2014 toyota 4 Runner

2014 Toyota 4 Runner: In a world built for crossovers, the 4Runner is among the last mid-size SUVs to share DNA with a pickup truck. That's terrific for vehicle drivers that need a 5000-lb tow ranking or who spend weekends off-roading; for those accustomed to the smooth ride as well as swanky insides of car-based crossovers, nonetheless, the 4Runner might fall short. Readily available with simply one powertrain-- a 4.0-liter V-6 with 270 hp and 278 lb-ft mated to a five-speed automatic transmission-- this beast is outdated as well as a little slow-moving.

When carbon-dating a cars and truck's age, there are a few alternatives for taking the needed examples. Consider this Toyota 4Runner. You might recognize that it's old since the truck's fundamental structure (spruced up with new styling for the 2010 model year) can be traced to its last full redesign for 2003. Or probably you would certainly notice that its order form does not have also the choice to include increasingly typical safety features such as automated emergency braking, lane-departure warning, or blind-spot surveillance, every one of which are readily available-- mostly as standard devices, also-- on nearly each Toyota.

Instead, the 4Runner has a steering wheel, accelerator and also brake pedals, home windows to see from, four-wheel drive, and also big ground clearance for off-roading. The focus is even narrower with the TRD Off-Road trim degree examined below; the largest update on this model for 2017 is a name change from the previous Trail. Resting simply below the determined TRD Pro as well as over the base SR5 on the 4Runner's efficiency pyramid, the Off-Road does not have the Pro's Bilstein shocks, special springs, and also TRD-branded (Toyota Racing Growth) skid plates and also black-painted wheels. Nevertheless, it's set up to get unclean with a typical electronically locking rear differential, Toyota's Multi-Terrain Select and Crawl Control electronic grip aids, and considerable Dunlop Grand Trek tires.

For an additional $1960, the TRD Off-Road is offered in Costs trim (formerly, this was referred to as the Trail Minimal design), adding common goodies such as a 6.1-inch touchscreen with navigation, faux-leather seat upholstery, warmed pole positions, an auto-dimming rearview mirror, and also TRD text on each front-seat headrest. Our non-Premium version had the $345 Entune Premium Sound and also Navigating bundle, which brings the abovementioned 6.1-inch infomercial system.


2014 Toyota 4 Runner


Engage Your Own 4x4

Extra important to the 4Runner's mission, however, is the TRD Off-Road's part-time four-wheel-drive system, which is turned on via a muscle transfer-case lever as well as requires the transmission be positioned in neutral to switch over in between two-wheel drive as well as four-wheel-drive high or reduced variety. Our test Toyota was additional optioned with the $1750 Kinetic Dynamic Shock Absorber (KDSS), which electronically separates the anti-sway bars to maximize much more wheel expression throughout rocky tours. Going with this technique equipment causes a $750 "Keep it Wild" discount rate, which more than offset our truck's $350 sliding back freight rack that could expand beyond the tailgate opening to alleviate packing and dumping.

All-in, our trail-ready 4Runner pertained to $40,240, rather affordable given the truck's equipment (absent safety equipment notwithstanding) and also the ever-increasing rates seen amongst crossovers and also SUVs. You would certainly need to spend one more $10K to drive off in the basest Land Rover Exploration.

The Toyota's MSRP welcomes comparisons to Jeep's four-door Wrangler Unlimited Rubicon. Both are amongst the decreasing handful of SUVs efficient in leaving the shopping center car park the grassy way, both have 4 doors, both are comparable in size, as well as both price concerning the same when optioned similarly. They have actually both been around for a long while, as well, with the JK-generation Jeep dating to 2007 (however there's an all-new Wrangler coming for 2018). Another difference: The Toyota's roof covering doesn't come off, but its rear home window-- the one in the tailgate-- could withdraw for semi-open-air car ... or to make it much easier to poke one end of a surf board out of the freight hold.

The Toyota's 9.6 inches of ground clearance and 33-degree technique as well as 26-degree departure angles typically aren't as extreme as the Wrangler Unlimited Rubicon's 10.0-inch and also 42.2- and also 32.5-degree dimensions. Still, they allow the 4Runner to scuttle over the sort of challenges that would leave most modern-day crossovers panting as well as begging for mercy. We soiled the 4Runner at a neighborhood off-road park as well as barely taxed its ability. Nevertheless, the Toyota likewise is even more livable compared to the Jeep thanks to its fixed roof, independent front suspension, and also better-appointed (and quieter) interior.

Fine-tuned Is a Family Member Term

Nonetheless, the old-school 4Runner endures a lot of the exact same imperfections as the Jeep. Its standard ladder structure requires the floor up high and also reduces cabin area relative to unibody crossovers. The meaningful tires hum on the freeway and also provide significantly bad grip; we were also able to tweet them throughout not particularly hard braking in website traffic. As well as the solid rear axle blends awkwardly with the independent front suspension, the arrangements supplying roly-poly handling and substantial body dive under stopping. At least trip top quality is typically comfortable.

The guiding has vague on-center action, so you'll invest a lot of effort on lengthy journeys nudging the wheel to and fro. Quiting requires pressing one's foot via a squishy dead zone that covers the majority of the brake pedal's lengthy stroke to the floorboard. Predictably, the TRD Off-Road's 183-foot stopping distance as well as 0.76-g grasp figures are unimpressive, as well as driving it difficult results in disconcerting body lean and also wail from the tires. This is exactly how SUVs utilized to drive.

You'll discover extra cobwebs under the hood, where an old 270-hp 4.0-liter V-6-- no turbos or straight gas shot right here!-- works with a five-speed transmission to move the 4Runner. This average combo labors versus the TRD Off-Road's substantial mass when pressed, however otherwise it fades into the background in regular driving. That ye olde V-6 pushes the Toyota to 60 mph in 7.5 secs is frankly rather excellent, as is the 17-mpg standard we taped during our test, which matches the EPA's city price quote.

Designed to Stay Together

Various other positives? The cargo area is large at 47 cubic feet-- which's simply behind the second-row seats. The control panel is happily uncomplicated and also easy to use, particularly the climate as well as sound controls, both of which have knurled knobs and large switches quickly manipulated by gloved or damp hands. It is organizations more civil inside compared to the Wrangler, at the very least partially because-- unlike the Jeep-- it isn't designed ahead apart (i.e., the doors, roof covering, as well as other little bits aren't detachable). The materials within are at least two generations behind Toyota's zeitgeist, yet they're still okay.

So, much like the normal subjects of carbon-dating examinations, the Toyota 4Runner is a relic, albeit one with a particular niche use for the right customer. This TRD Off-Road model marks a great happy medium in the 4Runner schedule, as well as one could ratchet up the burliness by going with the TRD Pro or down with the even more standard 4Runner SR5 or luxe Limited. In any case, every 4Runner is a throwback to when SUVs existed under the pretense of off-road capability, not as the family-hauling minivan options that they have come to be. With Nissan's discontinuation of the Xterra after 2015, the options for an affordable, four-door four-by-four have actually decreased to, well, the Wrangler Unlimited and also the 4Runner. If you have one-track mind for an SUV of this ilk, the Toyota is the friendlier day-to-day companion.