Why do people sell 4Runners?

Mine is fun everytime I drive it and I don't off-road. That guys take is awful

 

I rented a two-door JK Rubicon in Moab back in 2017. No word of a lie, I took one turn out of the parking lot, and was like wtf is this? Not going to lie, I low-key hated driving it for the first few miles till I started to get acclimated to it. To be fair, it was modified with a modest lift and aftermarket sway bars, so it probably handled different from stock. Then again, what's the point of owning one and keeping it stock? Lol.

All that disappeared as soon as I got off road though, I ran fins and things with it by myself, no other people were out there and none of my buddies wanted to come with me. It just walked up everything, I didn't need any spotting, I didn't even need to touch the lockers. All those obstacles that TFL makes such a big deal about on their channel, this thing didn't even slip a wheel on any of them. It is amazing how capable a two door Rubicon is.

I personally would rather have the four-door, I find it more practical, and depending on the terrain you find yourself in, the long wheel base is better for off-roading than the short wheel base. Most people that do crazy wheeling with these are using the four doors, or even Gladiators. Sometimes the long wheelbase just makes hard things look super easy, and is way more stable on steep climbs/descents.

It's my strong opinion that a two-door Wrangler is not a daily driver unless you just drive around town. For road trips or commuting on the highway, not so much. Also, I would think 80 mph in a 2-door Wrangler is fairly crazy, lol. I don't even do that in my 4R.

Keep the 4R for a DD and pick up a used one as a toy, you won't regret it.

 

My understanding is that a shorter wheelbase is generally better in technical trails. Of course there are always oddball situations where longer wheelbase is better.

I'm really torn on the whole thing. My ideal would be to keep the 4Runner for camping and easy trail runs, and get a two-door Wrangler for technical trails. But, on the other hand, I have two other vehicles, so it's not the end of the world if it's not ideal for every situation.

One idea I'm considering is to trade the 4Runner for a Wrangler, and then maybe buy a 6th gen after the Wrangler is paid for. It can't be much worse for me than that time I bought a Tacoma and traded it in upside down after 22 months.

 

As he already owns one I assumed the question of whether or not it was his style was moot. My point was that if at some future point the relationship dissolves, as relationships sometimes do, she will have a 4Runner and he won’t.

 

Short wheelbase has a better break over and is better on tight trails, such as what we have here in the Northeast. The longer wheelbase is more stable on steep terrain. If it's just going to be a trail toy, yeah the two door would be fine.

You seem to really like your 4Runner, I feel like you'd miss it if you traded it in. On the other hand, a while back I ran into TLB on Jeep forum, he was loving his two-door Rubicon. If you have fun with the Jeep, it might hold you over till the 6th gen comes out. If you don't like the sixth gen, I bet there will be a lot of fifth gen's available at that point. As much as people here don't seem to be excited about it, I think the vast majority of the general public will be very happy to dump their 5th gens for 6's.

If I could afford one and didn't drive 300 mi a week just to be at work, I would absolutely love to have a JLUR.

 

I totally agree about the 6th gen. The majority of the market will probably embrace a more fuel efficient and powerful 4runner. It will suck for those who love the old dinosaur, though. Heck, I'm excited about the 6th gen, but I still love this old thing.

 

Much like a gun is just a tool?

 

I guess it depends how you use it.

I have a co-worker who is an avid hunter, he has a collection of guns that he uses to hunt depending on what the season is, shotgun season, black powder season, etc. I always hear him talking about hunting, but never about the guns or the act of shooting. For someone like him, the guns are just tools.

On the other hand, I have a few co-workers and friends that are all about shooting and collecting guns. They're always talking about different guns, different accessories, how to modify them, etc. I'm not really a gun guy, I already have enough expensive hobbies. Looks like a fun hobby though. I've been wanting one of them to take me to the range, but we can never seem to coordinate it yet.

I guess it goes the same for the 4Runner (or any vehicle, really). If somebody's hobby is modifying it too look cool, keeping it clea and waxed, I suppose driving it around and showing that off would be fun. On the other hand, the person who bought it to haul around their mountain bikes, or dirt bikes, or simply get to the rugged hiking trails, it's just a tool to accomplish that job. That's more how I see mine. I also find it fun to drive off road. I just don't "enjoy" driving it as a daily, it's just a vehicle that gets me A to b and under that usage.

When I was younger I had a series of F-,Bodies, which had no real practical use, other than being being fun to hoon around in. I'd spend a whole day detailing, them, then drive around enjoying how they looked, thinking I looked cool, lol. Every once in a while I'd go to the track, but for the most part I just cruise around with the t-tops off listening to the engine.

I actually still own one, it's in storage and I haven't driven it in over a year. Thinking about putting it back on the road for this season, but it needs a set of tires and I really don't feel like spending 1k on that or dealing with getting it re-inspected and re-registered.

 

I learned a new word today!

 

If you think that sounds cool, check out the YouTube channel "Hoonigan".

Also, didn't realize that was such a long post, lol. I use voice text, and I get carried away sometimes haha.