What are the cons of a 3rd gen 4runner

[JasonRedwood]

Looking at a 3rd gen 4runner with factory installed supper charger, 3.4, auto, with locking rear. 110k on the vehicle.
I'm wondering what the cons of the vehicle/combo might be.
Thanks
Jason

 

[p nut]

What are you looking to do with it? I had one (98 Supercharged). Hated putting in premium gas. Looooved the power. Just make sure that the supercharger's been serviced (oil in the cone), timing belt done, diff fluids done, etc. and you should be good to go. Great vehicles. Just a tad bit too small for me and family.

 

[chmura]

Last year I sold my 2002 excab TRD 5sp Tacoma.

Pretty much no cons. Very solid trucks. Much more solid than the new ones IMO. mine had a very harsh ride that my wife complained about a lot. I'm sure this is improved significantly with the new gen.

Other con is that under 100k miles they hold their value very well. I bought mine for $12,700 used and 3 years later I sold it for $12000 even with 80k miles.

 

[JasonRedwood]

What are you looking to do with it? I had one (98 Supercharged). Hated putting in premium gas. Looooved the power. Just make sure that the supercharger's been serviced (oil in the cone), timing belt done, diff fluids done, etc. and you should be good to go. Great vehicles. Just a tad bit too small for me and family.

It will be a commuter, 20+ miles a day. Also a long weekend camping rig. Right now its me and the wifey plus 2 dogs, one 70 pounder and one 13 pounder. Might add a kid to the mix in the next year or so. I figured I could have a little storage in the rear that the dogs can transport on top of and a roof rack with the rest of the gear. Mild off road trips 3-5 hours away for the most part. Would love to get to Canada and Baja some day as well.

Last year I sold my 2002 excab TRD 5sp Tacoma.

Pretty much no cons. Very solid trucks. Much more solid than the new ones IMO. mine had a very harsh ride that my wife complained about a lot. I'm sure this is improved significantly with the new gen.

Other con is that under 100k miles they hold their value very well. I bought mine for $12,700 used and 3 years later I sold it for $12000 even with 80k miles.

The trucks hold their value really well. A bit out of my price range right now or I would probably go with a quad cab of the same vintage.

 

[Utah KJ]

D.A.V.e is a 3rd gen 4Runner with 220k on the clock and he's been all over the nation. No issues with regular maintenance; the 3.4 is arguably the best motor Toyota made.

 

[Christian P.]

As they said. A bit cramped and bouncy on the road, pretty basic interior but ultra super duper reliable and practical.

 

[shmabs]

I drive a 97 sr5 with the ever popular tundra springs/bilsteins up front, ome 890's in the back, 265/75/16 dura tracs on "spare" steelies, and 4.30 axles with e locker out of a 98 limited. With that being said here are a few of my thoughts on the third gen 4runner;

Pros
~size: i have a wife and 2 yr old son, and a 7lb mini pin (not a real dog), for us this size vehicle works well, i end up folding or removing half of the rear seat for more storage options on longer camping trips
~reliablity: its a third gen 4runner.
~parts availablity: see above.
~relatively easy to work on
~a back seat you can use for real people (unlike my xj)
~stout chassis and drivetrain


Cons
~small fuel tank-18.5 gallons is not enough in my mind, depending on your setup this can mean a reduced range.
~roof rack-you dont have gutters or rails that run the full length of the roof, for me this is a bummer, but something i can work around
~depending on your physical size, a third gen might be a bit small up front.
~i find the power to be adequate but not abundant, a super charged version will be better.

Mike

 

[Martinjmpr]

^^^^
Pretty much got it.

So-so MPG (16 - 18) + small gas tank = short range.
Notoriously inaccurate fuel gauge
Noisy compared to newer vehicles
A bit underpowered.

Other than that, they're great. Off road they are amazing.

 

[JasonRedwood]

Wow thanks for the great input guys. It would be an upgrade from a 89 4runner so all the cons don't seem that bad. Currently my 3.0 v6 with headers and larger exhaust gets about 16mpg. Thats with a 14 gallon take. Annoying. The blazeland long travel up front and Zuk mod in the rear is ok but not the most comfortable around town.
Hopefully everything checks out with this 4runner. I'll post a pict if it does.

 

[Martinjmpr]

Coming from a 1st gen V6 should be a significant step up for you.

If you are driving on the highway and can keep your speed below 65, you can easily break 20mpg. 15-17 is more typical in town. One thing, if you are planning on towing, the 4runner's mileage drops significantly. Pulling a trailer across Wyoming with both head- and cross-winds, I was getting 11-13 mpg. It was for that reason (and the undersized gas tank) that I finally got rid of my 99 and got an 07 instead.

 

[MCObray]

I just recently purchased a 4Runner; '00 4Runner Highlander, with E-Locker. The vehicle, even with 177K miles on it, is so much smoother on the highway than my previous 2000s and 1999 Jeep Cherokee. The only downside to the 4Runner is the tank size and price (for me). Here in the Oregon/Washington, these 4Runner hold their value so well. High mileage 4Runners, 150k+, are still going for $8,000 and more. The range, at most so far, I have achieved is 253.3 miles out of tank with an average of 17.8 MPGs. Some of that may be credited to the cruddy winter gas, but it's still improvement over my previous XJ. I like the fact that I can fit LT265/75/16s (32s) stock without rubbing, but i'll bumping up the suspension an inch or two in no time for additional clearance. If you can, I would look for a 99'-00' as these years seem to offer the most bang for your buck (Interior upgrades, ELocker, etc.). Interior noise is much, much more quiet than my Jeep was, so again blown away in that aspect of the vehicle as well. I also like have creature comforts such as 3 12V outlet (2 front, 1 rear), sun roof (never had), rear sliding window (never had), door pockets, and seat pockets. The interior, to me and my girlfriend at least, is a big improvement from my previously owned XJ. Space is much more abundant and allows for more comfortable long-duration drives. These 4Runner, Toyotas in general, are such well put together vehicles that excel in the build quality aspect. Best of luck on your search and if you have any questions, just ask!

 

[86tuning]

Notoriously inaccurate fuel gauge.

There was a fix for that on the later models. Early ones had a different float position and design.

4Runners are much better priced than Tacomas are. Here in Vancouver they're about $7k vs $11k for equivalent mileage and condition.

 

[rickashay]

It will be a commuter, 20+ miles a day. Also a long weekend camping rig. Right now its me and the wifey plus 2 dogs, one 70 pounder and one 13 pounder. Might add a kid to the mix in the next year or so. I figured I could have a little storage in the rear that the dogs can transport on top of and a roof rack with the rest of the gear. Mild off road trips 3-5 hours away for the most part. Would love to get to Canada and Baja some day as well.

Hmm.... This sounds very familiar! And yes, you should make your way to Canada and I will show you around. haha I have two dogs about the same size. I use the truck for wheeling and DD but me and the GF frequent weekend vehicle based camping trips in the summer. I have to drive an hour to be in the mountains but often take the truck back to see my folks in BC and it's a 6-7 hour drive. My previous truck was a 95' Toyota Pickup with the 3VZ V6. I feel that my uses and transition are/were very similar to yours. Already some great info but I'll toss in my own .02

Pros
- extremely reliable (I've got 280,000kms er' 175,000 miles) and it literally feels new. (lots of PM work though...)
- more powerful and more comfortable than the 3.0L V6 I used to drive by miles. (the coil sprung and linked rear end and coilover IFS rides SO nice compared to leafs and torsion bars)
- Aftermarket support is huge
- Very capable offroad in stock trim with good tires, and exponentially better with some smart mods (e-locker option is great if you can get one, or swap one in later like I did)
- I built a sleeping/storage platform and two people can sleep in the rear comfortably allowing tent-free and always dry camping! (+1 for SUV and it's adequate size)
- Simple - not many computer traction aids or faulty electric 4x4 engagement switches to worry about (although newer 3rd gens have Multi-mode transfer case), but I like having my "manual" 4x4 selector. It's a fairly basic vehicle and it works.
- easy to work on yourself

Cons
- terribly inaccurate fuel gauge
- power steering racks are a little weak in my experience (probably depends on usage and tire size etc.)
- underpowered with all of my "mods" but still liveable (the SC will probably eliminate that problem)
- small fuel tank
- Some people find the interior space up front way too tight - depends on your preference and physical size. (I'm 6'6" and find it OK, but I don't have the sunroof so I have a few inches of additional headroom. Sunroof would have been a deal breaker for me on this truck...)
- fuel consumption could better but that's the price you pay to play when you mod ~14-15MPG city and ~18MPG highway.

Overall making the switch from my 95' Pickup to the 3rd Gen was one of the smartest vehicles moves I've ever made. I really have come to appreciate the interior space and just "feel" more comfortable in the larger open cabin, especially with the dogs and some cargo. I think this truck has sold me on being a "SUV" guy for the rest of my days as I just appreciate it's multiple uses so much. I can fold the seats down and haul basic cargo around town and turn around and sleep inside on the weekends when I'm camping. But you already know that having a 1st gen 4Runner....

Any more questions just holler.

Cheers,
Addison

 

[summerprophet]

Every Con I was going to mention seems to have been taken care of in the above post. (rack, gauge, tight interior).

All in all a pretty dependable rig.

 

[Martinjmpr]

4Runners are much better priced than Tacomas are. Here in Vancouver they're about $7k vs $11k for equivalent mileage and condition.

I've noticed the same thing here in CO. Not sure why except with regard to double cabs, there's the supply and demand issue: Double cabs weren't introduced until 2001 and weren't produced in the same numbers as extra cabs and 4runners.

I think there's also what I call the "feeding frenzy effect" of the internet.

Here's what I mean: When a certain product starts acquiring a lot of supporters on the internet, people start writing and talking about it, message boards around the product get a lot of traffic and all the hype and the attention tend to inflate the price because they increase demand. This further excites the feeding frenzy because other people who are not familiar with the product simply assume that anything that so many people want to pay this much money for must be the absolute bestest in the world and they "gotta have it!" Which further stimulates the frenzy, etc, etc. In many ways it's an example of the classic 'commercial bubble' phenomenon, but accellerated by the speed of the internet.

It's what leads people to believe that there's something almost magical about, say, an FJ80 or a double cab tacoma because why else would one of those sell for 2x to 3x the price of their nearest competitor? There must be some innate difference.

But of course, there isn't, and those people who are willing to "swim against the tide" can often score a pretty good bargain by simply going with a different brand that doesn't have the cachet of the most desired brand.

I'm not saying Toyotas aren't great vehicles (after all, I'm on Toyota no. 4 and it's no. 3-in-a-row for me) but simply saying that unless there is something specific to the 4runner or the Tacoma that draws you, you can save a lot of $$ by looking at other brands. In my case, I specifically wanted multi-mode 4wd, and the only way to get that was with a Toyota. If the R51 Pathfinder had offered multi-mode, I probably would have gone with that even though the R51 has independent rear suspension.

I've spent the last two years going on extended outings with folks who mostly drive Rangers and Explorers. Their vehicles are every bit as capable as my Toyota, but often times they paid quite a bit less for them.

Just something to consider....