V6 Power---Is the 4R lacking power/quickness?

B

BlueDog007

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I totalled my 1998 Limited in May '12. I bought it new and put 324,000 on it. I drove it every day. It had lost a lot of power but got me from A to B. I was going after 400k!

Since May, I have been driving my 2010 Tundra. It is a beast and probably too big for what I really need. I have recently been considering another 4Runner (my 3rd).

I test drove a 2012 Limited 4 Runner yesterday. Very nice ride. However, I was VERY surprised at how sluggish it felt. I am well aware that my Tundra has around 100 more HP, but I really couldn't believe how slow the 4Runner felt. The salesman thought the brake was engaged but after we pulled over and looked, it wasn't. The AC was pulling pretty hard, but I am curious if something was turned on or off or is that really all the 4Runner has under the hood? I have driven a friends 2004 (V6) which seems to be much quicker off the line. I really hope something was wrong, but I am doubtful. Let me know your thoughts!
 
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BlueDog007 said:
I totalled my 1998 Limited in May '12. I bought it new and put 324,000 on it. I drove it every day. It had lost a lot of power but got me from A to B. I was going after 400k!

Since May, I have been driving my 2010 Tundra. It is a beast and probably too big for what I really need. I have recently been considering another 4Runner (my 3rd).

I test drove a 2012 Limited 4 Runner yesterday. Very nice ride. However, I was VERY surprised at how sluggish it felt. I am well aware that my Tundra has around 100 more HP, but I really couldn't believe how slow the 4Runner felt. The salesman thought the brake was engaged but after we pulled over and looked, it wasn't. The AC was pulling pretty hard, but I am curious if something was turned on or off or is that really all the 4Runner has under the hood? I have driven a friends 2004 (V6) which seems to be much quicker off the line. I really hope something was wrong, but I am doubtful. Let me know your thoughts!
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The newest 4Runner has all of its power in the mid and high range. But, I don't find it to be "sluggish" in any real way, and I've had quite a few comments on how people were surprised it had so much power. Actually, now that I think about it, all the comments I've ever gotten about its power was a compliment on how powerful it actually felt.

I suppose its personal opinion, and you'll always have the people that complain that it's not a V8, but I have zero complaints about the performance of the engine in the 5th Gen.
 
What setting do you have your 4WD by the console set on? The 2004 I mentioned was very quick from 0-60 unlike the 2012 I drove yesterday.

Yeah, but you shouldn't have to stomp that hard!
 
The limited is full time four wheel drive so it does lose a bit of power compared to the TE or SR5 by having to spin more mass.

The new 4runner throttle mapping focuses on fuel economy and so requires one pushing the throttle quite a bit more to get the percentage of throttle one expects. I've adapted to this pretty well in one week but it is different. My wife's 2012 Venza V6 is much more typical with regards to pedal travel and throttle for instance so it is a 4Runner thing.

The example might have had an issue. When floored these trucks are pretty quick (with stock tire size and not loaded down).
 
BlueDog007 said:
What setting do you have your 4WD by the console set on? The 2004 I mentioned was very quick from 0-60 unlike the 2012 I drove yesterday.

Yeah, but you shouldn't have to stomp that hard!
Click to expand...

That's a negative. Someone posted up 0-60 times and the 2004 was not faster.
 
BlueDog007 said:
What setting do you have your 4WD by the console set on? The 2004 I mentioned was very quick from 0-60 unlike the 2012 I drove yesterday.

Yeah, but you shouldn't have to stomp that hard!
Click to expand...

Its all in your head. The 5th Gen T4R has plenty of power for what it is. The 2004 4Runner you drove with the little 4.0 V6 is slower I believe. Truck Trend has the 2010 T4R Trail Edition with a 7.8 0-60 Very respectable for a 4800 LB SUV. I believe they 0-60 for the 6cyl. 4th Gens is around 8.4-8.6 0-60 or so. The V8 in the 4th gen dropped the time down somewhere between .5 and 1 second faster. I had a E92 M3 that I could go fast in, didn't buy my 4Runner for the off the line performance. Sluggish to me would be a SUV that wouldn't clear 60 by 10 seconds or so, sluggish to the point that it became a hazard to get on the freeway. Everyone has different opinions and ideas though.


***Edited to remove my mindless mistakes - thanks Crit Rat!
 
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SOcalTRAIL said:
Its all in your head. The 5th Gen T4R has plenty of power for what it is. The 2004 4Runner you drove with the little 3.4 V6 is slower I believe. Truck Trent has the 2010 T4R Trail Edition with a 7.8 0-60 Very respectable for a 4800 LB SUV. I believe they 0-60 for the 6cyl. 4th Gens is around 8.4-8.6 0-60 or so. The V8 in the 4th gen dropped the time down somewhere between .5 and 1 second faster. I actually have both a 2 wheel drive 2001 V6 4Runner and a 2011 4x4 Trail edition. Even with the extra 750 lbs of weight I have bolted onto my truck, it still feels faster than my old 2001 any day.
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2004 4Runners had the 4.0 V6.
 
When I was shopping for a new vehicle last spring, I test drove a leftover 2011 Limited, I thought it was kind of sluggish too. At that point I had already driven a Trail Edition and did not notice it being especially sluggish, so I assumed it was just the all wheel drive system of the Limited.

I have to say that going from a V8 Jeep Grand Cherokee to a 6 cylinder Toyota did have me concerned that it would be too gutless for me.

But as stated above, if you stomp it, it will go, and has plenty of go power for me. Maybe not quite as fast the Overland that I had been driving, but I have no regrets. And I average 20.4 mpg with regular gas compared to 18.6 mpg on premium gas for the Jeep
 
I know what you mean Bluedog. I feel the same way sometimes. I still have my 97Runner with a K & N CAI and when I drove the 5th gen it felt slow. Bur the 5th gen is a bid truck and bulkier than the 3rd gen. When shopping for a new 4Runner I purposely waited for the 5th gen because it was exactly what I was looking for and so I went for it and bought a 2011 SR5.
Like everyone has mentioned it's more about MPG's with these new 4Runners. If you want to go fast, you have to put the pedal to the metal and it will go. On my 2011 I put a K & N drop in filter just to give it a little help. Not sure if I'm going to do a CAI on this one as I don't want to get killed on gas mileage.
 
Any reason why you don't want to cozy into a nice smooth powerful 07 or 08 V8?

Fantastic trucks. Rock Solid build.
 
BlueDog007 said:
I totalled my 1998 Limited in May '12. I bought it new and put 324,000 on it. I drove it every day. It had lost a lot of power but got me from A to B. I was going after 400k!

Since May, I have been driving my 2010 Tundra. It is a beast and probably too big for what I really need. I have recently been considering another 4Runner (my 3rd).

I test drove a 2012 Limited 4 Runner yesterday. Very nice ride. However, I was VERY surprised at how sluggish it felt. I am well aware that my Tundra has around 100 more HP, but I really couldn't believe how slow the 4Runner felt. The salesman thought the brake was engaged but after we pulled over and looked, it wasn't. The AC was pulling pretty hard, but I am curious if something was turned on or off or is that really all the 4Runner has under the hood? I have driven a friends 2004 (V6) which seems to be much quicker off the line. I really hope something was wrong, but I am doubtful. Let me know your thoughts!
Click to expand...

You're not missing anything, yes the vehicle is sluggish. After reading other people's points, I do tend to think the Limited losses some of the performance. Try driving a SR5 or Trail before you scrap the idea.
 
Or just stomp the skinny pedal. She will move very fast with less than smooth shifts. I had the 4.7 v8 in a gx470 and it was smooooooth. the new 4.6 would be a welcome addition to 5th gen.
 
JohnnyT said:
Any reason why you don't want to cozy into a nice smooth powerful 07 or 08 V8?

Fantastic trucks. Rock Solid build.
Click to expand...

They are, as are the 5th gens.

Look, without a wire connecting the gas pedal to the throttle, % of travel does not equal % of throttle. For some people, this is a hard concept. Like towing needing a V8, because the other five populated continents get by just fine with 4 cylinder engines pulling 4000 lb campers and stuff.

On some vehicles, a 30% gas pedal input is 45% throttle to make the vehicle "feel" sportier. If that were done with the 5th gen 4Runner, people would stop whining about sluggishness. They would probably complain about gas mileage though.

So it's all a matter of perspective, and a matter of getting used to. Given two drivers in accustomed 4runner of their choice, 0-60 times will be pretty close. Just because your butt dyno isn't calibrated to what you're driving yet does not mean it does not deliver to the specifications in the brochure.
 
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homeyclaus said:
They are, as are the 5th gens.

Look, without a wire connecting the gas pedal to the throttle, % of travel does not equal % of throttle. For some people, this is a hard concept. Like towing needing a V8, because the other five populated continents get by just fine with 4 cylinder engines pulling 4000 lb campers and stuff.

On some vehicles, a 30% gas pedal input is 45% throttle to make the vehicle "feel" sportier. If that were done with the 5th gen 4Runner, people would stop whining about sluggishness. They would probably complain about gas mileage though.

So it's all a matter of perspective, and a matter of getting used to. Given two drivers in accustomed 4runner of their choice, 0-60 times will be pretty close. Just because your butt dyno isn't calibrated to what you're diving yet does not mean it does not deliver to the specifications in the brochure.
Click to expand...

+1 - especially the four cylinder comment. I've carried a **** ton of stuff in a 4 cylinder Hilux at altitude with no problem.
 
My assessment is this: Overall, the power is OK, but there is a definite lack of torque.

When you go WOT there is enough power there to move the truck for passing / merging or having fun, but it could be a lot better.

Torque is down enough that I must floor it everywhere because the real gas mileage I get isn't that great. The real calculation for first year (that is, figured using every mile driven and every gallon put in) was only around 16 mpg combined.

When I was making the purchase decision my substitute vehicles were the 4 door wrangler rubicon, and super crew F150 Raptor. (yeah prices varied)

The 4runner is a monster compared to a 2011 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited which had an absolutely pathetic engine. (The new engine in the Jeep should be pretty good, but I have not driven it).

One of the factors influencing my purchase of the 5th gen 4runner was an experience driving the older model Sequoia which had a 5.7 I believe. That truck felt pretty powerful and the 4.0 in the 5th is a bit of a disappointment.

The Raptor was more money and wide, but I probably should have bought a Raptor.... I mean its a V8 Ford its Bad. Its Nation Wide.

ZZ Top - I'm Bad, I'm Nationwide - YouTube
 
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