I disagree with the poster with the 32-37 degrees but I can buy that if I'm running my AC when it's 72F outside. Mine blows around 44-46 on a 90+ day with lots of humidity.
If you aren't getting cool to cold air coming out something is wrong. Maybe a refrigerant leak has hurt your cooling ability. That is unacceptable.

I took a 16 year old truck that only cooled decently when the engine was at highway speeds that didn't cool well in stop/go traffic. After using ceramic window tint on all except the windshield, the AC is noticeably better.

I haven't measured the actual vent temp, but the evaporator setpoint is ~35 degrees (per the OBD2) and it reaches that pretty easily once it gets on the highway. Has quite a time getting down to 35 in stop and go traffic after being heat soaked.

Wish I had the problem of it being too cold. That or getting 20mpg like many on here claim even with lifts and bigger tires. My A/C is pathetic. Today only 72 in LA and I live near ocean with no humidity. I turned off all vents but the two driver dashboard vents, full power at lowest temp setting. It gets “coool” but no where close to cold or me needing to turn it down. Been like that since It was brand new.

maybe you are intolerant to heat? I can't tolerate heat very well hence why i rather pay insane prices to live by the beach also.

However, my 4runner's ac runs just fine when I turn it on, but thats rare since i live by the beach.

If it's still under warranty there is no reason why you can't take it in and have them check it out. It's not going to hurt anything and then you will know for sure if it's working properly.

Yup probably should put that in my calendar for a day I can afford a few hours at the dealer.

To OP: I was always impressed with AC in my 4Runner… so I would recommend looking into it to make sure it works as design. As a reference point, I have checked temp from the vents on my truck not long ago; it dropped to 40 degrees (AC was not running on High) after about 5 minutes driving from work. Truck was parked outside and the temperature that day was 98 (I am in Texas )

Ha ha if it works in Texas something certainly wrong with mine living by ocean in LA and full blast it can’t even make me cold. I’ve been to Texas multiple times and my friends who live there have blacked out tint because of the heat

Gonna have to make time for dealer visit this summer. Thankfully it’s usually good enough weather for me to be cool by windows down, and I love my fresh air anyhow. Even when I lived in PA, CO, NY, CT and DC id have windows cracked in winter for fresh air haha.

Open up those vents !!! The more you close, the more restriction you're putting on the blower, which of course gives less air flow. You can't expect the blower to push the same amount of air through 2 vents that it's capable of pushing through 6.

LET IT BLOW !!!!!

On a 90 degree hot humid NJ summer day my interior cools off in about 10 minutes. On a trip I'm turning it down because it's too cold in the cabin. Keep recerculate on, the system actually defaults that to on when it's over 75 or so. Also as other have mentioned, keep the sun load as low as possible.

What do you have...Limited, TE, SR5P?

I just traded up from a 2016 SR5 premium to a Limited. I live in West Texas. The SR5 got so damn cold I had to bump it up on the dial after about a 10-15 minute run down the highway.

The limited takes a bit longer to cool down. But it also is a darker color.

The limited has dual zone climate control. I don't know if this pertains to other models, but the manual indicates that it will automatically revert to recirc if temp is above 75F.

So if the 4runner is parked outside and its in the 70s, it will likely be a bit warmer on inside. If system is in recirc then hotter air is blowing across evaporator.

Try utilizing fresh air (recirc off) for the first 3-5 minutes. The air might be cooler outside than inside, so it should affect/improve ac performance a bit.

Basically try to get the warm air out of the cabin and use fresh air to get system cooling a fast a possible.

Then switch to recirc or max ac.

Other issues this could be:

Overcharged or undercharged system. If it has been like this since new then it is usually this situation.

Blend door malfunction. Its rare but sometimes blend doors and flake out and blend hot and cold air when on max ac

Leak of some type.

A/C cabin filter plugged. If you are in LA I'd check this first. Its in the glove box and super easy to get to.


For reference and comparison...my daily driver is actually a 2010 mustang gt. It is black exterior, with black interior, and no tint.

The mustang has a foundational problem with ac--front and rear windshields create greenhouse level radiant heat. In the summer time, the car gets to 170deg F on inside. The air blowing out drops to 50-55F inside about 2-3 minutes. But the whole damn car takes 15 minutes at 75 mph down highway to actually cool off.

I've checked the ac pressures myself every summer. It is dead on for 105 F weather. Been like this since day I drove off lot.

If I didn't have sentimental value in this thing I'd sell it asap.

So the 4runner ac is awesome by comparison. It has vertical windows almost all the way around. Slight tint and a bit lighter of a color. This makes a huge difference.

This has been discussed a few times. I've never gone to the effort to measure voltage to the motor. The 4Runner uses the same blower assembly as the RX350 and Lexus GX460 and I'm sure others. It does not blow as well as my RX. My theory on it is that it's ether setup for less than full output via the switching, or it's a matter of restriction in the ducting.

I don't have any issues with the AC though. I did buy a white one though. And that wasn't an accident given that I live near the desert.

I have a 2016 TRD Pro. I’ll open more vents but reason I closed other vents is that when all the vents are open it blows much noticeably less, especially if the rear is open. The more vents you start closing the more it seems to push out significantly harder in the few remaining vents. If I leave them all open and have full vehicle (which is rare thankfully) everyone feels like they’re getting the shaft if it’s a really hot day (which is rare too here thankfully).

I’ll also try to do fresh air first. Mine is the metallic grey whatever it’s called for TRD Pro in ‘16. So it’s dark. But it’s garage kept and my garage is fairly cool so I never leave with it baking inside. Who knows once I’m out and about maybe it’s the darker color influencing it and if I get the windows tinted it will work better. My girlfriends Civic is same color and parked outside always baking when we get in and you gotta turn ken her A/C after a few minutes or it freezes you out. Although it is a tiny interior.

I’ll try to check the glove box filter you reference. Not sure how much smog id be dealing with in the South Bay. I’m 90% driving only in Manhattan, hermosa and Redondo Beach towns where I’ve not recognized or heard anyone talking smog issues but who knows I’m sure the air is damn dirty haha. I have reasons I gotta be here but think about trying to buy a cabin in Montana or Colorado to split my time at getting fresh mountain air, hunting and wheeling. Or hey maybe Utah or Idaho. I just have contacts in Montana and Colorado, and have lived in Colorado and love it there.

Anyhow I mainly put windows down but trips to the “valley” occasionally get hot and a few times going through desert areas driving to Joshua Tree or AZ it gets flipping hot.

keep us posted.

My money is on an overcharge/undercharge.

Is this something the dealer would easily diagnose?

Yes, anyone with AC test equipment can easily diagnose this. The 4runner should be able to freeze you out.

We can only run ours on full for a few minutes and then it's too cold.