New guy looking at runner, explorer and durango..

I did have a few maintenance questions on the new runner if anyone can help. I do a lot of the regular maintenance work myself.

1) Does this have a timing belt or chain? Interval at 100,000 or around that?

2) Are oil changes easy or hard? My flippin Subaru requires gnome hands to get the filter out, and it's conveniently surrounded by exhaust pipe that may or may not be as hot as liquid magma. :dammit:

3) Fuel Filter and Trans Filter - Are these accessible or are they in the tank/trans and considered a "lifetime" part? (lifetime, yeah right)

4) Trans/Diff/Transfer fluid - are these easy to do, or have they hard to get to, etc?

5) Has anyone here heard of or use Evans Waterless Coolant?

OK, thats all for now. Thanks!
 
tlhfirelion said:
I did have a few maintenance questions on the new runner if anyone can help. I do a lot of the regular maintenance work myself.

1) Does this have a timing belt or chain? Interval at 100,000 or around that?
Chain :)
http://www.toyota-4runner.org/5th-gen-t4rs/81369-timing-chain.html

2) Are oil changes easy or hard? My flippin Subaru requires gnome hands to get the filter out, and it's conveniently surrounded by exhaust pipe that may or may not be as hot as liquid magma. :dammit:
Not as hard as some, not as easy as others. Best part is the ground clearance, much easier than the Subaru (I came from a WRX, pain in the ass)

3) Fuel Filter and Trans Filter - Are these accessible or are they in the tank/trans and considered a "lifetime" part? (lifetime, yeah right)
I believe they are considered "lifetime", but as you said, yeah right. I am searching for the info for you now. Ill update when I find it, the search function on t4r is not working for me right now.

4) Trans/Diff/Transfer fluid - are these easy to do, or have they hard to get to, etc?
Same here, have yet to change it. When I hit 30k I will. Once the search is working for me I will find the info and update here as well.

5) Has anyone here heard of or use Evans Waterless Coolant?
I have heard of it and its claims to increase mileage due to reducing power loss to the fan. Not sure that it really works, but it would be a cheap upgrade to try. I am not sure that it can be used though as Toyota uses their own special coolant. I wouldn't waste the money, I doubt it can live up to the claim.

OK, thats all for now. Thanks!
Click to expand...

:drummer:
 
Thanks for the info. I did find some decent info after searching forever on the diff fluid changes. Basically the same as my 99 4 runner so no big deal there.

I tried searching for the trans/fuel filter location but came up with a bazzillion threads not at all related. lol ANy info you can locate is appreciated.

I saw a clip on Evans coolant after seeing that Jay Leno has been using it in his garage for a long time now and highly recommends it. Obviously Leno is a big car guy and I would suspect if it was garbage he wouldn't use it, especially on some of his collectors. He did screw over Conan so who knows anymore in this crazy world.
 
Weeelll... Something I've been coming to realize: Unibody doesn't mean "can't go off road" or even that it can't do it well. The new JGC is defintely capable off road. Granted, most of this ability is technology/software based rather than hardware but that seems to be the way of the future.

The TR4 has a lot of this technology but also has the hardware to go with it. Meaning, the T4R should be the more superior vehicle off the pavement. However, both the JGC and the T4R will get to the end of most trails. Again, the advantage for the T4R might be the ease of how it does it and that it might be able to handle slightly more severe terrain. I'm going to bet that advantage though, is smaller than we like to think.

Now, considering the above to be accurate, if you aren't an avid trail rider but still need a capable vehicle for the occasional excursion or bad weather, it makes sense to give strong consideration to what we usually consider, "soft-roaders". ie: JGC, Durango, Expedition etc. Seeing as their design is geared more towards where the truck is mostly driven; the pavement.

All of the above is with a "all things being equal" mindset. Meaning, reliability issues prevalent in brands, not considered.
 
i looked and drove all 3 the 4runner was the best bang for the buck and is the only real suv and that way i got the 4runner and iam so glad i did i love it
 
DDM4 said:
Weeelll... Something I've been coming to realize: Unibody doesn't mean "can't go off road" or even that it can't do it well. The new JGC is defintely capable off road. Granted, most of this ability is technology/software based rather than hardware but that seems to be the way of the future.

The TR4 has a lot of this technology but also has the hardware to go with it. Meaning, the T4R should be the more superior vehicle off the pavement. However, both the JGC and the T4R will get to the end of most trails. Again, the advantage for the T4R might be the ease of how it does it and that it might be able to handle slightly more severe terrain. I'm going to bet that advantage though, is smaller than we like to think.

Now, considering the above to be accurate, if you aren't an avid trail rider but still need a capable vehicle for the occasional excursion or bad weather, it makes sense to give strong consideration to what we usually consider, "soft-roaders". ie: JGC, Durango, Expedition etc. Seeing as their design is geared more towards where the truck is mostly driven; the pavement.

All of the above is with a "all things being equal" mindset. Meaning, reliability issues prevalent in brands, not considered.
Click to expand...

Offroad the differences between unibody and BOF become more evident with durability that ability. A JGC might (and probably would) be able to make it down most of the same trails as a T4R, however the level of damage that it takes on will IMO be a lot higher. I see a lot of guys on here flexing their trucks pretty hard, wouldn't recommend that in a unibody!

edit: it occurs to me that this might be taken as disagreeing with the quote, which it isn't... just expanding on their theme of unibody v BOF discussion
 
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offroadingatc said:
Offroad the differences between unibody and BOF become more evident with durability that ability. A JGC might (and probably would) be able to make it down most of the same trails as a T4R, however the level of damage that it takes on will IMO be a lot higher. I see a lot of guys on here flexing their trucks pretty hard, wouldn't recommend that in a unibody!

edit: it occurs to me that this might be taken as disagreeing with the quote, which it isn't... just expanding on their theme of unibody v BOF discussion
Click to expand...

there's alot of guys locally who drive the older cherokee unibody's and they do admirably on trail. although, one time a guy had flexed the damn thing out so much he couldnt open his doors to get out haha. :frog:
 
offroadingatc said:
Offroad the differences between unibody and BOF become more evident with durability that ability. A JGC might (and probably would) be able to make it down most of the same trails as a T4R, however the level of damage that it takes on will IMO be a lot higher. I see a lot of guys on here flexing their trucks pretty hard, wouldn't recommend that in a unibody!

edit: it occurs to me that this might be taken as disagreeing with the quote, which it isn't... just expanding on their theme of unibody v BOF discussion
Click to expand...

Makes perfect sense.

The consideration of frequency of activity is an important one. A unibody vehicle, while we both agree can do off-road, may not be the wise choice if you are frequently doing so, as your observation points out.

The important point to take away here is that unibody construction does not preclude a vehicle, by itself, to being an incapable off-road. There might be slight limitations and increased risks, however.

I'll add something to my first post in this thread regarding vehicle selection. We all know that tires make a huge impact on a vehicle ability to get out of the suck. An H1 with highway tires will be less useful than a rav4 with the proper rubber. (taking some liberties here to make a point)

If you purchase a more on-road oriented SUV such as the JGC with the mindset of, "this will do", and wrap it with summer high performance tires; don't expect if to bail you out of a hole... I mean that literally and figuratively.
 
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Thanks to everyone here who helped me with my questions and concerns in this thread. Unfortunately I don't believe I will end up in a 4 Runner. I went to the dealer this morning knowing what my trade in was worth and the average price 4 runners were selling for but the dealer wasn't interested in making a deal at all. The sales manager barely budged on MSRP and low balled my trade in by $4000! It's the only dealer near me so unless they call me and change their mind, I'll have to get something else. I know the 4 Runner is great but I won't be car poor for it. I was really disappointed in them. I know it's a business and they have to make a profit, but they must be selling them like hot cakes to make me an offer like that.

Hats off to you guys, this is a great forum that I'd like to frequent, but it just wasn't meant to be apparently. Rest assured I'll send anyone that has a 4 runner or is getting one straight to this site. Thanks again.

God Bless!
 
That sucks. The only bad thing about buying a Toyota (or any vehicle) is the salesman. Bunch of dip****s if you ask me. Makes me want to get into the business and waste the competition with knowledgable sales persons, and good deals without the BS of offer, counter, talk to manager, repeat.

Kudos to you for telling them no, and leaving. Not enough people do that!

Luckily, my Father-in-law knows one of the sales managers at the local dealer. It's as easy as walking in, getting invoice price and telling him what I want for my trade in (realistic price). Everyone leaves happy. I know they will make a few thousand on my old truck, and they made a few on the one I just bought. That's how it works.



tlhfirelion said:
Thanks to everyone here who helped me with my questions and concerns in this thread. Unfortunately I don't believe I will end up in a 4 Runner. I went to the dealer this morning knowing what my trade in was worth and the average price 4 runners were selling for but the dealer wasn't interested in making a deal at all. The sales manager barely budged on MSRP and low balled my trade in by $4000! It's the only dealer near me so unless they call me and change their mind, I'll have to get something else. I know the 4 Runner is great but I won't be car poor for it. I was really disappointed in them. I know it's a business and they have to make a profit, but they must be selling them like hot cakes to make me an offer like that.

Hats off to you guys, this is a great forum that I'd like to frequent, but it just wasn't meant to be apparently. Rest assured I'll send anyone that has a 4 runner or is getting one straight to this site. Thanks again.

God Bless!
Click to expand...
 
fifthcircle said:
That sucks. The only bad thing about buying a Toyota (or any vehicle) is the salesman. Bunch of dip****s if you ask me. Makes me want to get into the business and waste the competition with knowledgable sales persons, and good deals without the BS of offer, counter, talk to manager, repeat.

Kudos to you for telling them no, and leaving. Not enough people do that!

Luckily, my Father-in-law knows one of the sales managers at the local dealer. It's as easy as walking in, getting invoice price and telling him what I want for my trade in (realistic price). Everyone leaves happy. I know they will make a few thousand on my old truck, and they made a few on the one I just bought. That's how it works.
Click to expand...

I envy your connection, it would be nice to have that. I honestly think if a dealer would just deal he would make more money in the long run. Getting a good deal on a car makes you brag about it. That sends business to the dealer. They make money on the initial sale AND get a ton of good free advertising from happy customers. Instead, they try and financialy rape customers. I don't begrudge them for making money, but geesh. Out of curiosity I emailed another toyota dealer about 165 miles north on an SR5 on their website. My answer to my inquiry was "The MSRP is $35,533 and there are no rebates". Thats it. Take it or leave it. I can only assume they are just selling them too easy to have to make any deals. Why else would they act this way?

Bummer. Makes me wanna buy a Dodge. lol
 
Would you be willing to drive to Little Rock? If so we will make it worth the trip.
 
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tlhfirelion said:
I envy your connection, it would be nice to have that. I honestly think if a dealer would just deal he would make more money in the long run. Getting a good deal on a car makes you brag about it. That sends business to the dealer. They make money on the initial sale AND get a ton of good free advertising from happy customers. Instead, they try and financialy rape customers. I don't begrudge them for making money, but geesh. Out of curiosity I emailed another toyota dealer about 165 miles north on an SR5 on their website. My answer to my inquiry was "The MSRP is $35,533 and there are no rebates". Thats it. Take it or leave it. I can only assume they are just selling them too easy to have to make any deals. Why else would they act this way?
l
Click to expand...

BeeCee said:
Would you be willing to drive to Little Rock? If so we will make it worth the trip.
Click to expand...

There ya go OP. There are members on here who've gone across country... guessin' that's <300 miles.
 
philsey said:
There ya go OP. There are members on here who've gone across country... guessin' that's <300 miles.
Click to expand...

The drive isn't bad if the deal is good but that's about as far as I'd go. I received a call from a dealer about 30 minutes ago that came down on a 2011. He's below what he says is invoice, but not by much. His price is still above edmunds, truecar, cars.com etc info. We'll see what happens.
 
sometimes you have to bite the bullet and pony up a little more cash.

i paid sticker on my trail but was able to get free accessories and 2 years worth of free maintenance.

maybe you could get some things thrown in to offset the price?
 
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