Toyota 4Runner TRD Pro | Hitting The Trails Bruh

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r0S9PDjHxe8

 

I like this reviewer. He's unique in that he actually seems to understand the engineering behind cards and lifts every car to show what's going on underneath.

 

An interesting rundown and review. No big sales job and virtually no hype. If I was in the market I certainly would consider the 4Runner. Wait a minute,I have one and do enjoy the heck out of it especially after a nice desert jaunt with my 1967 FJ40 Land Cruiser.

 

A Sprint Booster solves the acceleration issues.
Rear seats recline solving the headroom complaint for the back seat passengers.

 

The 4R does 0-60 in the 7s. That's hardly slow. The much smaller and less capable Subaru Forester is in the 8s. A lot of SUVs are about the same, until you get into the expensive luxury or high performance realm. No one combines this level of cargo space, off road ability and a 0-60 in the 5s without charging a shit ton of money for the privilege.

Everyone seems to react to the pedal programming, cause in normal use it doesn't give you that snappy off-the-line 0-30 mph sense of acceleration -- something a lot of new cars are programmed to do, creating a somewhat artificial impression of power. I don't know if Toyota resists that trend on purpose, but to me it actually makes sense for something that's supposed to work well off road. Seems to me you want a lot of control over acceleration in those circumstances, with a pedal that is easy to modulate.

And if you need to get to 60 in the 7s? Well then just floor the damn thing. Sheesh.

 

This is what Toyota should do for the next 4R:

1. Give it a tranny with more gears, but just as much durability as the 5AT, in order to eek out a bit more MPG
2. Find some weight savings without reducing durability or capability, also to eek out a bit more MPG. There are probably materials and designs that are lighter than what's currently used for the body and chassis but just as strong. This will put some upward pressure on the price and/or downward pressure on the profit margin, but it can be done.
3. Improve the quality and feel of the interior plastics
4. Develop infotainment software that isn't lame. I mean, this system is about average for the industry, but in today's world average is pretty pathetic. The software design is not at all user friendly. Ask Apple or someone how to do it decently for goodness sake.
5. Nothing else.

Maybe it's just me, but I wouldn't have bought the thing if it was a hybrid or had engine tech like cylinder deactivation or auto stop/start. I don't want electric steering either. The proven old-school nature of the current setup is one of the main reasons to buy a 4R.

For the generation after next I'd love to see an EV drivetrain that retains the BOF, gets at least 400 miles range and charges quickly. That may be a lot to ask, but it's also not that far fetched. In principle this should produce even more reliability -- plus even more effective AWD performance. But I know the odds are that any electric future "4Runner" will be unibody. There are too many advantages from an engineering standpoint. Toyota will probably assume that most buyers won't care.