New member, AG Venture

Hi. I am new but have been lurking the forum for quite some time. I hope to be able to get a 4Runner in the future. I currently own a 2003 silver Tundra TRD Sport stepside which has been very reliable and still looks very good after all these years, although there is paint peeling and chipping on the passenger rear door. It does not have much in terms of advanced electronics, but I prefer to have things simple and less distracting when I drive.




Over the past few years I have been somewhat reluctantly considering a new vehicle with sleeping ability for camping (reluctant because I treat the Tundra as a reliable, loyal and trusty horse after all these years. I know I will be very bummed when I have to sell/trade it in). I went as far as looking at Class B(+) motorhomes, which are very nice but also VERY expensive. And while the myriad systems of today's motorhomes are infinitely better than the 1976 Minnie Winnie my parents had, it's still a lot of stuff to handle day to day.

I then thought that since it's just me and my own damn self, I could probably get away with a minivan or SUV with a sleeping setup in the back (which threads I have been reading here quite avidly). I have a membership at 24 Hour Fitness so I could use their showers and bathroom facilities, although that idea is not so sure now with the pandemic and 24 Hour possibly filing bankruptcy. I did consider RTTs but I prefer to be fully self contained when in camp/sleep mode. I am not sure how much I would 4x4, but there have been times when I've had to go off road in the Tundra with the low pro street wheel setup and I wished I had more off road capabilities.

After a lot of research and looking, I believe the 4Runner Venture is the model that has everything I need and looks great. I am not much of a modder, and I would probably just add step rails and larger tires later on. I like the fact that the current generation hasn't changed all that much for many years, which to me means the features are tried, true, rugged and reliable. And, like my Tundra, the 4Runner is relatively bare bones and simple when it comes to electronics, which means less distraction and less to go wrong. The mileage factor is kind of a drag, as the 4Runner V6 mileage is not much better than the V8 mileage in my Tundra. I also like the fact that the 4Runner is built in Japan, where I feel the QC is higher. (To be fair, my Tundra was built in Indiana and it's been very reliable for 17 years). I feel that a 4Runner would last long enough to be my last vehicle.

Very interestingly, I was riding my bike in Long Beach the other day and happened to see this parked at the mall:

I wasn't aware that the Venture was available in army green. It was brand spanking new and has a skid plate. I've been through the configurator on the Toyota website many times and have never seen this combination available. Most curious.

Anyways, glad to be here and I hope to be the owner of a 4Runner some day.

 

welcome

 

Welcome to the forum from Wisconsin!

 

Welcome. That looks like a Trail Special Edition SR5. Looks like they did a wheel swap and added Predator steps unless they got it from the Southeast and got the Predator Package. They come in AG. The green spoiler gives it away. The Ventures have a black spoiler.

 

Yup. Venture also has black door handles, mirrors and front valance. Also, that looks like a Yakima Road Warrior which the Trail comes with, and not the Mega Warrior that Comes on Venture.

 

OK! I haven't checked out the Trail Edition before and I do see the slight differences (I'm still looking at the 2020 inventory). Thanks!

 

Welcome from Arizona!

 

Welcome.

 

Welcome from Wisconsin! Again!

 

clean whip! don't come across those to often, especially in that condition...

 

Not to mention that the Venture comes with the hood scoop, SR5 doesn't.