Anyone ever willingly move from a 4th gen to a 3rd gen?

H

hobosapien

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I have been contemplating it. As much as I love my 4th gen V8, and all the work I've done to it, I have thought about moving down for a couple of reasons:

- Tried & tested reliability
- Engine is bullet proof. I used to own a 2004 Tacoma and can attest to this.
- Cheap to maintain and fix comparatively

Am I crazy? Has anyone else thought about this?
 
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I've been looking for a second 4th Gen just because I love mine so much, that being said I just looked at a 2003 Limited in great condition other than it had 280,000 miles on it and the guy is selling it because he wants a "low" mileage 1998 4Runner because he loves the 3th Gens, to each his own I guess, but I wished him luck finding a "low" mileage 1998.
 
Have both and personally prefer the 4th Gen in every way. At 6'4" the 3rd Gen is just too cramped for me, and the engine is woefully underpowered to the point of being embarrassing.

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I have both. I daily drive my 08 and love it. My 00 just sits in the garage slowly rusting away, but when I drive it around the block every now and then I still smile and feel right at home in it. I think the engine power is fine.
 
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I had a 99 limited and now a 4th gen, Everything is way better in a 4th gen. The only thing I would really give a point to a 3rd gen is the manual transfer case shifter but that's just personal preference.
 
hobosapien said:
I have been contemplating it. As much as I love my 4th gen V8, and all the work I've done to it, I have thought about moving down for a couple of reasons:

- Tried & tested reliability
- Engine is bullet proof. I used to own a 2004 Tacoma and can attest to this.
- Cheap to maintain and fix comparatively

Am I crazy? Has anyone else thought about this?
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Have you owned a 3rd gen previously?

The 4th gen is better in every conceivable way. Unless you need a factory locker I cannot fathom why you would want to downgrade. The small gas tank on the 3rd gen drove me crazy.
 
RaceTRaCk said:
I had a 99 limited and now a 4th gen, Everything is way better in a 4th gen. The only thing I would really give a point to a 3rd gen is the manual transfer case shifter but that's just personal preference.
Click to expand...

I have a 99 SR5 and a 2007 V8, what he said above. 4th Gen better in everyway unless you like the manual transfer case shifter. But that's only one thing better.
 
I had a 96' sr5 and now own an 05' limited. I do miss the manual transfer case over the twist knob in the newer one and also miss the lack of electronic nannies that prohibit me from chirping the rear in a turn every now and then. Other than those two things I feel the 4g is a better, more substantial vehicle. That being said I'm sure owning a 3g would result in less of a pucker factor when going off road. I wouldn't go back to the 3g but I do get a little nostalgic when I see them, which is all the time and a testament to how well they hold up.
 
It would have be a super low mile and clean 99 5spd. The 3.4 is a great motor but the Uz's are better, the fuel range on the 3rd gen is terrible. Overall a 4th is better DD and road trip vechile but I would definitely add a 3rd gen to the collection.
 
We own a 03 4x4 V8 which the wife took from me. It currently has 176k miles on it. I found a 96 4x4 V6 with only 91k miles. We ended up never using the 3rd gen. My wife didn't care for it because of the ride, smaller size, less power and increased noise while driving. I sold it and found another 4x4 V8 4th gen :banana:
 
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I started with a '03 V8 and recently added a manual '99 to the stable. The 4th gen is better in every way except for tight technical trails.

I look forward to playing around in the 3rd gen when the snow hits though, being a selectable RWD and not hampered by electronic nannies ftw :canada:
 
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fightex said:
I started with a '03 V8 and recently added a manual '99 to the stable. The 4th gen is better in every way except for tight technical trails.
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^^ This. I keep my '94 around for the really tight trails, mostly because I don't want to compromise the '06 highway manners enough to make it work for really technical stuff. In its current configuration the '06 does OK on moderate trails and is a dream to drive on the highway.
 
fo'dilly said:
I had a 96' sr5 and now own an 05' limited. I do miss the manual transfer case over the twist knob in the newer one and also miss the lack of electronic nannies that prohibit me from chirping the rear in a turn every now and then. Other than those two things I feel the 4g is a better, more substantial vehicle. That being said I'm sure owning a 3g would result in less of a pucker factor when going off road. I wouldn't go back to the 3g but I do get a little nostalgic when I see them, which is all the time and a testament to how well they hold up.
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Moreless sums up exactly how I feel.

I too had a '96 sr5, and now an '05 Limited.

Your words are straight on.
 
I've had a 2nd, 3rd, and two 4th gens.

2nd gen rode like a truck. Nothing more to say here. The manual tranny was great and so was my tailgate. The 3.0 was a dog and I hated it, and it wasn't as confident on the highway.

3rd gen was a 3.4 with the auto and a 4x4. Tons of fun parts available rode like a truck but with more composure, and I knew if I FUBARed something a junkyard could help me out with little work.

4th gen is bigger, comfier, quieter, and still rides like a truck. Great reliability on all of my runners, by my 4ths, needed the least amount of work in the 120-200k mileage range. Also, the V8 is an incredible engine. I had a 04 (pre-VVTI) and I have a 06 now (VVTI) and they've both been wonderful.

My $0.02. Good luck with your search/purchase!
 
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