Upgrading Suspension Pricing or TRD PRO?

sharky said:
FWIW I've been quoted by a few shops in SoCal to remove my LE's X-REAS & install new suspension for ~$800 (+/- $50). I don't imagine tire install, mounting, and alignment would be much more. Probably would still be cheaper than trading in your current vehicle for a newer one.
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Way cheaper. Mine is a 2017 with 7700 miles and I inquired about trade in value at my dealership and they gave me $7K off of what I paid last year. I’ve got my eyes on Icon stage since then.


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OverkillYJ said:
I had a similar dilemma, but buying new. Bought a 2018 off road, threw on an icon stage 6, icon wheels, 285 KO2s and the blacked out pro parts. cost about the same as what the pro mark up here in Canada is, but got a much better truck.

It's actually for my wife, so had to get some AMP steps too as it's her DD.


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Did you get your Icon stage installed at 4wheelparts?
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IMO I would keep the trail and get the King complete 3"lift includes Total Chaos UCA's for around 3300. slap some wheels and toyo mt 285/70/17's for around 2200 on her and she will be a wheeler that will impress you on and offroad. Far exceeding the 7k min price increase for the pro. Plus the Pro does not even offer a moonroof or blinkers in the side mirrors. With the 1500 left you can get a pro grill and trd intake and still have money to spend. Be wary of Icon shocks they blow seals very easily and Nitto tires can cause front end shakes. Ive lifted my 2011 tacoma OR, my 2013 Rubicon, my 2016 Tacoma OR and learned these lessons the hard way. I will but nothing But Toyo MT tires they are without a doubt the quietest and most durable tires for wheeling and King is the best period. Ive had fox, Icon and toytec Boss. Lots of money spent and many hard lessons. Again only my opinion.
 
Baystate4Runner said:
I don't think you fully understand what an appearance package is.
You may not like the components used by the PRO but different shocks, springs and wider track are not appearance but result in different handling.

One of the many reasons I choose the PRO was because I didn't like the handling of the KDSS equipped OR Premium and for me the Bilsteins provide a better handling on and off-road. This is not appearance like red stitching or a different grille.
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Up to 2017 it was a $500ish set of shocks/front springs,Front skid plate change, and visual aids. And it has narrower wheels with a slight offset difference and different tires. Trail wheels are slightly better designed for offroad use, although the two are pretty similar. I like the way the Pro grille looks and the black bumper accents. But, IMO still fits as an appearance package. The differences you pay for are almost entirely appearance related. The suspension isn't a meaningful part of the value proposition for most of us.

The new version with fox shocks is a pretty nice upgrade to a great shock. BUT... you really can't do much with it due to the shocks being stock length. And that's a real bummer because they're a great design. Literally the dream shock I'd probably design if I were going to build one for myself - internal bypass, multi stage dampening, rubber bushings that don't require maintenance, etc. I don't know how the tune on them is though. And probably would justify a $3-4000 price tag if they were longer travel.

I think we all wish Toyota would do a Raptor style edition with actual long travel front and rear suspension sets, and wider track that's more than just a few mm of wheel offset, lower gearing, and the 4.6L v8 from the GX. Price it at $55k and it'll fly off the lots.
 
Not sure if this topic has been closed yet....

I think your question is driven by whether or not you have cash budgeted for upgrades. If not, and you are dead set on a PRO, get one and lump everything into the car payment. If you do have some money to spend on lift, you can totally create what you want without spending the money on a PRO. You can even wrap it in matte Cavalry Blue 3M if that's your fancy.

I had a similar dilemma between a new TRD OR and a new TRD PRO. For me, the TRD OR worked because the only mechanical difference was the suspension. My new TRD OR cost $35k + TTL. A TRD PRO would have been $43k + TTL. So far I've put in about $2k in basic mods and will probably spend about $4k more over the next year. But it will still be more affordable than a PRO, and the excise tax is lower, and insurance is more affordable.

So in your case, since you already have the Trail... mod that one and enjoy it to the max.
 
Hey thanks for the feedback.

One thing I should clarify. Part of my decision is also the mileage. I have 15K miles on it. So when I'm scratching my head on cost benefit, what is the $$$ amount you would attach to that kind of mileage.

Getting a new PRO would put me back at 0 miles on the odo.

I'm not dead set on the PRO, but I buy my cars all straight out. So I'm just juggling the opportunity cost right now. I don't finance and lease, debt gives me anxiety amongst other things like snakes and ex-gf's.

It definitely sounds like just doing the upgrades is significantly cheaper, factor mileage in, would you folks (that supported keeping the Trail) still say it's still worth it to keep? I understand everyone has their own opinion, hence I love the different perspectives that are coming out on this. Food for thought.
 
I would stick with what you have and do the upgrades/mods. I have a Pro and I will tell you I am changing the suspension and doing other mods because I can, like most of us will or have, and you only have 15k on your Trail, she is pretty much new.
 
bigbadpoppa said:
Hey thanks for the feedback.



One thing I should clarify. Part of my decision is also the mileage. I have 15K miles on it. So when I'm scratching my head on cost benefit, what is the $$$ amount you would attach to that kind of mileage.



Getting a new PRO would put me back at 0 miles on the odo.



I'm not dead set on the PRO, but I buy my cars all straight out. So I'm just juggling the opportunity cost right now. I don't finance and lease, debt gives me anxiety amongst other things like snakes and ex-gf's.



It definitely sounds like just doing the upgrades is significantly cheaper, factor mileage in, would you folks (that supported keeping the Trail) still say it's still worth it to keep? I understand everyone has their own opinion, hence I love the different perspectives that are coming out on this. Food for thought.
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Are you sure that you won’t modify the pro if you buy it? If not, you really should keep your trail and mod however you like.


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bigbadpoppa said:
Hey thanks for the feedback.

One thing I should clarify. Part of my decision is also the mileage. I have 15K miles on it. So when I'm scratching my head on cost benefit, what is the $$$ amount you would attach to that kind of mileage.

Getting a new PRO would put me back at 0 miles on the odo.

It definitely sounds like just doing the upgrades is significantly cheaper, factor mileage in, would you folks (that supported keeping the Trail) still say it's still worth it to keep?
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When I bought my 2017 TRD Off-Road I was trying to find a used low mileage 2016-17 and it wasn't easy to find one. I think you would get a lot less on trade in than you would have to pay to replace it with another 15K mile Trail. Trail has good resale value because they're more rare to find used, and I doubt you're going to get the same type of scarcity premium from the dealer.

The other thing about the 15K is that it's kind of ripening for an upgrade. I just did tires, suspension, hidden winch and sliders on mine at 8K miles and I have a garage full of tires, bumper parts, shocks and springs that aren't worn out, but at least have a few miles on them. I wish I was patient enough to wait until 15K so I would have gotten more value out of my initial investment.

Last thought on this, if you have an idea that you want more lift than the pro has then you could end up taking the hit on the trade, a hit on the purchase of the new exclusive model, and then not really getting the value out of the parts that make it exclusive.
 
MrGainzz said:
Are you sure that you won’t modify the pro if you buy it? If not, you really should keep your trail and mod however you like.


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My two cents: don’t get the Pro. Either keep your trail and upgrade or, if you want new, get a TRD Off Road with KDSS and upgrade the suspension. I did the latter and added King Coilovers and Built Rite UCAs for way less than the differential between price of the OR and PRO. In addition, I have KDSS, which last I checked you can’t get on the Pro. And I added the front TRD Pro grill for like $200.

Ultimately, when you compare the Pro and the OffRoad, everything the Pro has that the OR doesn’t you can easily add aftermarket and go over the top of the Pro level. But the two things my truck has that the Pro doesn’t — KDSS and a sun roof are really challenging and expensive to add to a Pro. Save yourself some cash and come out with a better 4Runner.
 
Except for a suspension system that you can get for a couple of thousand and wheels that are too narrow, the Pro is just cosmetic and ego based.

TRD Pro reminds me of the old days when Harley Davidson was hard to get. Everyone wanted one and the price was way over MSRP with a waiting list. Most people that got them rode less than 2,000 miles a year.

Bill
 
I read through the thread but didn't see where you posted what your goals are, or what your issues with the OEM Trail suspension are. Maybe that would help get you pointed in the right direction.
 
15,000 miles on your Toyota, any Toyota for that matter, is NOTHING.

Since you already own it and it is basically new, build it the way you want it. If you like the looks of the Pro, slap on the Pro grill and some FN wheels that look like Pro wheels but are actually wider.

Throw a killer suspension on of your choice. Bam! You have the Pro look you like and a much better suspension.
 
Please don't do the PRO grill thing. It's really played out by now. The dealers around here all slap TRD wheels and PRO grills on the new SR5s so 75% of the "PROs" that I see are actually just funny looking brand new SR5s.

And your Trail/OR wheels are about as good as it gets. Machined aluminum that hides scratches well, 7.5"wide, and an awesome valve stem protector. The TRD wheels are functionally way worse in comparison.
 
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