While doing an oil change on my new 4runner I noticed that the cast iron exhaust manifolds did not look familiar to me.
I wasn't 100% sure but I remembered my last 4Runner having stainless steel manifolds. So I did some googling and found a few people saying that early 1996-1998 4Runners had Iron manifolds and the later ones 1999-2002 were stainless Is this correct? Anyone else have a 2000 with cast iron manifolds?

There could be a few possibilities here:
Could it be a California smog thing my last 4runner was sold new in CA and this new one was first sold in New Mexico?
Did the pervious owner (original owner) swap the engine and lie to me?
How/where can I check the engine # and match it to the VIN#?

There are a few different manifold variations. I know the manifolds on the 1998s look different from the ones on my 1996. The manifolds on the 1998 seemed quieter as well.

Still wondering if anyone knows if iron manifolds are normal on a 2000 model?
Just found this:

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I've only heard of cast iron for stock & SS for aftermarket headers. The cast iron is known to crack over time so I went with SS as a replacement.

I have '00 and '04 3.4 engines and both have SS manifolds.

At first glance the SS look like cast iron, but they are smooth to the touch and you can see the welds.

My 2000 has cast manifolds