Does your 4Runner sound like this?

RobS10

RobS10

Member
Just bought a brand new 4Runner ORP and noticed it sounds like an old industrial sewing machine when it's cold at idle, almost like a lifter noise. I ran across a couple threads that said this was "normal", but ran across this. Is it "normal"? If you brought it in, what did the dealer tell you?
The End of Toyota Reliability - YouTube
 
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Normal. It will quiet down a bit once broken in (~20,000 miles). You can run 5W-30 if you are in a warm enough climate and really hate it. Try the search tool next time, there are numerous threads on this topic.

On another note, Scotty Kilmer knows his shit, but he is also a bit of an extremist so you have to take some of what he says with a grain of salt.
 
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Bmnorm2 said:
Normal. It will quiet down a bit once broken in (~20,000 miles). You can run 5W-30 if you are in a warm enough climate and really hate it. Try the search tool next time, there are numerous threads on this topic.

On another note, Scotty Kilmer knows his shit, but he is also a bit of an extremist so you have to take some of what he says with a grain of salt.
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If there was a serious problem, I figured I would have run across SOME kind of info about it in all my pre-buying research, but all I read was that "it's normal". But that's what Scotty said too, so made me think twice. I will say, him comparing it to a 3rd Gen is not comparing Apples to Apples, different motor.

I did search, but honestly find this Forum's "search" feature doesn't work that well, lots of irrelevant results. Here's what I got for "Cold Engine Noise"..
https://www.toyota-4runner.org/search.php?searchid=7945128
 
Bmnorm2 said:
On another note, Scotty Kilmer knows his shit, but he is also a bit of an extremist so you have to take some of what he says with a grain of salt.
Click to expand...

He's also an expert at bait and switch with his videos. His titles rarely match up with the video. Plus i cant hear the difference between the old 4Runner and new. lol

I don't have a lifter noise, but it does sound different than my Mazda and Acura sound.
 
I've always thought my 2011 sounded a little sketchy, sort of like a diesel? But now I'm up to 145,000 miles and it runs great, no smoke, and gets decent gas mileage so I quit worrying about it.
I don't think it helps that there doesn't seem to be as much sound deadening as some other vehicles, so you hear everything.
 
John in NC said:
I've always thought my 2011 sounded a little sketchy, sort of like a diesel? But now I'm up to 145,000 miles and it runs great, no smoke, and gets decent gas mileage so I quit worrying about it.
I don't think it helps that there doesn't seem to be as much sound deadening as some other vehicles, so you hear everything.
Click to expand...

Maybe they use thin valve covers, as it sounds like lifter noise to me, but I'm no mechanic. I know our '99 sounds nothing like our new '22, but it's also a different motor.
 
Its normal, its a very dated engine and won't really get better or worse.
at 155k on my '10 TE and I have it
 
I think the 5th gens are just noisy. It's hard to compare the sound in the video with Scotty talking (or yelling haha) to my own (temperature, wind noise, closeness to the engine, etc.) can throw sound off

the sound in that video doesn't seem overly loud, mine makes a bit of noise cold but nothing that has ever caused concern. sometimes when it's -40 out here it can be a tad louder than usual, then it warms up and all is good. I've got almost 160k miles on my 2012 and have had zero issues
 
Change your oil out for Pennzoil Platinum or Castrol Edge Professional.

I have the same issue on an aging Range Rover with 179k miles.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Bmnorm2 said:
Normal. It will quiet down a bit once broken in (~20,000 miles). You can run 5W-30 if you are in a warm enough climate and really hate it. Try the search tool next time, there are numerous threads on this topic.

On another note, Scotty Kilmer knows his shit, but he is also a bit of an extremist so you have to take some of what he says with a grain of salt.
Click to expand...

Sorry, but that noise is normal. We have 300K miles on a 2014 and it’s been with us the whole time. Ignore it like a squeaky bed.
 
I couldn’t tell the difference in sound between the the tow, but the screaming YouTube guy was like fingernails on a chalkboard.
 
RobS10 said:
OK, sounds good, I will go back to not worrying about it :banana:.
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Yep!

Come listen to my Cummins 6BT turbo diesel clack away and you'll feel better :)

The LS3 in my '11 vette also has extremely loud valvetrain, but normal. If you hang out around 4k-5k rpm during spirited driving it sounds like it is going to tear itself apart.
 
I can appreciate the concern. My 2019 was pretty quite when brand new. It didn't take long for the tapping to start and it's pretty noisy now at 17K miles. It's actually more noticeable from behind the wheel than from outside. I have already changed the oil three times with different brands. Doesn't seem to make any difference. No other evidence of concern. Oil analysis good, mileage stable. It's just a noisy motor.
 
The injectors on the GRs have always been loud, Toyota never really bothered to isolate the noise significantly beyond the plastic engine cover, you'll also have some noise from the lifters particularly on cold start after sitting a while (very brief).

As for Scotty Kilmer... he's very sensationalist and much of his stuff is a bit out dated and/or "technically correct" for modern vehicles, but in practice it doesn't make as big a difference as he makes it out. Other times I wonder what the hell he's smoking, guy can be good for a head shaking laugh sometimes, the over the top sensationalism though gets annoying fast.
 
RobS10 said:
Just bought a brand new 4Runner ORP and noticed it sounds like an old industrial sewing machine when it's cold at idle, almost like a lifter noise. I ran across a couple threads that said this was "normal", but ran across this. Is it "normal"? If you brought it in, what did the dealer tell you?
The End of Toyota Reliability - YouTube
Click to expand...

If you go to 48 seconds into that video, the guy literally has coffee or chew stains coming down the side of his mouth, like he's been drooling. Makes it a bit harder to take the video seriously.

Here's a car engine. Here's a different model engine in a different car. Can you believe they sound different?

:blah:

As many others have said, they are noisy engines, nothing to worry about.
 
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rageandlove said:
If you go to 48 seconds into that video, the guy literally has coffee or chew stains coming down the side of his mouth, like he's been drooling. Makes it a bit harder to take the video seriously.

Here's a car engine. Here's a different model engine in a different car. Can you believe they sound different?

:blah:

As many others have said, they are noisy engines, nothing to worry about.
Click to expand...
LOL! yeah, different year car, different engine, different sound...crazy, right?
I think the reason it gave me pause is he has always been pretty high on Toyotas and 4Runners, and this was the first one I've seen where he mentions something not right with them, but never explains why. Thought it was worth asking you guys since many of you have 5th Gens with a lot of trouble free miles on them
 
BlackWorksInc said:
The injectors on the GRs have always been loud, Toyota never really bothered to isolate the noise significantly beyond the plastic engine cover, you'll also have some noise from the lifters particularly on cold start after sitting a while (very brief).

As for Scotty Kilmer... he's very sensationalist and much of his stuff is a bit out dated and/or "technically correct" for modern vehicles, but in practice it doesn't make as big a difference as he makes it out. Other times I wonder what the hell he's smoking, guy can be good for a head shaking laugh sometimes, the over the top sensationalism though gets annoying fast.
Click to expand...

Lotta crazy shtick going on with Scotty! Imagine being married to him!
 
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