Should I be looking at a 4th gen or 5th gen?

hi,

potential 1st time 4runner owner here. looking to pick one up for surfing/offroading (nothing crazy)/daily driving. i know the 3rd gens are really good but id like something more modern. so i was considering the 4th/5th but each thing ive read/watched sways me back or forth to each model. any recommendations? thanks

 

Depends on what is available. If the 4th gen has a v8 I'm probably going with that. The 5th gens are good too, they've sold them for a very very long time so it will have parts available and there is a good modding scene.

Whichever one has less rust

 

What is your budget?

 

Honestly, the 4th gen really doesn't have much over the third gen in terms of modern amenities. You can just buy an aftermarket head unit with Bluetooth and all that stuff and be pretty much equal.

Depends on your budget really. Also where you live. You may have a hard time finding a fourth-gen in nice condition, and be forced to buy a 5th gen just because they're newer. A V8 4th gen is a good find, but they do command a higher price.

I actually really wanted a 3rd gen, but just got tired of looking for a nice one. Ended up just increasing my budget by like 4x and buying a 5th gen, LOL. I like it, but other than the Bluetooth and backup cam it doesn't really have a lot of modern features.

Honestly, there's a charm to older vehicles that don't have any of the drive by wire and aggressive stability and traction control nonsense. In that aspect, I really miss my first gen Grand Cherokee sometimes. It had abs, and that was it.

 

Welcome to the forum.

 

Agreed. I really wanted a 3rd gen for the longest time, but finding a clean one with decent miles for the right price seemed like an exercise in futility. I would have gone with a 4th gen too, but the auditing department wasn't going to allow a high mileage vehicle for my new daily. Searching used 5th gens in the area yielded very high buy-ins. 3 year old 40K mileage examples (some even showing the beginnings of rust) had a list of ~$1K less than what I negotiated my new 2020. The wife said, "Why don't you just get a new one then?" I replied, "Sweetheart, that is an absolutely tremendous idea. You are right."

Those last 3 words sealed it.

 

What an awesome wife, don't ever lose her.

 

Depending on your budget, you will get a cleaner lower mileage one with a 5th Gen.

 

I’m willing to go up to 20k if I’m looking to buy a 5th gen, from what I’ve seen I’d be looking at around 100k for mileage at that price

 

Im willing to go up to 20k for a 5th gen, maybe a little more if I’m really into the one I find. I live in so cal area.

 

If it's clean and show signs of taking care of, I definitely wouldn't hesitate to buy one with 100k. You're right on with that price, mine's a 13 with 110 and I really wouldn't take much less than 20 for it at this point. Values on these things are so strong.

 

I called my dealer and told him to see what he could do to get me out of my 2021 Tacoma and into a 4R, Gonna see what he says. If not then I guess just try to sell it outright. What are folks paying for a new one TRD 4x4 4Runner ?

 

i had a poll for 4th or 5th gen but its no longer showing? do they usually disappear in less than 24 hrs?