Future of the 4Runner

[CRM114]

Like I said, I'm not saying what will happen in the near future. However, look at it through a joe schmoe's eyes. You go to the dealership. You look at the 4Runner, but the Highlander next to it triggers your interest. You test drive both. You find the Highlander actually has MORE interior room than the 4Runner. Has MORE power. Has a BETTER ride. Has BETTER gas mileage. And priced almost exactly the same, with the Highlander being a bit cheaper. Now, to a regular Joe, who doesn't go off-roading, the choice should be obvious.

Except the Highlander sits low and looks like a station wagon. The 4Runner sits high and looks like a truck. I personally would not drive a Highlander. It's a minivan redux. No thanks.

 

[CRM114]

BTW, if my wife were looking to buy either a 4Runner or the Highlander, I'd get her the Highlander.

Case in point.

 

[p nut]

Except the Highlander sits low and looks like a station wagon. The 4Runner sits high and looks like a truck. I personally would not drive a Highlander. It's a minivan redux. No thanks.

Ok, I hate to repeat myself, but NOTE TO EVERYONE:

- No $#!^ none of us would pick the Highlander over the 4Runner. That is a given. Again, I'M NOT TALKING ABOUT OFF-ROAD ENTHUSIASTS. I'm talking about your average joe that makes up 99% of the people that are in the "SUV" market. To them, they don't care much about ground clearance, 4L, lockers, etc. They want to ride comfortable, get good MPG, sit higher than everyone else in passenger cars, etc. etc. Can we stop bringing up the fact that all of us choose the 4Runner over the Highlander?

And, personally, I don't think they look like a minivan at all.

 

[p nut]

I think there were a lot of things in the way preventing progress...

1) Auto maker unions block new technologies stating it will obsolete their work force on an unproven technology.

2) Auto makers don't want to retool unless they can reap substantial benefits (hence the reason Chrysler never implemented the rotary engine on a domestic vehicle - they own the US patent since the 70's, but never put it in a car).

3) Reliance on oil gives many other perks which are not publicly mentioned, but put cash in certain people's pockets. (story on coal last night on the news about how efficient coal is and how clean burning it is, but then they go on to say the technology to make coal clean burning is more than 10 years away...)

This seems to be a trend in every industry in the United States. I was just listening to NPR this morning, and they were talking about ISP's. If you look at Japan, Korea, Europe, etc., we are waaaay behind in the internet game. We pay almost 5 times the amount that they do ($50-70 compared to $10-20 per month) and their speed is about 30 times ours. Yet, they are refusing (and even cutting off) movements for advancement, because they have invested so much in their out-of-date system and need to get that money back. Meanwhile, everyone is passing us by.

:bash:

 

[SkylineGTRracer]

Sorry to say this but the 4Runner might die in 2010 or 2012. This is just a theory and a sad one because the 4Runner is the only SUV that I like from Toyota. There have been rumor around the Tundra planet saying that they will make the Tundra, 4Runner, Sequoia, Tacoma, FJ, and the new Highlander. These is due to that they are shifting production to make more "fuel efficient" (if you can call them as efficient as a euro diesel) cars. The planet's that those models were being built in are going to churn out up and coming cars. Sales wise the 4runner is down. I think motertrend, CarandDriver, or autoblog.com had some snap shot of the new 5th gen in heavy camo. Long live the 4Runner! And Damn the oil companys and ecomentalists!!!!!!!!

 

[alaskaman]

Just take a peek at the Jeep Patriot if you want to see a disaster. The 4Runner is a solid black spot on Toyota's balance sheet.

 

[JungleJim]

Sorry to say this but the 4Runner might die in 2010 or 2012.

I don't think it will die, since it's based on a world platform.

But I wouldn't be surprised if Toyota puts more resources into other vehicles in the near future and puts off the 5th gen until 2011 or 2012. The rest of the world isn't as hung up on the frequency of new models as the U.S. is. This would allow Toyota to put more resources in making the vehicles that will sell well in the U.S. market.
I really don't think a redesigned 4Runner will increase current much.

 

[donnie15]

I just hope it's not that drastic as they did for SEMA

first time seeing this and i think that looks nasty i would deffinetly look into this rig if it went into production

 

[RunnerUp]

Sorry to say this but the 4Runner might die in 2010 or 2012. This is just a theory and a sad one because the 4Runner is the only SUV that I like from Toyota. There have been rumor around the Tundra planet saying that they will make the Tundra, 4Runner, Sequoia, Tacoma, FJ, and the new Highlander. These is due to that they are shifting production to make more "fuel efficient" (if you can call them as efficient as a euro diesel) cars. The planet's that those models were being built in are going to churn out up and coming cars. Sales wise the 4runner is down. I think motertrend, CarandDriver, or autoblog.com had some snap shot of the new 5th gen in heavy camo. Long live the 4Runner! And Damn the oil companys and ecomentalists!!!!!!!!

not gonna happen... toyota shelved the supra project and the fj cruiser and is keeping the 4runner

 

[hulk311]

Sorry to say this but the 4Runner might die in 2010 or 2012. This is just a theory and a sad one because the 4Runner is the only SUV that I like from Toyota. There have been rumor around the Tundra planet saying that they will make the Tundra, 4Runner, Sequoia, Tacoma, FJ, and the new Highlander. These is due to that they are shifting production to make more "fuel efficient" (if you can call them as efficient as a euro diesel) cars. The planet's that those models were being built in are going to churn out up and coming cars. Sales wise the 4runner is down. I think motertrend, CarandDriver, or autoblog.com had some snap shot of the new 5th gen in heavy camo. Long live the 4Runner! And Damn the oil companys and ecomentalists!!!!!!!!

who cares if it dies next year?

4runners are build like tanks, I'm sure your 3/4gen 4runner will last a good 250,000+ miles before something major breaks :bigok:

 

[Rover+Runner]

Re: SAE Energy

If you've seen this already, forgive me for the repeat. But speaking of the Duramax, have you guys seen the news about this guy in Kansas? The first story I saw on him was in Fast Company.. Motorhead Messiah

His company is SAE Energy (SAEenergy.com) and the guy is for real. I would LOVE it if a progressive car company like Toyota would put this guy's technology to work for them.

That article was AMAZING. What really grabbed me was the line "The Department of Transportation estimated in 2004 that if we converted merely one-third of America's passenger cars and light trucks to diesel, we'd reduce our oil consumption by up to 1.4 million barrels of oil per day--precisely the amount we import from Saudi Arabia."

YOU CAN'T SIGN ME UP FAST ENOUGH FOR A DIESEL 4RUNNER (especially with a manual transmission)

 

[2003-4x4runner]

Sorry to say this but the 4Runner might die in 2010 or 2012.

Sorry to say this but the 4Runner might die in 2010 or 2012. This is just a theory and a sad one because the 4Runner is the only SUV that I like from Toyota. There have been rumor around the Tundra planet saying that they will make the Tundra, 4Runner, Sequoia, Tacoma, FJ, and the new Highlander. These is due to that they are shifting production to make more "fuel efficient" (if you can call them as efficient as a euro diesel) cars. The planet's that those models were being built in are going to churn out up and coming cars. Sales wise the 4runner is down. I think motertrend, CarandDriver, or autoblog.com had some snap shot of the new 5th gen in heavy camo. Long live the 4Runner! And Damn the oil companys and ecomentalists!!!!!!!!

I was just going over some old threads I posted in and found this quote from 2009. :becky::rofl:

 

[Yukon4Runner]

Some people have the uncanny ability to be wrong 100% of the time even though, statistically, they should be right some of the time.

 

[1engineer]

You guys win 100 points for thread resurrection of the day...

 

[daanbc05]

I am a first time buyer of Toyota. Two weeks ago my wife dragged me to test drive a Jeep Grand Cherokee. I did not like it! To much $$ and every time I got out of the vehicle my calfs hit the side of threshold. She then dragged me to drive the pacifica. Didn't like it one bit. We had a 2014 Honda Odessey Van. Before that was a 2011 Honda Odessey van. I was tired of vans, kids are grown don't need it. She then said "please stop by the Toyota stealership on the way home" She really wanted the Highlander. So we drove it, was not impressed. Just another mini van. I saw three 4Runners. Didn't know what they were because the last time I paid attention to them was in the early 90's. They had two black limited's and a Blue SR5 Premium 4x4. I asked to drive the cheapest one. At that time I was unaware of all the models and options. When I opened the door and saw the two tone beige interior, I was impressed. Got in it and noticed it was 4WD. Plus, salesperson said it had all the options. I was very impressed with the int. So was the wife. Then I drove it off the lot down the street. WOW, did not drive anything like the Grand Cherokee or the Highlander. (Thats my opinion) I was so shocked at how it drove I pulled over and told the wife to test it. She loved it. I was sold!! But they wouldn't budge on the price. So I walked, a few days later they called (memorial day weekend) We went there again, and again could not come to an agreement. The next day I called another Toyota dealership and told them I wanted this 4Runner, and gave them the stock #. Over the phone we came to an agreement. So the wife and I go to fill out the paper work, on the way I stop by the original stealership. I tell them that this dealership is giving me this price. If you can beat it or match it I'll do buss. here. Again they wouldn't budge on price. The wife was worried because she saw the truck parked out front. (I knew that they were getting it ready to bring over to the other dealership) They told me that someone else was looking at it. So as soon as they said that, I walked, they came running outside after me. I said no goodbye. We went to the other dealership and met the salesperson we had an agreement with. He said that there having a hard time getting the truck because the other dealership wouldn't let it go. At this point the wife's phone blows up with calls from the original dealer. Now the dealership we were in heard and watched us talk with the other dealership. We had both fighting for our buss. Both were coming down off the price. I finally decided to stay at that dealership and make the purchase. After about half an hour the truck finally came over from the other lot. The wife and I looked it over, We loved the Blue, and the wife noticed the int. was two toned. It had the third row seating. (which now I know I would prefer the slide out) But in the end, we are in love with this truck. She sits so high from factory, the ride is great, and we are impressed with how quite it is in the cab when driving. So anyways, thats how we ended up with our 4Runner rather then the Highlander. Sorry for the long story.

 

[jwatson]

I am a first time buyer of Toyota. Two weeks ago my wife dragged me to test drive a Jeep Grand Cherokee. I did not like it! To much $$ and every time I got out of the vehicle my calfs hit the side of threshold. She then dragged me to drive the pacifica. Didn't like it one bit. We had a 2014 Honda Odessey Van. Before that was a 2011 Honda Odessey van. I was tired of vans, kids are grown don't need it. She then said "please stop by the Toyota stealership on the way home" She really wanted the Highlander. So we drove it, was not impressed. Just another mini van. I saw three 4Runners. Didn't know what they were because the last time I paid attention to them was in the early 90's. They had two black limited's and a Blue SR5 Premium 4x4. I asked to drive the cheapest one. At that time I was unaware of all the models and options. When I opened the door and saw the two tone beige interior, I was impressed. Got in it and noticed it was 4WD. Plus, salesperson said it had all the options. I was very impressed with the int. So was the wife. Then I drove it off the lot down the street. WOW, did not drive anything like the Grand Cherokee or the Highlander. (Thats my opinion) I was so shocked at how it drove I pulled over and told the wife to test it. She loved it. I was sold!! But they wouldn't budge on the price. So I walked, a few days later they called (memorial day weekend) We went there again, and again could not come to an agreement. The next day I called another Toyota dealership and told them I wanted this 4Runner, and gave them the stock #. Over the phone we came to an agreement. So the wife and I go to fill out the paper work, on the way I stop by the original stealership. I tell them that this dealership is giving me this price. If you can beat it or match it I'll do buss. here. Again they wouldn't budge on price. The wife was worried because she saw the truck parked out front. (I knew that they were getting it ready to bring over to the other dealership) They told me that someone else was looking at it. So as soon as they said that, I walked, they came running outside after me. I said no goodbye. We went to the other dealership and met the salesperson we had an agreement with. He said that there having a hard time getting the truck because the other dealership wouldn't let it go. At this point the wife's phone blows up with calls from the original dealer. Now the dealership we were in heard and watched us talk with the other dealership. We had both fighting for our buss. Both were coming down off the price. I finally decided to stay at that dealership and make the purchase. After about half an hour the truck finally came over from the other lot. The wife and I looked it over, We loved the Blue, and the wife noticed the int. was two toned. It had the third row seating. (which now I know I would prefer the slide out) But in the end, we are in love with this truck. She sits so high from factory, the ride is great, and we are impressed with how quite it is in the cab when driving. So anyways, thats how we ended up with our 4Runner rather then the Highlander. Sorry for the long story.

Great story, always good to have dealerships fighting over you!