Gecko's 2019 Limited 4x4 Black/Redwood Thread (All Dynos In)

Disclaimer: this is really not a "build" thread, at all. Compared to what most of you have done, this is mild mall crawling with the ability to go over a sidewalk without scratching a wheel .

Ok, now that we've set expectations:

Hey all - and welcome. I've been active here for years but figured now might be a good time to create one place to consolidate the information and pictures about my new (for now) 2019 Limited 4x4. Yeah, I know you've seen plenty of them around and this one probably won't strike you as special, but that's alright.

I'm still going through break-in right now but have already purchased the TRD CAI and Borla Touring exhaust for installation ASAP. I think I've read the TRD CAI installation thread some 6 times, every post on every page, and I finally decided to go for it. Even if the performance/MPG gain is negligible, I like that this intake adds some acoustic character to the engine and I'm willing to give it a try.

My plan over the next few weeks is to run and share the results from three dyno tests:

Round 1: Stock
Round 2: TRD Intake
Round 3: TRD Intake + Borla Touring exhaust

I'll post the outcome of my runs here in this thread. I'm really curious to see if I can replicate or get close to the +5whp and +19lb-ft of torque that TheWraith saw with his TRD intake alone. I've seen many folks talk about butt dynos, or what does and doesn't actually add power, but very little actual proof. My hope is to shed a little more light in the realm of tangible performance changes, whether good or bad.

I've had a 3rd gen, 4th gen, and am now on my second 5th gen. We were a 4Runner family growing up and owned many 2nd and 3rd gens, so 4Runners run in the blood. My parents still have two 5th gen 4runners (a 2018 Limited and a 2019 SR5, with a 2020 Limited on order), and we've got a Highlander on the other side. Toyota all the way around.

Last week, I traded in my 2016 Limited 4x4 Black/Redwood for a 2019 Limited 4x4 Black/Redwood because of lingering suspension noises and concerns. I was in a minor accident a year ago (<20mph merge situation) and ever since then, my hood stops were working their way down and making the hood squeak (despite screwing them upwards), and then I had a suspension creak/clunk/knock whenever I turned left and the weight shifted. So, with only 29K on the clock, I opted to just trade it in and start fresh.

I had to order the exact combination that I wanted, and there were slim pickins with no more 2019s in production. Hurricane Dorian further complicated things shutting down the port in Jacksonville as well as South Carolina, which is where my backup option was on the lot at Sparks Toyota. But eventually, my dealer called and said, "It just came off the truck. Come check it out!"



The build sheet listed "LED Fog Lights" and I originally thought it referenced the port-installed Auer Automotive LED DRL fogs, which I did not want. However, I was very pleased to find the LED Fogs from the Tundra and TRD Pro 4Runner:



My 2016 wasn't really modified, but it did have:
- 17" Sequoia/Tundra wheels
- 265/70R17 KO2s, Load Range C tires
- TRD Skid Plate
- Cross bars / chrome exhaust tip
... and I asked for those things to be swapped between old and new.

Old in front, new in back - going in for surgery:





Post swap: Old on the left, new on the right:


So this is how I left that night, with everything swapped over and starting over at 3 miles on the clock:







.... are you bored yet?

So, as it goes, nothing stay's stock-ish for very long. I broke down some things off my 2016 before trading in, and the first thing I couldn't wait to do was install a HID kit. So I went immediately home and installed a new [MENTION=12905]XenonDepot[/MENTION] Extreme HID kit with Philips ballasts. 4300k, because that's what I had before, and I had great luck. There's definitely a bit of a color discrepancy between the low beams and the TRD Pro fogs, but this combination throws a ton of light on the road, so I'm happy with that. I also replaced the DRL/High beams with Osram Nightbreakers - same as I had before, and lots of luck.

Yes, I immediately leveled the headlights and then angled them down.





Fogs really do have a very nice, clean cutoff. Kind of Lexus OEM LED-ish on the road.



And then it was time to LED-ize the interior. I've had the best luck with Philips LED bulbs, so that's what was used:




And then... it becomes time to de-chrome some of the front end. I've read some folks saying their vinyl wraps don't stick as well as plasti-dip, and I had great luck with plasti-dip before, so that's what I did again:





Fedex man showed up in the middle of it with a little gift:

















... really happy with the final product:

Base dyno run complete:

2019 4Runner
Limited 4x4

77 Degrees F
70% humidity
93 Octane

Max horsepower: 196hp @ 5,400 RPM
Max torque: 220lb-ft @ 4,450 RPM





YouTube footage (hey, the 1GR sounds better outside than it does inside!):

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/GYugD5IvFbE" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Qm6Fc6sWE0c" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Second dyno run complete:



TRD Cold Air Intake and Borla Touring Exhaust
48F
50% humidity
93 octane

Smoothed results (all runs averaged together):

Max Horsepower: 209.6 hp @ 5,350 RPM
Max Torque: 237.4 lb-ft @ 4,150 RPM

Compared to stock, that is:

+ 18.3hp
+ 19.5 lb-ft of torque

NOTES YOU NEED TO READ:

1) The results I posted above for my first run were the numbers from the best run, but the average/smoothed numbers were 191.3hp @ 5,550 RPM and 217.9 @ 4,150 RPM. This number for the second run is only the smoothed/average number. There was one run that was as high as 212hp and 240 lb-ft, but most were 208-210hp and 236-238 lb-ft.

2) Take a look at the temps. They make a difference. The day I did my first run, it was 77F and 70% humidity. The day I did this run was 48F and 50% humidity. I asked the tech who helped me how much of a difference he thought the temps made, and his assumption was 30-40% boost.

If you factor that in, the real increase in performance with the TRD intake (assuming a 35% boost due to temps) would be:

+11.9 hp
+ 12.7 lb-ft of torque

So you'd have roughly 203.2hp and 230.6 lb-ft of torque if the temps were the same on my second run.

3) The piping on the Borla Touring exhaust is the same as stock, so I do not assume it had any performance impact and credit the TRD Intake for any changes.

Video - I'll post the chart in my next post:

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/3mGw7hc1hEY" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Third dyno run complete:



TRD Cold Air Intake, Borla Touring Exhaust, URD MAF Calibrator
48F
50% humidity
93 octane

Smoothed results (all runs averaged together):

Max Horsepower: 211.1hp @ 5,300 RPM
Max Torque: 238.4 lb-ft @ 4,150 RPM

Compared to stock, that is:

+ 19.8 hp
+ 20.5 lb-ft of torque

Compared to just the TRD Intake and Borla Touring Exhaust, that is:

+1.5 hp
+ 1 lb-ft of torque

NOTES YOU NEED TO READ:

1) Remember that these numbers are smoothed/averaged. There was one run that was as high as 215hp and 242 lb-ft, but most were 210-212hp and 237-239 lb-ft.

2) Take a look at the temps. They make a difference. The day I did my first run, it was 77F and 70% humidity. The day I did this run was also the same run that I did with the TRD Intake and Borla Exhaust: 48F and 50% humidity. I asked the tech who helped me how much of a difference he thought the temps made, and his assumption was 30-40% boost.

If you factor that in, the real increase in performance with the TRD intake and URD MAF Calibrator (assuming a 35% boost due to temps) would be:

+ 12.87 hp
+ 13.3 lb-ft of torque

So you'd have roughly 204 hp and 231 lb-ft of torque if the temps were the same on my third run.

3) After doing the second run with the TRD Intake and Borla exhaust, I disconnected the battery, installed the URD MAF Calibrator, drained any residual charge left in the system, let it sit for 20 minutes, reconnected the battery, did a few "warm up runs" and then did a few final runs.

Video - I'll post the chart in my next post:

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/QRjfw2znYfQ" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>

So here is the final chart of all three runs combined:



Yellow = stock
Green = TRD Intake + Borla Touring Exhaust
Blue = TRD Intake + Borla Touring Exhaust + URD MAF Calibrator

If you were to adjust the numbers from the second two runs for temperature based on a +35% boost due to temps, you'd have roughly:

Stock: 191.3 hp and 217.9 lb-ft of torque
TRD Intake + Borla Touring Exhaust: 203.2hp and 230.6 lb-ft of torque (+11.9 hp, +12.7 lb-ft of torque)
TRD Intake + Borla Touring Exhaust + URD MAF Calibrator: 204 hp and 231 lb-ft of torque (+12.7 hp, +13.1 lb-ft of torque)

The piping on the Borla is the same as stock, so I do not assume the exhaust made any impact on the runs and credit the TRD intake.

Some here have said that they feel a big difference with the URD MAF Calibrator. I did not, and am not surprised to see such negligible gains with its use. For what it costs, I do not recommend this mod.

Held what? What are you on about?

Wheel and tire PKG is very tasteful tho.

Mutant138 said:

Held what? What are you on about?

Wheel and tire PKG is very tasteful tho.

Click to expand...

Keeping those slots for dyno results from stock/Intake/exhaust posts.

29k on your 16? Do you work from home?

I've put 75k on mine already and that doesn't even seem like much

Toffees said:

29k on your 16? Do you work from home?

I've put 75k on mine already and that doesn't even seem like much

Click to expand...

Ha. I used to drive a 2006 LS 430 as my daily, which helped to really keep miles off the 4Runner. Then premium gas went way up and it no longer became a cost effective DD, so I sold it and now just have the 4Runner.

So my current struggle is:

170 miles on the clock, so still have a ways to go for Toyota's recommended break in period.

But I have these two things sitting at home... slowly eating at me...





I'd like to at least cross the 500 mile mark before putting it on a dyno and running it to redline, so that fact alone is preventing me from putting on either the intake or exhaust, as I want to run a baseline dyno first.

My thought is in order: first intake, second exhaust.

Anyone have opinions on how far into break-in I should be before putting it on a dyno?

Is there a published break-in period for 4Runners? I didn’t even think about breaking in this truck, since it is so non-performance oriented, in regards to acceleration.

I had a ’03 G35 Sedan with the six speed manual which had very specific RPM limits based on odometer mileage. I do not remember the details but the engine may have needed to get 1,500 miles or more on it before revving to redline? It took an excruciatingly long time and tested my discipline!

Are you planning to swap the intake, exhaust and dyno all on the same day?

I like the balance of black out and chrome on the front end. Looks good on the Limited!

I'm digging that interior color..

headpaneer said:

Is there a published break-in period for 4Runners? I didn’t even think about breaking in this truck, since it is so non-performance oriented, in regards to acceleration.

I had a ’03 G35 Sedan with the six speed manual which had very specific RPM limits based on odometer mileage. I do not remember the details but the engine may have needed to get 1,500 miles or more on it before revving to redline? It took an excruciatingly long time and tested my discipline!

Are you planning to swap the intake, exhaust and dyno all on the same day?

I like the balance of black out and chrome on the front end. Looks good on the Limited!

Click to expand...

The owner's manual states that:

First 200 miles: try not to stop suddenly
First 500 miles: don't tow
First 1,000 miles: avoid sudden acceleration, driving at extremely high speeds, driving in low gears for extended periods, driving at constant speeds for extended periods.

So maybe a dyno run wouldn't be that bad earlier than 1k. I think it's slowly run up to redline in 4th gear? I need to double check.

I know that the environmental variables need to be fairly similar for the dyno performance figures to mean something, so my thought was to try for the same times on days that are similar temp/humidity. Like doing a Friday @ 10 AM for stock, then the following Saturday @ 10 AM for intake. Then maybe waiting a week and doing the exhaust the following Saturday @ 10 AM for the exhaust. I'll have to watch the forecast to try to make it as close as possible. I know the battery needs to be disconnected and it needs to be driven a bit to allow the ECU to adjust for the changes.

Thanks for the kind words!

Cool that you are going through the effort and addressing some of the dyno variables. :thumb:

I'd wait to rack up more miles before subjecting my new engine to WOT but that's just me. I'd change out the oil, too. But we are talking about a durable Toyota here.

So, go take a long trip this weekend!

Subbed.

Definitely time to update my 12 to a 20 and I've been seriously thinking about the TRD CAI and the TRD Exhaust, so I'm very curious to see what the Dyno runs tell about any possible power gains.

So I finally ditched my KO2s today, and I'm pretty happy so far... after an ~8 mile drive home . With the new 4Runner, I do not plan to spend as much time on stock-unfriendly trails so I didn't need as aggressive of an AT tire. 95% of my time is on-road and I commute 5 days a week in Atlanta, which has pretty rough roads, so I wanted something smoother and more compliant for the day-to-day.

I did a ton of research and looked at almost every P-rated AT tire and finally landed on the Yokohama Geolandar A/T G015. Yes, I looked at Falken Wildpeaks, Duratracs and everything in between. If it helps anyone else, here's the chart I compiled in my research - "rating" column was my own based on my search:



The Geolandar stuck out after reading hundreds of reviews for these tires, but the Terra Grappler G2 was a very close second. When I was at the dealer getting them installed today, I spent some time talking to Southeast Toyota's tire "rep" about this tire and many of the others that I considered. A few interesting notes from him:

• He said that he's had good experiences with the Hankook tires, and has never seen a complaint with their AT tires
  
• Mentioned seeing and hearing lots of complaints about balancing the Falken Wildpeaks over the years and said it would be "mid-pack" for him, in my position
  
• Agreed that the KO2 is a great tire if you spend a considerable amount of time off paved roads, but is more than I needed
  
• I told him I came down to Geolandar and Terra Grappler G2, and he said he'd give a slight nod to the Geolandar because of road noise and wet traction.
  
• He did mention that the TG G2 is basically a cut rate KO2 with a P-rated option, and that's not a bad thing, but for my needs, the Geolandar would probably serve me better

So, they don't look as aggressive as KO2s but they also don't look as basic as a passenger tire. A nice in-between, IMO.



The difference in ride quality and noise was immediately noticeable. I do still think of the KO2 as a great tire... it's just more than I needed. Being back to the smoothness of a P-Rated tire with these Yokos feels like my old LS 430 in comparison to the KO2 though. Also a little quieter, but I never felt like the KO2s were "too loud." Last but not least, losing ~5lbs per corner, the truck does feel a little quicker on its feet, which is exactly what I wanted.

I have a road trip coming up later this week, so I can report back with more opinions later.

Gecko said:

So I finally ditched my KO2s today, and I'm pretty happy so far... after an ~8 mile drive home . With the new 4Runner, I do not plan to spend as much time on stock-unfriendly trails so I didn't need as aggressive of an AT tire. 95% of my time is on-road and I commute 5 days a week in Atlanta, which has pretty rough roads, so I wanted something smoother and more compliant for the day-to-day.



I did a ton of research and looked at almost every P-rated AT tire and finally landed on the Yokohama Geolandar A/T G015. Yes, I looked at Falken Wildpeaks, Duratracs and everything in between. If it helps anyone else, here's the chart I compiled in my research - "rating" column was my own based on my search:

The Geolandar stuck out after reading hundreds of reviews for these tires, but the Terra Grappler G2 was a very close second. When I was at the dealer getting them installed today, I spent some time talking to Southeast Toyota's tire "rep" about this tire and many of the others that I considered. A few interesting notes from him:

• He said that he's had good experiences with the Hankook tires, and has never seen a complaint with their AT tires
  
  
  
• Mentioned seeing and hearing lots of complaints about balancing the Falken Wildpeaks over the years and said it would be "mid-pack" for him, in my position
  
  
  
• Agreed that the KO2 is a great tire if you spend a considerable amount of time off paved roads, but is more than I needed
  
  
  
• I told him I came down to Geolandar and Terra Grappler G2, and he said he'd give a slight nod to the Geolandar because of road noise and wet traction.
  
  
  
• He did mention that the TG G2 is basically a cut rate KO2 with a P-rated option, and that's not a bad thing, but for my needs, the Geolandar would probably serve me better
  

So, they don't look as aggressive as KO2s but they also don't look as basic as a passenger tire. A nice in-between, IMO.

The difference in ride quality and noise was immediately noticeable. I do still think of the KO2 as a great tire... it's just more than I needed. Being back to the smoothness of a P-Rated tire with these Yokos feels like my old LS 430 in comparison to the KO2 though. Also a little quieter, but I never felt like the KO2s were "too loud." Last but not least, losing ~5lbs per corner, the truck does feel a little quicker on its feet, which is exactly what I wanted.



I have a road trip coming up later this week, so I can report back with more opinions later.

Click to expand...

How's the ride compared to the stock 20s?

Sent from my SM-N975U using Tapatalk

BigCountryT4R said:

How's the ride compared to the stock 20s?

Sent from my SM-N975U using Tapatalk

Click to expand...

Going to a wider tire makes the biggest difference compared to the stock 20s... everything feels more stable and planted, and less "wobbly." The stability is my favorite part of this tire/wheel change, as it was with the KO2s over the 20s.

On well paved roads, ride quality is pretty consistent with the stock 20s, but bumps and imperfections are a LOT less jarring (more sidewall).

Bump. Page 1 updated with baseline dyno results - check them out.

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