mrrab
New member
Yup! You still don't have the option of a V8, but 95% of people who own 4th Gen. V8's don't need a V8 -- including me. However, a V8 is very nice!
dont downgrade to 5th Gen
- Thread starter Gecko123
- Start date
Yup! You still don't have the option of a V8, but 95% of people who own 4th Gen. V8's don't need a V8 -- including me. However, a V8 is very nice!
zerowkul98
New member
X2 on this! The message was articulated well, and i couldnt agree more.
People will take offense, and when you shell out upwards of $40k and someone rips the item you puchased, naturally people get up in arms.
People that bought a 5th gen and enjoy it, then good for you and God bless. For us 4th gen owners that were a bit disappointed when the 5th's when they were released, we all have lists as to what we dont like, or we just dont give a crap either way.
Personally, i think it looks soccer-mom-ish, to boxy, sounds "tin-ish" and thin, and too many basic items from the previous version were dropped (not the fluff-stuff, but things in the guts of the drivetrain that were subtracted).
BTW,..Go Red Sox
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JB.
New member
I've come to like features I originally didn't like on my 4th gen and vice versa. This effect is no doubt enhanced by the fact that I frequently put the truck through a lot of different paces. I can look at the 5th gen and imagine how I think likes/dislikes would line up, but that would undoubtedly change substantially if I owned one.
So analyzing the 5th gen, for me, is an exercise in supposition, but the topic sometimes gets tense so I mostly stay out of it.
Imo, this post by DC runner provides good perspective on the differences in the macro environments of the two gens.
http://www.toyota-4runner.org/4th-g...n-driveshaft-but-not-4th-gen.html#post1067908
So analyzing the 5th gen, for me, is an exercise in supposition, but the topic sometimes gets tense so I mostly stay out of it.
Imo, this post by DC runner provides good perspective on the differences in the macro environments of the two gens.
http://www.toyota-4runner.org/4th-g...n-driveshaft-but-not-4th-gen.html#post1067908
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To be fair, I have an advanced graduate degree in Policy Development/Analysis, and my job in a particular legislative body (kinda have to be a bit vague about where and for who) is to examine the pro/con of each and every little legislative policy that comes across my and my boss's table.
When my family asks what I do, I usually describe it as I am an engineer in decision making. People like me are trained to research and try to understand the results of doing X..
To do this I had to go to school and I had to, like anyone else for any trade, be taught what to look out. One of the biggest issues with both Micro and Macro examination, is being able to pull out and see all the pieces that connect and inter-relate.
That said, other relevant issues that even I ignored is the continued legislative demand for SAFER cars.
This pushes the BASE cost of a CAR up. It is practically impossible to find a sub 10k car anymore. Do they even make them? This is because before a car maker can even BEGIN to think about all the standard features, like engine size or suspension design, it KNOWS it has to put air bags, X type of Brakes; it has to design VERY rigid body frames with very complicated crash zones.
All of these, all of these things that we take for granted, make the base price of a car go UP.. and this is before they even pick a seat color, cloth or the type of material to put on the dash. When I mentioned earlier about a healthier price point, I should have explained that what I mean is.... in order to meet the demands of both US and the Government in terms of safety and reliability.... and keep the price from jumping through the roof;
Well, you know... that cost has to be offset somewhere. Again, this is just my take. I hope that I can help articulate the discussion.
What we have seen in the US auto industry is every successive generation is safer than the last, hands down. Remember when I said above, I examine the impact of policy. Well, here is one. Auto deaths are down... as a result of several reasons. 1. An active social movement to end dangerous driving, sure. DUI is no joke and we as a culture do not tolerate it. Way to many of us have lost a friend or family member to let it slide.
But.. 2. Safer cars. A funny result of this? Ok, maybe not funny, just curious? Old Jaws of Life are now longer cutting it. I saw a study by the NTSB that noted that while overall, deaths are down, there was a curious rise in the time to rescue. Remember, the longer it takes to pull someone out of a car, the less likely they are to survive. Those minutes and seconds are CRUCIAL.
We (they, NTSB) found that the crash cages in modern cars are becoming stronger and stronger.. YEA!! Good... but this means the older Jaws of Life are too weak and many EMT/Fire Departments are finding they need to buy newer, larger designs and that.
Anyway. So. The 5th Gen is safer than the 4th, the 4th safer than the 3rd and so on. This is good. This means that as a driving society, our wives and sons and daughters... our moms and hell, even us are driving safer cars to protect us.
But.. that costs. Anyway. I don't have an opinion on the 4th vs. 5th debate. I swore (right up until I bought my 4th gen) that my 1990 4runner was the best....
Then I felt the V8....
When my family asks what I do, I usually describe it as I am an engineer in decision making. People like me are trained to research and try to understand the results of doing X..
To do this I had to go to school and I had to, like anyone else for any trade, be taught what to look out. One of the biggest issues with both Micro and Macro examination, is being able to pull out and see all the pieces that connect and inter-relate.
That said, other relevant issues that even I ignored is the continued legislative demand for SAFER cars.
This pushes the BASE cost of a CAR up. It is practically impossible to find a sub 10k car anymore. Do they even make them? This is because before a car maker can even BEGIN to think about all the standard features, like engine size or suspension design, it KNOWS it has to put air bags, X type of Brakes; it has to design VERY rigid body frames with very complicated crash zones.
All of these, all of these things that we take for granted, make the base price of a car go UP.. and this is before they even pick a seat color, cloth or the type of material to put on the dash. When I mentioned earlier about a healthier price point, I should have explained that what I mean is.... in order to meet the demands of both US and the Government in terms of safety and reliability.... and keep the price from jumping through the roof;
Well, you know... that cost has to be offset somewhere. Again, this is just my take. I hope that I can help articulate the discussion.
What we have seen in the US auto industry is every successive generation is safer than the last, hands down. Remember when I said above, I examine the impact of policy. Well, here is one. Auto deaths are down... as a result of several reasons. 1. An active social movement to end dangerous driving, sure. DUI is no joke and we as a culture do not tolerate it. Way to many of us have lost a friend or family member to let it slide.
But.. 2. Safer cars. A funny result of this? Ok, maybe not funny, just curious? Old Jaws of Life are now longer cutting it. I saw a study by the NTSB that noted that while overall, deaths are down, there was a curious rise in the time to rescue. Remember, the longer it takes to pull someone out of a car, the less likely they are to survive. Those minutes and seconds are CRUCIAL.
We (they, NTSB) found that the crash cages in modern cars are becoming stronger and stronger.. YEA!! Good... but this means the older Jaws of Life are too weak and many EMT/Fire Departments are finding they need to buy newer, larger designs and that.
Anyway. So. The 5th Gen is safer than the 4th, the 4th safer than the 3rd and so on. This is good. This means that as a driving society, our wives and sons and daughters... our moms and hell, even us are driving safer cars to protect us.
But.. that costs. Anyway. I don't have an opinion on the 4th vs. 5th debate. I swore (right up until I bought my 4th gen) that my 1990 4runner was the best....
Then I felt the V8....
I have to agree... I have a 2003 Limited V8 4WD, the 2nd one that showed up at the dealership (the first was the demo), 162k miles on it, purchased in Dec of 2002. Generally I would be bored with a vehicle by now, looking to get something else (okay, yeah I bought a fricken BMW as a 2nd car) but I love my 4Runner to death (busted sunroof, cracked dash, and all). Never a mechanical problem, just a good vehicle that has stood the test of time. I'm keeping it another 100k I bet... crack dash is an irritation though.
It's saying a lot when someone likes an almost 10yr truck more than a $70k German sports car.
I don't hate the Gen5's, some members here have made theirs look really magnificent... But, I sure don't like what Toyota did with them.
meltdowner
Member
F that. MPG is great for people who us this car for daily driver, but I would imagine many of us use it more as a weekend/vacation retreat vehicle. 15 vs 25 MPG is going to cost me oh....
400 mile weekend vacation drive. @ 3.44$ per gallon. costs about 91$ for the trip at 15MPG.
Same numbers but at 25 MPG, trip costs me 55$.
So you save 40$ on that trip.
What are your savings for say... a weekend trip every weekend for a year.
That's $40 * 52 weekends = $2,080 dollars savings.
Let's say you're the type that does this OFTEN. That's about $8,000 dollars savings over the course of 4 years.
So, keep old 2006 4 runner v8 that gets shit MPG or spend 35 grand to save 8 grand? Not worth it.:girl:
