So we bought our first 4Runner…

Unless you're running a lot of boost, you don't have to mess with the internals, or the fuel pump, or the injectors, or...a positive-displacement style SC like the Magnuson builds boost from down low, while a centrifugal one like a Pro-Charger not so much down low.

I ordered a throttle response controller to install on mine (Pedal Commander), and I think that will greatly improve its daily drivability. It's almost dangerous how slow the 4R is to get up to speed because of that throttle lag. I'm going to start in Sport mode (0 or 1, whichever is the lowest), and go from there. No Econ or Sport+ modes, so it'll be either some level of City or Sport.

 

Rust proofing and undercoating was my first thing to get along with a rubber cargo mat for the rear; other than that, probably vent shades and a hood protector and I'm good to go. I like it as it is, why mess with perfection?

 

Like some have said, I'll reiterate: while it's so new, get the frame painted. I've read so many dudes on here who took rustproofing action at the best time, brand new. I did not !
Big congratulations, 2024 is a heck of a machine

 

Please tell more. My understanding is that frame starts rusting from the inside. Can you even get the paint into these fold spots inside the frame?

 

Yeah for sure, so when I say paint I mean straight up like rust paint the damn thing even (on the outside).
The frame is painted but dudes have done it over. The rust that typically starts at the welds, body mounts, radiator support, below strut mounts, etc. will be prolonged for many more miles, even years.
As for inside frame rails, absolutely yes rust starts there. I've began painting inside with nozzles, straws and wands. New Runners may have cavity wax applied, or maybe that's the new Tacos I'm thinking of. But at the very least, buy two Blaster Surface Shield or Fluid Film cans and spray inside as many frame holes as ya can. Inside my rails I've used black fluid film.
Goodluck, and nice truck

*Edit: almost forgot, if your region allows you access to a hose and unfrozen water. Rinse out your frame rails (like @McSpazatron) in the winter especially if salt used

 

Skip the paint and go straight to a corrosion inhibiting product. As many have said, Fluid Film or Woolwax are great options. Personally, I prefer Waxoyl. Whatever you do, do not use Ziebart.

 

Not painting with actual paint, especially if it's new, but to spray it with a rust preventative such as fluid film, woolwax, or blaster shield. All of those are liquid and will seep into joints and cavities.

I recently watched a YouTube video where somebody applied Fluid Film to a brand new truck, they had taken off all the plastic wheel well guards, fender flares, etc and sprayed into all the nooks and crannies. Very thorough job.

 

Put a screen protector on the main console screen. They scratch easily and the screen looks sharper with the protector on.

Welcome to a great forum.

 

Congrats and welcome.
I would get it coated underneath to prevent rust and get some AT tires. That's it.

 

Rustproofing as indicated by @ ChessGuy seems spot on.
Since its now your Wife's gift... not yours.
Why not let her drive it for a year and decide on what she would like upgraded.
Just my 2c. No offence

 

If you really want to protect your new (or used) T4R from corrosion:

Complete Corrosion Protection for my New T4R | Toyota 4Runner Forum [4Runners.com]

This comes from somebody (me) who has lived in the heart of the rust belt for his entire life.

 

Thank you very much for your very informative post.

 

Wow, I did not expect such a large response. Thankyou all for taking the time out of your day to respond to such an open ended and whimsical question. I’ll be uploading pictures shortly, rest assured she is indeed a beauty. This level of response has been a boon to me, I’ve gone and made a list of all the upgrades I’m interested in. Rust inhibition/undercoating seems like a must, although on the back burner for a bit being that my Tacoma has been totally fine here on the eastern shore of Va. We don’t really salt the roads here but my wife does a lot of traveling with her girlfriends so maybe that will be something we look into eventually. As it would turn out, Northampton County has very little money to spend on Northampton County. Between the Cape Charles fire company and the Cheriton fire company, both of which I volunteer for; we received a gross total of 12k in county funding this year lol. That said, privateer snow plowing is big business here. The LED interior lights seems like a no brainer, I should’ve thought of that immediately duh. Although my experience in the electrical field is a constant party pooper when it comes to LED’s. 20% failure rate out of the box, but when they work; they look great. The screen protector is a must for my wife, she loves long fake nails and I’ve seen how her phone screen protectors hold up, that was a great suggestion. Also I must admit, I’ve always been pedal commander curious, but being that my daily is a 4banger 5sp, it never really made sense to play with. Wifey drives like a bat out of hell. Always has, probably always will. Might be worth looking into. As far as organization stuff goes, she is super type A so those are all great recommendations that I’ll be looking into. If anybody has any links to products they’re satisfied with, I’ll start there. Add on’s like first aid kits and basic survival tools are already covered, though I appreciate the thoughtful response regardless. My old man pounded the need for those things in my head as a child, we are all in agreement there. New tires however, are a must for me. I can’t believe how bad the Dunlops that came with it are, you’d think Toyota would at minimum take 500$ less profit off the top to make sure their trucks have decent rubber under them off the lot. She’s not going to be off-roading in this thing, and the taco is already setup to efficiently overland should the need arise. This truck is mainly a transportation device for our Great Dane and our eastern shore special. I figure some Michelin LTX’s will suffice for what she needs on the daily, but likely I will buy her a “winter set” of BFG’s just to keep in the garage and marvel at while I watch the hockey game, maybe throw on in the event of a terrible winter storm. Thankyou again for all the thoughtful and sage responses, this forum really does feel like a community of enthusiasts.

 

She's going to be VERY disappointed with the acceleration of the 4R without some kind of throttle response gizmo...

 

Congratulations on your new purchase! I’m on my second 4Runner, my first one was a 3rd gen (2000 model year) Limited and the only reason I upgraded to a 2021 5th gen was because the 3rd gen was nearing ‘project’ status at over 350,000 miles and I really like having heated seats

No joke these SUVs last with proper maintenance and you don’t drive it like a sports car, it really doesn’t need much in the way of mods other than what’s already been said about upgrading the factory supplied tires. Coming from a 3rd gen with its 3.4L engine I can honestly tell you that the +5th gen shines in many ways, acceleration is noticeably better and despite having a 4L engine and more than 1000 lbs added curb weight the 5th gen gets better gas mileage than my old 3rd gen, albeit not by much but still when you compare specs…

The ride quality is way better (it feels more solid on the road than any of its predecessors most likely because of the added curb weight and tuned suspension straight from the factory. Your model year should be equipped with LED headlights and fogs so that part is taken care of. Depending upon which suspension package you have you might consider upgrading the factory shocks/springs if you are experiencing nose dive under moderate braking. Before I bought my 21 I test drove pretty much all of the 4Runner models and new I wouldn’t settle for less than the Fox suspension for that very simple reason. Of course the TRD Pro model that I ended up buying came with this setup but if I went with any other model (e.g. Trail or Offroad…) I would certainly have gone aftermarket (King, Bilstein, Eibach…)

My old 4Runner was bone stock and served me well, ran the Sierra Trek (had winching help on a few gnarly boulder sections), tons of 3-5 class trails and just miles and miles of smiles. The ONLY issues I had with it was a blown spark plug (no engine damage!) and a failed alternator.

 

To be honest, no way I’m hosing liquid water into the frame in winter. Too cold!

I rinse the inside frame out well in the spring after things thaw out. You want to get the salt off once things start getting warmer, which is when oxidation/rust goes active. And usually after any off-road excursion that involves mud.

I fully admit I a bit excessive with all this. But I’m doing it because the 4runner is generally quite durable and reliable for a long time, and it would suck if the frame is rotted away in 15 years, but the rest of the vehicle is perfectly serviceable.

Also, I don’t paint inside the frame hollow areas. Use a cavity wax or fluid film or other wet film/non-drying rust protectant that can creep into all those sandwich weldments or other nooks. Use a wand to get it all in there, not just the straw on the can.

 

@McSpazatron the region temperature is going to stay well above freezing for over a week. Salt used a lot on roads. I kinda wanna hose under the 4R lol what thinks you

*Edit: 4r garage kept 24/7

 

I’m crazy, but not that crazyZ. I’m too lazy to bring hoses inside for the winter, and even though I drain them out, there’s still chunky ice bits in there that clog them up. Not to mention all the joints/seals in the hose spools would leak. And I would have to dig them out of the snow they’re in. Nope.

I’ll take it through a touchless carwash here and there.

 

You’d think that, but this is her only driving experience outside of mom sedans and my old man’s stupid lifted 2000’s suburban sitting on 33 bfgMT’s. You’d be amazed what a “few inches of lift”, lots of decent cup holders and a modern entertainment system can do for a lady. She’s very pleased with the machine, and the added reassurance of being able to crawl out of a nasty situation in a pinch seems to make her really happy. Her best friend has an 85 4R and it was so funny to see the two of them commiserate about their runners. She seems happy with it. However we will be doing a lot of traveling this year for weddings and funerals, which means I will be behind the wheel of this thing a lot. The acceleration sucks for sure, but I don’t have a lead foot anyway. I’m also quite pleased with it, minus the oil change procedure. I’ve always hated the oil filter housings that Toyota seems to love, I love my Tacoma’s spin on filter.

 

Pics of the newbie as promised.

 

A couple of things not mentioned yet.

https://desertdoesit.com/products/front-seat-jackers-2002-2009-4runners

https://parts.elmhursttoyota.com/p-...ot-mirror-glass-retrofit-8796142d208793142d50

Install video

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LVz-WCqmaTE

I bought the mirrors from Olathe Toyota but someone posted this link a little while ago. They are a game changer on the freeway.