I have been lurking on this site since 2010 when I began looking for my next rig. I have a history with a 3rd Gen and of stealing my step father's LC 70-Series to impress when I was in school. This factored into the purchase of my 2011 Salsa Red TE w/KDSS and no/NAV at a good price.

Here are the questions I desperately need help with:

Has anyone here gone from a GX470, LC100, LX470, 4th Gen, or anything with the 4.7l V8 and doesn't miss it?

Every time I drive the 4Runner I feel slight disappointment at the lack of low end torque which forces me to "Push your foot into it" to drop gears and then "jerk" we are outta here.

Also, are there any weaknesses to the 4.7l (other than 90k timing belt and WP) that would give you hesitation in picking that engine?

I am specifically looking at the GX470 (sorry, but not a huge fan of the 4th Gen) as it seems to be a good compromise between the LC and the 4Runner so any specific feedback would be welcomed.

This is not to bash the 5th Gen as I love 90%, but that remaining 10% is really giving me a hang up.

I appreciate the feedback.

What do you do with your 4Runner? All street with some dirt roads or do you take it off road?

My buddy has a GX460 he bought after riding in my 5th Gen. He needed the V8 to tow a boat and the more luxury features for his wife but still wanted something similar to the 5th gen (he traded in his 4th Gen for it). Whenever I ride in his truck it feels like I'm in my 4Runner only with a different interior - kind of like walking into a house with the same floorplan as yours only hardwood floor instead of carpet and different colour paint on the walls.

I recently had a kid and the off road has turned into fire roads and moderate trails at worst. The main use now seems to be road trips with the occasional camping trip and the 4Runner is definitely not being pushed anywhere near the limit. Definitely stuff the GX could handle.

It might be a couple years before the boy is ready for the fun stuff and that has factored into the potential swap.

Traded a GX470 for my T4R, and I don't really miss the V8. I drove a LC a few months about and while it was nice also, it made me realize how nice my T4R really is for the $$.

Can't help you with the V8 but I come from two 80 series LCs. Plenty of low end tq which I like compared to my 5 gen 4 runner. The 4 Runners have plenty of power for the street, even faster then the LC, I think. But, when the going gets a little tough, I rather have my old LC. We did M
mainly rough trails, streams, and a few small boulders. I miss the interior room the most in my LC.

Part of me misses some of the luxuries of my previous vehicle, we got a bare bones SR5 4x4 and on one hand the GX460 would tick all those boxes, but as stated it's hard when the basic architecture is the same. You start to get into the pros and cons of upgrading to essentially the same vehicle with some different options. I don't think I could do it for the current gen GX, maybe if the next gen differentiates itself more?

I do dream of 200 series Land Cruisers...

I feel like a "bare bones" 2013 4runner doesnt really exist.

The struggle I am having is the GX 470 is about $5k less than the runner and yet has a clear advantage in features. If the options were reversed it would be the Runner all day but I am struggling to understand that I am paying more for less (than what I need).

I am not saying I need all the fancy stuff but I don't want to pay more and get less. I do appreciate the warranty/new vs. used argument though.

So stuck on this one.

I have power lock and windows, I have a CD player and Bluetooth, but beyond that cloth seats that are manual, no leather, no heated seats, no sunroof, no keyless start, no third row, etc.

Comparing new vs. used prices is a waste of time.

You can get a used BMW 750 for about the same price as a new Honda Civic, but have very different maintenance costs.

Ahh yes, you got it rough.

So true. I wanted a Ferrari 308 instead of the Prius my wife bought because they were the same price. Probably would have been a mistake but we are not talking a 10 year and 100k mile difference. The GX's I am looking at have about 40-60k and are 2009. Other than the WP & Timing Belt change the maintenance costs difference is not huge.

Keep on Trollin'

You have heard the news that AC is now standard on practically every vehicle...

You should look into a sprint booster, they make the truck use much more of its low end torque.

This?

Why SprintBooster Works

$289.99 to make the throttle open 25% faster?

Not for me...

David