthiness back with a lift, larger tires and an ARB locker, but you mentioned your desire to not do that.
The 5th gens aren't appealing to me at all. They're too big, too ugly, seem to have some quality issues and generally doesn't have a 4Runner feel to me. It's just not appealing to me, but I think they're a decent rig. I would buy a 100-series Land Cruiser or a Lexus GX470 before I'd buy a 5th gen.
Hope that helps. In general, I like 3rd and 4th gens best.