Okay folks, 2nd time around here for me...

after the deer strike and totaling of our brand spankin' new 2018 TRD Offroad Premium (a mere 11 days after taking delivery of it and with 500 miles on the odometer) and all the insurance bullshit that I've had to go through (2WD versus 4WD... Help Me: ), it's time to pull the trigger once again but...

I've got two OTD prices this time on two different 4Runners and I've about driven myself nuts over splitting financial hairs.

Long story short, we made 3k over our price on the first 4Runner (because we got a very nice deal that first time) and as things got closer to being finished with our insurer my brain started going into "that's a nice little bit of money... I wonder if I could save even more by bumping down to a SR5 Premium 4x4?" followed by, "I don't know if I'll ever truly use all those bells & whistles on that first TRD Offroad Premium anyway, and really do I even care about the wheels, hood scoop, red stitching and badges?" -- a mind with too much time on its hands can be a very strange thing indeed, and I've had too much time lately for thinking.

Truthfully, we will -at most- drive the thing offroad (and then, mainly fire roads and forest trails -- no crawling) about 10% of its lifetime... and yes, we intend to keep it until end of life (hopefully no more deer are in my future).

So, I'll put it to you all...

#1. 2018 SR5 Premium 4x4 w/moonroof... OTD at $36,000.00

#2. 2018 TRD Offroad Premium 4x4 w/moonroof... OTD at $37,850.00

and why?

Go#1, no reason to get #2 since you aren't going to ever use the e-locker or non-functional hood scoop.

Agree.

I went through similar decision with mine a couple weeks ago. (SR5 vs TRDOR as I didn't want to pay for the Premium)

For me the deciding factor was the locker. Last real off road rig I built was my Cherokee and it was locked front and rear. I saw how much of a difference it made. I know it is a little apple to oranges comparison but I knew I wanted the locker. I may never use it, or very rarely use it in this rig, but I have the peace of mind knowing it is there.

The hood scoop was nice but I could have lived without it. In my opinion the interior upgrades were a huge deal. I just didn't care for the SR5 interior. (I came from a crew cab truck that was black on black leather and loved it.)

It sounds like you'd probably be perfectly fine with the SR5P, it would get you everywhere you want to go, but the one time you wish you had the locker you'll be upset you didn't spend the little more for it. Besides, you'll probably get it back in the end.

My $.02 and keep in mind I've only been a T4R owner for a couple weeks and mine is all stock until I have a free weekend.

even though OP doesn't plan on selling his vehicle, I'd buy the trim level that has the highest perceived resale value that is within your budget. After all, our needs in vehicles changes as our life priorities change. That tells you what option I would choose.

Get the SR5 Premium. Use the extra $ for travels, mods, investing, 401k etc. A-trac is not as good as a real locker but works more than well enough for your purposes. I’d love to have a Trail/TRD off-road model and the locker, just in case but I wanted a third-row. Our uses sound very similar to yours, although I did take a 4x4 101 course (along with another member on here who has a pretty tricked out Limited, also not locked at the time, and kept up with all of the lifted and locked Jeeps).

If you find in the future you “need” lockers, you can air lock it later for the price you saved.

From a pure resale value perspective, the TRD Off Road will hold its value better due to being more desirable. Unless you need a 3rd row, go with the TRD.

I agree. The future is uncertain but buying one of these is like buying a piece of gold. Get a good one and it’ll sell for more than that difference you pay up front if you’re lucky.

I want a 2003-09 Limited for the wife. They are substantially more that an SR5. Sometimes $3-5k on a $9k-14k vehicle. It’s crazy. And when I ask why the owners say “I don’t really want to sell it.”

Get what you want!

And sorry about the deer. I would be pretty upset. Making a couple of bucks helps though!

Onward and upward though!

That hood scoop adds at least 25hp. Haha

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When you say "out the door" do you mean with all taxes and title? Those are some super prices if so. Where from and where in Ga?

I honestly would have preferred if my wife went for the ORP, both for the styling (especially the wheels) and the e locker, but she didn’t like the hood scoop. The SR5 Premium and the ORP both have A Trac, and the SR5 Premium has Hill Descent Control but doesn’t have the other crawl modes that the ORP has. The SR5 Premium will do anything my wife will ever ask of it and happy wife = happy life. Someday I’ll probably sneak on the ORP rims with the black accents and some Duratracs.... with those tires and A Trac I can’t imagine there’s much that’ll stop it. But for $1480, I personally think the ORP is worth it. And as others have said, you’ll always get at least some your money back on resale should you choose to trade it in or sell it. For simplicity’s sake, we did not want the KDSS. We love the SR5 Premium, there’s no bad choice here, it’s win-win.

This is our 17 SR-5 Premium i like it alot. I am not a dedicated rock dog, so this works for us just fine.

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Go SR5 imo. It has ATRAC. You don’t need crawl control or the hoodscoop. If you want an “easy button” later down the road, you can spend $2k to get an ARB locker installed and have OBA. Regardless of what people say, a stock rig can do pretty much anything one with a rear locker can do. Might take a different approach, but it is doable. A front locker is how you can get yourself to places you shouldn’t be. Plus I think the SR5 rides smoother with no shimmy.

No matter what anybody says, here’s the biggest and only decision maker: the SR5 has a sunglasses holder where the TRD Off-road has a couple of knobs that control gimmicky off-road features. I miss that sunglasses holder. I’ve never been in a spot where I needed crawl control or terrain select. I wish I had bought the SR5 premium. Oh, 1st world problems...

Go with the SR5 Premium. You don't really seem to need the extra off-road capability of the ORP. If you plan to own the vehicle a long time, the long-term resale value between both is pretty insignificant assuming you end up selling it after 8-10 (or hopefully more!) years. Take that extra $1800 and throw it into a stock-based mutual fund or etf.