What’s the best 4Runner for overlanding?

Paulo Filho

Paulo Filho

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Paulo
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Hi fam,

I’m trying to get my first rig for overlanding but have no idea if I should get a 4Runner SR5, TRD or TRD Pro.

Any thoughts?

I appreciate it!
 
Well 30 to 40 K is a budget. Where do you want to travel how many people do you have going with you do you want to ranch on your own vehicle or do you wanna buy something it’s ready to go?
 
It will probably never be more than 4-5 people but most times 2-3. I want to build one from scratch by raising 2-3 and putting a tent on top
 
Honestly if you want 4-5 people in a rig with gear look into a full size and stick to moderate trails and just enjoy the experience of being outdoors . You can have just as much fun bobbing down FS roads and ending up at a epic spot with the fam as you will tackling the hardest trails you can find with 1/4 of the drama and much more enjoyment
 
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Considering your budget, I’d get the TRD. It’s well equity, and Toyota’s are indestructible. I had a 1997 4Runner with the factory locker in the back and did 12,000 miles around N. America last year (one third off-road), and the person who has it now it to now just eclipsed 300,000 miles, and she runs perfectly. Now have an FZJ80 Land Cruiser and am as happy as can be.
 
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Paulo Filho said:
Hi fam,

I’m trying to get my first rig for overlanding but have no idea if I should get a 4Runner SR5, TRD or TRD Pro.

Any thoughts?

I appreciate it!
Click to expand...

You want to save some $$$? SR5
Are you planning to add lift? TRD Off Road
If you can spend more and don't want to mess much with it, TRD Pro will be great.
 
Larry Queen said:
Considering your budget, I’d get the TRD. It’s well equity, and Toyota’s are indestructible. I had a 1997 4Runner with the factory locker in the back and did 12,000 miles around N. America last year (one third off-road), and the person who has it now it to now just eclipsed 300,000 miles, and she runs perfectly. Now have an FZJ80 Land Cruiser and am as happy as can be.
Click to expand...

Nice! What did you add to your 4Runner before moving on?
 
Paulo Filho said:
It will probably never be more than 4-5 people but most times 2-3. I want to build one from scratch by raising 2-3 and putting a tent on top
Click to expand...

@Paulo Filho

In my 4th gen 4runner, 2's company but 3's a crowd. You could do 4 if all of you are minimalist backpackers. Same goes for FZJ80. For a 5day Utah overlanding trip with 2 fellow photographers we needed to remove the 3rd row seats and one of the 2nd row seats, then add a canopy, recovery gear, and XXL Thule box to the roof. Everyone was comfortable but the rig was packed.

3rd gen 4runners are a bit narrower than the 4th gen, not sure on the 5th gens.

If 4-5 people are really being considered look at the Sequoia. Much wider, but also much heavier and a smaller aftermarket than the 4Runner. 1st gen Sequoias are a bit smaller than the current models but are still comfortable. (I've done multiple 1-2 week trips in a 2004 with 4 adults, gear, and a Newfoundland dog.) Add some real off road tires and it'll go down most forest roads and carefully selected trails here in CO. Expect some backing up / off camber situations when you pass others on a trail and to get thoroughly pin striped on narrow trails.

If you stay with the 4Runner and want grab and go off the lot convenience than I'd say the TRD Offroad, if you want to upgrade the suspension to your specs SR5 then add the suspension you want. Either way I'd recommend getting the SEMA TRD PRO rims as they are lighter than the stock ones which helps when increasing tire size. (I'm running these 5th gen rims on my 4th gen for this reason.) As an aside: The TRD FOX shocks are commonly upgraded to aftermarket and sold on craigslist around here for $500-$700.

Boort
 
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A box stock FourRunner can do it all. Work out food, refrigeration and go. Asking about what mods you should do is impossible to answer, telling us "Hey I have this problem, how should I fix it?" will get far more productive answers, good tires and go.
 
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They're pretty darn good right off the factory floor. If you plan to do a lot of suspension work, add lockers, etc right away, you might favor an SR5. If you plan to drive it as is for a while, the TRD OffRoad comes with Crawl-Control, A-Trac, rear-locker, and KDSS - together they work pretty well, though I think you drive them a little differently than you would a vehicle with front/rear-lockers and none of the automatic stuff.
 
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the_runn4r said:
You want to save some $$$? SR5
Are you planning to add lift? TRD Off Road
If you can spend more and don't want to mess much with it, TRD Pro will be great.
Click to expand...

What's adding a lift have to do w/ the Off road? You can lift an SR5 just as easy and add a rear locker for what you save over the premium package.
 
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diabetiktaco said:
What's adding a lift have to do w/ the Off road? You can lift an SR5 just as easy and add a rear locker for what you save over the premium package.
Click to expand...

@diabetiktaco
If you want an aftermarket lift sometimes it's better to start with an SR5 and add features than pay for the OffRoad just to remove and sell off the Suspension. Will depend a lot on your dealer/sales person and if they will let you à la carte a configuration or not. When I was considering between a new Tacoma or a 5th gen 4runner It was possible to save about $3000-3500 if you were willing to take SR5 badges/color over TRDOR ones and get the aftermarket suspension with other bells basically equal.

Ended up they got a very low mile 4th gen with V8 traded in while I was talking to them. So I went with the V8 :D and put on the same aftermarket suspension I was going to go with anyway. saved $15k instead.

Boort
 
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Great question. I still have no clue what i want to do with it. I just want something I can use to go off road with the boys. What’s a good starter 4Runner that is easily upgraded-sounds like SR5. Any recommendation of cities or states where I can purchase one for an affordable price?
 
Paulo Filho said:
Great question. I still have no clue what i want to do with it. I just want something I can use to go off road with the boys. What’s a good starter 4Runner that is easily upgraded-sounds like SR5. Any recommendation of cities or states where I can purchase one for an affordable price?
Click to expand...

@Paulo Filho

In my experience Colorado anything 4x4 sells for more than many other places. I was looking in Kansas City, and Northern NM before I lucked into my 4Runner. One dealer called the 5%+ increase the "Rocky Mountain Uplift" That being said My Uncle once got his Dream car Mercedes Convertible in better condition than he could find in either TX or on the East coast and for less than 1/2 the cost. Try looking at New Cars, Used Cars for Sale, Car Reviews and Car News I just checked to see if they still had the over under metric (they do) and saw a 2006 v6 with <11k on the odo in Reno. Good deal or not depends on actual condition and service history but the $25k they are asking is only a little high for here in CO with that mileage.

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Boort
 
The TRD off-road will give you the best platform for a build-a-rig with that budget. Rear locker, crawl control, and a great aftermarket support. Plenty of ideas to help on YouTube when you have a chance.
 
We chose the TRD off road trim so that we got the rear locker, non KDSS because I didn’t want the extra expense since I swapped out suspension anyways. I agree, SR5 is the most cost effective if the locker doesn’t matter to you though. And I have never needed my locker yet... for what that’s worth. Lol
 
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