- Joined
- May 4, 2025
- Threads
- 2
- Messages
- 22
- Reaction score
- 18
- Location
- Tristate area
- Vehicle(s)
- 2025 Toyota 4Runner
- Thread starter
- #1
Took her out for the first long drive after delivery - She performed better than expected in most, but less than amazing in some. Wanted to give a quick take from someone who has never driven a body on frame vehicle before, who aims at potentially utilizing this as a family vehicle in the near future.
Some basic stats/info:
Engine: 2.4-liter turbocharged i-FORCE
Tires: dunlop grandtrek 265/55r20
Wheels: Stock alloy
Gas: 93
Avg MPG: climbed from 16.5 to 19MPG at end of trip when pulling into driveway
Interior Comfort:
Drove from tri-state region down to Virginia with 1 person in passenger seat. The car itself feels extremely solid with very little rattle from any of the finishes, seats, etc. From a comfort perspective, it drove very similarly to a Lexus GX550 that I test drove in the sense that it's high up and the interior feels very premium. The engine is far from lackluster, but also not the same punch/pull as the Lexus engine. The 14" infotainment system and nav performed flawlessly and the only "issue" I had was not having long enough arms to hit the "exit" button on my GPS on the far right top corner and the ability to change music on the far bottom right.
The seats were amazing, provided great support, and overall seating position made the road presence feel amazing.
My biggest interior con was small cupholders and tight cubby spaces. While you shouldn't have issues fitting a regular 16oz water bottle, getting a Yeti bottle or anything similar will be a bit tough. There's 3 cupholders on the side of the door and yet, none of them fit anything I'm bringing.
While I appreciate all of the various nooks and crannies to store things, it also felt a bit tight. I threw my EZpass to the right of the shifter and had a hard time fitting my fingers in to effectively grab it again. Not a huge deal.
Drivetrain:
You have more than enough power to haul ass on the highway and you never feel like you're lacking. The throttle itself feels fairly responsive, but almost TOO responsive and borders moreso along the lines of twitchy. Same feelings with the brakes. They've got more than enough bite, but the pedal itself felt a bit twitchy to me and that could be me being new to the car.
Transmission felt okay for the most part, but the shifts at 1st and 2nd feel clunkier than usual - waiting to see if this corrects itself as I drive, but it's VERY noticeable to me coming from a 2012 MK6 GTI with a DSG. Definitely not as smooth as the Lexus or even a 2012 DSG here.
Suspension:
I think this is probably the largest con of this family-trimmed SUV. While I am able to choose between multiple modes such as Sport, Sport+, Normal and Comfort - the Comfort setting seems to give a mixed back of .. feelings let's say. And again, I am coming from a 2012 hatchback and never drove a body-on-frame vehicle before so take this perspective with a grain of salt.
On many parts of the trip, the adjustable suspension seemed to eat up bumps and cracks like nobody's business. On other parts, it would feel like I'm still in normal or sports mode. I'm very used to feeling every single thing on the road when it comes to driving cars, but I was not prepared for just how much of the road I would feel like a large SUV like the 4runner. The bumps and cracks that I felt weren't jarring by any means. Just don't expect this thing to feel like the same as the Grand Highlander.
People who have driven trucks are familiar with this and accustomed to it so I just wanted to offer a perspective from someone who's a complete noob. I thought the Limited's variable suspension would've been tuned a bit more to soften up the road but oh wells. I still think this is a solid solid ride. I do plan on swapping to ATs later on and perhaps smaller wheels, which may help.
Safety:
I have nothing but raving reviews for the adaptive cruise control and lane keep assist on this vehicle. Perhaps I'm still starstruck coming from an older vehicle, but I pretty much felt 0 fatigue driving this thing for 4 hours to an event and then driving another 4 hours back right after.
Hopefully this game some prospective owners some insight on the Limited trim as I don't see that much info out there about it these days.
Some basic stats/info:
Engine: 2.4-liter turbocharged i-FORCE
Tires: dunlop grandtrek 265/55r20
Wheels: Stock alloy
Gas: 93
Avg MPG: climbed from 16.5 to 19MPG at end of trip when pulling into driveway
Interior Comfort:
Drove from tri-state region down to Virginia with 1 person in passenger seat. The car itself feels extremely solid with very little rattle from any of the finishes, seats, etc. From a comfort perspective, it drove very similarly to a Lexus GX550 that I test drove in the sense that it's high up and the interior feels very premium. The engine is far from lackluster, but also not the same punch/pull as the Lexus engine. The 14" infotainment system and nav performed flawlessly and the only "issue" I had was not having long enough arms to hit the "exit" button on my GPS on the far right top corner and the ability to change music on the far bottom right.
The seats were amazing, provided great support, and overall seating position made the road presence feel amazing.
My biggest interior con was small cupholders and tight cubby spaces. While you shouldn't have issues fitting a regular 16oz water bottle, getting a Yeti bottle or anything similar will be a bit tough. There's 3 cupholders on the side of the door and yet, none of them fit anything I'm bringing.
While I appreciate all of the various nooks and crannies to store things, it also felt a bit tight. I threw my EZpass to the right of the shifter and had a hard time fitting my fingers in to effectively grab it again. Not a huge deal.
Drivetrain:
You have more than enough power to haul ass on the highway and you never feel like you're lacking. The throttle itself feels fairly responsive, but almost TOO responsive and borders moreso along the lines of twitchy. Same feelings with the brakes. They've got more than enough bite, but the pedal itself felt a bit twitchy to me and that could be me being new to the car.
Transmission felt okay for the most part, but the shifts at 1st and 2nd feel clunkier than usual - waiting to see if this corrects itself as I drive, but it's VERY noticeable to me coming from a 2012 MK6 GTI with a DSG. Definitely not as smooth as the Lexus or even a 2012 DSG here.
Suspension:
I think this is probably the largest con of this family-trimmed SUV. While I am able to choose between multiple modes such as Sport, Sport+, Normal and Comfort - the Comfort setting seems to give a mixed back of .. feelings let's say. And again, I am coming from a 2012 hatchback and never drove a body-on-frame vehicle before so take this perspective with a grain of salt.
On many parts of the trip, the adjustable suspension seemed to eat up bumps and cracks like nobody's business. On other parts, it would feel like I'm still in normal or sports mode. I'm very used to feeling every single thing on the road when it comes to driving cars, but I was not prepared for just how much of the road I would feel like a large SUV like the 4runner. The bumps and cracks that I felt weren't jarring by any means. Just don't expect this thing to feel like the same as the Grand Highlander.
People who have driven trucks are familiar with this and accustomed to it so I just wanted to offer a perspective from someone who's a complete noob. I thought the Limited's variable suspension would've been tuned a bit more to soften up the road but oh wells. I still think this is a solid solid ride. I do plan on swapping to ATs later on and perhaps smaller wheels, which may help.
Safety:
I have nothing but raving reviews for the adaptive cruise control and lane keep assist on this vehicle. Perhaps I'm still starstruck coming from an older vehicle, but I pretty much felt 0 fatigue driving this thing for 4 hours to an event and then driving another 4 hours back right after.
Hopefully this game some prospective owners some insight on the Limited trim as I don't see that much info out there about it these days.
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