I swear my mom's smartkey unlocks by proximity in her Rav4 Limited when you grab the door handle. That is essentially automatic, IMO. You don't have to press an extra button for the driver's door.
Help me decide between the SR5 and Limited
- Thread starter Sprocket
- Start date
I swear my mom's smartkey unlocks by proximity in her Rav4 Limited when you grab the door handle. That is essentially automatic, IMO. You don't have to press an extra button for the driver's door.
Snooperstyle
Member
Locking rear diff is a HUGE plus! It bothers me that all 4x4 vehicles don't have at least a rear diff locker. Forgot to mention that in my last post!
As soon as you "grab" the handle (as if to pull the door open), the rig unlocks. To lock, there is a small insignia on the top/front of the handle where you touch and it locks.
Is that what you meant?
Yeah, that is what I meant. Basically, you don't have to fish for your key fob to find the unlock button. Having it in your pocket is enough to unlock the door.
pattycakes
New member
I had the same delema LE or SR5 , If you plan on keeping for 10 years or more , SR5 is the way to go because the LE will will be the same as the SR5 when all the electrionic gadgets don't work anymore. You know when a vehicle reaches a certain age things start going on it and ya don't bother fixing because the repairs cost too much for what the vehicle is worth at the time.Ya will find yourself saying the saying ...I can live without that for that repair cost. I know 15 years from now when I pull on my 4WD lever I'll be in 4WD.
While it is definitely a personal decision, I decided to go with the Limited to get all the extras. Relatively speaking, the price difference isn't all that great between the two models.....face it, they are both expensive. If this was my primary "trail rig" I would probably shy away from the Limited. As a "dual sport" vehicle, the Limited offers the best of both worlds.
Fuzzylogic
New member
For your use, the Limited 4wd is probably best. I live in the South and need 4wd only occasionally. Plus, I prefer cloth seats. I could afford the limited. But, for me the SR5 works fine.
I have family in South Bend, Indiana. My sister in law has a 4th gen with full time 4wd. That's the way to go in the snow and ice. But, you'll have a tire decision to make. I would buy a set of SR5 wheels with good all terrain/winter tires and use your limited wheels/tires in the summer.
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I too had trouble decided, but I figured I'd go all out because I wanted all the options and doodads. I ended up going with the limited and I havent looked back since. The extra price didnt matter in the long run for my husbands and my comfort. I ended up getting an awesome deal on a set of 17'' FJ wheels and tires, so I swapped my limiteds out for them, and its getting a lift when I return from overseas.
4Runner8
New member
sure awd is nice in snow and ice... but for whoever said its a hassle to shift to 4wd in an sr5 is wrong cause its still shift on the fly, just pull the knob to 4 while driving if you think you will need it for the patch of road coming up and push it back while still driving when you dont. that simple... also a real 4wd knob/shifter is bad ass and push button start is for sissys
Snooperstyle
Member
You have pics of your ride with those wheels?
blacksmithdog
New member
Love my SR5!!!
Yes. It is the best of both worlds. You can use 4WD on the road at all times -- dry, wet, snow, slush, etc. The limited slip Torsen center diff controls the front to rear torque split. The center diff is also lockable. When you lock the center diff, it behaves just like a part-time 4WD system, with the front and rear driveshafts turning at the same rate.
This is the third full time 4wd vehicle I've owned. This options provide an extra bit of safety and security when driving in wet or snow/ice covered conditions. The vehicle is always "ready" to convert to 4wd operations with no additional intervention by the driver. When you know the conditions definitely warrant 4wd, simply shift to H4L and the vehicle is "locked" into 4wd.
4Runner8
New member
same thing with an sr5 just pull the shifter into 4wd while moving... 4wd in rain doesnt help all that much... a good set of tires will do just as good.
dekeman
New member
M1 is bang on and makes the point many forget: Full time AWD is beneficial on dry roads, not just when it gets nasty outside.
As for those who say they don't notice a difference in handling between SR5 and Limited, I say go for another drive, and do it back to back. There's much less lean and far less pitch in LE. (Note the thread, nose dive under hard braking, mostly applicable to SR5 models.)
I disagree that full time 4WD is beneficial on dry roads. The 4Runner is way too heavy (and too top heavy) for 4WD to have any handling benefit. Given the same suspension, a RWD vehicle will have more neutral handling than an AWD vehicle. Using your front wheels to drive the vehicle and steer the vehicle means it has to give up something as far as using your traction to change direction or move forward. On the topic of wet roads, tires are more important than drive wheels, IMO. 8WD won't save you if the tires don't have traction.
The reduced pitch and roll is all due to the more sophisticated suspension on the Limited, not the full time 4WD (I'm not sure that you were implying that, but just in case).
harper7
Senior Member
Real world testing and not in books or reading about it on the internet........Having driven both for the last 6 years, a 2006 Sport 2wd with X-Reas and now a Limited with the Torsen that had X-Reas until I upgraded.
IMO.............The Limited with the Torsen handles significantly better in all conditions, especially wet roads. And it's not because of the tires as I have BFG mud tires that are notoriously bad in rain against the Michelin Cross Terrains I ran on the 06 which are rated high in wet conditions.Go drive one back to back on a rainy day and you'll see.The Torsen senses wheel slip and biases accordingly front to rear.
IMO.............The Limited with the Torsen handles significantly better in all conditions, especially wet roads. And it's not because of the tires as I have BFG mud tires that are notoriously bad in rain against the Michelin Cross Terrains I ran on the 06 which are rated high in wet conditions.Go drive one back to back on a rainy day and you'll see.The Torsen senses wheel slip and biases accordingly front to rear.
If you don't mind spending the $$$, go with the Limited. If not, go with a SR5.
I own a SR5 4x4 and I'm perfectly happy with it. I couldn't justify spending the extra $$$ for a limited, as this is my "commutemobile" (a nice one at that). One thing I don't like about the 4WD system on the SR5 is that it doesn't have center locking differentials, which is archaic in this day and age. For my use though, it doesn't really matter because I'll probably need it once or twice a year.
I own a SR5 4x4 and I'm perfectly happy with it. I couldn't justify spending the extra $$$ for a limited, as this is my "commutemobile" (a nice one at that). One thing I don't like about the 4WD system on the SR5 is that it doesn't have center locking differentials, which is archaic in this day and age. For my use though, it doesn't really matter because I'll probably need it once or twice a year.
