Coming from Raptor. Need speed.

The 4Runner power is like a late model Harley's. It has a strong pull from 1100 rpm to 6000 rpm redline. It moves confidently at it's own pace and ignores other vehicles. It's not the best for stressed out commuter traffic. The overall performance capability is respectable. You may need to recalibrate your spoiled turbo self and learn to relax.

 

WHAT?? From 1100? Mine doesn't wake up till the tach starts to move past 3,000. IMO these things have about as much low end as a blender.

 

Listen dude, If you're going to be a 4Runner owner, you need to realize that a big part of that is recognizing that literally any other vehicle is an unreliable POS. Ford, Jeep, GM, Nissan...it doesn't matter. All are far inferior to Toyota. The 4Runner is the best vehicle ever made.

(I'm kidding, but kinda not really. This is how we justify how outdated and overpriced these vehicles are)

 

Maybe there's something wrong with yours.

I only rev past 3K when passing and merging on the freeway.

I'll agree with outdated, but the price is competitive with the rest of the market. If you really thought it was overpriced, you wouldn't have one.

 

Unfortunately, we only get ONE of those with the 4 liter.

I think the GM LS-series motors, at least before DoD nailed all 3. A LS3 Vette for instance, will easily go 200k+, while putting out 450hp and knocking down 30mpg highway.

 

Same here, that's why I always bitch about it being slow and underpowered. I don't like having to rev the snot out of it just to maintain speed on a grade. I know this is apples to hand grenades (FAR beyond oranges, haha) but my stock, 2.73 geared LS1 Firebird will be pinning you in the seat at 1500rpm, and lope along at 1600prm at 70mph, and will literally climb mountain grades without needing to downshift. I don't expect the 4R to accelerate like it of course, but that 1000-2000 rpm torque is SO nice to have. ALWAYS having power when you need it and not having to wait for the tranny to kick down 2 gears to climb a small hill at 60mph is really nice. This 4R just feels like there's never any power there when I need it, unless I mat it to the floor.

I bought mine used 2 years ago, so it was actually a good price compared to the others around, and about 8k cheaper than the (used) Jeep I would have wanted. I think it was priced low because it's a pre-facelift model. I actually just saw one identical to mine (but 30k more miles) listed last week for the same price I paid for mine 2 years ago, with it having 65k more miles on it than mine did when I bought it. Crazy!

New ones approaching, or exceeding, 50k though? That's a hard sell for me.

 

I guess I don't follow. I have no issue getting up to speed while keeping the RPM's mostly between 2000 - 2500. I keep up with other traffic just fine.

Of course it won't accelerate like a sports car. It's not intended to, and doesn't need to.

Comparing the acceleration and overall power to a Camaro is ridiculous. You said so yourself. Anything will feel underpowered when compared to something that is overpowered by design.

As far as climbing grades, put it in S4 on a grade and you'll be much happier. Downshifting on a grade is normal, especially in a heavy ass SUV that is geared for fuel efficiency.

That's the PRO tax. And, the market. Here's a challenge: Shop around and show me something comparable that is less expensive.

 

LS swap... could do the coyote, but LS is cheaper.

 

Yeah I can see it both ways. Mine also rarely sees 3000 rpm except for merging onto freeways and downshifts are rare and one of the few benefits of the 5-speed auto for me. But there's very little traffic around here and people aren't in any hurry and my truck is lightly loaded and we're at sea level. Mine has no trouble with gentle grades with the torque converter locked up at 1100 rpm in 5th. If I was still commuting to Chicago and dealing with that traffic or if we lived at altitude or in the mountains or if I carried more passengers or put on big tires or just drove it harder then it would probably feel underpowered.

 

My 4Runner makes 270 horses at the crank. My bike makes 232 horses at the wheel.

I got them for different reasons haha

 

Been using S4, or 3, lately. It's better, but kind of annoying to have to do that. I feel like we've had this exact conversation before, haha. I like a lot of things about my 4R, the engine is not one of them. Moving on...

As far as the competition, I just played around on the Jeep website and "built" a 4 door Rubicon with an auto, hard top, cold weather group (heated seats, steering wheel, remote start), and tow package (which includes a 240A alternator and those cool extra AUX switches) for $49,115. Now unless I hit the lotto, I'm not spending 50K on ANY new vehicle purchase, BUT, if you give me 50k cash and tell me I have to buy one or the other, I'm going with the Jeep. It's not necessarily cheaper, but dollar for dollar I think it's a better value (especially if you consider the cost/benefit of modding both vehicles).

I haven't priced out a new Bronco yet, I think the good one will be another 10k more.

 

The Wrangler definitely has some advantages for off-road use. For a trail rig, a 2 door Wrangler is about as good as it gets.

A Bronco will come in close to the 4Runner as well, depending on equipment. Some were complaining that they were expensive, but they were looking at Sasquatch packages with the 2.7 turbo.

 

I have a 5.7 Tundra and I had an 88 Wrangler. Sold the Wrangler and bought my 4th gen V6. Believe me, the 4Runner was a big step up in power from the Wrangler but it's a big step down from the Tundra. But since I bought it about 14 months ago I've put almost 40K on it while my beloved Tundra just sits. I doubt if I've put 2000 miles on it in the last year. The 4runner is slow but it's just fun to drive. If anyone buys one for speed they're gonna be very disappointed. But I was used to going slow from driving my Wrangler. Talk about slow....

 

I guess it all depends on what's important to you. For me reliability is my number one priority. As a lifelong auto tech, (now an auto tech teacher), I hate working on my own vehicles, (excluding mods and maintenance), and I don't pay anyone else to work on them, so for me the 4Runner is a better value. Not saying I'm right and you're wrong, it's just about what's important to the individual.

 

Second the Pedal Commander. It makes your 4Runner drive how you think it should drive.

 

Who wants to tell him about current prices for new 4Runners?

 

TBH, the 4.0L would be fine if the 4R had two or three more gears.

The 5-speed annoys me way more than the engine does.

 

I've read the following sentiment from several others, and I share their view: my 2019 is a very relaxing vehicle to drive. I don't care about jockeying for position on the freeway. I don't care about outrunning people. If the speed limit is 70, I park around 73 and glide along. The ride is smooth as silk, and it's more fun to just watch the crazies being all tense and mad as they drive. What I don't understand is when people test drive a 4Runner, then buy it, then gripe about it (power, handling, towing, dated transmission, what have you). It's not fast enough? Well, you made the decision and spent the money. You can buy a pretty fast vehicle for $40k+, why didn't you? Not enough gears? There are plenty of vehicle choices there, too. What you got instead is what Consumer Reports called the most reliable vehicle you can buy. Sure, that's their assessment, but I and many others share this perspective.

So, you spend your money where you want, and you get what you pay for. It's your decision, after all. At least the majority of 4Runner gripes are about 'preferences' and not about mechanical failures.

 

So if we don't think it's perfect, we should just shut up?

I don't think that's a reasonable position. You can like something and still believe there's room for improvement.

 

Agreed. I never said shut up if you don't think it's perfect. I certainly don't think my 4Runner is perfect, but it exceeds the expectations I had when I bought it. Honestly, I think it has plenty of zip - for me. My biggest problem is sun glare off the hood scoop - but I still like the scoop ;-) As I see it, Toyota made quality their number one objective, and they've nailed that. But certainly, I don't expect everyone to agree with me.

 

I drive mine in the right lane at about 60 to 62 miles an hour in Bay area traffic.

Nobody dares to tailgate it, I guess based on how it looks at this point.

It is not fast.

Toyota could have made it fast AND reliable.

The GX motor and transmission in a lighter truck would have been worth something. And the best thing about it would be that Toyota could offer it as a package, so people who want the slower truck could buy the slower truck.

This is literally what every other manufacturer does and Toyota did up until the fifth generation.

 

Toyota only offered a V8 from '03 to '09. And, the current V6 4runners are just as fast as the V8's were. Every previous generation was even slower.

Toyota seems to prefer to keep drivetrain options as simple as possible. I'm sure this keeps the manufacturing process efficient. They probably decided that the V6 was sufficient as there is really no need for the 4runner to be fast.

 

Meanwhile the Wrangler just got a 470hp/470 lb ft 392 Hemi and the Bronco has an optional 310hp/400lb ft V6.

Toyota is beyond outgunned at this point.

 

Almost nobody here cares about going fast.

I'm fine with moderate acceleration and a vehicle that has a reputation for bulletproof reliability.

Jeep and Ford need to do stuff like that to get people to buy their vehicles. Toyota has no problem selling these things. Why would they (potentially) compromise reliability to make a handful of people happy?

If someone really wants more power, there are superchargers available.

EDIT: side note: that 470 HP Wrangler is going to make for some crazy wrecks!

 

Raptor is nice... when its working. I don't miss it with the 4Runner.

 

Being in the salvage business for almost 20 years, I cannot even believe there would be a conversation happening on a Toyota forum so much as hinting that Chrysler/Jeep or Ford have anything at all more figured out than Toyota.