Getting closer to buy!

[Lewis&Clark]

I'm closing on a T4R purchase, barring one final final debate...

Option 1: finding a 2012 Limited in Shoreline Blue, so I can get the JBL 7" nav instead of the 6.1" Entune system they only offer now on 2013, which I have no interest in.

Option 2: a 2013 with no nav system. I would replace with an aftermarket stereo/nav system, and maybe even aftermarket air conditioned and heated seats.

Question...if I went with Option 2, would an aftermarket nav system be able to integrate with the steering wheel audio controls, and voice command system? I would not do the install myself; I'd take it to a pro shop.


dt

 

[mikey's2010SR5]

From what I have seen the aftermarkrt Nav systems are pretty good. They can be wired to work with steering wheel controls and have the ability to have iPods plugged in. I know a new head unit will be in my future when I start my interior.

 

[Lewis&Clark]

From what I have seen the aftermarkrt Nav systems are pretty good. They can be wired to work with steering wheel controls and have the ability to have iPods plugged in. I know a new head unit will be in my future when I start my interior.

Bluetooth, iPod, and steering wheel audio controls are dealbreakers for me.

One really nice to have would be voice command system that works through the car's steering wheel control too though. I'm guessing that wouldn't be possible though, especially if I got an SR5 or Trail that doesn't have the factory pre-wiring for voice command.

That's not a deal breaker, but it'd be nice. As much as I'm infuriated at Toyota's nav system basically turning off all functions while in motion, I prefer voice dialing and voice map commands when driving anyway. (I just think it's obnoxious the system can't still work so I can have my passenger adjust it when needed).

 

[mikey's2010SR5]

Yeah for me it is going to be I need to be able to answer and hang up my phone that is connected through blue tooth from the stock steering wheel controls and I must be able to change the volume and advance or go back on my music selection with the steering wheel controls. I too am not concerned about the voice command since I barely use it. A plus will be if they installer can use the stock microphone that is up by the lights instead of having to put in a new mic somewhere I can see it.

 

[redkaz04]

Bluetooth, iPod, and steering wheel audio controls are dealbreakers for me.

One really nice to have would be voice command system that works through the car's steering wheel control too though. I'm guessing that wouldn't be possible though, especially if I got an SR5 or Trail that doesn't have the factory pre-wiring for voice command.

That's not a deal breaker, but it'd be nice. As much as I'm infuriated at Toyota's nav system basically turning off all functions while in motion, I prefer voice dialing and voice map commands when driving anyway. (I just think it's obnoxious the system can't still work so I can have my passenger adjust it when needed).

are you stating the etune nav suck> I am very confused by your post. I thought the stock etune nav has bluetooth, ipod and steering wheel controls?
why is that a dealbreaker?

 

[Lewis&Clark]

are you stating the etune nav suck> I am very confused by your post. I thought the stock etune nav has bluetooth, ipod and steering wheel controls?
why is that a dealbreaker?

Sorry, late night, I wasn't clear

I dislike the Entune system. The screen clarity seems a little lower than the old JBL system. I'm not a huge fan of the stereo, though I could accept it. I don't really need the Entune apps. And the screen is 6.1" versus the old 7.0" -- at least for me, the bigger screen makes a significant difference, especially when driving 25,000+ miles per year.

So I'm partial to trying to find a 2012 Limited with the 7" JBL instead, but they're actually pretty hard to find right now. So the fallback option would be to get a T4R that has no nav system, and install an aftermarket head unit. Not a bad option, but the dealbreaker would be that the head unit have to work with the steering wheel audio controls, etc.

 

[westwind77]

I'm guessing that wouldn't be possible though, especially if I got an SR5 or Trail that doesn't have the factory pre-wiring for voice command.

The SR5 & TE both have the same system on the wheel as the LE does (an option in the SR5). My 10' has all the controls.

From what I have read, someone correct me if I am wrong please, you can get adapters for all the wheel controls to work....except for the little bluetooth voice recognition button. Again, if I am wrong please let me know as this is the reason I have just to go aftermarket for h/u.

 

[Okki]

Sounds to me you need some more info before making a call on a vehicle. Since you are not doing the install yourself, I would go talk to the shop where you are planning on having the work done. Ask them about their experience with Toyota steering wheels and what options they have.

That should give you an idea on the cost involved which may play into your decision to stick with the entune head unit or not. Also check into a subwoofer, because that may be a cost saving to do aftermarket over the OEM JBL if you are having head unit work done anyway.

The LE comes with heated seats. An SR5 or TE you will have to add aftermarket. Since ventilated seats probably tie into the truck air ducts, I don't know what after market options there are for that and the cost involved.

Once you know the answer to the above two questions, then you may want to ask yourself what you plan on doing with the truck. If you are staying on pavement all the time, the XREAS suspension of the LTD may be a plus. If you are expecting to lift it and take it off road, the SR5 or TE may be a better choice.

Also remember you always can special order a vehicle; you just need to be patient then for it to show up (8 to 12 weeks). Good luck charting out your choices! :eyebrows:

Okki

 

[westwind77]

Sounds to me you need some more info before making a call on a vehicle.

The LE comes with heated seats. An SR5 or TE you will have to add aftermarket.

Okki

Okki - I know you know that is not true - was that just mis-wording with the SR5?

The SR5 has the option (from the factory) to have the same exact leather seats with heaters as the LE - Yes, with the TE you have to go aftermarket to get the leather.

 

[Okki]

Okki - I know you know that is not true - was that just mis-wording with the SR5?

The SR5 has the option (from the factory) to have the same exact leather seats with heaters as the LE - Yes, with the TE you have to go aftermarket to get the leather.

Yeah I stand corrected.... That's what you get for trying to sneak in to much t4r time at the office

Okki

 

[///AIRDAM]

although i am new, i just recently went thru what you are going thru. i have been looking at 4Rs for about a year. i liked the JBL 7" nav system and interior/dash but hated the goofy headlights and tail lights that stuck out so i never made myself buy one. a late 2012 change (not 2013 as you assumed) and the 4Rs went to the entune. late 2012 models showing up on the dealer floors around august/september, listed at 2012 models, were starting to get the entune. even the SR5 premium packages were going to the entune. i despised the dash change, the nav screen that sits flush with the upper dash (terrible glare) the E.T. looking dash bezel, and the downgraded instrument cluster. (notice the late 12 and 13 limited instrument cluster dont look like the 10-earl 12 instrument cluster either. i did not like any of the new late 12/13 looks so i set out to find myself an older 12 on the lot. i searched for nearly 4 months looking all over the south, even made a few trips as far as 2 states away looking at 4Rs on the lot. i finally found an earlier build 12 LE with the JBL nav system, thanfully, as i absolutely hated what they did to the dash and nav system. (only asthetically) i understand the entune is supposedly better, and more "user friendly" but i aint trying to do nothing crazy, and dont need apps on my nav screen. i just want to be pretty, and the entune nav system and dash is not asthetically pleasing in my book so i chose to find an earlier 12 model.


now after my long book (sorry) i will tell you its going to be rather hard to fine a somewhat rare color, in an early build 12 LE on a lot somewhere with the JBL system. you are probably better off getting an SR5 with premium package (all the limited upgrades like seats ect) and putting in a pioneer nav system. all the pioneer nav systems can be programmed (by the dealer) to be able to use the nav while driving, and update it while driving, as well as have bluetooth and other features. the pioneer headunits can be programmed to accept the steering wheel controls by using a controller box (wired in at installation behind dash) so i think an SR5 premium package, and installing your own nav system may save you alot of headache trying to find a unicorn that probably does not exist and save you some money. the SR5 premium package 2wd runs around $35k where a LE 2wd runs about $41/42k the only thing you wont get is the 20" wheels and upgraded shocks and snazzier instrument cluster.



my tacoma, has a pioneer DVD/NAV system, with the unlock codes that allow me to use the nav while driving, switch to the rear view camera while driving ect, and its awesome. makes me wanna try and find an unlock for the 4Rs nav system that wont let you do anything untill you park. my previous lexus was the same way, which i know toyota does for safety, but who cares about safety anyway. if you are like me, the factory nav and its safety gremlins make me dislike it and wish i had an aftermarket unit that was unlocked and did all the cool stuff while driving

 

[tamerunner]

Ye I say maybe go with the SR5 with the premium package. Thats what I got and I paid around 36k ish out the door. I had to drive 2 hrs to get it but worth it. From the talks I've had with some salesmen in my area at least, my funner was a unicorn in itself with the premium package, third row, moonroof and 4x4.

 

[Lewis&Clark]

although i am new, i just recently went thru what you are going thru. ... now after my long book (sorry) i will tell you its going to be rather hard to fine a somewhat rare color, in an early build 12 LE on a lot somewhere with the JBL system. you are probably better off getting an SR5 with premium package (all the limited upgrades like seats ect) and putting in a pioneer nav system. ...

Thank you for the feedback. This is all quite helpful.

I'm starting to agree with you. I searched the inventory of EVERY SINGLE Toyota dealer in the San Francisco Bay Area, plus several other areas I'd be willing to drive to. No luck. Few used T4Rs at all, let alone newer years. And it's clear to me I shouldn't even bother looking for Shoreline Blue!

I'm beginning to think an SR5 with leather and a nav system are the best option. But I'm hitting two roadblocks:


1. The Toyota dealer I spoke to yesterday INSISTED that there are absolutely no leather options available for the SR5. I pointed out that I had heard on this board that there was an option for the same leather seats and seat heaters that the Limited has, but he said it doesn't exist and that if I wanted leather, I'd have no choice but to go aftermarket. Is this true? Or did you guys all mean to begin with that it'd be aftermarket?

If not, any of you actually know what code I should have the dealer enter in the computer to try and find an SR5 with the option (or order parts for dealer-install)? toyotausa.com's configurator is not showing a leather option in my zip code.


2. Last but not least, I like the idea of getting an SR5 with no nav, and adding in an aftermarket head unit that integrates w/ the steering wheel controls. Not a bad option, actually. But since there's no obvious double-din sized slot on the SR5 dashboard, you'd have to hack up the dash to make it work. I saw this example on the boards and -- while no offense is intended to the owner -- I think it looks ugly and unnatural with so much empty space to either side of the head unit where the buttons and controls used to be.

I dunno. Maybe I oughta just get over it and get the SR5 with the entune nav despite the smaller screen.


dt

 

[///AIRDAM]

the SR5 has a few variances, when you look over at the options, usually on the right side of the window sticker, there will be things like

side steps -- $489
remote keyless entry system -- $382
towing package w/ trans oil cooler -- $988
PREMIUM PACKAGE --- $3225


it is called "premium package" and is listed as a factory installed option. my local dealer has 2 of them right now, the SR5 premium package is rather popular, its a SR5 with the upgraded leather, sunroof, nav, ect. your dealer is blowing smoke up your skirt, or you are talking to a rookie that dont know nothing. the SR5 premium package is a popular, and hot selling vehicle. i cant imagine why that dealer (salesman) dont know and says it does not exist. i have sat in and driven quite a few.

the SR5 regular model, with cloth seats, can also be upgraded to leather at time of purchase. every vehicle i have ever bought, that had cloth, i had upgraded to leather at the time of purchase. a front/rear seat and door panel insert combo is about $900-1100 around here. the dealers have an approved upholstery shop that they'll send the vehicle to, that takes the interior out of your vehicle, and installs a leather seating kit onto your seats, and leather inserts into the door panels wherever there is cloth. you dont have to come up with $1000 extra at time of purchase, you can rope it into your payments and it adds a whopping $15-17 to your monthly payment to have leather interior. i have done 5 different vehicles like this, and enjoy the leather much better than the cloth.

the only hurdle you have to overcome with a standard SR5 is the nav and bluetooth setup that you want. the dash does not readily accept an aftermarket head unit. its been a while since i have gotten into the stereos, i am unsure if an of the stereo kit and harness manufacturers make a kit that will replace your dash bezel with a modified kit to allow you to install a nav unit. dunno??


an SR5 with premium package is a more logical choice, everything is factory, comes with nav, ect. and if you really despise the entune, rip the entune head unit out and since the dash is already built to accept a screen/headunit, put in an aftermarket unit that suits you needs better.

 

[Lewis&Clark]

the SR5 has a few variances ...
PREMIUM PACKAGE --- $3225 ...
it is called "premium package" and is listed as a factory installed option. my local dealer has 2 of them right now, the SR5 premium package is rather popular, its a SR5 with the upgraded leather, sunroof, nav, ect. your dealer is blowing smoke up your skirt, or you are talking to a rookie that dont know nothing. the SR5 premium package is a popular, and hot selling vehicle. i cant imagine why that dealer (salesman) dont know and says it does not exist. i have sat in and driven quite a few.

When I use Toyota's website configurator to build a 2013 SR5, it gives me three options, each called a "Convenience Package", and priced as follows:

$1580 - Sport power seats, moonroof, 2 AC outlets, state emissions
$1800 - Adds the anti-theft immobilizer
$4125 - Adds the Display Audio w/ Entune & Nav and a fabric 3rd row of seats

None of them specify leather. :frusty:

dt

 

[Avalanche]

Mine is a 2010 SR5 and it has a Premium Package. I bought it used, but the 1 owner took really good care of it and left w/ me all records, including the sticker of the car showing the options. Right there it says "Premium Package" that has leather seats 1st and 2nd row, leather wrapped steering wheel, and heated seats "butt warmers" for driver/passenger. Also has power seats. Also "courtesy lamps" wherever they are. Says it cost him $2205. That seems really low. Also Remote Engine Start for $529. I guess I have an anti-theft device on it since the security light flashes, but I don't see it on the sheet.

So clearly a Premium Package can be obtained, or at least it could in the very recent past.

 

[harper7]

There are 12 different Toyota sales regions in the USA and a few are even privately owned as in my Gulf States region.

Determining Your Region for Toyota Deals | U.S. News Best Cars

All regions don't have the same options as others and are determined by the Regional sales managers according to what they think/compute will sell in their region. Canada on the other hand has even fewer options and you basically get what they order from mother Toyota.

So bottom line is the Premium package for the SR5 is not available in your region unless you find a Sales manager to order one.That could take awhile as the ones coming off the assy lines are already allotted for other regions. Best to look in another region IMO if that's what you really want.

 

[///AIRDAM]

durnno.... i have sat in a 2012 and a 2013 SR5 with premium package and nav. when i went into a huge dealer once, i asked them for limiteds, and they didn't have any but he said he had a bunch of SR5 premium packages. so he brought a new 12 around for me to sit in and look at. this was the first time i had seen the entune in an SR5, leather seats, auto dimming mirror, leather ect. i hated the dash, so i asked for him to bring out a 13 and let me compare. he brought a 13 premium package SR5 up front as well. same exact thing except for the 13 had the rear slide out tray. both had leather, and the 2nd row reclined and slid forward on both just like the limited and 3rd rows do.

i've sat in a 13 premium package SR5, so i know they are out there. dunno why the website (build your own) is not letting you see it. i'll browse on ebay and see if i can find one





here is a used one, SR5 with premium package (although the used listing does not specify it)

Toyota : 4Runner 4WD V6 SR5 in Toyota | eBay Motors




found it on toyota.com/4runner/packages/options/html <<--something like that

PT ----- Premium Package w/ Leather - $4,775
Leather upholstery; Second row leather seats; Leather-trimmed, steering wheel; Luxury trim: leather on shifter; Electric glass sunroof; 110V power supply; Includes: [PE] Sport Fabric-Trimmed 8-Way Power Driver Seat And [EE] Entune Display Audio with Navigation; Excludes: [CP] Convenience Package And [13] Black Fabric And [42] Sand Beige Fabric

 

[///AIRDAM]

that ebay listing i posted is from california. it has the premium package. so apparently premium packages ARE available in his area. cause i believe the OP said he was from cali. thats where i looked on ebay for him. if there is a used one at a lot in sunny cali, i bet there are dealers selling them over there somewhere

 

[harper7]

that ebay listing i posted is from california. it has the premium package. so apparently premium packages ARE available in his area. cause i believe the OP said he was from cali. thats where i looked on ebay for him. if there is a used one at a lot in sunny cali, i bet there are dealers selling them over there somewhere

Northern or Southern CA? Different Toyota regions.
All you have to do is go to Toyota.com and put in the zip code in that region to see what options are available in that region.