Do I REALLY need 4WD?

N

NAdams65

New member
Okay...we've decided that a 4Runner is the right rig for us and so far I've only been looking at 4WD vehicles for sale. As some of you might have read in a previous thread I started, I'm replacing a Jeep Wrangler and plan to use the 4Runner for a long camping trip out West this summer and then as our daily driver.
Currently we live in West Texas but hope the military will be moving us to Colorado or Utah in the next year or two. Obviously, we don't need 4WD here in Abilene but if we relocate I thought it might be nice to have. We do not do any hardcore offroading just want the ability to explore off the beaten path.
Anyway....my local Toyota dealer calls this morning and has a 2008 SR5 4Runner they just got that is 2WD. His spin is that with stab. control and LSD I don't really need 4WD. I don't want to get sucked into an impulse buy just because it's here in town. I've located a 2008 4WD a couple hours from here that I want to go look....so I ask you guys: Do I really need the 4WD?
Anyone out there wish they had gotten 4WD after the fact?

Thanks....

Nate
 
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My advice would be to wait it out until you find one with 4WD. I know there are a lot of people happy with 2WD 4Runners and you might be too, but for marginally more up front it is so worth it to have 4WD. It something that you would rather have 'just incase' then to ever find yourself in a place wishing you had it but dont. The fact that your even debating this and asking for advice shows that you want the 4WD, getting a car is a big purchase might as well splurge and get a fully equipped vehicle and you should NEVER settle for anything less than what YOU want.
 
I'll offer my experience.

Living in a place where we get quite a bit of snow (which seeing that may be a possibility for you in the next couple of years), I couldn't imagine life without 4wd. I constantly see 2wd anythings getting stuck in the smallest of snow piles/drifts/ruts. I would be incredibly frustrated if I didn't have it.

The added bonus of it is that in summer I can also take it off the beaten path if I want to. So overall it's useful as well as fun.
 
NAdams65 said:
Okay...we've decided that a 4Runner is the right rig for us and so far I've only been looking at 4WD vehicles for sale. As some of you might have read in a previous thread I started, I'm replacing a Jeep Wrangler and plan to use the 4Runner for a long camping trip out West this summer and then as our daily driver.
Currently we live in West Texas but hope the military will be moving us to Colorado or Utah in the next year or two. Obviously, we don't need 4WD here in Abilene but if we relocate I thought it might be nice to have. We do not do any hardcore offroading just want the ability to explore off the beaten path.
Anyway....my local Toyota dealer calls this morning and has a 2008 SR5 4Runner they just got that is 2WD. His spin is that with stab. control and LSD I don't really need 4WD. I don't want to get sucked into an impulse buy just because it's here in town. I've located a 2008 4WD a couple hours from here that I want to go look....so I ask you guys: Do I really need the 4WD?
Anyone out there wish they had gotten 4WD after the fact?

Thanks....

Nate
Click to expand...

Always remember that a salesman will tell you anything to get a sale, it could be worth hundreds or thousands to lie to you and tell you that 4WD is not better than 2WD.

Yes, Toyota has an excellent traction control and skid control, you the driver probably cannot beat it, BUT if there is no power going to the front wheels, the rear end will always be prone to slipping out and traction and skid control will do NOTHING to help you get up a slippery hill. Its physics, those fancy electronic nanny controls do not add traction.

Here's a good situation: I was back home in Idaho driving home from a movie with my dad in his 4Runner. His is a V6 and I just forgot that it isn't always in AWD. It was snowing hard, coating the road, so I backed down to about 35 (limit was 65). I touched the accelerator and the rear end swung out and we were going backwards into the oncoming lane.... He has a new 4Runner now.

I'm an engineer and I did my grad work on advanced drive trains. By advanced, I mean that the stuff in anything you can buy today might as well be from the stone age. I have an in depth understanding of traction, and the more wheels that can be driven, the better for performance.

Even if the salesman is telling you what he believes to be the truth, he is wrong in this case. I'd go with the 4WD if you will be moving to snowy climates
 
Cape 4RUNNER said:
My advice would be to wait it out until you find one with 4WD. I know there are a lot of people happy with 2WD 4Runners and you might be too, but for marginally more up front it is so worth it to have 4WD. It something that you would rather have 'just incase' then to ever find yourself in a place wishing you had it but dont. The fact that your even debating this and asking for advice shows that you want the 4WD, getting a car is a big purchase might as well splurge and get a fully equipped vehicle and you should NEVER settle for anything less than what YOU want.
Click to expand...

x2, it is always just good to have just in case.
 
Thanks for the confirmation of what I think I already knew in my gut. My wife feels the same way....we will have this rig for a while and shouldn't skimp on what we know we want.
 
You'll regret it if you don't wait for a 4WD. If 2WD is important to you for daily driving, you can always get the V6 so you can pop it into 2HI.

As said above.. "Just in case..."

When you need it, you'll be glad it's there.
 
i would vote for waiting for 4wd. Even if you do not move or if you sell it in 2 years, 4wd will sell quicker. Some people will buy a 4wd even if they do not need it, no one will buy a 2wd if they do. If you do sell it in a snowy climate, resale will be low on a 2wd.
 
In my opinion, here in colorado, go with the 4x4. Handy in winter on city road and icy parking lots and pricless if you plan to head for the ski slopes. Summer road dirt access in mountains can be quite treacherous due to late afternoon monsoon rains causing very slippery mud/clay conditions. 4x4 will hold its value much better here, too. I also notice when in 2WD, the T4R is not really that good on slipppery conditions, but great in 4WD mode.
I base this judgement against previuosly owned Bronco and Expedition. Enjoy that 2008 T4R 4WD, it's a great machine, I know because I got one!
 
I'm going to make another vote for 4wd. As a military person they could send you anywhere.

Another point is if something happens and you don't like (highly unlikely) or need unload the T4R reselling a 4wd will be easier.

There's virtually no performance penalty with the 4wd drive variant. The only thing you need to do is excersise it occasionally which is easy to do as it can be run in 4wd on dry pavement.

Having said that understand I am not slamming 2wd T4R's. There are a few guys that have 2wd's that are pretty sweet. They go off of the beaten path quite successfully too. They are SoCal and in the high dessert etc. ...no deep snow, no real low speed climbing.

Given that you said "military" and Colorado I think you'll like the 4wd better.

:cheers:
 
I recently had to rent a 4WD Ford Explorer for some serious up the muddy hill recovery / towing. It did the job without much effort.

My next one will be a 4.

That Torsen front to rear torque splitter is magic.
 
Go 4WD...it will be worth it even if you only used it a few times a year. On a side note helps resale down the road. Why they ever made a "4runner" that isnt 4wd is beside me.
 
tmougeotte said:
Go 4WD...it will be worth it even if you only used it a few times a year. On a side note helps resale down the road. Why they ever made a "4runner" that isnt 4wd is beside me.
Click to expand...

Yeah, its a 4Runner, not a 2Runner
 
Although 4-wheel drive is awesome in the snow, it sometimes can make you over confident in the snow/icy conditions, too. I drove from Colorado to Minnesota in a wicked snow/ice storm and we saw hundreds of cars in the ditch - most were 4-wheel drive.

That being said, I still absolutely WOULD recommend a 4-wheel drive, but I would also recommend that you know it's limits and not get over confident with it.
 
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