Hello group. Thank you In Advance . I am looking to buy a 1998-2002 4runner 4wd. I am moving to Idaho and will be driving in snow . My question is the 2 I am looking at are the awd option with locking center differential or the 4wd with raar locking diff. I will be driving in the highway mostly with some off road not rock crawling . I know there is a lot of info any help would greatly appreciated . Thank you again
Ty

Welcome to the group. Either one works great just the awd option can drive in 4wd on dry roads where the j transfer you have to pull it out to 2wd on dry roads.

Have you ever driven in snow and ice before?

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start here:
3rd Gen Informational Threads --- A MUST READ For New Members

of the threads listed on that link you need to atleast read the buyers guide. this is also a great resource that shows the differences between years:
Toyota 4Runner History 1999


i drove in 1-3" of snow and ice last weekend solely in the awd mode and it was awesome. i also have a rear locker (factory) and recommend you get that if you can. awd started in 99. my buddy has a 98, i have a 99, and id rather have the 99.

edit:
heres a thread with the xfer case differences:
T-case Differences (all years of 3rd gens).. transfer case, AWD, multi-mode

This guide helped me out tremendously when I bought my 4Runner.

3rd Gen 4Runner Buyer's Guide

Welcome to Idaho. Where are you moving? I've lived here 3 years and I had a 2001 RWD 4runner (aka the 2Runner) for the first 1.5 years. You will be fine as long as you have 4WD.

I have the center lock and so far in the BC snow it's been awesome. I do a lot of logging roads etc and it's performed great. It's nice to just click the button on when the highway gets greasy. But you really can't go wrong either way because it is a 4runner. You will be happy no matter how you slice it

Good AT tires with the snow flake rating go a long way in snowy conditions. I have had dedicate winter tires in the past but realized I really don't need'em here in colorado for my use.

For on-road winter use, the AWD (Multi-Mode) is fantastic. I bought a Gen-1 Tundra which doesn't have a Multi-Mode transfer case. I really miss it in the winter.

Agreed, for general on road winter use, the AWD multi-mode is great. I too miss it on my newer 4WD Tacoma. For heavy duty off roading, go with the locker. Or, for the ultimate traction set up in any and all conditions, get the AWD and retro-fit a locker. That's what I did.

One more point: Remember that there are some conditions where the rear locker will get you into trouble that it cant get you out of.

A 2000 limited with rear locker is the sweet spot I think. You get everything. They dropped the rear locker after that. But for what youre doing I'd probably get the cleanest 2001-2002 you can find with the center diff lock and put some really good tires on it and get all the preventative maintenance up to date. The multimode is nice if your wife or whoever is gonna be driving it without knowing the intricacies of the 4wd system.

hi sorry for the delay in response. I was having trouble getting on websiye. i will be moving to rathdrum coeur d"alene area hayden .i have a couple of 4runners im looking at 1 with the rear locker option 1 with the center locking differential.dont know what would be best for the idaho snow. what do you think ?

I don't know about snow driving, from austin - haha. I'd get underneath and decide first on Rust. That's a major deal killer to a central Texan.

But reading the other posts above, I'd say either is OK. But think of it this way, the rear locker is meant to force both rear tires to be locked to each other, even if one is not grabbing the energy is going to the wheel with traction, where as the center diff is meant to force both front and rear axles to turn together yet each axle's right/left wheels are not locked to each other, so one can still slip relative to the other.

I'm partial to 01-02 limiteds cuz of their extras...see the above Buyer's Guide links for lots and lots of details....Luck deciding....

Hi guys thanks for the info.
I am need to the feed and reaaly enjoyed it.
Just recently purchased a 1999 which am busy fixing.
She has 4 cylinder, 3RZ-FE engine, and things are standard except for the mud tires.
One thing ive noticed is the car is very thirsty, ive calculated that am getting 4 km per liter gas.
Can anyone advice.
Thanks in advance.

That's about right depending on elevation too....

My friend who works a T dealer ship says stay with V 6 better design 2001 have more expensive master cylinders by a lot and the TPS sensors harder to get.

Look at the difference between 96 to 98,99 to 2000 and 2001 to 2002. These are the years that the made changes.