4th Gen or 5th Gen, Which one do you guys like best?

[danilomoran1]

I work at a Toyota dealership and have the pleasure to be able and sit and drive most gen's of 4Runners. I think the 1st three generations (with the third being the best!) are true off road rigs. The 4th I feel is too much of a soccer mom cruiser. Now the 5th, especially the trail and sr5 package have gone back to that rugged/ off road look. What do you guys think, discuss.

 

[bigtimeweb]

I totally agree!

I think they got wayward with the wrong marketing to moms - the true long haul supporters of this vehicle have always been off roaders - just that they were dependable for moms to buy.

I don't like the 4th body changes at all...when I moved up from my 2nd - I wouldn't even look at them...now if money was no object I would have gone straight from 2nd to 5th.

I'm still looking forward to my upgrade to 5th in 10 years HAHA!

 

[durrell]

I'd love to find a low mileage 99-02 and drive it for the next 10 years or so, lol. But my 98 will have to do. I hope it makes it that long.

 

[96743runner]

I totally agree!

I think they got wayward with the wrong marketing to moms - the true long haul supporters of this vehicle have always been off roaders - just that they were dependable for moms to buy.

I don't like the 4th body changes at all...when I moved up from my 2nd - I wouldn't even look at them...now if money was no object I would have gone straight from 2nd to 5th.

I'm still looking forward to my upgrade to 5th in 10 years HAHA!

x3 JMO but the 4th gen kinda does look more car-like compared to the 5th gen. I think that the 2010 Trail Edition looks sick and that is the 4Runner that I would get if I needed it/had the $ for it. The only thing that I personally really dislike about the 5th gens are those ugly tail lights, but other than that, they do look kinda aggressive.

 

[psquared77]

5th Gen is a big step in the right direction...

I like where Toyota went with the 5th gen. It has a solid look and feel on the road (yes-test driven twice now). I've had the pleasure of driving my '02 going on 8 years, and the 2010 Runner is the first time I have considered upgrading. My brother has an '06 that is nice, but agreed it took some mods to get it looking like it should and not soccer mom-ish. the 4th gens ride WAY better than 3rd gens. I am still happy with what I have, but know I will be keeping a close eye for the first gently used 5th gen I can find. I hope Toyota redesigns the taillights to LED for the 2011 model, or a nice aftermarket design comes out. Hoping the Toyota quality went into the new 4runners.

 

[Soap]

I agree, my 2002 SR5 Sport Edition has been a great vehicle. I just passed 80,000 miles on it and at one time thought I would never get rid of it. However I am in need of a little more space and itching for something new. I will most likely try to sell my 3rd gen and get into a 5th gen by the end of the year. I never liked the 4th gen for sure!

 

[topdown4runner]

I def. prefer the 5th, although Toyota screwed up by not even offering a tow point on the front. Not even on the trail ed.

Again, if $ were no object, then a Trail edition would be in my garage. Otherwise the 3rd gen is #1!

 

[kylebacc]

I'd go with a 5th gen if I had the money. I have a 4th right now which I don't really mind, but I agree, my buddies 3rd is much more "off-road" worthy right out of the box. I must say that atrac is pretty fricken awesome though.

 

[2000Black]

I think the 3rd gen kind of has a top heavy look to it, and its kind of skinny. But stock i agree with what you guys said, its way more off road capable. I have only been in a 4th gen once and I wasn't blown away by it, although it does have more room then the 3rd gen. But the 5th gen seems reallly cool. Its got that kind of big look bringing a good name back to the 4runners. And if you through some after market rims and some off roading tires i think it could look realllly cool.

 

[denverunner]

I wouldn't go with a 4th or a 5th. my 3rd is fine, just fine...

Note: I haven't driven a 4th or a 5th, so I can only base my reply on the appearance.

4th's have a quirky look to them. It almost looks like Toyota had 5 different people design 20% (ea) of the exterior, without being able to see what the others were doing. Looks too "soft" in the stock form, imo. however, a few mods will go a long way to improve the look. But that rinigs true with almost any vehicle.

5th's are much better looking than the 4ths, but I wouldn't pull the trigger....
In the stock form, the front looks okay, but the wheels/tires make it look like a vatomobile. The body overwhelms them and towers over them. Maybe Toyota planned the design, assuming that many owners will swap out to larger wheel/tire combos. The rear is absolutely hideous. Has a boxy feel, like the rear half of a town&country minivan. I don't feel like the rear design integrates well with the rest of the body. Once modded, it may look much better, but for now(....err till she's eligible for classic plates) I'll still stick with my 3rd gen :bigok:

 

[jspagna1]

I do like my 97 3rd Gen the best. With only 145,000 miles on it I am hopeing it last for a very long time. At this point if I was to consider a 4th Gen or th Gen, the 5th Gen would be my pick.
The 4th Gen just wasn't big enough for me interior wise and it seems they have addressed that now with the 5th Gen. But I am going to wait awhile for the 5th Gen to prove itself and I never buy the first year production of a new vehicle anyway. So the proof will be in it's dependability.
But if it's like everything else nowadays, they just don't make them like they used to!!!

 

[psquared77]

I do like my 97 3rd Gen the best. With only 145,000 miles on it I am hopeing it last for a very long time. At this point if I was to consider a 4th Gen or th Gen, the 5th Gen would be my pick.
The 4th Gen just wasn't big enough for me interior wise and it seems they have addressed that now with the 5th Gen. But I am going to wait awhile for the 5th Gen to prove itself and I never buy the first year production of a new vehicle anyway. So the proof will be in it's dependability.
But if it's like everything else nowadays, they just don't make them like they used to!!!

Good point-I wouldn't buy the first model of the 5th gen, or any car for that matter. I suffered once for doing that in a Nissan, and won't make the mistake again.

 

[Martinjmpr]

When the first pictures of the 5th gen came out, I was stoked. I was even more stoked when I saw it had an honest-to-god lever for the T-case.

However, as I've seen them in person over the past few months, I'm liking them less and less. The front end looks too much like a Highlander for my liking and the front end hangs way, way waaaaay too low for my liking.

Also the "belt line" (the line that runs along the bottom of the windows) is too high and makes the body of the vehicle look fat and ungainly.

The more I see of the 5th gen, the more I like the cleaner lines of the 4th gen. I also like the fact that all of the 4th gens have either full time 4wd or a multi-mode T-case.

I sometimes wonder what I will replace my 3rd gen with. As much as I like it, I will most likely replace it with either a 4th gen or an Xterra. I just don't care for the 5th gens.

Then again, they are just in their first year, maybe they'll refine the look a bit (get rid of some of that horrible front overhang!) and I might take a second look. I don't buy new, anyway, so I won't be seriously looking for several years.

Besides, my 3rd gen has "only" 125,000 miles on it so it's just getting broken in!

 

[steve-]

I also work at a Toyota/Lexus dealership so get to see Runner's all day long and for sure the 5th gen's are more burly and aggressive looking. The 4th gen
looks OK and with different wheels looks good but yeah Toyota seemed to have lost their way a little bit with that model.
Putting my vote in for the 5th too :bigok:

 

[Elton H]

i like both but toyota ruined the 4runners in 01 by only offering a auto sure you can swap in a manual but that takes time and money

 

[nighthawk]

I've driven the 3rd and 4th gens before, but never the 5th gen. If I had to choose between 4th and 5th, then I'd go with 5th trail edition. However, I generally hate both of them due to the lack of a manual transmission. If only Toyota brought back the manual transmission for the 5th gen...

 

[JohnsD90]

I don't really like either of them, and this is completley unrelated to manuals and diesels (my opinion is based off the actual truck without even thinking about the engine or tranny options), the 4th and 5th gen just sort of lost that utilitarian style and build that the 1st 3 generations had, now it is sort of a comfort mommy wagon, instead of Dad's Daily beater.

 

[danilomoran1]

gOOD CONVERSATIONS!

 

[SIKHILUXSURF]

i would love a 5th gen 4runner trail edition in imperial jade mica!!!!!!