4wd with no locking center diff?

[techno]

Came across this in my search for a 4th gen.....
2008 Toyota 4Runner SR5, $17,000 - Cars.com
It has the 4wd badges and the activation dial, but no center locking diff button? Is this possible? I'm thinking the button has been replaced with a blank for some reason?
Thoughts??

 

[M1911]

That's odd.

 

[rich045]

this one looks super SUPER SUUUUPEERRR basic, no steering wheel controls for the radio, NO ROOFRACK? maybe this one did indeed came without the center lock.

 

[techno]

this one looks super SUPER SUUUUPEERRR basic, no steering wheel controls for the radio, NO ROOFRACK? maybe this one did indeed came without the center lock.

16" 6 spoke wheels too. I rarely see those.

 

[ChuckJ]

I just looked at those pictures and I think the button is there..in the photo of the cruise control stick and the one of the windshield wiper control you can just see the bottom of a button above the 4WD selector..that's it, it doesn't show fully in any of the other photos..it was standard on all 6 cyl 4WD models. Here's the 2008 features brochure.. http://www.top4runners.com/runhist/4thgen/2008_4runner.pdf

 

[Martinjmpr]

I just looked at those pictures and I think the button is there..in the photo of the cruise control stick and the one of the windshield wiper control you can just see the bottom of a button above the 4WD selector..that's it, it doesn't show fully in any of the other photos..it was standard on all 6 cyl 4WD models. Here's the 2008 features brochure.. http://www.top4runners.com/runhist/4thgen/2008_4runner.pdf

No, the button above the 4wd selector is the rear window control.

I don't have my 4runner with me today but my vote would be that either the diff lock has been replaced by a blank or possibly relocated.

The other possibility is that the photo of the dash is from a different vehicle, a 2wd 4runner.

EDIT/UPDATE: Just found a recent thread with a post of my trailer brake install, so here you go. This is my dash ('07 SR5 4wd V6):

Note that the diff lock is the 2nd button from the left. On the photo in the ad that appears as a blank, so either the diff lock was replaced with a blank for uknown reasons (why would you do that?) or the photo is from a 2wd 4runner.

Question for the group: Is the VSC Off button (the one on the far right in the ad) only on 2wd 4runners? As you can see my 4wd SR5 does not have it.

For those that don't want to go to the above link and scroll through the pictures here's the photo in question:

Can anyone here with a 2wd 4runner confirm or deny that this photo is more consistent with a 2wd 4runner than a 4wd?

 

[edwardvmassey]

Came across this in my search for a 4th gen.....
2008 Toyota 4Runner SR5, $17,000 - Cars.com
It has the 4wd badges and the activation dial, but no center locking diff button? Is this possible? I'm thinking the button has been replaced with a blank for some reason?
Thoughts??

I went and checked this one out when I was looking for my replacement 4th Gen. I passed. Fine price if you are going to do a lot of aftermarket upgrades but when I got in it it just felt naked. No love on this one. I picked up a 4th gen from TriCounty Toyota in Philly and it was a great experience. You should check out their stock

 

[techno]

I'll be passing on this one too, mostly because I'm looking for 3rd row ones. But if I did go look, first thing I'll be looking for is a front drivetrain, hehe.
No 4th gens at TriCounty at this time

 

[M1911]

I'll be passing on this one too, mostly because I'm looking for 3rd row ones. (

The 3rd row is pretty useless, IMO.

 

[techno]

Well, I'm yet to actually see the 3rd row in person so I can't be sure, but it looks like a good fit for my needs, which is a rugged, reliable 4wd vehicle with the same cargo area capacity as my 3rd gen but with seating for 4 adults and two toddlers. 75% of the time I won't need the extra seats, so I can take easily take them out and have the same cargo space as a non 3rd row equipped model. The only other option is the Pathfinder....

 

[M1911]

Well, I'm yet to actually see the 3rd row in person so I can't be sure, but it looks like a good fit for my needs, which is a rugged, reliable 4wd vehicle with the same cargo area capacity as my 3rd gen but with seating for 4 adults and two toddlers. 75% of the time I won't need the extra seats, so I can take easily take them out and have the same cargo space as a non 3rd row equipped model. The only other option is the Pathfinder....

I think you'll have a hard time actually putting a toddler into that third row and getting them strapped into a child seat. Access sucks.

 

[BlackWorksInc]

Hmm... that's odd...

As far as I know all US bound 4th Gen 4Runners came with CDL if they were 4WD, only non-North American market 4th Gen 4Runners had optional CDLs. The VIN says its a 4WD and that it was originally sold new at a dealership in Florida, so I have no idea where the button went.

Maybe ask them?

 

[RUN-4-LIFE]

can't be that basic it's got the ability to shut traction off, if I could shut my traction off at times I WOULD BE SO HAPPY!

 

[ZiaMan]

Well, I'm yet to actually see the 3rd row in person so I can't be sure, but it looks like a good fit for my needs, which is a rugged, reliable 4wd vehicle with the same cargo area capacity as my 3rd gen but with seating for 4 adults and two toddlers. 75% of the time I won't need the extra seats, so I can take easily take them out and have the same cargo space as a non 3rd row equipped model. The only other option is the Pathfinder....

GX470 is what you are looking for as most of them came with third row seats!

 

[Sungod]

It is 100% legitimate. I was going to guess that it was probably a southeast distributed Toyota, but blackworks has already confirmed that. The southeast region is the only independent Toyota distributor and you will see configurations that are much different than the rest of the US where Toyota controls all the distribution. They order stripped down vehicles and add accessories as port installs which is why that one doesn't have a roof rack.

 

[dawudih]

^^^what he said^^^
Gulf states Toyota does this as well; orders completly base modes & adds rediculous packages at the port.

 

[techno]

GX470 is what you are looking for as most of them came with third row seats!

I do like those a lot, but not in the Lexus guise. If they were Prado spec'd then it would be a contender for sure. It's off my list because of leather seats, worse fuel econ than I currently have and they're priced higher than I can afford for the year models I'm looking at. Plus, they're too tall for my garage.

 

[Martinjmpr]

Hmm... that's odd...

As far as I know all US bound 4th Gen 4Runners came with CDL if they were 4WD, only non-North American market 4th Gen 4Runners had optional CDLs. The VIN says its a 4WD and that it was originally sold new at a dealership in Florida, so I have no idea where the button went.

Maybe ask them?

It is 100% legitimate. I was going to guess that it was probably a southeast distributed Toyota, but blackworks has already confirmed that. The southeast region is the only independent Toyota distributor and you will see configurations that are much different than the rest of the US where Toyota controls all the distribution. They order stripped down vehicles and add accessories as port installs which is why that one doesn't have a roof rack.

Did you actually see this very vehicle? Because if not then I think the simpler explanation is that the photo is from a 2wd 4runner and was somehow mixed in with an ad for a 4wd.

Otherwise you would have to believe that of all the hundreds of thousands of 4th gen 4runners that were sold between 2003 and 2009, for some reason in 2008 Toyota decided to sell ONE 4runner without a center differential. How the hell would that even happen?

The only other possibilities I can think of are that the vehicle was in an accident and had the dash rebuilt and somehow during the rebuild process they put a blank instead of the center diff lock button (which would mean that there is a center diff lock but the plastic plug and wire are somewhere behind the dash) or, less likely, that the CDL button was switched to a different location (which is possible, I suppose, since after all it's just wires - extend the wires and put the button wherever you want) but why would you do that when you have perfectly serviceable (and unused) buttons on the dash?

Again, unless someone here can verify that there was ever a 4th gen 4wd 4runner without a center diff I think the simpler explanation makes more sense.

EDITED TO ADD: This is one of the biggest 4runner boards on the internet. If Toyota made 4th gens without center diffs, wouldn't you have expected to see at least one person posting here and saying "why doesn't my 4th gen have a center diff?"

Also, I have seen 4th gens without roof racks. They're not common, but I've seen them around.

 

[techno]

Also, an interesting place for dents.....

 

[ChuckJ]

You're exactly right Martinjmpr, just looked at my dash, diff lock in the same spot as yours and the other button over the 4WD selector is the rear window...my bad.. you may be right, could be a pic from a 2WD dash.