3rd gen 4Runner vs. 5th gen Bronco

Hello 4Runner fans. I'm new to this site and recently purchased a 2001 4Runner, which I love.

I recently inherited a 1995 Bronco, Eddie Bauer edition, in awesome condition from my dad who passed away.

My question is how do these two classic vehicles compare in terms of towing and off-roading performance? I hope someone can educate me or point me to some resources for neophytes. I tried to Google information for head-to-head comparisons but came up short.

I am not a mechanic and don't know much about off-roading yet but want to learn. My goal is to learn to safely drive mountain passes in the Rockies. I also want to use the vehicle for light towing. My dad was good at these things, but he was always the driver.

 

Sorry to hear about your loss.

The Bronco is bigger, heavier, but has a V8 (mo powah baby!).

The 4Runner, assuming your frame is in good shape, is reliable, lighter, smaller. It's better suited for the trails and offroading.

This is a 4Runner form, so take the answers with a grain of salt, but here's my take.

If the Bronco is in awesome condition...and you want it to stay that way...park it, keep it maintained, don't offroad it. You'll only end up eventually regretting it if it's got sentimental value.

The 4Runner has a much larger aftermarket mod support, and it will be easier to find like minded people, parts, knowledge, etc specific to the offroad community. I'd take it on the trails, and keep the Bronco in great shape as a cool vehicle. I don't know if that model will ever be a collector's item like the 60's and 70's, but it's at least famous cause it's the OJ getaway car

 

Thanks, fajitas21!

 

No prob. I really do find this forum helpful, even if we are biased toward Toyota.

I'll add a follow up. You mentioned towing. What you planning to tow, how much does it weigh, and where do you plan to tow it? That could also help.

 

Welcome to The Forum, and my condolences on the passing of your father.

I'm not surprised that you didn't find any head-to-head comparisons, these vehicles never really competed in the same class, and I think the last year of production for the Bronco was the first year of production for the 3rd gen 4Runner.

For towing, the Bronco will be a better platform. It's bigger and heavier which will help with stability, and it has a V8. You didn't mention whether it has the 5.0 or the 5.8L V8, neither one of them are particularly powerful by today's standards, but both make more torque than the 3.4L V6 in the 4Runner, and they make it at a lower RPM as well.

If that Bronco is in great shape, I would definitely hang on to it, as I think it's pretty much a given at this point that that will be a future collectible. There actually IS a good aftermarket for Broncos, and if you wanted to mod it out, you could probably make it be more capable than the 4Runner, as long as it could physically fit on the trails.

Personally, what I would do is keep the 4Runner for a daily vehicle and for any off-roading you may do, and consider using the Bronco as a tow vehicle or just a weekend toy, something to take out for a cruise or to take to cars and coffee events or car shows. If it is in that nice of condition, people will enjoy seeing it.

Oh, one last thing about the Bronco, it'll probably get 10 to 12 miles per gallon. Even though these engines don't make very much power, they're very thirsty, and they're heavy vehicles.

If you decide that you don't want to necessarily keep the Bronco nice and want to use that as an offroad vehicle, it'll be quite capable and there are plenty of options of ways to modify it. It could also make a good platform for overlanding, if you take the back seat out there's quite a bit of cargo room in there.