If the 6th Gen was Built in Mexico…

I read the entire thread.

Where the 4Runner is built does matter but not for a lot of the reasons I see posted.

It's not a matter of Japanese workers having a better work ethic, more pride and a greater attention to detail compared to Mexicans. It's not a matter of how much the wage is in Japan versus Mexico. It is not a matter of Toyota making more profit per unit and thus being "cheap" by moving production to Guanajuato.

The plant itself, Tahara, can not be duplicated and THAT is why the quality will almost certainly drop. The Tahara plant is the most sophisticated, automated, top shelf plant in the automotive world. It's why everything built there - Land Cruiser, 4Runner, Lexus GX, LX, LS, etc. ranks at or near the top for reliability.

It is Toyota's flagship plant and is one of a kind.

If production moves to Mexico they may as well change the model name as well, it will never be the same vehicle.
 
I read the entire thread.

Where the 4Runner is built does matter but not for a lot of the reasons I see posted.

It's not a matter of Japanese workers having a better work ethic, more pride and a greater attention to detail compared to Mexicans. It's not a matter of how much the wage is in Japan versus Mexico. It is not a matter of Toyota making more profit per unit and thus being "cheap" by moving production to Guanajuato.

The plant itself, Tahara, can not be duplicated and THAT is why the quality will almost certainly drop. The Tahara plant is the most sophisticated, automated, top shelf plant in the automotive world. It's why everything built there - Land Cruiser, 4Runner, Lexus GX, LX, LS, etc. ranks at or near the top for reliability.

It is Toyota's flagship plant and is one of a kind.

Why can't the Tahara plant be duplicated? I know you can't just duplicate the Takumi workers that work there, but the plant itself should be able to be replicated...?
 
Why can't the Tahara plant be duplicated? I know you can't just duplicate the Takumi workers that work there, but the plant itself should be able to be replicated...?

Beats me, bro. I looked at a list of Toyota plants and, if you exclude the joint operations, Toyota has 70 facilities.

If duplicating Tahara was easy, don't you think they would have done it by now?
 
The plant in Mexico is there so they can sell cars there. The Mexican government says if you want to sell cars here you have to build cars here.

The plant's 'assembly line' is a concrete floor. Trucks are pushed along on wheeled carriers. It was designed for small production.

When I bought my '04 in 2003 there were rumors of the T4R coming to Mexico. It's 2022 and it's still built in Japan. I wouldn't worry about it going to Mexico.

If they were going to build a *new* plant to bring 4Runner production to North America it would probably be a state where they don't presently have a plant; more political influence that way. Since the T4R is shipped around the world it would most likely be in a southern state, near Interstates, no other large auto manufacturer nearby, smaller town, etc. But I don't see them doing that for a single vehicle

IF they were going to move production here, I would suspect the Indiana plant would be expanded. They already make the Sienna and Highlander there. A T4R would fit nicely on that assembly line.
 
I would not buy one after buying my Mexico built 2021 trd Tacoma. My Tacoma was riddled with problems.

Same reason I traded in my 21' Tacoma for the 23' 4R. Old reliable 5A transmission shifts smoother, doesn't hunt gear, doesn't stick around 4K RPM doing "A.I." assisted downhill engine breaking b.s. My Taco was a Dec 20' year built in Texas. MIJ is just better quality.
 
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The plant in Baja is an assembly plant. They don't make the engine or transmission, among other things. V6 & 4 cylinder engines and respective transmissions are built in West Virginia, Kentucky or Japan
 
Beats me, bro. I looked at a list of Toyota plants and, if you exclude the joint operations, Toyota has 70 facilities.

If duplicating Tahara was easy, don't you think they would have done it by now?

Duplicating Tahara might be plenty doable, duplicating the Takumi workers that populate it probably not. This also leads me to wonder about another point: the 4Runner, from my understanding, is built to Lexus quality control standards, as it is built right alongside the Lexus vehicles, as they are built at the Tahara plant. I have heard it said the 4Runner is technically, build quality-wise, really a Lexus branded as a Toyota.

So if production moves to Mexico, that means the QC standards for the North American 4Runners will probably significantly drop.
 
Just saw 2023 pilot trailsport vid on YouTube. I really hope yota comes out swinging, with the 4R redesign; majority of the people buying these vehicles want something that appears rugged than anything else. And for all my love for the 5th gen 4R I have to say trailsport would be quite appealing to some buyers. Honda retains v6, new transmission, and some other pluses in its favor.


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Just saw 2023 pilot trailsport vid on YouTube. I really hope yota comes out swinging, with the 4R redesign; majority of the people buying these vehicles want something that appears rugged than anything else. And for all my love for the 5th gen 4R I have to say trailsport would be quite appealing to some buyers. Honda retains v6, new transmission, and some other pluses in its favor.


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I'm definitely not a Honda person by any means, but their latest updates across the board definitely have me looking. Was thinking a Highlander for the wife, but will definitely have to drive the new Pilot and see how she likes it.
 
I'm definitely not a Honda person by any means, but their latest updates across the board definitely have me looking. Was thinking a Highlander for the wife, but will definitely have to drive the new Pilot and see how she likes it.

I had two new Pilots (08 and 15). Each time I compared and test drove the Highlander and the Pilot was a far better vehicle with more space for 3 kids/hockey/2 golden retrievers etc. I still wouldn't consider a Highlander over a Pilot. Same with the 14 V6 Accord I had for 6 years, much better than the Camry. I prefer the 19+ RAV4 to the CRV. Lexus is better than Acura and so on.
Toyota is probably a little better for reliability on those platforms but not by much.
Honda has nothing to compete with the BOF offerings from Toyota. 4Runners are in a different league.
 
I bought a 2022 in part because I like the “old reliable” current 4Runner and in part because I won’t own another Made in Mexico vehicle. My 2019 GLI was a disaster.
 
I'm not sure why Toyota hasn't announced anything yet, but the combined capacity of TMMGT and TMMBC in Mexico by 2025, will be a massive 500,000 units. That isn't for Tacomas alone, as the bulk of that capacity will be in TMMGT, the newer factory which currently builds all types of Tacomas, including manual transmission trucks.
 
Unpopular Opinion Warning:

My preference for buying a vehicle based on where it is assembled is in this order;

1. Japan
2. Canada
3. Mexico
4. U.S.A
 
Having owned a 3rd gen ('00) currently driving a 4th gen (06 sport v6) and a 5th gen ('14 Trail) a made in Mexico 4Runner would be a hard "No!" for me. Had a horrible experience with a made in Mexico VW GTI. No mas. I know a Toyota built 4Runner would be a far better vehicle than a VW. But still, no. I'd just keep truckin' with my old reliables or think about a Land Cruiser for what's probably only another 10K
 

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