Ride Quality between models

Lsuwhodat said:
I also underrstand KDSS is mostly for off road but I am thinking it may improve the ride quality on road a tad?
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My first 2010 TE was w/o KDSS, and my current 15 TE has it. I upgraded both to 5100s, but even before the mods the KDSS hands down is the better handling vehicle. stays relatively flat when cornering, less nose dive. Overall a much better driving experience, but at the same time its just a 4R, so if you're looking for better driving dynamics i'd recommend you look towards a unibody vehicle.
 
My girlfriend has a 13 Pilot and I have an 11 trail without KDSS and there is a HUGE difference in ride quality and handling between the two. And honestly not a big difference in utility or gas mileage. If she likes the pilot why not just keep it and ditch your Jeep and get a 4Runner for yourself?

Personally my 4Runner was a compromise when I pretty much had to get down to one motorcycle and one 4 wheeled vehicle. Loved my 3 series sport package manual trans rwd wagon and my old 1st gen lifted tacoma. Almost bought another double cab tacoma but the 4Runner is much more versatile. Do miss the handling of the BMW though for sure.
 
Lsuwhodat said:
I searched but could not come up with a good search term to find anything....

I previously had a 2011 SR5 2wd. It rode pretty rough (of course) for my wife. I did the Billstein shock swap and it did get better unfortunatly it was flooded and we had to get rid of it. We bought a Pilot Touring....

Fast forward a few years. We miss the 4R. I have been looking again but my wife is used to the better ride of the Pilot. She likes the rugedness of the 4R. Wahtever. So.... With all of that said have the suspensions bene upgrarded enough in the SR5 model to eliminate the nose dive of the early gen 5s? Should I be looking more at a Limited or a model with KDSS? I dont necessarilly need a Limited however I would like 4wd. Thoughts?:lookout:
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I just recently bought a 2019 TRD Off Road and it’s wonderful in my view. But in all fairness, I don’t have a good frame of reference. My other 4R is a 2001. I also drive a Scion xA.

Once you narrow it down a bit (KDSS sounds like a good option), see if you can rent one for a weekend so she can put some miles on it and decide for herself. Better than an inconclusive test drive I think.
 
The only thing I don't love about the ride of my wagon ('18 TRD OR), on road or off, is the nose dive under braking and that will eventually be mitigated by a mild suspension upgrade at some point. Too much rake in a stock vehicle and the only reason I haven't done suspension is my wagon barely fits (with the stock roof rails removed) in the old underground parking I need to use for another year or so ...
 
The ride in the Limited would be the best if you swap out the stock 20s for something smaller which is what we did. I would suggest looking at the GX 460...you will get a better ride along with the V8 torque and a few other amenities without giving up the rugged nature and off-road prowess. You will have some nose dive regardless until you go with aftermarket suspension.


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Swipter said:
I have both a Limited and an sr5. The Limited does corner flat due to the xreas but the sr5 rides much better, stock. I test drove a kdss off road before the sr5 purchase, with my wife in the truck, and it was worst roughest riding thing I have ever been in. She even commented that she could not ride in it, it was so bad.
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Had the exact same experience driving a 2018 Off Road Premium with KDSS when vehicle shopping for my Mom. Worst drive ever, and I own a 1978 FJ40 as well. She bought the OR without the KDSS, WAY better ride.
 
Lsuwhodat said:
I searched but could not come up with a good search term to find anything....

I previously had a 2011 SR5 2wd. It rode pretty rough (of course) for my wife. I did the Billstein shock swap and it did get better unfortunatly it was flooded and we had to get rid of it. We bought a Pilot Touring....

Fast forward a few years. We miss the 4R. I have been looking again but my wife is used to the better ride of the Pilot. She likes the rugedness of the 4R. Wahtever. So.... With all of that said have the suspensions bene upgrarded enough in the SR5 model to eliminate the nose dive of the early gen 5s? Should I be looking more at a Limited or a model with KDSS? I dont necessarilly need a Limited however I would like 4wd. Thoughts?:lookout:
Click to expand...

Mine is modded, with Bilsteins and love it.

Looks like you may or may not be near LeBlanc Toyota location (Baton Rouge).
If you are, go in and tell Ken you want to Test drive one with and w/o KDSS.
Take them on at least a 30 minute drive and don't get rushed into something.
 
Lsuwhodat said:
I searched but could not come up with a good search term to find anything....

I previously had a 2011 SR5 2wd. It rode pretty rough (of course) for my wife. I did the Billstein shock swap and it did get better unfortunatly it was flooded and we had to get rid of it. We bought a Pilot Touring....

Fast forward a few years. We miss the 4R. I have been looking again but my wife is used to the better ride of the Pilot. She likes the rugedness of the 4R. Wahtever. So.... With all of that said have the suspensions bene upgrarded enough in the SR5 model to eliminate the nose dive of the early gen 5s? Should I be looking more at a Limited or a model with KDSS? I dont necessarilly need a Limited however I would like 4wd. Thoughts?:lookout:
Click to expand...

Drove my buddy's '12 SR5 and thought the drive was sloppy with lots of nose diving. Fast foward to few years later, drove other buddy's '16 Trail with KDSS. I thought it was the best handling and ride quality I ever drove for a 5th gen 4Runner. Few months ago I picked up a '18 ORP w/KDSS then went on a off roading trip in stock form, it was very capable and rode awesome air down to 21 psi on stock tires :thumb:

Now it rides on Kings with adjusters all around, 650 springs up front, Metal Tech 2" out back and it's still amazing at 3" of lift up front and 2" in the rear!!!

Also drove my brother in law's limited....ugh! very stiff ride with those 20s.
 
Hi all, I realize this is an older thread, but I'm new to the forum and don't have enough posts to create a new thread. I've owned several 4Runners in the past, and I just purchased a 2016 TRD Pro with 57k on it. Excellent service history from the original owner.

My question: The ride quality seems excessively harsh. I can feel every bump and crack in the road to the point where I'm struggling to enjoy the vehicle. All reviews I read of the TRD Pro seemed to indicate that the TRD Pro ride quality on-road was great. As I said, I've owned several older gen 4Runners, so I'm used the "body on frame." truck-like ride quality. I also realize that the springs are likely a bit stiffer, but the suspension is higher quality than stock. Could it be the tires? It still has Terra Grapplers (G2) with decent tread life. I also find them to be incredibly loud. Tires are at 34 psi. Any thoughts?

Thanks in advance for your advice.
 
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Kdss

Swipter said:
I have both a Limited and an sr5. The Limited does corner flat due to the xreas but the sr5 rides much better, stock. I test drove a kdss off road before the sr5 purchase, with my wife in the truck, and it was worst roughest riding thing I have ever been in. She even commented that she could not ride in it, it was so bad.
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In total agreement, KDSS is stiff as hell on pavement, worse than my FJ40 by a mile!!
 
Sounds like the consensus is that there is no consensus. That "ride quality" is truly subjective and probably dependent on what the roads are like where people travel.

Personally, I don't care for the LE X-REAS very much, while others love it. Sure it corners flat and has no nose dive, but it's just plain harsh and uncomfortable over the cracked, broken and poorly maintained streets and roads we have around here - even when loaded up.

For me, changing from OEM 20's to 17's didn't make big difference. I'm taking the next step - removing X-reas and putting in the Eibach kit. Hopefully that'll provide a more compliant low speed ride over the small stuff while maintaining decent highway manners, and give me a mild lift at the same time.
 
My 17 Off Road nose dived and the first time un nerved me. Traded for a 19 Pro and the ride is so much better and no nose dive. Plus the doors shut solid. I would swear the Pro starts life with a Limited body unit as it seems and feels more solid.
 
Worst ride quality is a Limited with stock tires and wheels, replace them with take-offs from any of the other models and it vastly improves.
 
I bought the Trail with KDSS in 2010 because it rode far better than the SR% or the Limiteds. Smoother, better overall ride quality with far less body roll and was also quieter. I just replaced the stock rear shocks with Bilstein 5100's after 100,000 miles, and the ride is even better(the old rears were not doing much in the way of damping after 9 years and 100k miles). I'll be replacing the fronts with 5100s as soon as I have a free weekend. I now have Terra Grappler G2 load range E tires at 35psi, and they are even better than teh Michelins I had previously for ride, and aren't noisy at all. My off road action is pretty much limited to some mild ranch roads and the beach, so I can't speak to how the ride would be in those conditions. On rural gravel roads in Central Texas that are in bad shape from oil field traffic, I don't feel like I am getting beat up at all.
 
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