Originally Posted by 4x4Runnr

Burning one quart of oil every 500 miles. That's almost as bad as a Mustang GT 350! LOLOL

Lest I anger the thread topic police (not that I'm going to devote a post to cyberbullying with threatening pics of potentially injurious and/or deadly lawn, garden and forestry paraphernalia), I'd better clarify our little chain of how we ended up at this point in the conversation before this whole thread gets modded off of here.

- OP moaning about what could potentially be resolved with a less than $30 fix for a failing part on a 13 y/o vehicle due to a questionable design choice on Toyota's part
- People suggesting helpful solutions to said issue
- Continued moaning, railing against a globally acknowledged source of high-quality vehicles, decision being made to never buy any Toyota ever again because of an experience with a latch release mechanism on one generation of one model
- People providing links to inexpensive parts
- OP continues moaning, hurling insults at others who inquired teasingly about check engine lights
- More links provided for even less expensive repair options (aren't we a kind and forgiving community?)
- First promise that this is as far as OP is going to go (ostensibly in this thread)
- More suggestions for easy fixes with little to no monetary commitment
- Uncharacteristic show of appreciation for a member's contribution to help OP in his plight
- Observation by a member that a hatch release switch in the glove box would have been nice (sounds like a nice mod opportunity!)
- Suggestion by a member to contact another t4r.org member about a camping mod kit he makes that might help out
- General weather banter
- Astute member's observation that OP's root desire is to find fault with anything Toyota and bandy it about in the face of the rest of the community
- Another member states his true and undying love for bespoke latch mechanism and all it touches, and also notes its capabilties for holding others against their will
- Yet another member shows concern that the latch lover might indeed be Hannibal Lechter reincarnated
- Random sarcasm from others reigns supreme
- A helpful member provides information regarding adding easy access to manual release of tailgate latch by adding cord/string/cable to the mechanism in case of loss of power or failure of latch
- More moaning by OP about early 2000s engineering of electric latch, second promise that this is "all he intends to say"
- Suggestion to tighten gas cap. Priceless.
- Discussion of ramifications of having a cutoff switch installed to disable the latch and whether or not that would increase security, accompanied by a picture of an ornate sceen door
- Despite his claim that he had spoken his last for the second time, OP reiterates his embarrassment and the overall chilliness of the weather at the food mart when he could not gain direct access to the cargo area of his 4Runner
- Another member agrees with the OP that from a design standpoint, this latch is less than ideal
- OP is glad to have company, and declared about Toyota that "Maybe they just don't understand a "good Designed [sic] and Engineered [sic] product"?"
- Another member asked the OP for examples of what he considers to be good designed and engineered products
- OP replies with mechanically simple devices not prone to electrical failure, and finishes his statements with an admonishment "Be Kind", one word separated from the word "chainsawing"
- Another member commiserates with OP about his latch, would have had it snatch his wallet empty had he let the mechanics at the dealership repair it for him, and has since been unable to open his tailgate
- Another member expresses apprehension over the perceived delicacy of the aforementioned latch, and finds its electrification to be entirely unnecessary
- OP is glad to have been joined by so many like-minded folks with hatred in their hearts for the evil that is the 4th gen power tailgate latch, and declares Toyota a failure for not taking all of the 4th gen electric latches back and replacing them with mechanical ones instead
- Much too much bickering to enumerate here ensues
- The author states his case that he agrees in principle with the OP, points out that the 5th gen and Landcruiser do not suffer from such questionable design choices, but points out that the majority of people who are happy with something don't go online to point it out, but that the ones who are disgruntled do, and can make it seem like everyone suffers the same fate as they do, even though they do not
- OP posts what appears to be a threatening picture of chainsaws quoting my post
- Member who was initially insulted by OP and had attempted emojii of an AK47 pointed at him quoted that insult/attempted emojii as well as the chainsaw comment along with a statement regarding the nature of his "terroristic comments"
- OP casually owns it
- Author attempts sarcasm / humor
- OP flexes equipment, all-caps an off-topic warning, threatens that those posts are a warning to "give people something to think about, while trying to think of ways to defend Toyota."
- Author sincerely inquires why OP obtained his 4Runner
- OP explains and then says basically that his 4Runner has been a really good truck, all except for that time with the latch
- Other members observe that OP is blaming his hatred for Toyota on a part on a 13-year-old vehicle (that in all likeleyhood could be fixed with a less than $30 part obtainable by following a link provided), that maybe he should just sell it, and that the bright side is that it is worth double what other vehicles the same age/condition/mileage are
- OP responds with how he repaired a flood-damaged Maxima 10 years older than his 4Runner for $1,500.00, and that the only thing wrong with it is the airbag and check engine lights are on, so he bought a scan tool (the author wonders if he bought a scan tool that can read airbag and manufacturer make- and model-specific codes as well as generic OBDII codes) and that he might fix it this summer
- OP is considering replacing the 4Runner that has the bad potentially $10 part with a Subaru, because of the part
- Another member declares his undying love and devotion to Toyota, particularly the 4Runner, bad latch design on the 4th gen notwithstanding, and violently disagrees with the Subaru consideration
- The author explains his long history with mostly domestic brands of vehicles, one German, and the abysmal failure rate and things that needed to be repaired on vehicle after vehicle after vehicle, many of them brand new including the German one, and how no Toyota in his immediate family has had so much as a warranty claim
- OP shares his issues with domestic brands as well as with Kia
- Member responding to OP's comment about replacing the 4Runner with a Subaru notes how expensive maintenance was for him while he owned his Subaru
- The author explained how he can't wait to see OP's comments on the issues he'll see on that vehicle, and gave several examples, and asked for the previous Subaru owner's corroboration
- The OP didn't understand what the author had said regarding corroboration between his wife's Subaru experience and the previous member's post as real-life examples of what to expect from a Subaru in regards to things like oil consumption, condensation in light housings, etc.
- The member that the author sought corroboration from detailed many issues that he had to deal with that aligned perfectly with what the author had predicted
- Aspersions were cast, and we arrive here

Originally Posted by Ralph Blake

My God what next?

Originally Posted by BackOff

This...still?

I have a 2004 subi outback with 25,000 miles if you want to talk trade.

Originally Posted by 4x4Runnr

Yep, evidently...

I thought a Reader's Digest version might be fun - highlights the absurdity.

Nobody has to read my comment if they don't want to, even though it is now on here twice.

That's it from me on this thread.

Originally Posted by 4x4Runnr

Yep, evidently...

I thought a Reader's Digest version might be fun - highlights the absurdity.

Nobody has to read my comment if they don't want to, even though it is now on here twice.

That's it from me on this thread.