How does your 4R handle?

Pearl<3 said:
Funny you say that... How do your Wives/GF's feel about the 4R? Is it mostly driven by Male/Female?

Mostly men, but there are several women owners on this board. You don't say how tall you are ... my wife is 5'2" and would struggle with ins and outs w/o running boards - same with kidlets. She drives a CRV and it suits her quite well. She secretly wanted a Lexus RX, but didn't tell me. Have you considered the RX?

I love the value of Toyota, but love the drive of the MDX.

Have you driven a Highlander, or a Pilot?

I'm coming from a convertible 350z, and my previous cars have all been pretty small and sporty. I'm a little worried now that I see the word TRUCK in everyones post.

The 4R is a truck, make no mistake. A nice truck, but still a truck.

My only reason for considering an SUV type car is because I wi'll need it in it the future (kids, car seat, stroller, etc.) and don't want to have to buy another car in 2 years.

Have you considered the Sienna? It's a Toyota, AWD, 7 pass., tons of room, etc.

our argument now is the MDX is an overpriced Honda...

Hence my suggesting the Pilot. I nearly bought one, but I saw too many women driving them. :D Nice vehicle tho.
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Let us know what you do....
 
FORD Is not an option.

The Venza drivers seat feels like a capsule to me, too separated.

Pilot, haven't looked into yet but will.

Sienna, I can NEVER drive a minivan.

The Highlander is actually what I was thinking of getting for practical reasons. Still not too crazy about it.

But none of these cars compares to the quality and cushion of the seats of the MDX.
 
Pearl<3 said:
FORD Is not an option.

The Venza drivers seat feels like a capsule to me, too separated.

Pilot, haven't looked into yet but will.

Sienna, I can NEVER drive a minivan.

The Highlander is actually what I was thinking of getting for practical reasons. Still not too crazy about it.

But none of these cars compares to the quality and cushion of the seats of the MDX.
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My wife and I are going through the same set of decisions right now.

I think you should test drive one, ideally an SR5 as well as a Limited. Test drive a Pathfinder too, while you're at it.

Realize that anything the size of the current 4Runner is going to handle quite differently than the smaller vehicles, truck or not. Then drive the car-based SUVs.

If you need something to take a serious amount of abuse, tow stuff, overload it, and perhaps some rather rough roads, and last more than a few years with low maintenance costs, the 4Runner would get the nod. Amongst vehicles of its class it wins on all counts - reliability, durability, and cost of operation (especially now with 22 mpg). It probably beats many car-based SUV's on those points too.

For daily driving, a 4runner probably overkill unless you really like how it drives, or really need what it gives.

If you need better handling, a car based platform will always outperform a truck. There is a LOT you can do to a 4Runner to make it handle better if you must have one.
 
homeyclaus said:
My wife and I are going through the same set of decisions right now.

I think you should test drive one, ideally an SR5 as well as a Limited. Test drive a Pathfinder too, while you're at it.

Realize that anything the size of the current 4Runner is going to handle quite differently than the smaller vehicles, truck or not. Then drive the car-based SUVs.

If you need something to take a serious amount of abuse, tow stuff, overload it, and perhaps some rather rough roads, and last more than a few years with low maintenance costs, the 4Runner would get the nod. Amongst vehicles of its class it wins on all counts - reliability, durability, and cost of operation (especially now with 22 mpg). It probably beats many car-based SUV's on those points too.

For daily driving, a 4runner probably overkill unless you really like how it drives, or really need what it gives.

If you need better handling, a car based platform will always outperform a truck. There is a LOT you can do to a 4Runner to make it handle better if you must have one.
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Nissan is also not an option. MY 350z Roadster was my first and last Nissan.
I am crossing my fingers, as we are trying to GET RID of it.
We have a family of Lexus' LX, LS, IS (Parents and brothers car) and all so reliable, our older '97 LS was going to make it up to 300k miles had it not been totaled.

I think it's between the highlander and 4R
The 4R will eventually be my husbands car if we go that route.
I figure it would be a good car to have for snow trips and messy kids. Something we'd keep for over 10 years like my parents 99' LX. We had to borrow their car last time we went up to mammoth.
 
Plato1969 said:
:iagree:

It has good road manners... for a TRUCK. But it's never going to be called "nimble", which is fine to me.

Comparing a 4R to a Highlander is an apple to an orange.
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I feel like my trailrunner is pretty nimble ...
of course my last ride was LWB crew cab F-350 :driving:
 
Pearl<3 said:
Nissan is also not an option. MY 350z Roadster was my first and last Nissan.
I am crossing my fingers, as we are trying to GET RID of it.
We have a family of Lexus' LX, LS, IS (Parents and brothers car) and all so reliable, our older '97 LS was going to make it up to 300k miles had it not been totaled.

I think it's between the highlander and 4R
The 4R will eventually be my husbands car if we go that route.
I figure it would be a good car to have for snow trips and messy kids. Something we'd keep for over 10 years like my parents 99' LX. We had to borrow their car last time we went up to mammoth.
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Speaking of Lexi - don't forget to look at the GX, the 4Runner's Lexus sibling. It's a higher price point, but you're getting close to that if you're considering the loaded MDX.

It sounds to me like you need to decide if you'd rather have a crossover or a body on frame SUV. I love my Limited but it is at the end of the day, a truck. BTW, that's one of the things I love about it.

Test drive the 4Runner Limited and the MDX. I have a feeling you'll be able to decide which one you prefer pretty quickly after the test drives.
 
My wife drives likes driving my 4Runner even though it is the polar opposite of her MINI S. It tracks well on the interstate (IMO, better than my GTI did... it wandered). The handling is very much like a truck and you notice if you brake late, but I'm pleased with the handling considering what it is and where I can take it. If you don't have any plans of going off the pavement, the Highlander (or maybe RX350) is a much better choice, though. The 4Runner just eats up less than ideal road conditions, though. I've been pleased as punch with it offroading during the summer and traveling in the winter.
 
Pearl<3 said:
Nissan is also not an option. MY 350z Roadster was my first and last Nissan.
I am crossing my fingers, as we are trying to GET RID of it.
We have a family of Lexus' LX, LS, IS (Parents and brothers car) and all so reliable, our older '97 LS was going to make it up to 300k miles had it not been totaled.

I think it's between the highlander and 4R
The 4R will eventually be my husbands car if we go that route.
I figure it would be a good car to have for snow trips and messy kids. Something we'd keep for over 10 years like my parents 99' LX. We had to borrow their car last time we went up to mammoth.
Click to expand...

The point in driving the Nissan is to get a feel of what a different body-on-frame vehicle feels like. I personally like my Nissan Maxima, but given my dealership (errr, stealership) experiences with them I would not own one if that's whom I had to take it to. I probably wouldn't own any cars in that case, actually. If you test drive the Nissan, be sure to let them know why you're not buying it - it's the only way they get better.

Like I said before, if you want a 10 year vehicle that you intend to use pretty hard, the 4Runner is the most reasonably priced option, and resale has historically also been better than average. Fix the handling with 20" wheels or just get a limited - it helps a lot.

Speaking of messy kids, a 4Runner will also have seat covers, or replacement upholstery available in the aftermarket.

If you're into a 10 year cycle with SUVs, the only other thing that comes to mind is a Mercedes ML or GL diesel, but those are priced pretty high at 48 and 60k respectively. They'll definitely outlive what little styling.
 
Test drove both the 4R Limited 4x4 and the Highlander SE 4WD

Both REALLY good cars:

4Runner -
Pros - Sits high, ride is smooth... for a truck. I plan to add the remote start.
Brand new body, so no change for a pretty long time. Husband will eventually drive the car...
Cons - 2nd row seats are too dry and flat. tighter 3rd row.

Highlander -
Pros - Ride is much smoother, breaks feel better. Easier to park. Seats in 2nd row are very comfortable. much more head and leg room in 3rd row.
Cons - Almost due for a body change. no option for auto start with SE model (the Limited highlander does, but the limited wood trim is so ugly I'd rather get the SE). Not as 'cool looking" Husband will never want to take the car.


Thanks again for all your help!!
 
Pearl<3 said:
Cons - Almost due for a body change. no option for auto start with SE model (the Limited highlander does, but the limited wood trim is so ugly I'd rather get the SE).Not as 'cool looking" Husband will never want to take the car.
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I thought that would be an advantage :wink2:
 
Pearl<3 said:
I plan to add the remote start.
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Pearl -search some of the old threads about the Toyota factory remote start if you're considering the add on. You may decide that you're better off with an after market unit instead of the factory version.

I put the factory one in mine despite the poor reviews on here and it's probably the least helpful $300 I spent. The range is very, very short and the fact that the truck turns off as soon as you unlock the door makes it virtually useless to me.

Read the details and consider how You plan to use it - maybe it will work great for you. For me, it's turned out to be a real disappointment and I think I should have put the $$$ towards an after market unit instead.
 
No matter the SUV or car, they can never "feel" the same. If you own both, you need to switch driving mentally when you go from SUV to a car. Meaning don't drive your SUV like a car else you'll most likely crash. cars are more nimble & have lower center of gravity. treat SUVs with respect & don't speed in them.
 
If you loved the MDX you really should test drive a Lexus RX350 since it is the equivalent competitor in the Toyota luxury brand range.

My wife finds every excuse she can to borrow my 4th Gen - it's stock but it's still the ride height she loves. She went nuts when I mentioned perhaps trading it.. until I suggested it might be for a 5th Gen.
 
0runner said:
No matter the SUV or car, they can never "feel" the same. If you own both, you need to switch driving mentally when you go from SUV to a car. Meaning don't drive your SUV like a car else you'll most likely crash. cars are more nimble & have lower center of gravity. treat SUVs with respect & don't speed in them.
Click to expand...

Amen to that~ and I do find I leave a LOT more room in front of me now vs in the Maxima...
 
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