4 Runner Crash Test Results-NHTSA

If it matters... Rav4 and Venza wasn't suited for my wife's style of driving. She has very less sympathy on vehicles. She has punctured tires hitting curbs. My wife also put mulch, potting soil bags and other gardening stuff in the 4Runner. We also used the 4Runners to move all the stuff from her storage for her business. Atleast for our family use, a Rav4 would not work and as said above I don't have the confidence when it comes to safety on a Rav4. Its just me and IIHS may vote otherwise.

 

No on the Rav4, yes to a second 4Runner

 

WXII Channel 12 News reports. "Bad crash driver walks away"

Here's the video coverage starts at 29 seconds.
https://www.wxii12.com/article/driv...losing-highway-421-in-wilkes-county/30255070#

I say the Good Lord and the Good Lord ONLY is responsible for this man to walk away unharmed. Praise be to God!

 

Looks like someone melted the 4R. It's amazing they could get it winched onto the truck.

 

Body on frame vehicles like the 4runner are less safe in crashes because the frame acts like a tuning fork transmitting energy directly into the passenger compartment. The unibody Rav4 is better at routing that energy around the passengers and absorbing the energy from a crash. It might help in low speed crashes, but at high speeds you want the car taking the energy.

 

I think the key piece of data beyond the Crash tests or anicdotal experience of forum participants would be serious injury / fatality data comparing 4runner to modern midsize sedans. With more than 10 years worth of data, you could statistically compare risks in various scenarios. This approach automatically
factors in probabilities of various scenarios and matchups. This should show the relative risk a 4runner driver is taking relative to a modern sedan driver. It can also show the societal cost of a crash including a 4runner on all "participants" in the accidents. (how do the sedan occupants do in a wreck with a 4runner compared to a wreck with two modern sedans). I would assume insurance companies have all of this data, and it is reflected in current liability / medical rates auto insurance rates.

 

ancedotal not antidotal

4Runner is not safe vehicle. You would be better off driving something else, more modern. If you are thinking it feels safe you are mistaken. Is it safe than 1960s vehicles? Yes. Is it safe in a head on collision with a sedan? Perhaps. But most of its risk comes from a. being very old design, taller vehicle, causing higher rollover chance b. being body on frame.

 

Thanx on the typo. I am actually not quite as ignorant as I sound…….

 

I apologize if I sounded condescending! That was not my intention. I had to look it up myself to make sure I am not reading it wrong.

 

isnt it supposed to crumple to dissapate the crash energy?

if i hit you with my 4runner, id probably obliterate your rav4.

 

better front struts almost eliminate the nose dive

 

God had nothing to do with it, pure luck…

 

I always get confused when people says a certain vehicle is unsafe but they own the same one. Lol

 

The 4runner looks like nothing hit it compared to the Rav4

 

The part where you're sitting isn't supposed to crumple.

 

i’ll take my chances in my 4rnr vs anything else.

 

The body on frame doesn't even really make that big of a difference with towing either.

Haven't looked at the specs on the new generation, but the previous generation Grand Cherokee was rated to tow up to 50% more than the 4Runner. That's 7500 lb compared to the 4runners 5000 lb. The Grand Cherokee has always been a unibody, and if I remember correctly, my 97 6 cylinder Grand Cherokee was rated to tow 5000 lb.

The Highlander is also rated to tow the same as the 4Runner. The body on frame design is really not as big of a deal as people like to make it out to be. Maybe on an actual truck rated for towing 10,000 lb plus, but not on an midsize SUV.

I know this post is over a month old, perhaps you've already gotten the 4Runner. If that's what you really want, go for it. Personally though if safety was my main concern, I would be looking at a Volvo. My other car is an 07 Volvo wagon, and I think I actually would prefer to be in a serious accident driving that than my 4Runner. Yeah, the 4Runner is bigger and heavier, but everything about the Volvo feels sturdier.

 

So one day my son was driving my 2007 sr5 and some dbag pulled out of a side street without stopping. My son was able to swerve to prevent a tbone but being lifted and riding on Falkens, he sliced through the front end like butter. The guys damage vs his. Go 4rnr!

 

Well clearly I suffer from “those other idiots don’t know how to drive 4Runner safely, but I do” syndrome.

 

lol. Its a horrible disease…

 

Plenty of reasons to own one, but overall safety is not one of them.

It was good in 2010, and it's not necessarily unsafe now, but there are much better options out there if safety is your goal.

In the OP, the guy already has a 4R, and is thinking about buying a second for his wife due to the "safety". It just doesn't make sense.

If he wants to buy another one because he likes it, or because they're bitchin', then rock on. I mean, it's his life, he doesn't need our permission, lol.

Edit: 4R safety is a positive compared to some other off-roaders, particularly the Wrangler.

 

I’m the OP. Yes I have 1 4 Runner (ORP). My wife ultimately decided on a Rav 4 because she can maneuver it easier, parking, etc. She likes the higher sitting position of the 4 R but compared to the Accord, the Rav 4 is higher. I believe the Rav 4 has 7.6” of ground clearance. Not bad. So the Rav should be here mid-August. If she gets in a wreck, I hope she is not hit by a much heavier vehicle and I hope it is a lower speed collision. Both of my brothers have 3/4 ton GMC diesel trucks, 4 door with really nice interiors. They tow big boats and travel trialers. I think she realized that no matter how high and heavy the 4 Runner is (compared to an Accord) there is always a bigger vehicle. So driving defensively and not being distracted is a great area to focus on. There are many good points made in this thread and I appreciate them all. This thread has made me notice very small vehicles on the road. And when I pass a logging truck head on, with 50,000 lbs of timber on it, I’m making sure I’m out of the way when driving my 4 Runner.

 

clearly the answer is buy a semi with 50K lbs timber in bed, for daily driving.

 

If you are not an Elephant, stay out of the way of the Elephants.

 

Man, there are half ton trucks that I'll pull up next to, and I can't see over the hood even in the 4R. Seems like it should be illegal, but it's like there's an arms race as everything keeps getting bigger.

 

Imagine my brother’s 3/4 ton GMC Diesel hitting a Mini-Cooper? There would be some crumple zones crumpling big time. Or a Corvette? I used to own one. Fun car. But very low CG. You really need to avoid getting hit when in these low vehicles.

 

wow i am so sorry to hear you went through that and stunned about how the INS Co’s are handling this. Crazy man!!!

 

My oldest son in his Tacoma was T-boned at an intersection by an illegal with no license/ID, registration or insurance running a red light in Silicon Valley. My son woke up in the hospital to find out his truck was totaled and the cops just let the illegal walk away. My son only had liability insurance so he is pretty much screwed.

 

My son was driving a Jeep Cherokee and was hit by 2 illegals driving a painting company Van. It was their fault and the cops issues no citation. My insurance had to cover the Jeep under uninsured motorists coverage. The cops said the judges have been instructed to let them walk. Law abiding Citizens are subsidizing all this chaos. I am sorry you son was token advantage of like that. All our insurance rates rise to subsidize the absence of accountability.