Can someone give me a quick education?

[Hisgirl]

all prices mentioned are going to be before discounts

1. generally gas more than enough for most daily use
2. hybrid is nice for extra power (mostly for getting a pulled loaded trailer/camper moving primarily)
3. hybrid has its niche use in off roading but for hunting trails gas is probably more than enough
4. if this is your first 4R, i would stick with gas and maybe later on after you used the gas, then you can decide if the hybrid is worth the extra cost
5. comfort wise and quality of life features, stay out of the SR5 trims, go with either of the premium trims (TRD Off Road or Sport)
6. since he goes hunting, the trim most likely suited is the TRD Off Road Premium
7. if price point is a major concern, you can get into a SR5 between 44-50k before discounts (you will have to find a decent dealer to get some decent % off MSRP), the TRD Off Road Prem is going to be around 55k and the Sport Premium is going to be around 56k
8. TRD Off Road is probably going to be better suited for hunting trails and some off roading, moreseo than the Sport trim which is geared more toward city duty than off roading
9. dont get the predator steps, they will get ripped off off roading pretty easily and attract dirt/mud pretty easily and it cakes on the leading edge of them badly
10. go with a basic running board or aftermarket boards, they work better for getting in/out for those with back issues
11. vehicle is great for 1-2 people, the 2nd row opeation is much to be desired, but for short stints its ok (dont get 3rd row unless you only have small kids for the long term, there is no room for adults or tall kids)
12. just be mindful of the back issue, this is a BoF suv so if they have issue with jarring rides at times, it could aggravate a bad back (depending on the severity) and depending on the person(s), the ride it not exactly smooth soft vs other vehicles. it has improved over the 5th gen 4Runner, but make no qualms its a truck based suv vs most others being uni-body with nicer riding suspensions
13. make sure you drive one and if you can over a weekend or extended period. i have seen some people love the idea of a 4Runner but then after a while, cant stand the vehicle because of this or that
14. personally i've had a 1997, 2004, 2014 and now a 2025. i know how they are and i've bought the last two sight unseen because i care about the mechanical features more than anything else. i know what i am getting and i expect the quirks about a 4Runner that you have vs more uni-body type suv's. its a truck first and a comfort 2nd even though i have a platinum, its still rugged in day to day use than 90% of suv's and i can live with that for what i need out of the vehicle.

good luck in your journey.

Thank you for all this!

Sponsored

 

[Hisgirl]

Okay, so we went to a dealer to see how they drove.
He first drove an off road premium. Took it out on the highway.
Then he drove the hybrid, same model and saw the extra HP.

The first one was a color we were not a fan of. The second was better, but gosh darn, I wish we could compare all the colors side by side. We just hate going into a dealer and wasting their time, ya know?
I like to pin point what I want and do the dickering via text or email.

So he kicked those tires and thinks the non hybrid is fine. So now we need to do a deeper dive on inventory, color and prices. We live in a big city area where they just don't do deals. I typically fly up to 800 miles away and drive it home to save $5K.

 

[Darkchief22]

He's about 5'10ish after some shrinkage from back stuff.
For pulling it's no longer a 16' trailer filled with horses but a small trailer with his ATV only.
Thank you for your response!

Reading some of the other responses, see how comfortable he is with opening and closing the rear hatch. Powered rear hatch is only on the premium versions but they make aftermarket kits if your dream vehicle turns out to be non premium

 

[HVLA]

Okay, so we went to a dealer to see how they drove.
He first drove an off road premium. Took it out on the highway.
Then he drove the hybrid, same model and saw the extra HP.

The first one was a color we were not a fan of. The second was better, but gosh darn, I wish we could compare all the colors side by side. We just hate going into a dealer and wasting their time, ya know?
I like to pin point what I want and do the dickering via text or email.

So he kicked those tires and thinks the non hybrid is fine. So now we need to do a deeper dive on inventory, color and prices. We live in a big city area where they just don't do deals. I typically fly up to 800 miles away and drive it home to save $5K.

I drive out of state for all my vehicles.

 

[rogueclimber]

So now we need to do a deeper dive on inventory, color and prices.

This allocation thread allowed me to find the 4Runner I wanted and I only had to drive 6 hours!

https://www.4runner6g.com/forum/thr...vin-eta-ship-status-dealers-hold-status.2707/

 

[Joe Dirt]

For my two cents I would first make the decision if you want hybrid or petrol.

Hybrid is heavy and has minimal give back in the mpg. But has a lot more torque for Pulling.

Petro is petro and less torque.

For most people a TRD OR is sufficient. For my money I wanted ventilated seats and a 14 inch screen as well as a sunroof for the cool Autumn Redwood Coastal California Drives.

TRD OR
TRD ORP

TRD PRO ( hybrid only)
Trail Hunter ( hybrid only)

So you have to make a decision on hybrid or petrol and that will set you on the right path.

Just my two cents.

 

[Rushi]

Get the non hybrid for sure. The hybrid just weighs more and takes up trunk space. If you want more power on the non hybrid just use 91/93 octane. You will get 20hp more.

 

[bakutheleo]

Great responses. I decided on the Off Road Premium (ORP) Hybrid. Originally I was going to save the $$ by not going premium, but the more I looked at those extra features, the more it made sense. I am very happy with that decision. I do some off-roading, but not rock crawling (I am more interested in being there, not getting there). I did add better skid plates afterwards, although that was mostly as they had a huge sale so I got them fairly cheap (OEM ones with aluminum front plate for a total of around $700; steel front would have been a little less). Lots of rocks out here in the deserts in the southwest, so probably more important than some areas. Beyond that the only additions I have made were a couple inexpensive ditch lights. The OEM roof rack and cross bars came with it; I did want those and have used them several times. Mine also came with the OEM aux switches which I wanted as well--the ditch lights are connected to one of those. There are nice aftermarket switches though (search this forum) so they are not critical, although apparently adding the OEM ones also add an alternator (again, search this forum; that has been talked about a lot). Mine also came with the sun roof. I did not necessarily want to pay for that, but did not object. It does take a few inches of roof height away where it is. I use it when I can and it is enjoyable.

Hybrid: This is where I went back and forth a bit. I liked the idea of a bit better mileage (I was also strongly considering a Ford Bronco, which in many ways I liked--but it gets horrific fuel mileage and that was a big deal as I am on-road most of the time). Folks say the mileage is not much different--basically true I suppose, but probably at least 5%. Adds up. I did test drive the non-hybrid although did not do a side-by-side comparison. However, I can say the hybrid has lots of oomph...actually makes it pretty fun to drive. I have only towed a small utility trailer so far, probably total maybe 1500# loaded--did not even feel it. May do bigger stuff later where I am sure the hybrid will help a lot. That all said, my biggest sticking point--as others have mentioned--is the hit in cargo storage space. You lose around 6-8" of height. There are a couple storage compartments--maybe 9" or so front to back each--so that helps a bit. But getting a folding table in--too wide to put in vertically. I have very large dogs (one I had until recently was around 200#) and they manage fine--although I do get an unusual amount of fur stuck to the ceiling ;-). I came from an old Sienna--way more room in that. But the 4R is way more fun and capable!

Personally I would not go for the Pro or Trailhunter. If you really do heavy-duty off-road I would probably not say that, but sounds like that is not the case. From what I have seen here they seem to get comparatively poor fuel mileage, and the snorkel noise on the Trailhunter gets a lot of complaints. MPG is weird though--people here with the same model as mine often get a lot lower MPG than I do (I average around 23.5 overall) and I do not know why.

Sponsored