Pre-Purchase Questions

[sgsymon]

Pre-Purchase Questions - I need help!

Hi everyone!

This is an awesome message board and it has gotten me even more excited about getting my new 4Runner. I plan on purchasing next month and this will be my first 4Runner. I currently am driving an 02 Isuzu Trooper which i really like, but it's dying on me.

I just wanted to ask a few questions and get some feedback on a couple things so I can be more informed when I make my purchase.

I plan on buying an SR5 with leather and third row seats. Initially, I will be adding Yakima crossbars, a new horn and GPS. After that will be new tires and a leveling/lift kit.

Here are a few questions and most of them will be subjective, but I think hearing your feedback will help, especially from those who have had theirs for a while:

1. Are the leather seats reasonably comfortable and good quality?
2. For the third row seats, does the raised floor take away too much cargo space?
3. I have a 5 year old son and a boxer mix dog, so I want to get leather, but I can't decide on black or tan. Any feedback? Will the black get too hot in the summer? Does the tan get dirty easier? Does it stain? The only leather I have ever had in the past is grey.
4. I would like to do a minor lift and level it. Would a 2" front, 1" back be okay? Does this affect the warranty and any ideas of how much this would approximately cost with parts and labor? any part recommendations?
levelling kit

That's it for now and thank you in advance for your help and recommendations!

You'll see lots of pics from me in the future with son and dog too, with hopefully a trip from KC to Colorado this summer.

 

[Quentin]

I've been pretty impressed w/ the leather on my SR5. Seems nice and durable. The black does get pretty hot w/ direct exposure to the sun, though. I like the look much better, particularly w/ the white exterior. All my cars are white w/ black interiors.

 

[rzldzlman]

Hi everyone!



1. Are the leather seats reasonably comfortable and good quality?
2. For the third row seats, does the raised floor take away too much cargo space?
3. I have a 5 year old son and a boxer mix dog, so I want to get leather, but I can't decide on black or tan. Any feedback? Will the black get too hot in the summer? Does the tan get dirty easier? Does it stain? The only leather I have ever had in the past is grey.

I just picked up my new Limited 2 weeks ago. I find the leather and the seats very comfortable. I think the Sand Beige is a little richer looking than the Black leather and I think it provides nice contrasts. That is because the instrument and dash have the metallic background and there are black accents so the beige stands out nicely, whereas the Black leather will just give it a more black interior, without any accents. of course it's personal preference.
I had one major coffee spill but it came out nicely with those Armorall Leather wipes.
3rd row... well, not a lot of cargo space when the seats are open. Not very comfortable for anyone but a kid (I rode back there) and you do feel the bumps...(no independent rear suspension, I guess). Fortunately, my other car is a minivan because when I really need the 3rd row, minivan is still a lot more comfortable for the rear 3rd row passengers. But I LOVE the Runner, 300 miles so far. Blizzard Pearl...Limited...Sand Beige interior...3rd row.
Hope that helps.. My other SUV (sort of!) is the Honda Pilot which is a crossover and the 4runner drives about as comfortably.
Good luck, hope that helps.

 

[mountaindog]

leather

1. Are the leather seats reasonably comfortable and good quality?
2. For the third row seats, does the raised floor take away too much cargo space?
3. I have a 5 year old son and a boxer mix dog, so I want to get leather, but I can't decide on black or tan. Any feedback? Will the black get too hot in the summer? Does the tan get dirty easier? Does it stain? The only leather I have ever had in the past is grey.

I have a silver SR5 with leather (but no 3rd row seat), and not sure about other vehicles, but my leather interior is really more of a dark grey rather than black (pics below). The seats are very comfortable to me and to my husband - he says it is one of the few vehicles he can fall asleep in (as a passsenger of course ). I have not found it to be too hot, but we haven't had any seriously hot weather here yet. I had a VW Passat with the exact same color grey leather previous to this and it never seemed too hot either though. Before that I had a Subaru Outback with truly black leather and that definitley was hot in summer, much worse than the VW's grey leather! So I'm hoping this dark grey leather won't be too hot either. So far so good.

I really like the interior a lot, it is a very comfortable vehicle. My dogs love it too but they ride in the back with the seats flat and a king-size quilt down to keep everything clean, which works great. Good Luck...

 

[rzldzlman]

If you're asking about the 3rd row when it's folded down, I don't think there is any loss of cargo space. In fact, those who have the slide out tray may also lose some height in the cargo area as well, so it's probably a wash.

 

[sandcrawler]

I had one major coffee spill but it came out nicely with those Armorall Leather wipes.

if you value your rig, steer clear of silicone-based, armor all products as they'll actually cause damage—not protect it. for a few bucks more, a bottle of Lexol leather cleaner/conditioner goes a long way...
(the leather wipes may be silicone-free but in general their products make me go )

 

[RyanE]

Regarding the 3rd row, you lose 4-5 inches of vertical height compared to a 4Runner without the cargo tray. You'll have to decide if that's acceptable for your needs. For us the amount of cargo space with the 3rd row is plenty, but also keep in mind that's about 5 inches higher you'll need to lift anything you're putting into the rear of the vehicle. I love having that extra seating space on the occasions it's necessary, so it's all worth it.

 

[rzldzlman]

if you value your rig, steer clear of silicone-based, armor all products as they'll actually cause damage—not protect it. for a few bucks more, a bottle of Lexol leather cleaner/conditioner goes a long way...
(the leather wipes may be silicone-free but in general their products make me go )

Who would have thought? The armoral fools you with "made for cars" message on the carton. But I'll try the Lexol. Thx for the tip.

 

[hofs05]

Hi everyone!

This is an awesome message board and it has gotten me even more excited about getting my new 4Runner. I plan on purchasing next month and this will be my first 4Runner. I currently am driving an 02 Isuzu Trooper which i really like, but it's dying on me.

I just wanted to ask a few questions and get some feedback on a couple things so I can be more informed when I make my purchase.

I plan on buying an SR5 with leather and third row seats. Initially, I will be adding Yakima crossbars, a new horn and GPS. After that will be new tires and a leveling/lift kit.

Here are a few questions and most of them will be subjective, but I think hearing your feedback will help, especially from those who have had theirs for a while:

1. Are the leather seats reasonably comfortable and good quality?
2. For the third row seats, does the raised floor take away too much cargo space?
3. I have a 5 year old son and a boxer mix dog, so I want to get leather, but I can't decide on black or tan. Any feedback? Will the black get too hot in the summer? Does the tan get dirty easier? Does it stain? The only leather I have ever had in the past is grey.
4. I would like to do a minor lift and level it. Would a 2" front, 1" back be okay? Does this affect the warranty and any ideas of how much this would approximately cost with parts and labor? any part recommendations?
levelling kit

That's it for now and thank you in advance for your help and recommendations!

You'll see lots of pics from me in the future with son and dog too, with hopefully a trip from KC to Colorado this summer.

I have the black leather in my SR5....it's extremely nice and comfy. It does, however, get hot in the sun (though I'm in south Florida) and you can notice any "scuff" mark. Despite that, I personally still like the black better.

 

[doodman]

i say go with the black seats because although they might get hotter, they also will not show signs of being dirty as much as the tan seats will, esp since you have a kid and dog.

as for the dog, i received my Ultimate Pet Cargo Liners a few days ago and will be installing them this week. They'll likely require another person to help install them so I need to get a friend to help and they'll be set. Pics will go up in my mods thread once I'm done...

 

[sgsymon]

Thanks everyone for your input and I really appreciate it.

Does anyone have any thoughts on my lift/level plans? thanks again!

 

[Quentin]

if you value your rig, steer clear of silicone-based, armor all products as they'll actually cause damage—not protect it. for a few bucks more, a bottle of Lexol leather cleaner/conditioner goes a long way...
(the leather wipes may be silicone-free but in general their products make me go )

I would think the leather wipes would be designed to... not destroy the leather.

Now, I wouldn't put the dash wipes on the leather. I hit my leather steering wheel in the GTI w/ them once and it felt sticky/grimy for a while. I've been very happy w/ the armor all dash wipes for the actual dash in my GTI.

 

[westwind77]

This is what I use on all the plastic and 'fake' leather.....

303 Products, Inc.: 303 Aerospace Protectant

It is great!