03 & 04 owners w/ no issues sound off!!
- Thread starter hcrissman
- Start date
jsarche
New member
A bit over 4,000 miles on my SE V8, and absolutely no problems. I haven't noticed any of the problems commonly mentioned on the forums here -- seat noises, brake-pedal tapping, etc. But I'm not at all surprised. It IS a Toyota, after all.
I ran up close to 148,000 miles on my '95 4Runner, and in the 10 years I owned it, I think I can count on one hand the number of times it went into a shop for non-scheduled maintenance work. And all those times together, I don't think I paid more than about $2,500 total for various repairs/part replacements. You can't beat that -- and that was a huge factor in my decision to stick with a T4R for my new car.
I ran up close to 148,000 miles on my '95 4Runner, and in the 10 years I owned it, I think I can count on one hand the number of times it went into a shop for non-scheduled maintenance work. And all those times together, I don't think I paid more than about $2,500 total for various repairs/part replacements. You can't beat that -- and that was a huge factor in my decision to stick with a T4R for my new car.
sharp4runr
New member
Mine has had MINOR issues and nothing that would prevent me from driving the car.
Sunroof grinds a little. Little lube has helped but still a little bit of grinding. I'm well in the warranty so next service I'll have them look into it again.
Sulfur TSB completed. Again car was driveable and this helped the poopoo smell a lot. The VSC TRAC and VSC OFF light came on after the TSB was completed and another trip to the dealer fixed that, but the car was still driveable.
Seat moves a little but not as bad as Vin's seat (do a search for the thread)
Again, these are very minor issues. My transmission hasn't fallen off the truck or anything like that and I think that is whats important. I don't believe ANY car is completely perfect. Now Toyotas are MORE perfect than most...
Sunroof grinds a little. Little lube has helped but still a little bit of grinding. I'm well in the warranty so next service I'll have them look into it again.
Sulfur TSB completed. Again car was driveable and this helped the poopoo smell a lot. The VSC TRAC and VSC OFF light came on after the TSB was completed and another trip to the dealer fixed that, but the car was still driveable.
Seat moves a little but not as bad as Vin's seat (do a search for the thread)
Again, these are very minor issues. My transmission hasn't fallen off the truck or anything like that and I think that is whats important. I don't believe ANY car is completely perfect. Now Toyotas are MORE perfect than most...
bulldog-yota
New member
I love my 4R, I'm actually convincing my GF to get one too. After 30k miles and getting a early 03 (Nov 02) I must say that Toyota really needs to step up a bit in their quality. I've had far more problems with the 4R than I had with my convertible 330 BMW, which incedently was also a very early new model year. None affected the reliability, but it certainly made the experience less satisfactory.
Other than:
- driveline clunk, which was solved by lubing the slip joint (had to do myself as dealer was not able to solve it)
- moonroof alignement and rattle fix, the rattle is back
- vibration at 65, resolved when I went to Revos (dont know why Toyota still want to put Dunlops on their vechiles)
- Both front seats squeeking and creeking, they are both electric and leather (limited)
- MPG indicator that is wrong with the backlight dimmer on the driver side
- CD changer that intermittedly do not swap CDs and gives me errors
- center diff lock that gets stuck from time to time
- tailgate that doesn't fully open when the window is rolled down and it is cold
- various other small rattles and squeeks
the 4R runs just fine. The strange part is that Toyota dealers dont seem to notice any f these issues, even if you specify it to them time after time. Even if you take them for a test drive they try and palm it off as normal operation. It seems that the Toyota is a DIY vehicle, if you want service get a premium car like Lexus, MB or BMW. The mechanicals seem to be great for the most part, so I will just need to ix these things.
Bottomline is that the new 4R is a great truck, but Toyota better step up their quality and especially their service. If we have the same problems with the next 4R, I might just consider getting older Toys in the future. Paying a premium for a Toy, you expect better quality and service.
Other than:
- driveline clunk, which was solved by lubing the slip joint (had to do myself as dealer was not able to solve it)
- moonroof alignement and rattle fix, the rattle is back
- vibration at 65, resolved when I went to Revos (dont know why Toyota still want to put Dunlops on their vechiles)
- Both front seats squeeking and creeking, they are both electric and leather (limited)
- MPG indicator that is wrong with the backlight dimmer on the driver side
- CD changer that intermittedly do not swap CDs and gives me errors
- center diff lock that gets stuck from time to time
- tailgate that doesn't fully open when the window is rolled down and it is cold
- various other small rattles and squeeks
the 4R runs just fine. The strange part is that Toyota dealers dont seem to notice any f these issues, even if you specify it to them time after time. Even if you take them for a test drive they try and palm it off as normal operation. It seems that the Toyota is a DIY vehicle, if you want service get a premium car like Lexus, MB or BMW. The mechanicals seem to be great for the most part, so I will just need to ix these things.
Bottomline is that the new 4R is a great truck, but Toyota better step up their quality and especially their service. If we have the same problems with the next 4R, I might just consider getting older Toys in the future. Paying a premium for a Toy, you expect better quality and service.
greasefingers
New member
Oh the service is crap, where I live which is why I do all the maintenance/service myself. I brought my T4R to two different Dealers. Both told me that the sulfur smell & the drive line clunk are normal. Normal for what? Not after paying $ 30K plus. F that. So I will never lower the rear window unless the vehicle is in motion and I have learned, from this great forum, how to fix the drive line clunk. My roof rack also rattles, but hay that’s normal I can live with these things and I do not have the time or patience to argue any further with Toyota Service Managers.
Sac State
New member
Great vehicle. Minor annoyances....
1. Cannot see the HVAC control lights
2. Metallic rattle in the exhaust. I bought the Runner with the dual Borla as an option and the dealer cannot find any problems. Embarrassing at stoplights.
3. Stupid chirp when alarm is activated, door lock/unlock
4. Drivers seat rocked/moved in turns, but it since has gone away.
5. Drive by wire is nice, but it allows almost too smooth a shift point. I can stall the upshift by varying the throttle. I like sharp, pre-determined shift points.
6. No auto up/down feature on passenger window
7. Low ground clearance-need an additional 2" stock
8. Emergency brake is basically useless. Adjusted 3 times, no avail.
I plan on keeping my rig until the wheels fall off. So, all in all, a very reliable, fun to drive vehicle.
1. Cannot see the HVAC control lights
2. Metallic rattle in the exhaust. I bought the Runner with the dual Borla as an option and the dealer cannot find any problems. Embarrassing at stoplights.
3. Stupid chirp when alarm is activated, door lock/unlock
4. Drivers seat rocked/moved in turns, but it since has gone away.
5. Drive by wire is nice, but it allows almost too smooth a shift point. I can stall the upshift by varying the throttle. I like sharp, pre-determined shift points.
6. No auto up/down feature on passenger window
7. Low ground clearance-need an additional 2" stock
8. Emergency brake is basically useless. Adjusted 3 times, no avail.
I plan on keeping my rig until the wheels fall off. So, all in all, a very reliable, fun to drive vehicle.
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No issues with 4-03 V8 4wd. Just nit picky stuff. I figure I'll wait as long as possible to have them swap the cat out. In 3 or 4 years the whacko exhaust sniffing police will probably move into my county that until 3 years ago only had 2 traffic lights. Now we have 5. Then I'll have a fresh cat for them. Or, if I trade for new, at least the next owner will have a fresh one.
Northof49
New member
The smell has nothing to do with the vehicle passing emissions, it is a LEV from the factory.Swaro said:
All of you guys with the sulfur smell, why don't you just use a different brand/grade gas, at least for a temporary fix??? Mine reaked on Esso regular gas, but NEVER on premium anything, or Chevron regular........don't see what the big deal is on finding some gas that doesn't stink, I figured it out 2 weeks after I bought the truck (first 03 V8 in the area).
greasefingers
New member
Well I know that Mobil gas produces smelly (sulfur) exhaust after the Cat. But I have not tried anything else.
QT gas seems to generate the least odor of the gases that I've tried. They are supposed to have some kind of top rating by Toyota. Shell is the next best, and Mobil is the worst.
I've heard the Amoco/BP Ultimate has a low sulfur content too. I haven't tried them yet.
I guess by 2006, this won't be a problem anymore.
:
I've heard the Amoco/BP Ultimate has a low sulfur content too. I haven't tried them yet.
I guess by 2006, this won't be a problem anymore.
:ToolmanJohn
New member
Not that simple in the NE
I've tried no less than seven brands, some of them not even in my area, and several from other states. If there is sulfer in the gas, the cat makes hydrogen sulfide when some excess unburnt fuel slips through the exhaust (heavy acceleration) and burns in the cat. It can't be eliminated completely, because the sulfur is in the gas.
And all premium fuels I have tried produced identical smell whether it was 87 or 94 octane. I wouldn't buy premium even if it did eliminate it altogether, it's a waste if money.
I've tried no less than seven brands, some of them not even in my area, and several from other states. If there is sulfer in the gas, the cat makes hydrogen sulfide when some excess unburnt fuel slips through the exhaust (heavy acceleration) and burns in the cat. It can't be eliminated completely, because the sulfur is in the gas.
And all premium fuels I have tried produced identical smell whether it was 87 or 94 octane. I wouldn't buy premium even if it did eliminate it altogether, it's a waste if money.
GraphicGirl
New member
35k miles in 12 months here.
The only issue I had was at my last tune up, I noticed a small leak in the rear of the car. I had to replace the shock absorber on the passenger side, but it was covered under warranty so no big deal there.
Other than that, this this is a machine.
The only issue I had was at my last tune up, I noticed a small leak in the rear of the car. I had to replace the shock absorber on the passenger side, but it was covered under warranty so no big deal there.
Other than that, this this is a machine.
TRD04RUNNER
New member
13K no sign of problem so far! 
