2010 Toyota 4Runner Trail Edition: Review and Pics (TruckTrend)

[M1911]

u should seriously look into vw, they make killer diesel

They do. Unfortunately, I owned a 2000 GTI GLX prior to buying my 4Runner. I purchased it new and sold it after only 40,000 miles, because I got so sick of it breaking down. I can't remember everything that I replaced on that car, but the things that I remember included:

- rear shocks and top mounts twice, and needed it again before I sold it.
- mass air flow sensor
- thermostat
- a/c condenser
- starter motor
- coil pack
- spark plugs
- plug wires
- rear brakes at 20,000 miles
- turn signal stalk
- almost all of the light bulbs for running lights, brake lights, and head lights

In contrast, the list of items I replaced in the first 40,000 miles on my 2003 4Runner (other than regular maintenance of lube, oil, filter, etc.) is as follows:


When I was shopping for the 4Runner, VW had already released the Touareg. In my opinion, the T-reg is more attractive on the outside than the 4Runner and it has a far nicer interior. I suspect that I would prefer the Germanic handling and overall feel of the T-reg over the 4Runner. But I never even went to look at a T-reg. You can guess why.

VW has reportedly improved its quality significantly since I owned mine -- the early Golf/Jetta IV years were apparently when VW was having the worst quality problems. But I'm not quite ready to give VW another try. YMMV.

as for toyota making a diesel we have a better shot of winning the lotto

Unfortunately, I agree with you. VW was working on a diesel for the Tundra and the pickup market is more amenable to diesels than the VW market. Toyota publicly announced that they canceled that program. With the 4Runner sales having cratered down to a small niche, a diesel 4Runner would be a niche within a niche -- in other words, the development costs would likely never be made up in sales.

Unless the upcoming CAFE standards force major changes, I can't see Toyota offering us a diesel 4Runner, which is a pity.

 

[2003-4x4runner]

Dont Like the new 4 Runner

The new 4 Runner looks like a Ford Escape and Honda.

 

['04-Sport]

Doesn't do a thing for me - glad I'm sold on my '04 V8 4WD Sport Edition and plan to keep it for a lot longer. :dancin:

 

[probwhite]

I'm officially bummin! Love the new runner. My 05 has still felt new to me (in spite of the 173K on the clock!) as the 06-09s weren't much different. There's no use denying it - I want the new one. Finances and responsibility being what they are - I have to stick with my plan to drive mine to 300K. I'll have to console myself with the fact that mine's paid for!

 

[eskimochaos]

I'm officially bummin! Love the new runner. My 05 has still felt new to me (in spite of the 173K on the clock!) as the 06-09s weren't much different. There's no use denying it - I want the new one. Finances and responsibility being what they are - I have to stick with my plan to drive mine to 300K. I'll have to console myself with the fact that mine's paid for!

173..wtf do you do? give cross country tours to tourists?

 

[MikesToy]

173..wtf do you do? give cross country tours to tourists?

He must be delivering pizzas everyday. :jk:

 

[probwhite]

He must be delivering pizzas everyday. :jk:

Lol. Nope. Was a sales road warrior for 6.5 years (until being laid off in Feb - I might be delivering pizzas soon!) Out of the 173K, I'd say 110 of them are highway miles. You guys will be happy to know that I've replaced nothing but the rear lift gate lock motor. The thing looks and runs new. Original brakes lasted to 125k. My baby has had no easy life either. I'm a chronic lead foot and It's been off road more times than I can tell you. The thing is bullet proof.

 

[tineman06]

i'm wondering if anyone knows how hard it would be to take the diesel engine from a toyota from Japan or Australia and put it in a new 4runner. I explores toyota's websites and the "hilux" equivalent of the 4runner no longer exists, but maybe toyota's comparable models would have a similar engine.... any thoughts?
or i guess you could always do a RHD conversion....

 

[M1911]

i'm wondering if anyone knows how hard it would be to take the diesel engine from a toyota from Japan or Australia and put it in a new 4runner. I explores toyota's websites and the "hilux" equivalent of the 4runner no longer exists, but maybe toyota's comparable models would have a similar engine.... any thoughts?

You can't.

Overseas diesel engines won't meet US emissions controls. The amount of money to buy the engine, fabricate a new wiring harness, install it, modify it to meet emissions controls, would pay for 200,000 miles of gasoline.

 

[03 Limited]

Awee no more V8 4runner's? :crybaby: I was hoping to see the Sequoia's V8 as a option for the Limited trims. :violin:

 

[Carbon Blue]

Lol. Nope. Was a sales road warrior for 6.5 years (until being laid off in Feb - I might be delivering pizzas soon!) Out of the 173K, I'd say 110 of them are highway miles. You guys will be happy to know that I've replaced nothing but the rear lift gate lock motor. The thing looks and runs new. Original brakes lasted to 125k. My baby has had no easy life either. I'm a chronic lead foot and It's been off road more times than I can tell you. The thing is bullet proof.

thats great to hear! Do you have the v6 or v8? Id love to seem some hi quality interior/exterior pics of your rig, stock or not. :cheers:

 

[mike1305]

yeeeaahh

5th gen looks friggin awesome. Prouder than ever to be a 4runner owner.

 

[charlier180]

When I was shopping for the 4Runner, VW had already released the Touareg. In my opinion, the T-reg is more attractive on the outside than the 4Runner and it has a far nicer interior. I suspect that I would prefer the Germanic handling and overall feel of the T-reg over the 4Runner. But I never even went to look at a T-reg. You can guess why.

When I was shopping for an SUV I looked seriously at the Touareg and the 4Runner. When I calculated the maintenance costs for each I was surprised to see that the Touareg's costs were DOUBLE that of the 4Runner. In order to get the V8 Touareg VW would have forced me to spend $16K more for it. In all fairness to VW they included a lot of other items for that money. Trouble was, I really did not care to have those items.

FYI, I saw a recent post by a Touareg owner that showed an itemized list of maintenance costs he had spent. When I compared his list to that of my 4Runner for the same mileage period I found that my original calculations were incorrect when it came to the maintenance costs. Turns out that in this person's cases his costs were FOUR TIMES MORE than mine for his gas engine Touareg.

VW has reportedly improved its quality significantly since I owned mine -- the early Golf/Jetta IV years were apparently when VW was having the worst quality problems. But I'm not quite ready to give VW another try. YMMV.

Yes, it is very true that VW has improved the quality of most of their vehicles.
Unfortunately, that still does not mean that VWs are inexpensive to keep/maintain after their warranties have expired and their "free maintenance" period (3 years) is over.

BTW, I agree with others here that a diesel offering in the 4Runner would be GREAT and would be something I would seriously consider in my next 4Runner.
Others here have a point that this engine would be costly and a niche within a niche. I do think the R&D costs could be spread across the 4Runner, Sequoia and Tundra when it came to a diesel engine. Unfortunately, the US certification costs for each vehicle would still, most likely, make the engine cost prohibitive.

I am very interested to see if Toyota does release a V8 version of the new model 4Runner in the future. I suspect they may have delayed a V8 version for now for financial reasons. If they do not offer a V8 version I can say without a doubt they will lose me as a customer since my towing needs exceed the rating (5K) of the new V6 4Runner and the Tundra and Sequoia are not viable alternatives.

Time will tell how this plays out.

 

[M1911]

Yes, it is very true that VW has improved the quality of most of their vehicles.
Unfortunately, that still does not mean that VWs are inexpensive to keep/maintain after their warranties have expired and their "free maintenance" period (3 years) is over.

Consumer reports just issued their annual auto edition. The Golf is now recommended, but IIRC, the Touareg has the worst reliability of any car/suv.

 

[HenrySoren]

Consumer reports just issued their annual auto edition. The Golf is now recommended, but IIRC, the Touareg has the worst reliability of any car/suv.

I don't think Touareg is that bad, my cousin is a happy owner.
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[Uneek]

My friend who was shopping for a SUV and decided on the X5 ultimately, looked at the Touareg as well. He said the 2004 Touaregs do not hold their value due to the issues with that model year and one owner had his in the shop for over 60 days.

I told him to get the GX instead, but he said it didn't qualify for the tax credits back then.

 

[M1911]

I told him to get the GX instead, but he said it didn't qualify for the tax credits back then.

The following year, Lexus upped the GVWR on the GX by 1 pound, making it qualify for the tax credits.

 

[4$$Runner]

I was disappointed as well to see no V8 offered. If I wanted 17 city you might as well have the tourqe of the V8. Im not all that thrilled with the outside styling either. It looks cheap inside and out. Until you look at the price tag, 39K in this economy. I dont get it. Your only 8K from the Lexus GX470 brand new. :nono:

 

[charlier180]

My friend who was shopping for a SUV and decided on the X5 ultimately, looked at the Touareg as well. He said the 2004 Touaregs do not hold their value due to the issues with that model year and one owner had his in the shop for over 60 days.

I told him to get the GX instead, but he said it didn't qualify for the tax credits back then.

The 2004 model year Touaregs had a number of challenges facing them.
First and foremost they had a significant number of hardware and software issues that plagued a large number of them. That along with parts shortages, a lack of trained technicians ans a VW Tech line that was not up to the task combined for the "perfect storm" that to this day the Touareg and VWoA is trying to move past. A good friend of mine and long time VW Tech said it best when he described another of the Touareg's challenges. Simply put, "the VW Touareg is smarter than most of it's owners". Like most new vehicle owners Touareg owners do not read the manual or watch the DVD. That along with the Touareg's many advanced and quirky features leads the owner to believe there is a problem when, in fact, there is none.

Those advanced and quirky features were additional reasons why I did not buy a Touareg back in late 2004. That, along with the fact that my friend (who was/is Touareg trained) is located 150+ miles away. That distance is too far for AAA+ towing and way outside VW's roadside assistance range for towing as well. Historically, is the 4Runner less trouble prone than the Touareg overall, without a doubt. Am I glad I bought a 4Runner, most definitely. Will I buy one again? YES, but it will take a V8 or a Diesel engine for me to pony up the $$$$. That and a frame that does not rust nearly SO MUCH as the one on my 2004 (think Tacoma frame rust). That is a different thread/story.

 

[M1911]

I was disappointed as well to see no V8 offered. If I wanted 17 city you might as well have the tourqe of the V8.

FYI, I don't get 17 mpg city. In mixed city, highway, suburban driving, I typically get around 16-16.5 mpg. In the winter, that drops by 1 mpg or so. On the highway, I might get 18-19 mpg tops. In pure city driving, I would be down below 15 mpg. If the 2010 figures are accurate and it actually gets 17/23 mpg, that is a significant improvement.

But I would still miss the effortless torque of the V8.