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-Check the clutch switch, which disengages the cruise when the clutch is depressed. If this has become maladjusted, it should be easy to fix.
-Check to see that your brake lights aren't on for some reason, and that your emergency brake is fully off. Either of these things will cause cruise to disengage, or prevent it from engaging.
Good luck.
-Karl
I personally wouldn't waste my money on anything above that.
Can you please tell me what is not perfect with your truck ? I mean heavy stuff (transmissions, engine, suspension, brakes, steering etc), not just the look (me I think it looks great).
For instance can you ever feel the transmission shudder when it shifts ? In fact can you feel it shifting at all ? When you push harder the gas pedal will it lower the engine power when shifting ? I'm asking because I hate that. Please mention if you have V6 or V8.
Thanks a lot.
Personally, I really liked the two-tone paint on the previous edition and would wait for a '04 if two tone paint was going to be available.
Vibration at idle--My V6 does it a little, some of the time. Quite minor, and I wouldn't have thought anything of it if it hadn't been mentioned here before.
Delicate (=cheap?) headliner material--One of the only places where I think they went with an inferior product. It scuffs too easily, and there were a couple of minor scuffs already when I picked it up new! I'm the only person who's ever driven this one, other than dealership personnel, so I know it hasn't been abused.
Fuel octane to use, and the consequences--This topic has been explained in very good detail here previously. Might I nudge those interested to use the "Search this Discussion" box at the bottom of the page? That search technology is wonderful stuff!
Climate control keeps switching back (in manual mode, anyway) to recirculate setting--I've seen this mentioned a time or two before, but no resolution. Has anybody asked Toyota or the dealer about this one, or should I be the first? I read the owner's manual once, and don't remember this being handled.
Transmission imperfections--There have been some discussions and comments on the behavior and responsiveness of the two different transmissions previously in this thread. I've driven both multiple times, and like the V6 better, though they're both good.
Mileage--Still getting around 20 MPG in mixed driving, with a bias toward highway. Pretty spiffy for a 4200 lb vehicle with 245 HP!
* Limited available in white
* Color keyed cladding standard on SR5
* SE still has gray cladding
* SR5 & Limited have 3rd row seat optional
(excluding Limited with rear air suspension height control)
Thanks to information and recommendations found on this discussion, prior to the trip, ordered and installed a more heavy-duty hitch and got the Weathertech floor mats. Happy with both.
We also got Yakima roof rack additions for the roof rack for transporting bikes, which we'll use for skis in the winter.
Towed beautifully. We previously towed with a '98 Ford 150, and this towed even better.
Drove on the beach (without the trailer)at Long Beach, WA, (can't do that in Long Beach, CA) and the vehicle handled beautifully, even in soft sand. The moonroof was particularly nice for that, as well.
When ordering the car, the navigation was a luxury for me, and I have found it well worth the extra $. Allows you to "see" what the road is doing up ahead, shows how many miles to go and how many hours/minutes to get there. This combined with the "range" indicator of how many miles are left on the tank was very helpful. Also, among other "points of interest",it will indicate grocery stores or gas stations.
The back seat headphones worked great...our son (or me) could listen to CD's or the radio, while front seat listened to something else. Sure you could take along a walkman for the same thing, but this was more fun and less "stuff" to deal with.
My only complaint? As mentioned previously on this forum, the headliner is very easily scuffed. I've already inadvertently put several light marks in it by holding my key in my hand as I put something in the car. Just have to be careful!
Thank you to all who have contributed here. The information has been very helpful.
MY QUESTION: I would like to remove the multitude of warning labels located on the visors, however, they don't seem to just peel off, has someone had succes in removing them?
Although my vehicle is only 2 months old, I have had the opportunity to take it off-road MANY times, and am very impressed with it's handling and capability.
Thanks again for responding?
I think it's already been mentioned here, but I noticed that the Sport Edition photos on the toyota.com site have all been changed to reflect the use of color-keyed cladding.
Read your owners manual about 4LO, you should only use 4LO under 10mph, it is made to get you unstuck, not for longterm driving.
Climate control: I dislike the habit of the system to switch to recirculate mode by itself, even when in manual mode. Reading the manual, it seems that Toyota believes that recirc mode can help initial cooling on a hot day. I don't understand that, since the cabin is much hotter than outside air on sunny days. I don't use auto mode much, BTW, because I think it is a waste of energy and is likely to wear the A/C system more. As far as I understand it, the auto mode uses both the heater and the A/C on warm days, to cool the cabin. Instead of cycling the A/C compressor on and off as more "primitive" vehicles might, it gets the heater and A/C to fight each other to get the ideal temp out of the vents. A rational system, of course, but it's hard for me to be happy with the idea of burning fuel and wearing parts to both heat and cool air at the same time. Unfortunately, my alternative is to set the temp to "Lo" and cycle the A/C on and off manually when it's hot out. Anybody else got ideas on this one?
Cladding: This has got to be a quandry for Toyota, since some people like the gray cladding an it is functional. It's odd that Toyota might keep it on the sport editions (though I guess it is more sporty looking) since it seems to be more of an off-road look and the sport edition (with lower profile tires, XReas and painted mirrors) is slightly more tuned for on-road use. Interestingly, a recent Chevy magazine ad for the Avalanche (which seems to have made excessive grey cladding famous!) emphasizes that you can now get the Avalanche with and without "body hardware" (their term, not mine). Maybe retaining it as an option for the SR5/Sport is the best approach?
Voila. FIXED! My SR5 rides as tight as a drum now with NO rattles from the roof. It's nice to know that this is INDEED a fixable problem. I believe the key is to replace the glass panel itself!
Good luck to those who still have this annoying problem!
My 2¢ on the engine recommendation is to go with the V6, the mileage is better and major reviewers like the writer for the NY Times sited above, recommend it OVER the 8 unless you are towing on a regular basis.
Getting my factory chrome wheels today and plan on just enjoying the new ride!
The SR5 has the color keyed cladding as standard equipment, but mirrors are black. (Several items have been changed to be standard equipment on the SR5; appearance package, black running boards, tonneau cover, fog lamps, privacy glass and weather guard)
No appearance package for the SE; it has the same gray cladding as 2003.
Production on 2004 doesn't start until August, with shipping starting in September. I would look for them in the dealerships after mid September.
I've ordered mine and the estimate is 3-4 months for delivery. (sigh)
Off-topic: I checked your profile. There is a thread in the 'Coupes/Convertible/Sportscars' for old Mustangs. You can probably find some freindly advice regarding restoration in there even though that thread have been pretty quiet for a while.
sacstate1, I don't think I've heard anyone refer to the 17" tires as low-profile, just lowER. For the stock tires, for example, the 265/65-17s are lower profile than the 265/70-16s. For genuinely LOW profile, I did see a Sport model on a dealer lot with 19 or 20 inch rims and 50-series rubber. Not to my taste, but for the dollars they were asking they clearly expected that somebody would like that setup a lot.
I enjoy reading the posts. I have a '03 sports there is talk about this or that one thing or another. Do you real think Toyota cares what 15 or 20 people are posting here when there are thousands of these SUV's on the road???????
If there were hundreds of folks posting here I should think it would be worth there time to looking into these complaints ect. Just a thought
Bob S
Been gone. Loved the cargo net thread..zzzzzzzz.
-----> Strange, I thought that X-REAS and 17-inch Sport rims (you can put off-road tires, can't you?) are MORE suited for off-roading than 4Runners with no X-REAS and 16-inch rims. Am I incorrect? Does anyone have any thoughts on the issue?
I too have a 2200lbs. pop-up trailer and had pulled it until recently with a '96 V6 4Runner. I got around fine with it, but definitely felt it dragging behind. I now have the V8 and can honestly say there is a world of difference. I cannot comment on the new V6 although it must also be a great improvement over what I had before. So finally, I'm not much help!! But I must say, just the sound of the V8 is worth it!!
I was towing a pop-up (Coleman Santa Fe) with a V-6 Highlander last year. It did fine, even over 12,000 foot passes (used premium fuel). I could even pass slow motorhomes with it. This year I am towing it with an '03 V-8 4Runner (using regular fuel). The V-8 definitely feels more powerful than the HL V-6. The biggest difference, though, is that my Runner has rear air suspension. The Highlander sagged in the rear and at night oncoming cars flashed their lights at me. Soon after starting the Runner after hooking up the trailer the air suspension pumps the rearend back up to level--very nice.
I still believe the V-8 is superior for towing, but with that size trailer you really won't have any trouble with the V-6.
I will say that I am slightly disappointed at how often the Runner drops out of OD when towing (even when not). It seems to pull hills very well at slower speeds (40-50) without downshifting, but at 65 or 75, even on slight hills on the Interstate, it drops into 4th and sometimes 3rd. There were times I just turned off OD, as the manual recommends. Wish I could tow my trailer with a V-6 Runner and the 4 speed tranny to see if there is any difference.
I would prefer the V-8 for towing if I were buying one today, but I would also be happy with the V-6. Now, if I were towing 6,000 lbs, I would definitely want the V-8.
Check out the Towing tips for SUVs discussion for some threads about this.
Steve, Host
1) I have heard that premium fuel is recommended for the 4 Runner engines. Is that true?
2) What kind of gas mileage can a conservative driver expect in both city and highway mileage with the V6 vs the V8? I do not trust the sticker estimates...
This is the first time I have used this site and I am very thankful to all of you who have attempted to help me.... Again thanks...
I would think the X-REAS might hamper suspension articulation off road. I haven't tried it, so I couldn't tell you for certain. It does provide a tighter handling ride on the street though.
It just depends on your preference.
Well, I work for Toyota, but as for it being insider info, I doubt that. I ordered a 2004 so I got to see the options list, which should be available to dealerships and other areas. Building starts in 3 weeks and shipping in 7. I don't think it's a big secret or anything.
On the spec sheet I was provided there was no option for color keyed cladding for the SE. It states that it is standard for the SR5 and Limited.
Now there are large Toyota entities, like Southeast Toyota, that modify the vehicles they buy from Toyota Sales, so it may be possible that it will be offered in some areas of the US, but as an option directly from Toyota (at least today)it isn't available. That could change, just like the AP package being offered late '03 MY. Anything can happen, right :-)
Why don't they offer all the options on all the models? I don't know. Seems to me, if I'm willing to wait 4 months for a 4Runner I should be able to get *any* of the options. They all go down the same line. I can understand dealerships sticking to the best selling configurations, though.
Does Toyota watch this (and other) sites? You betcha! Does it have an impact? I would say it depends on how serious it is. If sales are great and they're selling all they're making then probably not. If sales are less than that I guess it would be a judgement call. For '03 there was no 3rd seat, Toyota said they wouldn't offer it, and now it's an option for '04 (uh, but not in the SE).
One final note on the cladding. I saw a brochure for the Hi Lux Surf (Japanese version of the 4Runner). All of the models had color keyed cladding....except the "American" version, which had gray cladding that had been painted with semi-gloss clear coat.
As for the 2004 change back to grey cladding on the Sport Edition-- I hope Toyota reconsiders. I saw photos of the 2003 color-keyed Sport Edition in various colors on a dealer's site and it's much better looking than the grey-cladded models, IMHO. The code was "YU" for the Sport Appearance Package. The Toyota site says that this is standard, not an option.
RE: the overall way Toyota handled the cladding issue -- reverting back to grey-cladding notwithstanding, I'm impressed with the way they handled it. To not only lower the price, but to make the appearance package standard and throw in the running boards and fog lamps means either of two things (or both): Toyota was feeling really generous; or sales of the redesigned 4Runner were running below expectations.
2) I posted the mileage figures I get a few weeks ago. See message 6508. Khaug posted about the same time and gets about the same mileage I do. I drive conservatively, but relatively fast. If you search for mileage in the "search this discussion" box you will find many messages with mileage figures. Just be sure the poster is computing the mileage--the figures given by the vehicle's trip computer are higher than what you are actually getting.