In the market for a brand new 4Runner - few questions (Canadians mostly)

[spud72]

Hi All. First off I want to thank all those responsible for this forum. It seems like a great community and I thought I'd ask a few questions here.

First, I am in the market for a new vehicle in the next few months. I have not decided yet, but I am leaning towards a brand new 4 Runner, likely a V6 Sport.

Questions:

1) I've seen posts that owners "typically" seem to get around 20 or so MPG mixed, with low 20s Highway. Does that sound fair?

2) Toyota Canada seems to "recommend" Premium fuel for it from what I've read - but from what I've discovered here many (most?) seem to run 87-89 octane in their motors fine. Correct?

3) I've read some posts alluding to some owners with sunroofs having issues with them. Is that common?

4) For those Canadians who are in the know, how much room does Toyota generally have on pricing? A V6 Sport Edition goes for just over $44K MSRP here (gasp!). I'd be curious to get an idea of what a dealer would accept as an offer.

5) Anything I else I should know/look for?

I am looking at a 4Runner as I plan to buy it outright and keep it for years. I know that generally their reliability and resale are fantastic. I also want a good, rugged 4x4 as some of the road conditions I have are quite treacherous at times. I also drove a couple on the weekend (both a 6 and 8) and I was very impressed with the ride (considering the terrible road conditions) and features. But, they are not cheap or a throwaway vehicle so I want to do all of my research first.

 

[leftyrb]

Sport model

I had a 2004 SR 5 and now a 2005 Limited. I live in BC, where they use salt and gravel on the roads in winter, and have chosen to use steel take off rims on dedicated winter tires. I have been unable to locate steel rims for the sport, due to the larger front caliper.

I know that Toyota and other manufacturers sell vehicles based on the local market, which in the US is much larger than ours. If they can get $44k for a vehicle, they will do so. An Avalon is about $6000 cheaper in the US than in Canada (recent article on DrivingTelevision.com)

 

[spud72]

Re: Re: In the market for a brand new 4Runner - few questions (Canadians mostly)

5. yeah. are the women up there as treacherous as the road conditions? lol [/B]

Only the good ones.

 

[Kmvreter]

Re: Re: Re: In the market for a brand new 4Runner - few questions (Canadians mostly)

Only the good ones.

Good answer. I agree.
By the way, where are you that you have "terrible road conditions" (this may give "others" the wrong idea about The Great White North.)

Back to the T4R...
Glad you found the Forum. I found it a great resource for buying when I was in the market and other info since. So here goes:
1) I keep complete fuel records. YTD I'm getting ~20.6 mpg (Imperial gallons; range 15.5 (winter city) to 25 (summer highway).)
2) 87 octane is fine.
3) No sunroof and that was on purpose: didn't want the potential problems. Especially for very little benefit in winter. One more thing to break...
4) I was able to get just over 2800 off MSRP for a total savings of 3225 (2+ years ago.)
5) The T4R is a great truck. Make sure to pick the colour you like!

 

[spud72]

Re: Re: Re: Re: In the market for a brand new 4Runner - few questions (Canadians most

Good answer. I agree.
By the way, where are you that you have "terrible road conditions" (this may give "others" the wrong idea about The Great White North.)

Thanks for the detailed reply!
Regarding the road conditions, we've had most of our yearly snowfall in the past month (Northern Alberta). The highways and that are fine, but the back roads and even some of the city side streets are terrible (several inches of compacted snow/ice due to our fine snow removal - which in many ways is "wait until it melts" removal!

Anyone with more input on the sunroof? Does it seem to give more of an issue for those into the hard core 4x4'n?