5th gen 4Runner earns "least fun to drive" rating

[paddlenbike]

Just read this in Consumer Reports, 5th gen was named the least fun mid-sized SUV to drive:
Most Fun Cars to Drive - Consumer Reports

A manual transmission option as well as a more powerful engine (or supercharger option) would go a long ways towards making this vehicle more fun to drive.

 

[Ron4RNevada]

You ever seen a Porsche Cayenne off road?

I worked for the Land Rover and Porsche dealer in Rocklin CA for a while. We had regular off road events (which I led) for the new Land Rover owners. The Porsche Manager said "NO" when I suggested the same for Porsche owners....

Incidentally the whole range of Land Rovers at the time did very well in the boonies: Range Rover, Range Rover Sport, LR3/LR4, LR2..... To the new owners I always advised two good coats of wax up to the door handles. Then when they realized that the scrapes from Nevada sage brush would buff out pretty easily they were gung ho!

 

[Blue15]

Better driver seat would help too, the current are hard as a rock, my ass hurts after a short 13 mile drive to work.

 

[BlackWorksInc]

So... first off, it's Consumer Reports; which means they didn't really do any testing worth a damn. Second the fact that they listed the Porsche Cayenne reaffirms my first statement and shows that they were not testing the vehicles accurately.

Also Land Rovers are fairly capable I hear, though I don't think I ever see them out of the shop long enough to get on the road let alone off the road.

 

[1engineer]

Just read this in Consumer Reports, 5th gen was named the least fun mid-sized SUV to drive:
Most Fun Cars to Drive - Consumer Reports

A manual transmission option as well as a more powerful engine (or supercharger option) would go a long ways towards making this vehicle more fun to drive.

Did you mention to everyone reading this thread how much you despise the 5th Gen 4Runner because you think the front end is ugly and too big and bulky? You went out and found one article that agrees with you and posted it here proudly, ignoring the hundreds of articles out there where reviewers love it.

I guess that you don't like the year over year increased sales numbers either, especially the huge jump from 2013 to 2014 when they changed front end designs lol. Left you and your opinions on an island so to speak. BTW they are on pace to break last year's sales record this year. Geez.

 

[paddlenbike]

I have been a fan of the 4Runner since they came out in 1984. I've been excited about and owned most every generation ever made. Jumping from my old trusty 2000 4Runner to a brand new 2014 model was hugely disappointing, from it's huge proportions and weight to it's underpowered engine and sluggish transmission. And as you point out, it's ugly too, as are nearly all of Toyota's new designs, not just the 4Runner. I fear what Toyota will do to next generation and I'm worried it will go the same direction as the Pathfinder. That will ensure I drive my old 4Runner for the rest of my life.

I'm glad the 5th gen is still body on frame and has a solid rear axle. I'm glad you can at least spec it with a transfer case lever and a rear locker. Those are all good things. But I won't be moving on to a newer generation until it offers something more than what I have now. The 5th gen ain't it. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, even if it's not the same as your own.

 

[Range]

The Porsche Cayenne basic model is a pile of shit. People think the 4Runner is slow off the line? Dude, the Cayenne is like one of those kids toys you have to pull backwards in order for the wheels to wind up so the toy truck starts to move. My in-laws have the basic model because the mom is half wit shit for brains and decided she didn't need to test drive it before buying it. The husband is a Porsche fanatic so she assumed all Porsche's drove the same. He wanted the Turbo but she "knew" her stuff. Within a month she hated it. When he drove my 4Runner he couldn't believe how much faster it was (2004 V8) with about 700lbs of extra weight on it as well. These testing companies need to find drivers who's balls have dropped and use the trucks for what they were designed for.

 

[LAB4US]

Bill's AIS survey says consumer reports results on this topic are most ridiculous thing ever read! Granted he has only had AIS for about 1500 miles or so, but certainly seems to enjoy driving it daily and also realizes how much almost all the other "SUVs" look alike...thus MUCH preferring the unique looks of his G5 T4R. BTW, pretty sure no one at consumer reports drove one for 1500 miles, but freely admits could be wrong. Just so we're real clear, when Bill is driving with AIS to work with JBL system cranked to about 75%, the feeling of euphoria would seem to indicate the G5 T4R "IS" fun to drive. Then again, Bill is a bit older and doesn't need the shiniest, newest toy with a name dropping label on it to have fun or be happy...

:lookout::drum::guitar2::driving:

Legend
AIS = Ass In Seat

 

[paddlenbike]

Circling back to my original post, Toyota's decision to discontinue the supercharger program as well as the manual transmission options were mistakes in my book. The package would be much more fun in that orientation. I don't blame it all on Toyota, afterall, it is American buyers that vote with their pocketbooks by choosing to buy mostly automatic vehicles.

 

[Jeremy556]

The 6 speed manual Toyota has sucks. Soccer mom's don't want a manual and manuals suck off road. People that want a sporty, fun to drive car, don't (or shouldn't) buy body on frame SUVs.

 

[LandCruiser]

I want a manual off roader.

Said no one.

Ever.

 

[paddlenbike]

That's where I disagree entirely. SUVs don't have to be slow and suck on the road where they are driven most of the time. I much prefer a manual offroad, some people don't.

 

[1engineer]

Pop up to a foot tall shelf you need to go up. Make it rain too. Now take the manual versus automatic. Automatic all day off road.

 

[Jeremy556]

I'm the type that would pay extra for a car with a manual transmission, when the DSG version is faster/better in every calculable way. Except for cars for my wife, I have never bought a car with a slush box, even when living with downtown Atlanta traffic.

For an off road vehicle, an automatic is just better. Torque multiplication, no roll back, no stalling, and 2 feet for 2 pedal inputs.

Off/on road performance are completely at odds with each other; any enhancement in either comes with the detriment of the other.

 

[Jernik]

In regards to Consumer Reports, MotorTrend, Car and Driver, etc... I'll say this: I could do a report where I take a Lambo to Moab and decide it is no fun and sucks in comparison to the 4Runner.

Sure wish these car mags would quit trying to evaluate every vehicle with the same set of standards. It's like trying to compare wrenches and screw drivers: they're different tools designed to do different things.

 

[KidVermicious]

Pop up to a foot tall shelf you need to go up. Make it rain too. Now take the manual versus automatic. Automatic all day off road.

Ok, fair enough. I'll grant that balancing clutch and throttle is tricky with a manual, especially if you don't have super low gearing. But now come to a loose hill climb with big rocks and a large breakover at the top. The automatic will surge over when you reach the top because of the torque built up in the converter and you have to hit the brakes to keep from burying your nose in the next rock and if you're not careful you hit the brakes too soon and don't clear the top at all and the whole process is lurchy as f*ck, where the manual will continue to crawl down the far side at the same speed it crawled up the face with no drama.

Now lose your clutch for whatever reason. You can rev-match if you know how and limp a manual truck off the road, but an auto with a roasted clutch is taking a strap. Assuming you have a buddy with you. If not you're hiking.

An automatic has it's advantages, no doubt, but it isn't fair to say "automatic all day". There are many valid reasons to prefer a manual transmission off-road.

 

[Boardmember]

Especially Consumer Reports...whose rating criteria in almost every instance is spectacularly different from mine. IF it's not a Prius that chemically transforms dirt into energy with a fruit-flavored by-product, they don't like it.

I've gotten to the point that I question myself if I ever purchase a vehicle they approve of.

And why do the other car mags post lbs/CO2 per mile as a rating? Really?

Yes I subscribe. National Geographic too for that matter.

Thanks for allowing me....

 

[Snowb]

I prefer Manual for offroading but I also don't do anything to crazy or technical, not including the time I thought I was a Baja 1000 driver when I first bought my bone stock 4Runner in Tucson, AZ.

 

[1engineer]

Ok, fair enough. I'll grant that balancing clutch and throttle is tricky with a manual, especially if you don't have super low gearing. But now come to a loose hill climb with big rocks and a large breakover at the top. The automatic will surge over when you reach the top because of the torque built up in the converter and you have to hit the brakes to keep from burying your nose in the next rock and if you're not careful you hit the brakes too soon and don't clear the top at all and the whole process is lurchy as f*ck, where the manual will continue to crawl down the far side at the same speed it crawled up the face with no drama.

Now lose your clutch for whatever reason. You can rev-match if you know how and limp a manual truck off the road, but an auto with a roasted clutch is taking a strap. Assuming you have a buddy with you. If not you're hiking.

An automatic has it's advantages, no doubt, but it isn't fair to say "automatic all day". There are many valid reasons to prefer a manual transmission off-road.

I just wanted to offer a contrarian viewpoint lol. Of course either way has their advantages.

My main reason for posting in this thread was to make sure readers understood the OP was posting an article that supports his position, which of course he has a right to think any way he chooses. #merica

 

[paddlenbike]

Every 4WD Toyota with a manual transmission has a clutch start cancel button that can be used in the worst of situations. I haven't used it in years because I can manage the clutch just fine, but it works great when you need it.

Manual transmissions are preferred by offroaders in most other parts of the world outside of the U.S., with diesel/manual Toyotas and Nissan Patrols being most coveted. If you like automatics, that's fine, but there are still many of us that simply won't buy an automatic.

It's not like an automatic 3rd gen is fun to drive; it's not. It's the manual that makes my 16-year old 4Runner more fun to drive than a new one. The 2-second quicker 0-60 time doesn't hurt either. I'd like to see a manual transmission option on the next gen 4Runner.