Not sure why people complain about SR5

[Crit Rat]

Disagree on KDSS not decreasing nose dive.

It's been covered but there is no mechanism for a thicker sway bar, KDSS or not to resist breaking forces when the braking is performed in a straight path.

Struts with firmer damping, yes.
Spring with a higher spring rate, yes.
Bigger sway bar, no. (In a straight line.)

 

[atomicbob]

Initial post is spot on. SR5 is a great ride despite the excessive criticisms. I have a 2011 with leather and third row. The savings between the limited and the SR5 was substantial and will easily allow me to add air lockers and other mods. It is no where near as bad as many make it out to be.

 

[cbielat]

I just bought an '11 SR5 and I don't think it's that bad

 

[jake halligan]

to add after 10 months and 8000 miles:

* nowhere near 20+ mpg. averaging 17.3 mixed use.
* brakes are spongey as hell. lot of travel.
* smooth ride. came from '09 Pathfinder. much quieter and smoother. family rented '11 Highlander this summer on visit. used mine and the rental during vacation. all of us agreed 'runner was smoother, more comfortable ride. big fan of upgraded seats/interior.
*slight delay in acceleration when gassing from reverse into drive. a bit disconcerting.
*paint is awful. granted i own a black SR5 and black is going to show everything on any car but chips way too easy. also need to remove bird **** immediately or will take off finish.
*metal must be 20 gauge on body. hollow sound when shutting doors is embarrassing.
*fantastic in bad weather. w/ tires, 4WD and clearance can get through anything. looking forward to snow!
*grease-monkey buddies are impressed w/ body-on-frame and simple but solid manufacturing.
*for awhile was only one on road. now seeing more and more (limited mostly). kind of bummed!

 

[1engineer]

to add after 10 months and 8000 miles:

* nowhere near 20+ mpg. averaging 17.3 mixed use.
* brakes are spongey as hell. lot of travel.
* smooth ride. came from '09 Pathfinder. much quieter and smoother. family rented '11 Highlander this summer on visit. used mine and the rental during vacation. all of us agreed 'runner was smoother, more comfortable ride. big fan of upgraded seats/interior.
*slight delay in acceleration when gassing from reverse into drive. a bit disconcerting.
*paint is awful. granted i own a black SR5 and black is going to show everything on any car but chips way too easy. also need to remove bird **** immediately or will take off finish.
*metal must be 20 gauge on body. hollow sound when shutting doors is embarrassing.
*fantastic in bad weather. w/ tires, 4WD and clearance can get through anything. looking forward to snow!
*grease-monkey buddies are impressed w/ body-on-frame and simple but solid manufacturing.
*for awhile was only one on road. now seeing more and more (limited mostly). kind of bummed!

Everyone is entitled to their own opinion but if I were as dissatisified as you I would get rid of it. Glad it impressed your peer group though.

 

[jake halligan]

wow. talk about misconstrued. "dissatisfied"? just listed pros and cons as owner. as w/ any purchase, going to be pluses and minuses. wouldn't be a member and posting here if dissatisfied; wouldn't have modded; adding to Marlin444's post. touch a nerve?

 

[KCcarguy]

The paint does suck. I've done nothing but hand-washing with microfiber mitts and sponges. I still have crazy-bad swirl marks. I've decided I'll only do touch-free car washes and spray wax from now on. I knew Toyota paint was not great, but this is really bad (I'm sure black doesn't help).

......But, overall, great vehicle and can't be beat for the price.

 

[offroadingatc]

Yeah the paint is really soft. I wash it really carefully etc, and have some swirls. I polished them all out and put some really good sealant on it. Hopefully that helps

 

[desertred]

Until you mentioned the paint, my biggest complaint would be that I've put many more miles on the vehicle than I had planned for my period of ownership. However, I guess I can gripe about the paint a bit, as I was unfortunate enough to be at the end of the parking lot at work during the first big wind storm of the fall a few weeks ago. All the tumble weeds used my 5th gen as back stop and scraped the paint deeply. Most will buff out, but some of the scratches will require professional treatment (i.e. paint) to remove.

 

[AG166]

I ended up getting a 2011 TE model because it felt more predictable and assuring to drive. I drove at least 8 4runners from the SR5 to the Trail Edition models and noticed a huge difference in the two. The SR5 felt like I was riding on top of a marshmallow where the TE model felt more rigid. And for the record, the SR5's nose dive and body roll was significantly more noticeable than the TE. All in all the 4Runner is light years ahead of anything else in it's class when it comes to reliability and value.