Now i understand why 4runners cost more

03_4x4Runner

03_4x4Runner

Senior Member
I was reading about the 25% import tax on 4runners called the Chicken Tax. It is applied to all trucks made overseas and imported to the U.S. I have a Wikipedia link here. Chicken tax - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia This is why you can get a much better equipped Grand Cherokee for the price of a lesser equipped 4runner. I read the regular tax rate is 5% on U.S. made models so we are paying 20% more before any options are even added. No wonder Toyota want to make Tundra and Tacoma in the U.S.
 
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I think it applies to trucks specifically. The 4Runner is listed as a wagon on my registration and per the VIN.

4Runners are expensive because they are good. :hug:
 
It doesn't apply to the 4Runner. It applies to a pickup truck or work van.

The Ford Transit Connect is imported with rear side windows and rear seats to avoid the chicken tax. Once it is in the US, the rear side windows are replaced with steel panels and the rear seats are removed and thrown away.

Now, there are other reasons that 4Runners are expensive -- labor costs in Japan, yen to dollar exchange rate, etc. -- but it isn't due to the chicken tax.
 
My registration also says "station wagon". The weird part is that I got "truck plates" for this 4R, whereas I got "car plates" for my last one. Strange...
 
I thought that applied to the pickup truck market more specifically if at all than the 4Runner class, or they would have been made over here along time ago as well.

That's why Toyota started producing the Tacoma here awhile back.
 
If 4runners are not included then I guess Toyota is just overcharging us because they know we Americans are wiling to pay to much.
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They will charge what the market will bear and to make a profit, and have less competitors in the segment now which gives them additional advantages imo.

During the SUV boom years they had to up their game to pseudo-luxury to help the 4Runner stand out.

Which in turn attracted a certain segment of pampered buyer types that hence balked at the new generation and forced (some) to look elsewhere.

But I digress... :eyebrows:
 
03_4x4Runner said:
I will have to check into this more to see if 4runners are trucks. I was reading this about Ford Transit vans and figured 4runners would be the same. To Outfox the Chicken Tax, Ford Strips Its Own Vans - WSJ.com If 4runners are not included then I guess Toyota is just overcharging us because they know we Americans are wiling to pay to much.
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They are treated the same. Because the Transit Connect has rear passenger windows and rear seats when imported, it is not subject to the chicken tax. 4Runners also have rear passenger windows and rear passenger seats when imported so they are not subject to the chicken tax.
 
Jono.ful said:
you can thank your government for all the buy american bs gentlemen
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Whether you agree with this particular tax or not, "Buy American" is not just jingoistic union BS. There's absolutely a benefit for every taxpayer to retaining manufacturing capability in the US - it drives higher wages, broadens the tax base, and provides strategic capabilities, just to name a few benefits.

I would love for Toyota to manufacture more vehicles in the US.
 
Chicken Tax

I was told the tax applied to two door vehicles made in Japan. If they have four doors, the tax does not apply. I do not have the facts to back this up. It is what I was told by a Salesman I used to know.
 
Shamish said:
My registration also says "station wagon". The weird part is that I got "truck plates" for this 4R, whereas I got "car plates" for my last one. Strange...
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sometimes the girl working the counter doesn't know any better, but it's supposed to be based on the GVRW of the vehicle, and I've had truck plates come up cheaper than normal plates.
 
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