4Runner sold today..good bye old friend.

Bittersweet, but the 4Runner went to another home today.
I'll be replacing with the Bronco 2DR Badlands with Sasquatch.
The 4Runner did me good for over 4 years, but it's time for something new.
I still have a Tacoma to get me through until the Bronco is out to buy.
Parting shot form the last trip..Monache Trail.

 

Didn't want to wait for the Bronco... I thought it was like a year out?

 

It is.

 

May as well sell now, get more for the 4R, plus bank the funds and make a little interest.

I'm pretty tempted by a base Bronco 7spd with Sasquatch package, I'm not going to lie.

 

I have to admit, I’m smitten by the new Bronco also. I too like the base model with the Squatch pkg. however I heard you can’t get the Squatch pkg. with the 7-spd.

 

Come back and post up some pics of your new bronco!

 

There's a petition out there to get Ford to offer the manual with all engine choices.

http://chng.it/LZp6GjZDm2

Supposedly Ford tweeted that they might offer the manual later w/ Sasquatch and both engines based on customer response.


I'll be keeping my 4Runner but may swap my Rav4 in a couple years for the Bronco.

 

Congrats and all but, as someone who works professionally in automotive quality testing and development, I can tell you with absolute certainty, it’s NEVER a good idea to buy the first year of a an all new model. You’re basically paying extra (no discounts on new releases, usually they are marked up) to beta test and find all the problems. When tens of thousands of people start daily driving a new platform there will be tons and tons of issues that come to light that just simply can’t be caught when quality testing is done with a small handful of constantly evolving test vehicles.

Keep that Taco so you’ll have reliable transportation while the Bronco is in the shop!

Seriously though, if it’s as good in practice as it is on paper and it has reliability to match the old broncos it’s definitely going to be a game charger and I may be right behind you (by a few model years) jumping ship.

 

Don't be a stranger, I feel like Broncos are welcome at this site, as we're pretty laid back. I'd love to see how it turns out. I'm excited to see them in person. I'm sticking w/ my 4Runner after having come from a Ford, but I'll say this, you'll love that EcoBoost !

 

I think I read that the Sasquatch package isn't going to be available with the 7 spd, and not sure if the base trim will be available with it either. May be wrong, there are lots of packages/trim levels.

 

Ford has specified you can not get the Sasquatch package with a manual trans.

 

I'm not married to any brand vehicle, have a few I won't buy because I was burned on them but Ford has there stuff together.
This last gen 150 was a total redesign and it did rather well. I owned 2 of them problem free. If I didn't just sink $$$ into my runner I would consider the bronco

 

Hope you’re buying the extended warranty
Hahahaha

 

It's a risk for certain buying first year model, no question about that. I am retired and frankly I don't want to wait around for year 2-3.
If it's a shop whore I will dump it, take the loss, and move on. Perhaps back to Toyota if they start getting more serious about off road models that they will sell in the US.
I have found a dealership that will sell w/o mark and that's who my reservation is with.
If it's a roach I'll report back as such.

 

You bet I am.

 

Seems like that kicked up a bunch of dust and now it sounds like if there is enough interest Ford may consider offering it. Or maybe they will bring it out year two to get the folks that were on the fence over it.

 

I can see having that perspective, if I was retired I’d be more inclined to just jump on it and see how it goes. Being in my 30’s I have time to wait... well, hopefully lol

 

Can you only get 35” tires in the Sasquatch package and only in auto? Haha, that’s one of the reasons I like it! I thought you could get 35” tires w/ a manual. Too bad a manual wasn’t available on the 4 Runner. I know it’s a niche market but I’d like one! I guess it’s so they can market the ATRAC and not have it be called an old time vehicle. Ford doesn’t worry about that which is cool. They’ll sell a lot of standard Broncos.

 

Maybe Ford will allow the stick with Sas and or 2.7 if too many people are soured over it.
The bigger issue (I feel) thing is the only models the front sway bar disconnect is available in are the Badlands and the First Edition. I went with BL.
Also Ford has a Factory 2 inch lift that will accommodate 37s. That's my goal. Stupid doors on the pic, but you get the idea.

 

Fiat stiffed me with 2 bad jeeps. I do hope the Bronco coverts enough jeepers to put Fiat out the door for good!

 

I've been super close to getting a Rubi, would love SFA, but I just can't do it due to all the issues the JL forum folks seem to have.
No clue if the Bronco will be better, so I am rolling the dice on Ford.

 

Ford is the only North American manufacturer that has some semblance of QC.

 

Good to hear it!

 

That’s a pretty low bar we’re setting here lol.

The NAR manufacturers are pretty much a laughing stock in general. They made good cars in the 60’s into the 70’s, the mid 70’s and especially the 80s was more less a disaster when emission and the fuel crisis kicked in (3rd gen Camaro with 4 cylinder 90 hp iron duke engine running 0-60 in 20 f’n seconds!!!) it seems like the 90s hit and they started to turn things around, they made decent for era products but they burried themselves rebranding things over and and over across countless lines and riding the coat tails of brand loyalty and it was their downfall (government bailouts paying a shit load of money to keep TERRIBLE manufacturers afloat). They fell way behind the curve of every other manufacturer and yet seemed surprised that people didn’t want to buy their inferior product based solely on the physical location of their factory. The US brand have significantly stepped it up in the past decade but I really feel like they still fall short. They have some (comparatively) low cost performance models, but their entry level stuff is still crap, and their high end luxury stuff is still crap. They do budget job exotic performance and heavy duty trucks well, and they are pretty competitive with fleet sales, but this still have a ways to go.

For what it’s worth in my line of work we do a lot of comparison drives against potential competitors, we barely ever include anything from the “big 3”, even anything Tesla is the only real US competition which is kind of an anomaly in itself since they build some objectively poor quality vehicles.

 

I wouldn’t get the first model year. Would wait a year or two IMO.

 

There are a lot of apples and oranges being juggled in this discussion and it would make a great debate. I would argue that mass produced vehicles have never been better, or safer, than they are now. And all that for a relatively low price, at the level of the basic model.

 

Regarding your discussion points, I'll add some helpful insight.

-----------------------------
2016 Trail Premium 4Runner - Sold at 51,000 miles on it. Owned since new.
Dealership one time, Takata airbag recall, no maintenance needed other than oil changes (all oils).
Roughness - Offroaded mild to medium, some trail damage, a few jumps in the desert (barely off the ground and on accident). Towed at least 10,000 of those miles with a 1000lb adventure trailer.

Pros - Fit and finish, no rattles after what I was reasonably expecting to hear rattles. Reliability.
Cons - MPG is eh, power is eh.
-----------------------------
2018 F150 XLT 3.5EB w/ Max tow, FX4 with locker - Sold at 31,000 miles. Owned since new.
Dealership 7 times. Seatbelt pretension recall, airbag recall, 4x4 vacuum check valve 3 times. Wheel bearings front left and right. IWEs replaced front left and right. Vacuum lines replaced and solenoid for 4x4 replaced. "Transmission strategy reflash" due to some really hard shifting from 3-4 on the 10 speed.
Roughness - Offroaded on gravel roads, never really a trail. Never jumped, never beat on. Towed 3,000 miles (has a cool computer which tracks up to 10 trailers) with a 1200lb teardrop.

Pros - EcoBoost power is super nice. MPG very good for a big truck. Lots of interior room. 36 gallon gas tank was NICE.
Cons - 10 speeds 1 - 3 shift is laggy, even on the v8. 10 speed rattles in the morning, and you'll think something is wrong, but I guess it's not as others mentioned. 4x4 IWEs are crap. Lots of service visits (least they had donuts). Too big for the type of overlanding I like.
-----------------------------
2016 Trail paid $39,500 new, sold March 2020 for $29,000. 4 year value loss = $10,500
2018 F150 sticker at $55,000 - paid $46,000. Sold in Jan 2020 for $27,500. 2 year value loss = $18,500 from what I paid. I realize depreciate curves are different in 2 vs 4 years, but that doesn't change the fact that at 4 year it's not going to magically be worth more than at 2 years, so the comparison is still valid.

I think the Bronco looks great, but if Ford uses their ingenious, yet garbage setup with vacuum activated IWEs instead of an electronic method, then expect to keep a check valve on you always. Also, keep an extra oil plug if they still use those plastic ones, totally broke it off and glad I had a spare cause I knew one day that would happen, so at least I wasn't stuck.

 

I hope you enjoy your Bronco! Brand new vehicles are a lot of fun to own (as long as they're reliable), and Ford really pulled out all the stops on the Bronco.

I've been going the other direction -- moving away from complexity and toward simplicity and reliability.

Ultimately, it's chocolate versus vanilla. There's no right answer. Just personal preference/need.

 

I dont know about you guys, but theirs something to be said about the 4runner its just friggen reliable , I have not had any friggen issues with it , so I hope the bronco does well especially with all the electronics on it geez its to much imho ....i simply enjoy the 4runner again its personal preference i get it , but purchasing a bronco i would also get the extended warranty

 

No doubt about it my 4Runner had no issues and I was sad to see her go.
At the end of the day I need more ground clearance with bigger tires and I was not going to start hacking it up to make 35's fit. I was tired of tip toeing around tougher trials with large rocks. Perhaps a driver with better skill has no issues with 33's.
Will be getting extended warranty with the Bronco.