TRD Pro vs. Trailhunter — Which One's Right for Me?

[matrixkiwi]

Any opinions and advice appreciated. I'm torn between the TRD Pro and the Trailhunter, Both vehicles are equally matched in many ways, so I am splitting hairs.
Also, any advice on getting a good deal? I almost signed up for a PRO, but the monthly payments were $1340, which is crazy. I am planning to move some money around and increase my Credit score to over 720 (currently 680). I was presented with a list of fees and dealer options. Final price with Tax was $82,000. They were offering $4000 of on a TRD Off-Road, but I really want the Pro or TH. I am thinking of ordering with no options and get the dealers agreement not to add anything. Here’s where I stand:
TRD Pro Pros:
Iconic heritage name and likely stronger resale value.
Red interior really look sharp - I plan to buy White exterior and Red interior.
No snorkel—cleaner lines and quieter ride.
I prefer the classic black TRD wheels and would keep them.
Better set up for high speed - I will be touring the back country fire roads, rather than rock crawling.
TRD Pro Cons:
Sunroof can reduce headroom and may leak over time, I plan on doing the Transamerica trail with a rooftop tent.
Trailhunter - Pros:
Comes stock roof rack, onboard air compressor, and robust skid plating
Includes rock rails.
Old Man Emu 2.5-inch shocks with remote reservoirs— I hear the Pro needs to be adjusted manually by climbing under car.
Trailhunter - Cons:
Snorkel introduces cabin noise, especially when accelerating around town, which is 90% of my driving.
Interior is not as nice in my opinion
Slightly less resale “brand cache” compared to TRD Pro.

Question - Do both have acoustic front glass?
Question - Any news on whether there will be any changes for 2026? new color options?

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[Rbaz]

I have the trailhunter and love it. I prefer the styling and felt it fit my needs a little better. If you find the snorkel annoying then go with the pro as it doesn't go away.

 

[RogueWarrior65]

I loved the Trailhunter from the moment I saw it. That said, there's a video on YouTube with some auto journalists test driving both on Hell's Revenge in Moab. They said that the Trailhunter has everything that you'd want to do to a TRD Pro already on it from the factory. Yes, the snorkel noise is annoying but I'm sure there will be an aftermarket mod to address it at some point. Otherwise, I love my Trailhunter. It's such a comfortable ride especially on rough forest service roads.

 

[Bernie]

My choice of the PRO was because it’s really the top of the line. Mudbath beats odd green and the snorkel looks weird, a non-starter for me even before knowing that it makes obnoxious sounds.

 

[charlie w]

Any opinions and advice appreciated. I'm torn between the TRD Pro and the Trailhunter, Both vehicles are equally matched in many ways, so I am splitting hairs.
Also, any advice on getting a good deal? I almost signed up for a PRO, but the monthly payments were $1340, which is crazy. I am planning to move some money around and increase my Credit score to over 720 (currently 680). I was presented with a list of fees and dealer options. Final price with Tax was $82,000. They were offering $4000 of on a TRD Off-Road, but I really want the Pro or TH. I am thinking of ordering with no options and get the dealers agreement not to add anything. Here’s where I stand:
TRD Pro Pros:
Iconic heritage name and likely stronger resale value.
Red interior really look sharp - I plan to buy White exterior and Red interior.
No snorkel—cleaner lines and quieter ride.
I prefer the classic black TRD wheels and would keep them.
Better set up for high speed - I will be touring the back country fire roads, rather than rock crawling.
TRD Pro Cons:
Sunroof can reduce headroom and may leak over time, I plan on doing the Transamerica trail with a rooftop tent.
Trailhunter - Pros:
Comes stock roof rack, onboard air compressor, and robust skid plating
Includes rock rails.
Old Man Emu 2.5-inch shocks with remote reservoirs— I hear the Pro needs to be adjusted manually by climbing under car.
Trailhunter - Cons:
Snorkel introduces cabin noise, especially when accelerating around town, which is 90% of my driving.
Interior is not as nice in my opinion
Slightly less resale “brand cache” compared to TRD Pro.

Question - Do both have acoustic front glass?
Question - Any news on whether there will be any changes for 2026? new color options?

It's not a snorkel, it a remote clean air intake, and it's a deal breaker with all the noise!
Can believe Toyota engineers/designers couldn't see that HUGE issue!

 

[mickeydarmi]

I love my Trailhunter, including the intake noise! It’s been great on the trails, looks amazing, is very comfortable, and I think will end up having a higher resale than the Pro

 

[Zenyx]

I love my Trailhunter as well. The intake noise doesn't bother me. I barely notice it anymore and you'll only hear it during city driving when getting on it a bit anyway.

I went with it over the Pro because the suspension is tuned more to the type of activities I do like forest service roads, overlanding, etc. The Pro is made for baja so the suspension is different and made for higher speed desert driving.

 

[coloradomarmot]

I was looking at an Everest Trailhunter, and then found a Mudbath pro that wasn’t allocated…jumped at the chance, and glad I did. It’s always been my favorite color, and I truly love it…my dream vehicle, and one I expect to drive for 10+ years.

As far as usability off-road, I don’t air down and up, or do the manual adjustment to the pro’s suspension either for what I do. I’ve had it up class 4 and 5 (which is as much as I’m interested in doing), and it took those up and down with ease. The class 2/3 that I did today, basically the forest roads like you describe, it didn’t even really notice. DAC and crawl are flat out amazing, and MTS just makes it seamless (do put it in dirt vs auto fwiw, it makes a difference). On the class 4, when we took a ’detour’ I hadn’t fully planned out (that’s where the class 5 came in), it navigated down a steep very windy tight trail better than I could have hoped. I saw a lot of chunks out of trees where people had slid into them, and the pro just tiptoed down the hill with DAC perfectly (couple of times I wish I’d had a chainsaw, but other than some Colorado pinstripes on the plastic fender guards, it was surprisingly nimble).

Now, if you’re going to do serious rock climbing, maybe the TH would be better, but I think you’ll find that the difference is a matter of minor degrees rather than major capabilities. I am considering adding more armor underneath (basically adding the TH plates), installed RCI rock rails and just ordered rally armor flexible mud guards, but is that needed? Maybe, maybe not. The rails are there as much for my short wife as protection (the pro sits *tall*), but the flaps I think will be a really good add given the mud bath my mud bath got today. The armor would be just paranoia.

On the sunroof, my wife had a 98 limited for nearly 20 years and it never leaked, so I wouldn’t worry about that. As far as interior height, the hood is really high (I think it’s the one big design flaw), and I lift the seat up so I can see over it. I’m 5’9 and still have plenty of head room (and having the seat auto move to get in/out makes it easy).

Can’t speak to the TH air intake, but that did give me a bit of pause when I was shopping too - I do a lot of highway driving. The pro is so quiet (compared to my 5th gen) that I caught myself doing ‘back to the future speed’ without realizing it the other day….at 2500 RPM.

Honestly, I think either one would be perfect for what you want to do - more a matter of availability and price than anything else.

Make sure you post back - and pics, when you get your new baby!

 

[TRD Pro or Die Trying]

Both trims are awesome and plenty capable of most everything you want to do 'out of the box'.

When you look at a picture of the Pro and the Trailhunter side by side, because you still probably won't find one of each at a dealership still, I believe in your gut you will lean towards one over the other.

For me personally, I prefer the TRD Pro wheels over the Trailhunter's. I prefer the look of the Pro compared to the snorkel. I like the look of the red Fox shocks over the Trailhunter's. I like the red trim on the interior over the Trailhunter's. But, you'll find just as many people that like the snorkel and the bronze wheels of the Trailhunter, and the Old Man Emu suspension of the Trailhunter, etc... Can't go wrong with either trim, or any 4Runner trim for that matter.

I believe most people that look at the two side by side will immediately, within a few seconds, just like the look of one of them over the other. What did your gut say when you see them side by side? Get that one, because both of them are plenty able to do anything you want with it on and off road. Just my two cents.

 

[TMooney]

I was also debating between these two. I went with the PRO. I added factory ARB roof rack and swapped out the predator steps for rock rails. Love this combo. The PRO driver/passenger windows are double layered laminated and keep road noise to a minimum. For me, the pros of the trailhunter didn't outweigh those of the PRO, I also really wanted the mudbath color after seeing it in person. Almost 2K miles in and super happy with my decision.

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