Looking to start overlanding. Can I do it with my new SR5?

[JoelIII]

My dads old station wagon spent as much time off road while camping when I was a kid then some of these guys now days with the top brands and expensive upgrades...

 

[haruspex84]

Long before I got my trooper, My wife and I traveled from Texas up through the Rockies out to the PNW in a 2005 Hyundai Elantra. Only doing disbursed camping. Know your limitations and go for it.

 

[BigBlueOx_TRD]

Wow If that's the question maybe learn to camp by hiking first. Not to be mean but if your so inexperienced that you have to ask that question you probably need to start small at a city park, or in your backyard and work your way up.

I think that was quite harsh. People come to the forums to seek advice and help from others. Let's be better about steering them in the right direction, instead of tearing them down.
Sometimes people just need the assurance to go do it. I think a lot of the comments have led toward that.
Good luck with your SR5 @Zephons and continue to watch and chat in the forums. You can learn a lot here. Also, welcome to OLB!

Happy Trails!
-BABE

 

[ThundahBeagle]

What you have just bought is the newest model year of the longest-running generation, of one of the best all-around SUV's ever delivered into this earth. In its stock form, you ought to be able to be careful, and get to 90% of the places you want to be. Get a cooler, a sleeping bag and some basic tools in the back. Get your navigation figured out. Start car- camping locally and expand your horizons from there.

You'll be fine

 

[Rctonnie]

I think that was quite harsh. People come to the forums to seek advice and help from others. Let's be better about steering them in the right direction, instead of tearing them down.
Sometimes people just need the assurance to go do it. I think a lot of the comments have led toward that.
Good luck with your SR5 @Zephons and continue to watch and chat in the forums. You can learn a lot here. Also, welcome to OLB!

Happy Trails!
-BABE

Agreed it's quite harsh.

I am quite new to the scene as well and was excited to see your post as a relate to the newness.
I started by taking family camping (wife, toddler, newborn, and lab pup) to our local state parks and public use areas. We are trying to get 'better' at camping in prep for extended journeys and quieter trails. A lot of folks are in a camp of all you need is the air in your lungs and you'll be fine. With a family, I've found that if we don't camp comfortably (and sleep decently), we just are out of sorts for days afterwards. To this end, practicing camping has been really effective, and we are now feeling very confident getting the wagon ready for longer journeys.

 

[BigBlueOx_TRD]

I think that was quite harsh. People come to the forums to seek advice and help from others. Let's be better about steering them in the right direction, instead of tearing them down.
Sometimes people just need the assurance to go do it. I think a lot of the comments have led toward that.
Good luck with your SR5 @Zephons and continue to watch and chat in the forums. You can learn a lot here. Also, welcome to OLB!

Happy Trails!
-BABE

Agreed it's quite harsh.

I am quite new to the scene as well and was excited to see your post as a relate to the newness.
I started by taking family camping (wife, toddler, newborn, and lab pup) to our local state parks and public use areas. We are trying to get 'better' at camping in prep for extended journeys and quieter trails. A lot of folks are in a camp of all you need is the air in your lungs and you'll be fine. With a family, I've found that if we don't camp comfortably (and sleep decently), we just are out of sorts for days afterwards. To this end, practicing camping has been really effective, and we are now feeling very confident getting the wagon ready for longer journeys.

That's great you have found ways to learn and adjust. It's ever evolving, even for a seasoned outdoorsman. Keep going and critiquing your setup. We have found with our daughter being 3, things changed since last year. It's fun though, the change. New things, revamped old things. Change keeps us motivated.

 

[M Rose]

I just bought a brand new 4Runner SR5.

Unfortunately overlanding wasn't something I thought about when purchasing it and I didn't really see the need for all the extra off-roading gear the TRD comes with. All I was looking for is a good family car that can take us normal camping with both our dogs. The SR5 has a better cargo weight capacity than the TRD, which is also a plus.

Now, however, I have become interested in overlanding, but being a complete novice to this type of camping I am not sure what I need vehicle wise. I assume it is highly dependendent on the trails/routes I go on, but I am not sure how many routes are easy enough for an stock SR5.

Do any of you experienced overlanders use a stock SR5, or and SR5 with upgrades? What upgrades do you recommend to make mine overlanding worthy?

Also general advice about getting into overlanding is welcome. I know I shouldn't go alone, and I should pick easy routes until I get more experience, but any other tips are appreciated.

If a used stock 4th Gen Sport can overland, why couldn’t a brand new SR5 overland?

 

[ThundahBeagle]

I just bought a brand new 4Runner SR5.

Unfortunately overlanding wasn't something I thought about when purchasing it and I didn't really see the need for all the extra off-roading gear the TRD comes with. All I was looking for is a good family car that can take us normal camping with both our dogs. The SR5 has a better cargo weight capacity than the TRD, which is also a plus.

Now, however, I have become interested in overlanding, but being a complete novice to this type of camping I am not sure what I need vehicle wise. I assume it is highly dependendent on the trails/routes I go on, but I am not sure how many routes are easy enough for an stock SR5.

Do any of you experienced overlanders use a stock SR5, or and SR5 with upgrades? What upgrades do you recommend to make mine overlanding worthy?

Also general advice about getting into overlanding is welcome. I know I shouldn't go alone, and I should pick easy routes until I get more experience, but any other tips are appreciated.

The reason the SR5 has better cargo weight capacity is because the TRD is more tuned in to off roading. That means that while it may sit higher, the suspension is also probably softer, to help cushion and articulate over bumps, mounds and obstacles. That might seem counter intuitive but Being softer, the suspension can handle less weight before it bottoms out.

A person who is focused on off reading could be doing anything from rock crawling to desert baja runs. They might do that over the course of only a day or a weekend and not need a lot of camping equipment. The equipment they carry would be lighter in comparison to similar "normal" equipment.

None of this means your SR5 is incapable of Overlanding. There is overlap, but there is also a difference between Overlanding and typical "off-roading" and trail riding on difficult trails on purpose.

You'll do fine with it

 

[grubworm]

If a used stock 4th Gen Sport can overland, why couldn’t a brand new SR5 overland?

good point.
i think a lot of questions come from marketing. like i posted earlier, i have an SR5 tundra and after 3 yrs and MANY trips in it, i still dont know the difference between it and the TRD Pro tundra...other than an extra $12K on the sticker. just like jeep markets the RUBICON to be the badass off road jeep...so is my wife's jeep sahara not as good? i bought my first 4x4 back in high school in 1984 and have owned many since and i'm still asking questions when new models and packages come out. for people that are really new to this, it would seem that marketing is trying to sway people to the Rubicon and TRD packages by showing brocheurs of those vehicles going over rocks and logs and out in the desert, etc., causing the potential new purchaser to question if the lesser models are capable for their needs.

i saw a member on here chastise the OP for asking that question, but i'd rather see someone ask than just go buy a high end package vehicle due to marketing and end up wasting money. besides...no need to poo on somebody for asking a question that a lot of the sales people dont even know the answer to...they just read the sticker info to you and then ask how you are going to finance it.

 

[ThundahBeagle]

I think that to date, a lot of American "off road" packages have been marketed around a little bit tougher trail riding or desert running (even while not being really good at it) while not treating Overlanding as "a thing" . Jeep Grand Cherokee has always had an Overland package which was only about an inch higher and not very aggressive tires. The Chevy z71 package has gotten ridiculous in that the softer, higher suspension is there, but that stupid chin strap under the front bumper is in the way, and the optional tires are not aggressive at all.

If real Overlanding ever really catches on here then maybe that changes and there are more offerings. For now its gonna be after market and trial and error

 

[ThundahBeagle]

I always look to buy my GM trucks with the z71 package. But now I need to remove the chin strap and get more aggressive tires, or even level up the front.

 

[grubworm]

The reason the SR5 has better cargo weight capacity is because the TRD is more tuned in to off roading. That means that while it may sit higher, the suspension is also probably softer, to help cushion and articulate over bumps, mounds and obstacles. That might seem counter intuitive but Being softer, the suspension can handle less weight before it bottoms out.

nice. you just answered an age old question for me.
i bought my tundra in 2018 and i asked the sales guy the difference between the SR5 and TRD. he looked at me for a moment and then proceeded to read the sticker info to me and then after he finished reading the sticker to me verbatim, he just stood and stared.
funny...years back when sears was still a thing, i was looking at a washing machine and i asked the sales rep if the drum was stainless or not. he gave me a blank look and then read the sticker to me, which did not mention the drum and then he stared at me after reading. thats why i like forums and product reviews

 

[Staticline40]

I just bought a brand new 4Runner SR5.

Unfortunately overlanding wasn't something I thought about when purchasing it and I didn't really see the need for all the extra off-roading gear the TRD comes with. All I was looking for is a good family car that can take us normal camping with both our dogs. The SR5 has a better cargo weight capacity than the TRD, which is also a plus.

Now, however, I have become interested in overlanding, but being a complete novice to this type of camping I am not sure what I need vehicle wise. I assume it is highly dependendent on the trails/routes I go on, but I am not sure how many routes are easy enough for an stock SR5.

Do any of you experienced overlanders use a stock SR5, or and SR5 with upgrades? What upgrades do you recommend to make mine overlanding worthy?

Also general advice about getting into overlanding is welcome. I know I shouldn't go alone, and I should pick easy routes until I get more experience, but any other tips are appreciated.

Absolutely
You don't need to spend a ton of money, unless you want to, in order to get out there.

 

[ThundahBeagle]

nice. you just answered an age old question for me.
i bought my tundra in 2018 and i asked the sales guy the difference between the SR5 and TRD. he looked at me for a moment and then proceeded to read the sticker info to me and then after he finished reading the sticker to me verbatim, he just stood and stared.
funny...years back when sears was still a thing, i was looking at a washing machine and i asked the sales rep if the drum was stainless or not. he gave me a blank look and then read the sticker to me, which did not mention the drum and then he stared at me after reading. thats why i like forums and product reviews

Wow. Happy I could help. I found this type of info by digging on Silverado/Sierra/GMTruckclub type forums. I wanted to know what all comprised the Z71 package. I KNEW my 1990 was more level with knobby-er tires than my 2014, so I dug into the RPO codes and thier meanings.

I wanted to know what shocks were used then vs now, skid plates then vs now, tires then vs now, etc, and I learned all that about Z71 offroad suspension vs regular suspension along the way. Z71 used to use Bilstein shocks, now its Ranchos, and so on...

Also when I was talking with a distributor called KOLAK on the Jeep forums about how to set up my 99 Grand Cherokee for 2 people a dog, camp gear and 2 kayaks. He steered me in the direction of Bilstein shocks, Iron Rock spings, Crown isolators, etc. Wasnt trying to go large. Just a simple but respectable lift and some clearance.

 

[trail_runn4r]

I just bought a brand new 4Runner SR5.

Unfortunately overlanding wasn't something I thought about when purchasing it and I didn't really see the need for all the extra off-roading gear the TRD comes with. All I was looking for is a good family car that can take us normal camping with both our dogs. The SR5 has a better cargo weight capacity than the TRD, which is also a plus.

Now, however, I have become interested in overlanding, but being a complete novice to this type of camping I am not sure what I need vehicle wise. I assume it is highly dependendent on the trails/routes I go on, but I am not sure how many routes are easy enough for an stock SR5.

Do any of you experienced overlanders use a stock SR5, or and SR5 with upgrades? What upgrades do you recommend to make mine overlanding worthy?

Also general advice about getting into overlanding is welcome. I know I shouldn't go alone, and I should pick easy routes until I get more experience, but any other tips are appreciated.

You will be absolutely fine.

I would recommend to join a rally point in your area so that you can go out with someone more experienced and learn new things.

 

[Alanymarce]

Not sure it helps, however I'm recalling one trip from Zimbabwe into Botswana (when there were no tarred roads except for 50 Km north of the capital), through the Eastern Kalahari, and back, during which I crossed lots of dry river beds, lots of sand, and at one river pulled a pick-up, a wagon, and a Land Rover out of the river then drove across it to continue my trip in a...



... Peugeot 304.

 

[haaken675]

Agreed it's quite harsh.

I am quite new to the scene as well and was excited to see your post as a relate to the newness.
I started by taking family camping (wife, toddler, newborn, and lab pup) to our local state parks and public use areas. We are trying to get 'better' at camping in prep for extended journeys and quieter trails. A lot of folks are in a camp of all you need is the air in your lungs and you'll be fine. With a family, I've found that if we don't camp comfortably (and sleep decently), we just are out of sorts for days afterwards. To this end, practicing camping has been really effective, and we are now feeling very confident getting the wagon ready for longer journeys.

Your not wrong relearning how to camp effectively as a family.....I've been camping all my life, but now with two girls under 2 its a whole new ballgame...Everything from keeping kids happy, sleeping arrangements how to manage cooking if weather turns bad, etc.

 

[Alanymarce]

Your not wrong relearning how to camp effectively as a family.....I've been camping all my life, but now with two girls under 2 its a whole new ballgame...Everything from keeping kids happy, sleeping arrangements how to manage cooking if weather turns bad, etc.

…and so much fun!

 

[wilderness4wd]

The market is crazy right now. Sell your brand new SR5 and then buy a slightly used TRD Offroad or TRD Pro.

Come on... you know you want to ;)

 

[Mojavewanderer]

I’m going out in a stock 1985 4Runner, and it’s not even a SR5, it’s a DLX. On a side note the original meaning of the SR5 option back in the 70’s was Sport Rally 5 speed. It was an option on pickups and celicas.