4th gen compared to 3rd gen trying to decide

H

hamdog

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I'm looking for the pros and cons of a 4th gen compared to a 3rd gen. I was currently looking at a 1999 with 200K miles for $3950, it was sold the night I called on it. Most of all the 3rd gen I have found in the vermont area have high mileage and are going for $6K-$10K matters on year and mileage. Some are in good shape body wise others are suffering from rust.

I'm looking to purchase a 4runner for commuting 100 miles a day to work for the winter months, to tow my side by side, small boat, and take me to my favorite hunting/fishing spots.

I have found a nice 2005 4.7 V8 SR5 with 80K miles and in good shape for $16K. The bind I'm stuck in is I either have to find a 4 runner within $3K-$4k (3gen with high miles) so I pay with credit card or cash or I have to trade in my 2012 focus 5-door which I just bought in May. I would lose my shirt on the trade, but would have a newer 4th gen 4 runner. Then I would buy a older corolla for $3k to rack the miles on back and fourth to work.

So with that said I was wondering what are the pros and cons when comparing the 4th gen V8 to the 3rd gen V6, mileage, maintenance, reliability, longevity, etc?

Has anyone put together a buyin guide for the 4th gen like the awesome one put together for the 3rd gen?
 
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I don't know that you can really compare the two. They are totally different except the name. There is a big size difference as well as gas mileage difference. Prices are not close. About the only thing you can compare between the two is quality, which is great for both. If your heart is set on a 3rd gen then you could look outside vermont for a good deal. The big advantage I would see from getting one from down south is rust. A 10-12 year old vehicle that has spent its time in Vermont is bound to have more rust than one from Georgia.
 
It's going to be tough. You want to only pay $4k...yet have a very reliable vehicle that's 8+ years old. Vermont is tough on trucks. Can a vehicle be found...MAYBE....But they'll go fast. And before you buy anything...get it fully inspected. How well the vehicle was maintained is going to be the key.
 
hamdog said:
Ya its a hard decision. I guess it all boils down to how much they want to give me for my trade.
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Obviously it should be totally your decision, as I believe that is a key in happy ownership of any vehicle.

Here is my two cents: one negative thing that came with 4th generation was the lower ground clearance, but with simple DS spacers lift (2.5 front 1.5 back) 4th generation has the same or even more clearance than 1999 (tallest) 3rd generation. It is easy job and if you do it yourself it will cost you around $200.00 and that is with Lifetime alignment.
Now, there is not much you can do to make 3rd generation to be as smooth, powerful (especially if you get V8) and comfortable as 4th generation… unless you will swap power train and parts of suspension from 4th gen into 3rd gen… but it will cost you a lot more than $200.00 :wink2:(LOL) and you still will have smaller and less comfortable truck.
Do not get me wrong, I love 3rd gen, I had one for almost 10 years before buying 2005 Runner… arguably I still believe that 3rd gen is a best looking 4Runner to this day… but it is hard to compare them with 4th gen comfort and power… even 5th generation went downhill to some degree when compared with 4th gen in that regards..
As far as reliability, maintenance, and longevity, I do not believe one is better than other, but they both are much better than anything else out there…
As far as mileage it will depends on many things including your driving style, tire and size of the lift you will have:frisky:, but I would not be surprised if you will get better mileage with 2005 V8 vs. 3rd generation.
Just FYI: overall I am getting about the same or better mileage with my V8 vs. my old 1996 4Runner with 3.4 L…


Best of luck with your search!

:cheers:
 
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pretty much to sum it it...4th gen's are newer, much more powerful, bigger, and better on gas. 3rd gens have a higher ground clearance, and depending on the year it has a choice of a rear locker. 4th gens' ATRAC works and is very good, not as good as a locker, but will do the job most of the time. they both have plenty of aftermarket support. i was in the same situation a few months ago but decided I cant pass up the amazing power the V8 puts out. although i initially preferred the look of the 3rd gens, the look of the 4th gens have grown on me and i bought my '03. couldnt be happier with it
 
:iagree:...At first I didn't even look at 4th gens because I didn't know much about them and figured they where out of my price range. I had my heart set on a 99/00 Limited and proceeded to search for one for the next six months. I looked all over and the only decent 3rd gens I found with low kms where priced closely to 03-04 4th gens. So I did a bit of research and as soon as I read the torque specs of the V8 the teenager in me screamed "i'm getting one of those!'". A week later my 03 was sitting in my laneway (turns out there easier to find 3rd gens).

I guess i'm a bit bias cuz I own a 4th gen but I was just tired of my old base model Corolla and wanted something alittle more modern with more bells + whistles but heres my comparison anyways.

3rd gen:
Pros: Looks great(esp 99+), reasonably priced, possible rear locker, manual transfer case, available manual tranny, good ground clearance.(seems to be more offroad oriented!)
Cons: Hard to find with no rust/low kms, small cabin/little headroom, top heavy

4th gen:
Pros: Looks equally great, sexy interior (tunnel gauges/gated shifter etc), V8/ the look on peoples faces when they get spanked by a 4500lbs SUV, more headroom (however still limited)
Cons: Stupid electronic transfer case (IMO prone to failure), less ground clearance, no manual tranny, VSC/Trac systems which can't be disabled till 08 models.

Long story short, from the factory the 3rd gen is more offroad oriented while the 4th gen is more highway refined but either one can be modded to the owners preference and both will be reliable.
 
I think everything has been said. I've owned both, the 3rd gen is better suited for off road in stock form, but the 4th gen is way better on road. For a daily driver, I'd take a 4th gen without a doubt. Also, my 3rd gen 2wd v6 wasn't much better mpg than the 4th gen. From the way it sounds, a 4th gen v6 would be ideal. The v6 will get better mpg than the v8, doesn't require the timing belt change, and has nearly as much power.
 
Thanks everyone! I've almost got my fiance talked into letting me trade in the focus for the 2005 4 runner SR5 V8 80Kmiles for $15,900. The hard thing to swallow is we are going to lose our shirt on the trade.
 
Can't go wrong with either. Here is my 2 cents:

3rd Gen - Cheaper, Higher miles, maybe more capable offroad, not as comfortable, smaller.
4th Gen - More expensive, Maybe less maintenance as it would be newer, smoother on road, a bit larger and more refined.

You have to weigh your own personal finances. You could by four 3rd gens at $3,900 for what you are planning to spend on one $16,000 4th gen.

Pay cash for the $3900 one and if in a year you want to upgrade then it will still have about the same value.

Good luck either way . . .
 
4th gen V8 FTW. By far the best value-for-dollar of any Toyota truck ever made.

The VF4 Transfer Case from the 200 and the 2UZ and A750 from the 100 make it drive train (engine + transmission) nearly indestructible.
 
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I would say do what your pocketbook allows.

I had a 99 Lim 4x4, its V6 was horrid. durable, but lets face it, it cannot tow, nor get out of its way. excellent rig still, even if under powered. easy to work on, good looks. tiny inside for real people, but gets it done. towing, so so gas mileage, and any sort of snot made driving it a yawn fest.


I have owned 4 fourth Gens, all V8's, yes, much better. more refined, better on highway. way better towing. all around just better period.

I would say trade, get out of the focus, take the bath now, rather than later, 5 years from now the focus will be worth 1k for a trade. get cheap civic or corolla for bashing to work and hammering the miles on.
 
Keep your Focus. Buy snow tires for it. Then buy a cheap, used pickup for towing your boat.

You've got a long commute. For the bulk of that commuting, you'll want a comfortable, fuel efficient vehicle, and you already have one -- your Focus. Keep it. Just put snow tires on it so that you can do that commute in the Focus in the winter.

You really don't want to be doing a 100 mile commute in a vehicle that gets 15-18 mpg.
 
I would never trade a 2012 vehicle for a 2005 vehicle. I would sell the 2012 outright and then use the money to buy a 4th Gen. You could give somebody a real good deal on your Focus and still be getting more than you will get on a trade.
 
If you didn't have the new Focus I'd say go with a 4th-gen. Trading/selling the Focus will lose you more $ than a beater pickup or 3rd-gen or hobby truck is worth, get a beater. But wait 'till Spring, Fall/Winter is a bad time to be selling econo cars or buying a 4x4.
 
Champ306 I agree, the only reason I bought the Focus is because our 2007 malibu was starting to cost a lot to maintain and it only got 24mpg highway. Our relative runs a big ford dealership and the focus was available with a 5 door for our dog and got good mpg and we got a pretty good deal. But I should have stuck with toyota, the resale of the focus is horrible.


The big issue of me trading it in is I will lose probably $3,000. Another issue is the car is horrible in the snow. I have (4) studded Gislaved Nordfrost 5 brand new and our first snow storm of this year I was really disappointed. Corollas and civics were passing me left and right and I had all I could to do to keep it on the road. Not to brag but I consider myself a really good winter driver (have to be to commute over a 100miles a day in northern vermont). I had tried ordering narrower tires but they did not have any in a winter tire for it, just all season. My next thing is my fiance just got another dog, no room in back of focus for two dogs.

I think I just made up my mind. I'm going to put sand bags in the back of the focus to see if it helps, if not trading it in for a 4th gen four runner, then buying a used corolla to pound back and fourth to work.

Thanks everyone for the input!!!!
 
Sand bags in the back of a front-wheel-drive? Perhaps you don't know everything about driving in snow.

I've lived in snow-country all my life, didn't have Winter tires most of that time, was lucky to have radials as a kid. I've routinely taken front-wheel-drive cars into the tundra in Iceland in the Winter (and gotten very stuck). Four new, studded, high-quality Winter tires on a new front-wheel-drive car should get you through anything reasonable for a passenger car. Maybe there's an alignment issue? Is there a low front air dam that's catching the snow? Are you lacking in traction or directional stability, or is the traction control preventing you from accelerating?
 
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scottm said:
Sand bags in the back of a front-wheel-drive? Perhaps you don't know everything about driving in snow.

I've lived in snow-country all my life, didn't have Winter tires most of that time, was lucky to have radials as a kid. I've routinely taken front-wheel-drive cars into the tundra in Iceland in the Winter (and gotten very stuck). Four new, studded, high-quality Winter tires on a new front-wheel-drive car should get you through anything reasonable for a passenger car. Maybe there's an alignment issue? Is there a low front air dam that's catching the snow? Are you lacking in traction or directional stability, or is the traction control preventing you from accelerating?
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The issue isn't so much traction more of directional stability, thats why adding the weight to the car any way I could might help. The tires on the car are 215/55/16, therefore a really wide performance tire. That is why I was trying to purchase narrow tires for it first. I don't care what tire you have, if you have a light car, wide tires it is going to handle like crap, simple physics. More pounds per square inch with narrow tire supposedly better traction in most circumstances. I have owned nothing but front wheel drive small cars my whole life for commuting, ever since I started driving. I put on the best tire I could afford, not always the best but I never had a problem driving in the snow/ice with a small car unit now. A lot of times a small front wheel drive car handled better than most SUV's and trucks. So please before you even consider questioning my ability to drive get all the facts first, I agree I did not provide that in my previous repy. Thanks for the info!!!
 
215 seems really wide for a car that light. Try playing with the tire pressure, higher is good for stability and lower for traction, which can help stability in certain conditions. 15 gallons of fuel weighs about 100lbs, do you notice a difference in stability with a full tank and/or passengers in the back?
 
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