The dieimma of purchasing a new Toyota

[eaneumann]

Have you driven both of these? The 4 Runner is hands down a much nicer vehicle. I went through the same choice a little over a year ago. I was even looking at the two Ford trucks mentioned. With the price/power/mileage difference, I went with a Tundra. The TRD Pro is very nice, but I would lean towards a Limited over that for features (wish I had cooled seats!). If you're happy with the factory suspension and tires on the pro, then that's the way to go. If you want to add a spacer lift and a little larger tire, you'll be wasting money on the pro, you'll ruin those shocks off-roading with a spacer lift. A nicely built up base model is a good approach, I went this route with my Tundra and my old Jeep JK (wife is MUCH happier with the Tundra haha). Only issue is resale, which you've already stated is not a concern. I also live in Colorado and probably go on the same trips as you. I just couldn't hang with the power of the smaller trucks.

 

[Dr. Cornwallis]

I've always wanted a 4 runner but I think something like an xtra cab taco has some advantages, such as ease of cleanup.


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[Clutch]

I've always wanted a 4 runner but I think something like an xtra cab taco has some advantages, such as ease of cleanup.

I got rid of my 4Runner for such reasons, I was using it more as a truck...bags of concrete, lumber, firewood, even tossed a tarp back there once and hauled topsoil....the deal killer was when I spilled darn near a gallon of pre-mixed gas for the chainsaw in it...it reeked of petrol for quite a while.

Pickups are just easier to hose out. Keeping the messes out of the cabin is a good thing, imo.


We do have a SUV again, which I keep in near pristine condition. I am not allowed to eat in it, the dog isn's allowed in it...no hauling of materials...it doesn't even go offroad. My Tacoma however, it gets used and abused.

Only issue is the physical size of them. The 4Runner and Tacoma are great vehicles. I run out of room when traveling. Between the dog, wife, camp, dirt bike, and fishing gear...it gets tight real quick.

 

[Dalko43]

I got rid of my 4Runner for such reasons, I was using it more as a truck...bags of concrete, lumber, firewood, even tossed a tarp back there once and hauled topsoil....the deal killer was when I spilled darn near a gallon of pre-mixed gas for the chainsaw in it...it reeked of petrol for quite a while.

Pickups are just easier to hose out. Keeping the messes out of the cabin is a good thing, imo.


We do have a SUV again, which I keep in near pristine condition. I am not allowed to eat in it, the dog isn's allowed in it...no hauling of materials...it doesn't even go offroad. My Tacoma however, it gets used and abused.

Only issue is the physical size of them. The 4Runner and Tacoma are great vehicles. I run out of room when traveling. Between the dog, wife, camp, dirt bike, and fishing gear...it gets tight real quick.

I hate to cater towards stereotypes, but IMO there is a reason most of the hunting and rural crowds drive pickup's...I'm sure some of them do it for looks/perception, but for a lot of them, it comes down to the practicality of having a bed which can be used and abused (as Clutch described).

The 4runner is a great vehicle. It's comfortable enough, though nothing special. Has a fair amount of interior room. Adequate engine with okay mpg if you drive it like a truck instead of a dragster. I have used it for hunting and fishing. But I don't hunt and fish very often throughout the year due to work and my location. If I were looking for a true hunting rig, to be able to use on a regular basis, I would definitely look at a pickup before I looked at a SUV. When you hunt, camp, explore enough, it's not a matter of if but a matter of when something spills or some odor gets onto our vehicle...better to have that happen to a pickup bed rather than a SUV carpeted interior.

 

[Clutch]

I hate to cater towards stereotypes, but IMO there is a reason most of the hunting and rural crowds drive pickup's...I'm sure some of them do it for looks/perception, but for a lot of them, it comes down to the practicality of having a bed which can be used and abused (as Clutch described).

The 4runner is a great vehicle. It's comfortable enough, though nothing special. Has a fair amount of interior room. Adequate engine with okay mpg if you drive it like a truck instead of a dragster. I have used it for hunting and fishing. But I don't hunt and fish very often throughout the year due to work and my location. If I were looking for a true hunting rig, to be able to use on a regular basis, I would definitely look at a pickup before I looked at a SUV. When you hunt, camp, explore enough, it's not a matter of if but a matter of when something spills or some odor gets onto our vehicle...better to have that happen to a pickup bed rather than a SUV carpeted interior.

This popped up in my FB feed yesterday.

http://www.fourwheeler.com/features...=10153100849721290&adbpl=fb&adbpr=22256451289

 

[benji5280]

Now that is a rig and then some. Me likey.

 

[JWP58]

Im a bird hunter as well (I have two brittanys and am very wind burnt from pheasant hunting all day). If I had to do it over again, I would look really hard at a power wagon. Lifted, lockers, and winch all stock. That's hard to beat.

 

[Bluegrass Taco]

I bought my first 4wd 43 years ago. I've owned full size trucks, small trucks, SUV's, Jeeps, etc...I've owned Fords, Chevy, GMC, Dodge, Jeep (both AMC and Chrysler) and Toyota . All tolled, 17 different 4wd's. They ALL have advantages and disadvantages. Many of those you'll need to address for personal needs.

That said, I've owned a total of 5 Toyota's. (Some before they were renamed "Tacoma") The last six 4wds have been pick ups. They suit MY needs better. With the popularity and availability of 4-door cabs, they sort of bridge the gap between pick ups of old and SUV's of today.

As far as brands....I've owned more Toyota's than any other. And there's a reason. More accurately, SEVERAL reasons. I like their product. They perform well on AND off the road. There's a great availability of OEM and aftermarket accessories. I like their level of quality. And, with the fact that I continually change vehicles, I LOVE the resale value. Land Cruisers, Tacoma's and 4-Runners lead the pack with regard to Kelly Blue Book resale value. Those 3 Toyota's end up being the closest thing you can get to being a "wise investment" in a vehicle.

I'm VERY much impressed with the off road performance of late model Tacoma's. I'm "old school"....Never was impressed with the need for active traction control, etc, until the first time I drove my Tacoma in deep snow and then again first trip into a legitimate serious off road environment. This thing is for real!

Lastly, I'm of the belief that you can make the most of just about whatever vehicle you select. You just need to size up the vehicle, make a plan, use good judgement, create a balance of accessories, and build it to suit YOUR SPECIFIC WANTS AND NEEDS. I've been happy with all sorts of vehicles....From Jeep CJ5's back in the day, to early Ford Bronco's.....From a Dodge 3/4-ton, quad cab, long bed gas hog/hemi, to my current Tacoma double cab short bed. They're like my children. I can't single out one as my favorite, and they ALL have their positives (which I choose to dwell on) and one of them was a "problem child".....that was as much my fault as any other reason.

And with all THAT said, again, I keep returning to the Tacoma's.....They serve me well.

 

[marathonracer]

I'm a hunter both birds and big game and a fly fishermen and have several friends who are professional guides. Reading the thread all the way through it sounds like you are between a wrangler and a dcab Tacoma now. I ve owned both and wheeled both for the purposes of getting to the untouched spots. The wrangler just was not comfortable at the high speed logging road stuff. I had pulled the rear seat out of the wrangler and made it work cargo wise but being able to keep some stuff outside the cab is so much better and easier to clean.
Also anecdotal but fwiw my Tacoma never let me down in 135k miles of hard woods work, deep snow, sub zero temps I never worried. The wrangler was constantly needing something even with only 45k on it. I now drive a 1st gen tundra double cab and it has never let me down. My Tacoma made me a Toyota fan boy.

I look at a lot of the guides around me that run hounds around here. They beat they're trucks high speed, low speed, chasing hounds through impossible terrain. Time is money for these guys and they can't break down... I'll give you a guess what they all run for trucks.

Like you mentioned you don't need a rock crawling moon buggy or baja racer to have a good hunting rig. Get the body style and reliability you want put a good set of AT of MT tires on it some seat covers and good floor mats and go have fun. I do miss having my locker in deep snow but that can be added.

 

[JK4AER]

I just went through this same dilemma! I had a 2008 JKU Rubicon and wanted something with more towing capacity and more comfortable for my growing familiy. My idea of adenture has changed from rock crawling to overlanding / camping. I was thinking about a Taco but there just wasn't enough interior room. Then I started looking at a 4Runner but decided it was too similar to my wife's GX. So, I ended up with a 2016 Tundra 4x4 Limited!

It was tough to see the Jeep drive off since I had put a lot of time and mods into it but I'm ready for a new chapter. I can't believe I'm now a Toyota guy!

Looking forward to seeing some Tundra builds on here!

 

[Applejack]

Just a little over a month ago I found myself debating the same situation. It looks like a lot of us were. I really had my heart set on a white 2016 Tacoma DCSB TRD/OR with a After factoring the *alleged* waiting list and due to such a list the dealer was is no way wanting to make any real negotiations, the situation looked like this: $38,997 for the truck. Add to that a shell and carpet kit + suspension upgrades and tires, was easily pushing the truck up to the $45k territory, and we were told that it would be 3-4 months to acquire my truck as spec'd. The reality was that I was trying to make the Taco more 4Runner like. My wife pointed this out to me several times but the draw to the Taco was the supposed better fuel economy. In the end we walked away with a 2016 4Runner Trail edition and I'm really glad that's how it ended up. A friend of ours recently got his new Taco and he is so disappointed with his mileage. He averaging a very dismal 15.1 mpg. The only mods he has made were a shell and some Yakima cross bars. Toyota have been not been helpful at all but I can understand why. His best mpg was 16 and that was totally unloaded and a very light footed hwy trip. My 4Runner, lifted with much heavier tires and a roof basket or box loaded to the gills with stuff will still get 18 hwy.
I'm a photographer so the security and weather sealing from the elements (dust) is paramount. Sure there are going to be times when I would prefer a pickup but and least for my needs the 4runner worked out best. If I need I can always tow my trailer for things that wont fit inside.

 

[Clutch]

A friend of ours recently got his new Taco and he is so disappointed with his mileage. He averaging a very dismal 15.1 mpg. The only mods he has made were a shell and some Yakima cross bars. Toyota have been not been helpful at all but I can understand why. His best mpg was 16 and that was totally unloaded and a very light footed hwy trip. My 4Runner, lifted with much heavier tires and a roof basket or box loaded to the gills with stuff will still get 18 hwy.
I'm a photographer so the security and weather sealing from the elements (dust) is paramount. Sure there are going to be times when I would prefer a pickup but and least for my needs the 4runner worked out best. If I need I can always tow my trailer for things that wont fit inside.

My moto buds with Ford, Silverado's and Ram's half tons are getting a consistent 20 mpg or better. Midsize trucks are hard to justify anymore...even more so with the prices they are commanding now-a-days.

 

[Scurvy]

Just check out some of the trucks that the rest of the world has available, way better fuel economy. I am not sure why Toyota keeps fighting us on offering a diesel option for the Tacoma north america. The emissions are low, good power, and around 30 mpg according to Toyota Australia. Diesels do have more expensive maintenance as well to deal with.
My 2013 Tacoma stock with a Leer canopy and BF KO tires gets 20 mpg average according to scan gauge 2. I love my truck and plan on keeping it.

 

[Bluegrass Taco]

I get 19 to 21 mpg with my 2011 TRD OR V6 Auto with Duratracs (that reportedly take off about 2mpg) I've owned 2 diesel trucks....and will not own another. Mileage is offset by higher fuel cost, increased cost for routine maintenance, cost of any major repairs needed during it's life, and increased purchase price. I'll take a gasser ANY day. In a business I owned, we ran 2 diesels along side of a couple gas powered 3/4-tons that were otherwise IDENTICAL to the diesels. They did the exact same work. (Towing 30' gooseneck trailers with same loads) Over 200,000 miles, the gas trucks were about 30% cheaper to own and operate. Resale was less than 5% difference when I went to sell them. Long story short, if I had it to do all over again, I'd have bought 4 gas trucks.

US emissions standards are different than other countries. With that, you cannot directly compare fuel averages from other parts of the world. Apples to oranges....

 

[DavoK]

We're getting 17+ with FWC w/most options and loaded of gear...