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Impressions from a 3800 mile road trip

Discussion in 'Trip Reports' started by Huzer21, Jul 13, 2020.

  1. Jul 13, 2020 at 3:11 PM
    #1
    Huzer21

    Huzer21 [OP] New Member

    Joined:
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    CO
    Vehicle:
    2011 GX 460
    My family returned from a long road trip last night, we drove the 4Runner round trip from CO to NY.

    The main negatives I have are ones I’ve always had, I wish the steering wheel telescoped a few more inches. I’m 6’4”, and the seating position for me has always been a bit of a compromise. For day to day driving, it’s perfectly acceptable. Turn that into a 28 hour drive, and it becomes a bit more annoying and uncomfortable. Passenger seat was fine for me, I was able to get comfortable and still leave my son with a good amount of legroom.

    Gas mileage was acceptable, but not great. With a 2” lift and 275 E loads, I averaged about 18mpg over the duration of the trip, a lot of that varying between 74-84mph on cruise control.

    It was quite windy about 1/3 of the way for the drive out. Driving in strong winds gets tiring. When at highway speed, there is quite a bit of wind noise, which is expected given the profile of the vehicle. It does get annoying after a long stretch, though.

    The rest of the family, including the dog, were comfy for the trip. My son had plenty of rear seat room. I do wish there were factory USB outlets in the rear, but the 12v adapter worked just fine, too. I folded half of the rear seat, and the pup had a great platform to sleep on for the trip.

    I did the same trip in my 2nd gen Taco about three years ago. I can’t really compare the two, because it was just me, so it was a little less fatiguing when I did it solo vs doing it with the family. That’s not a knock on my family, everyone was pleasant, but when you can operate on your own schedule, you don’t have to be concerned with anyone else’s.

    Would I drive that far again in the 4Runner? Maybe, if I have to. If I was a road warrior and put a ton of miles on every year, I would probably search for something that fits me just that little bit more. Now I need to get out where it belongs, on the trails.

    9BCD9AE1-DBB6-42B0-8443-E3F38CEF2050.jpg
     
    LocInn, Spare Parts and mrmike7189 like this.
  2. Jul 13, 2020 at 3:22 PM
    #2
    Mtbpsych

    Mtbpsych New Member

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    For a 4runner with that lift and tires that’s great MPG lol. Not sure what your expectations were, but stock mine was getting 18.5-19 so that’s great MPG on your trip especially in that speed range. You’ll find it to be great on trails though:bananadance: I will agree the steering wheel for taller people isn’t very good, i have to always use the digital speedometer as I can never see the analog one.
     
    werlyb23 and Huzer21[OP] like this.
  3. Jul 13, 2020 at 3:28 PM
    #3
    Gamma Ray

    Gamma Ray Be excellent to each other

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    Who cares? This never shows everything anyway.
    Regarding the USB ports in the back seat area, if there's a 12V outlet back there on pre-2020s, this will do nicely: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07RHPXT5K/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o07_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1

    I actually bought one for myself because I wanted more USB outlets in the front of my 2020.

    Is driving next to the power lines like that legal? Is that a public dirt road? I'm curious. There's not much off roading here in central NJ. Even questionable places like that are few and far between. Some of the places that I've noticed at least as questionable were places where power lines like that reside.
     
    Huzer21[OP] likes this.
  4. Jul 13, 2020 at 3:36 PM
    #4
    Huzer21

    Huzer21 [OP] New Member

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    CO
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    To be honest, it was about what I was expecting, I know I could have gotten a little better if I kept the speeds lower.
     
  5. Jul 13, 2020 at 3:40 PM
    #5
    Huzer21

    Huzer21 [OP] New Member

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    CO
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    I do have a plug in USB adapter that we use in the 12v outlet. We don’t road trip to that level very often, so not a big deal.

    That is a public road that runs by my camp. There are a lot of similar sand roads out there, quite a few from my youth are now closed, but this one remains open. It’s actually one of the roads that runs to a public beach.
     
  6. Jul 13, 2020 at 3:49 PM
    #6
    mrmike7189

    mrmike7189 New Member

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    MA
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    After a couple long trips I agree that the wind makes driving the 4 runner at highway speeds a real chore.
    The engine needs more power climbing steep mountain roads , especially with the A/C on .(it felt like a 4 cylinder.)
    The radar cruise control is excellent.
    The 8 ' touch screen is excellent.
     
    Last edited: Jul 13, 2020
    Huzer21[OP] likes this.
  7. Jul 13, 2020 at 4:37 PM
    #7
    Gamma Ray

    Gamma Ray Be excellent to each other

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    Who cares? This never shows everything anyway.
    Thanks for the info. Sadly there's not much of anything like that left around here in my neck of the woods. So much land is getting built up!
     
  8. Jul 13, 2020 at 6:44 PM
    #8
    Huzer21

    Huzer21 [OP] New Member

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    Yeah, northern NY is the forgotten land. Things haven’t changed up that way in ages. Most of the trails I used to take my old truck down are now overgrown and impassible with a vehicle. These sandy roads are all that’s left. First drive I took, I did mistakenly leave the rear window down. I was cleaning out dust for a while.
     
    mrmike7189 likes this.
  9. Jul 13, 2020 at 7:13 PM
    #9
    LocInn

    LocInn New Member

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    Just getting started
    Thanks for the info. While I'm not as tall as you, I have found the same issue with the steering wheel feeling just out of reach.

    As for driving comfort on long road trips we actually like it. While not as comfortable as our 2008 Highlander for blasting down the freeway, the 4Runner is a great blend between the Highlander and the Chevy 2500HD 4x4 truck we used to drive on long trips. And we are road warriors - the Highlander has over 200K miles on it in the 12 years we've owned it, and the 4Runner is just coming up on its 10K service after purchasing in January.

    Breadcrumbs since Day 1:
    upload_2020-7-13_20-12-4.jpg
     
  10. Jul 13, 2020 at 9:13 PM
    #10
    Huzer21

    Huzer21 [OP] New Member

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    If I didn’t have the seat/steering wheel issue that compromises the seating position for me, the rest of the issues are simply “truck” issues. It’s oh-so-close. And it’s really only the long, long drive where it starts to get uncomfortable. I’ve done several 4-5 hour stints that have been fine.
     
    LocInn[QUOTED] likes this.
  11. Jul 13, 2020 at 10:00 PM
    #11
    MeefZah

    MeefZah ---

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    I'm 6', can't say I've ever really thought about the steering wheel angle / telescoping issue.

    I do get some lower back pain on the right side after a long day, lumbar adjust doesn't really help. Also the "dead pedal" is kind of at the wrong angle to rest my left foot on comfortably. That's about it really. Nothing that's a deal breaker.
     
    Huzer21[OP] likes this.
  12. Jul 14, 2020 at 5:52 AM
    #12
    MI-FL off roader

    MI-FL off roader T4R Hobby/Addict

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    Merritt Island, FL
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    Too many mods and too much money
    Not sure about the Premium, but with my 12' LE and the 8 way adjustable seats, I'm able to drop the rear of the seat, raise the front and give my 6'6" frame enough leg room to cheat the seat forward a little to accommodate the short telescope. My arms might be an inch longer so that would help too. With the seat oriented like this it gives my lumbar area a little relief as my ham strings are supported a little better. Drove out to Phoenix from East Central Fla last Christmas by myself and averaged 12 hrs a day for 3 days out and 3 back. I did the TRD intake and URD Y pipe years ago, so when I hit the hill country in Texas and the long grades of NM, I would just drop her in 4th and let her eat. Mileage sucked because this thing weighs just south of 6k lbs, but she responded nicely chewing up the long up hill grades. The CC is terrible in the older models like mine, because it's always trying to save fuel, so it's indecisive on gear selection and when to lock out the converter. That raises the trans temps exponentially, so that's why I just drop her in 4th at the start of an uphill pull.
     
    Huzer21[OP] likes this.

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