So I just bought a new to me 5th gen

Coming from a 2019 Nissan frontier, I wanted to get into a 4Runner.

Yesterday I picked up a 24 4Runner Sr5 with 4wd and it has 20k miles.

I got the keys, clean fresh oil*, heard the cold start, sounded healthy, took it for a 25 min test drive and about an hour later I drove home with it. I’m kinda mechanically inclined so I know what to look for, smells, obvious oil leaks, or seepage around axle, etc.

Everything looked good. Since I’m new to Toyota and new to the 4Runner club, is there anything I should look out for or check at 20k miles?

I do want to get a bigger battery in there. Right now it has a rather small battery, at least to me. But other than that, getting used to the noises it makes vs the noises the vq40 made in the frontier, they both have their quirks.

thanks in advanced

 

Virtually bulletproof engine and trans. Drove a tacoma with the 4.0 and TRD Supercharger to 275,000 miles never cracked the engine or trans. Had a 2012 Limited 4R and got about 150,000 on it before trading it. Daily driver is an Urban Runner with the 4.0 and it has 245,000 and have never touched the engine or trans. They are about as reliable as it gets. Depending on where you are in the world, you may want to fluid film or WoolWax the frame and chassis. The OEM "coating" paint is real thin and the frame stretches over time and cracks the paint around all the welds and this invites rust in all those open cracks of the paint. Its smart to seal it up before it starts rusting with something good and thick and that will last. If you are in a bad area its smart to re-apply every year or two.

 

Even though you got "fresh oil" it would be nice to know if the oil had been changed, and at what interval, somewhere in that 20k miles...the drive shaft could be greased...check the engine & cabin air filters...did this come with any service records?

Welcome to the forum.

 

Welcome & congrats

The Achilles heel of the 4Runner is frame rust… Should be no problem for a 2024, but take a good look under

 

Here is a good link to what maintenance you would need...

 

I live in south Florida, and the truck was in south Florida its whole life. Had it first oil change at 5k, and 5k intervals after that.

is the temp gauge a dummy gauge like in the frontiers? It sits in the middle, and if I had to guess it has a slight downward angle to it, although it looks dead in the middle if you’re not really trying to parse what needle mark it’s at

not really a fan of the Dunlop tires it comes on, I might go ahead and order some new ones.


I’m just a old school guy, and liked the simplicity of the frontier, so I wanted to try and stay the same with the 4Runner

 

Congrats and Welcome!

 

welcome

 

Congratulations on your new ride. The other day I was thinking if anything happens to my 4runner should I look at Nissan as they still seem to offer N/A V6 and V8 options with regular AT transmission.

Anyways for the 4Runner, seeing temps in numbers I use old ScanGuage2-
https://amzn.to/3VkSl1H

It should give regular parameters right out the box. But things like transmission Temps or tire pressure values you need to put in x-codes that you can find on line or happy post if interested.

There is a newer ScanGuage3 -
https://amzn.to/3BgGWco
I have a feeling this newer one do not need xcodes. Read a very little about it and looks like it has lot more parameters right out the box.

Bigger battery-
Since I was using ScanGuage2, it tell me that the 4runner alternator is not enough for batteries like AGMs. On a cold start it gives 14V but while driving its around 13.3-13.4V. Per many AGM batteries you need minimum 13.8V. There is voltage booster devices if you go that route. Again those things are not my taste and since I only have few non hi power auxiliary lights I don't need lot of power. So I'm just going with factory size lead acid batteries. The Walmart ones have 750CCA that is more than enough for my needs on a cold morning.

Tires-
I have always sold my tires on Facebook marketplace. One time the buyer directly came to discount tire shop to pick the tires while I was getting new tires. Here in CO I have to buy A/Ts with 3 peak mountain snow flake rating, but lucky you in FL you can buy anything from A/T to M/Ts. For me louder tires wasn't my cup of tea. Even A/Ts like Goodyear Wrangler Duratrac after 5000miles got louder to my taste. There should be plenty tire threads if you use the search on top right of the forum.

Future mods like lifting-
Please use a Toyota specialized 4x4 shop not a regular Jeep lift place. A Toyota specialized show with know what components to buy and what max lift height that is safer with some of the stock components. Even if wrong springs are used you will get lean to one side. Toyota specialized shops know what springs to buy or set different preload on the shock not to have lean. There are thread on lifts as well.

Edit -
For maintenance I use the maintenance and warranty manual. If you didn't get the printed one you can download from Toyota site. Towards the end it tells you what maintenance needed on each 5K /6month interval included special condition as well.