Why do I rarely see 5th gen advertisements?

I was looking at FJ's on the internet when i stumbled upon the 4runner. The previous generation never got my attention whatsoever. But this one did! I traded in an 05 rangerover that i had for a year with a few problems.....battery drainage problem, A/C freezing up problem, Power steering problem, Strange noises at 65mph problem, Power door lock problem, Power gas door problem....that one really pissed me off and it got taken care of at the gas station with a screw driver! Now its a fine Toyota Dealers problem LOL! I bet toyota could sell more 4runners if they would advertise............. :happens:
 
Watch the NASCAR races. There is a 5th gen commercial about every week especially in the Nationwide series. It goes something like "5th gen 4runner, you in".
 
03_4x4Runner said:
Watch the NASCAR races. There is a 5th gen commercial about every week especially in the Nationwide series. It goes something like "5th gen 4runner, you in".
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Maybe that is where I kept seeing it and not football...I knew they kept running the same ad over and over again...
 
Why spend money advertising vehicles that sell themselves? I also own a Mazda RX-8 and they never show them on Mazda commercials either. Most dealers only stock a few because either they can't get many or they can't keep them or a combination of both. While the 4Runner and RX-8 are completely different vehicles, they are niche vehicles respective to each manufacturer. Or "enthusiast vehicles" if you will. The people that want to own them, know they exists and don't have to be advertised to on TV commercials. They aren't "best in class" this or that - each is virtually in a class of its own, more or less. It's not that the manufacturers are trying to hide them because they get bad mileage, etc. Just having them sit on a dealer lot is advertisement enough.

I watch most NASCAR cup races, rarely watch the Nationwide series. I can say that I haven't seen a Toyota commercial, at least in the past couple of years, that features a 4Runner. The closest I've come is a local dealer's commercial where you can see the front corner of one in their showroom.
 
I asked Toyota. It's the same as the FJ. Because it's low volume, spending bid ad bucks doesn't have cost/effective reach, so Toyota uses social media, actually creates word of mouth via contests, events and such, which is all fitting with the club-like ethos of the 4R.
 
They just played that same "4runner, you in" commercial 5 minutes ago on the Nascar All Star race in Charlotte on the Speed channel. I guess Toyota figures us NASCAR rednecks will continue to buy there 4runners.
 
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At the X Games up in Aspen Toyota had a 5th gen predominently displayed right on the slopes during the snowboarding events so they advertise in alot of different ways.
 
Saw this ad in SI last night

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I like the fact that there aren't many ads for it. And the people who I do see driving them around here, really have no idea what they are driving. I also get looks of confusion as to why my truck looks much different and more awesome than that other person's 5th gen(lifted/tires/wheels). It cracks me up.
 
cbielat said:
I like the fact that there aren't many ads for it. And the people who I do see driving them around here, really have no idea what they are driving. I also get looks of confusion as to why my truck looks much different and more awesome than that other person's 5th gen(lifted/tires/wheels). It cracks me up.
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Where I live there are literally hundreds in my small town. I have one of the few TE's but the LE's and SR5's are as common as anything around here.
 
1engineer said:
Where I live there are literally hundreds in my small town. I have one of the few TE's but the LE's and SR5's are as common as anything around here.
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When I bought mine in November 2011, I rarely noticed any. Now they are more evident. The majority around my area are the Limiteds. They still aren't as common as the Prius though lol. I'll give a friendly wave from time to time to another 5th gen but they usually look at me funny. There aren't many people up in my neck of the woods with a 5th gen and on this forum.
 
Since we live in the Toyota/Subaru capital of america I see 5th gens now several times a day and even the TE is getting a bit more common but I do see lots of SR5s and Limiteds along with every other gen of 4Runner around here. Still seems 3rd gens are the most common.
 
cbielat said:
I like the fact that there aren't many ads for it. And the people who I do see driving them around here, really have no idea what they are driving. I also get looks of confusion as to why my truck looks much different and more awesome than that other person's 5th gen(lifted/tires/wheels). It cracks me up.
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I get the same response here in the DFW area. The majority of 5th Gens I see are LE's and a few SR5's, but in the year I've owned my TE I've only seen one other on the road here, though I've seen many more in NM and CO. More than once I've had people ask me "what is that?", since the TE looks different than the other models and the lift, wheels and tires set it apart. I want to cheer for the team and deep inside I want the T4R to be more popular and common, but at the same time I enjoy the uniqueness of it.
 
Not to many 5Gen 4Runners in CT either. Lots of 4Gens. I'm also glad about this as it makes it kind of exclusive and not in every driveway like other vehicles. Surprised for being in CT as well?
 
I watched the recent "Let's Go Places" Toyota commercial several times and kept asking DH 'where's the 4Runner?' before I *think* we noticed a 4Runner on the trail behind the yellow FJ.
Around my town, I only see a handful of 4Runners, mostly SR5's. I have seen one Trail to date. I'm not sure why they aren't more common but the Highlander seems to be the chosen one here. We purchased ours this past October and it is a 2012 they were trying to get rid of to make room for the 2013's. It's interesting, but ok with me. :)
 
In the Bay Area CA I barely notice one or two a day, there are plenty of 4th and 3rd gen's though. Most people here in the silicon valley drive "luxurious" X5's and ML's which are piles of shit (I know, I work on them). I do see a LOT of Tacoma's though.
 
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