Toyota 4Runner

arouth · October 2003

Hello, I am in the market for a 2004 sport 4runner and I will only buy with the side airbags. However, unfortunately in 2003 they did not build SR5s or Sports with them. The few 2004's that I have found don't seem any different. Does anyone know anyone about this?
I hope they do decide to put side curtain airbags on models besides the Limited, b/c I don't want to special order.

Thanks

oscarz2 · October 2003

Superstition Springs Toyota (Mesa, AZ).
1-866-420-3000. Dean (Service Mgr).

By the way, before I got this fixed...I called a few other dealers and got different answers as well. They're not all on the same page.

Consequently, I copied pages out of the manual regarding ABS, VSC, Traction Control, etc. I also highlighted, drew arrows, and wrote comments to eliminate any confusion as to what I was describing and what I was not.

The manual is vague and confusing regarding buzzers, warnings, etc. But if you study it carefully, the conclusion is that it's not normal every 3-5 times you brake.

This new 4runner is awesome but Toyota engineers have some problems to solve.

chris_in_boise · October 2003

FWIW, I have a 2003 Sport with the side airbags. They do exist!

I bought it in early January. Maybe they're not loading 'em up with as many options now.

mgabel2 · October 2003

None of the 2004 (and 2003's that I've found) Sports in my region (Central Atlantic) have side air bags. I'm going to special order, once I decide between the v8 and the v6. I've also looked in other regions and found the same thing.

nwroller · October 2003

I am looking to buy a 4runner in the next month or so. I am still debating on whether to get the NAV system or not. If I dont go with the NAV setup I will probably get the JBL 10 speaker 6-disk setup.

For those of you that have the navigation system, do you like it? Was it worth the extra money?

Thanks

jcliffro · October 2003

I wrote each of the dealers in New Orleans and Baton Rouge and asked why none of the 4-Runners listed in inventory have side airbags (in late September, there were 30 2004 SR-5s and Sports shown in inventory and none had the airbags; no Limiteds were shown in inventory). Only one dealer answered me and his only response was "to get exactly what you want, you will have to place a special order." Something tells me Toyota must be discouraging these side airbags. I can think of no other logical explanation when it seems.

Arouth, I hope you change your mind and DO special order, which is what I plan to do too. The more people that hold firm and demand side air bags, the sooner Toyota will equip more models in inventory with them or eventually make them standard. So do the world a favor and special order to get exactly what you want.

kheintz1 · October 2003

Nav. system? Fantastic! Get it, learn it, use it, and you'll fall in love.

arouth · October 2003

Hello,
Just wondering if there were any good websites for the 4runner. Besides the obvious....here, and toyota.com.

A good example of what i'm looking for in a site for the F-150. Its called F150online.com and has all sorts of info. It would be very helpful if i could find a site like that for the 4runner.

thanks

tidester · October 2003

Just wondering if there were any good websites for the 4runner.

Yes, you're here! :-)

Actually, we don't discuss and promote other websites on the Town Hall boards. If you must, do a search on Google.

tidester, host

rsholland · October 2003

It would have been better if Toyota had designed a real step bumper, like those found on pickup trucks and many other SUVs.

Bob

forestergump · October 2003

I am also insisting that my next vehicle has side air bags. Here in the Chicago area, the 4Runner inventories are still pretty low, and don't seem to include any models other than Limited with them. If I do decide to get a 4Runner, I will either special order one locally, or go out to Denver to visit a friend, and try to pick one up there. For some reason, the Denver area seems to have a larger inventory and includes models with side air bags. Go figure. Anyway, I figure if I do buy in Denver, than I can also take care of my break-in miles on the way home to Chicago.

nwroller · October 2003

Does anyone know if you can special order a Sport with a NAV system? I plan to do a special order since the Sport models are so limited here in the northwest, so I'm wondering if I could get a NAV of it.

Thanks!

corancher · October 2003

arouth, I had the same question when I was considering this (and other) vehicles for purchase. I think you've already found the best general 4Runner site here at edmunds.com.

Some vehicle models happen to have an independent enthusiast site (my previous car did, and there was little written about it here), but not the 4Runner, as far as I know.

bryancos · October 2003

Tidester,
Can you explain why the "powers that be" have such heartburn over the mere mention of other sites? Isn't the true purpose of these forums to SHARE INFORMATION, even if some of that data is located at another source. I don't think we view them as "competing sites" to this great forum -- they're "alternative sources of supplemental information". Many of these alternative sources gladly make mention of the Edmunds forums. I think we should distinguish between "PROMOTING a site" vs. "MENTIONING one"... Why can't you all get along?

And without stepping on Edmund's toes or violating policy, here's a search tip: You can generally find specialty auto sites on google by entering the vehicle model and .com, .org, or .net in the search window.

stever · October 2003

From our form letter:

One of the Town Hall goals is to provide member-generated content, i.e., a place for members to ask and answer questions. It is not our goal to be the yellow pages of where else to go to get your questions answered.

When someone posts a link and/or encourages members to visit another message board outside of the Town Hall, it deprives Edmunds.com an opportunity to have the questions/answers that will build our knowledge base. It is a member-generated content opportunity lost. Therefore, the other message board is considered a competing site.

When the policy of not allowing links to sites with competing forums was instituted, we did try a liberal approach: no links to the forums directly, but a link to a site could be made so long as the post was pointing to an article or piece of non-forum information that directly answered the users question. However, we found that in certain vehicle discussions this became of game of how many times a URL to the site could be put in a post. Members would post the URL in their signature on every post or answer any question with "you can find the answer at URL and then post the answer to the question in the competing forum and link to it versus posting the answer in Town Hall. Certain individuals were the "owners" of the competing forums/sites and had the opportunity to gain financially from the "free advertising" in Town Hall. This became a problem and has forced us into the corner of being black-and-white. We now have to subject all discussions and members to the same strict policy instead of allowing a more liberal application. However, we still hold the right to delete (or leave) a message based on each message/context/situation.

Steve, Host

terrafirma · October 2003

There are a couple other fantastic 4Runner only forums but you need to do a google to find them.
One is more off-road oriented, the other is more general. Both have a wealth of info. Town Hall is really good too so you already found one of the best.
moderator, I dont think this is breaking the rules to give a hint: One is a .com the other is a .org

stever · October 2003

lol, you're stretching it Terra ...

Basically what happened was a few ruined it for the rest by taking advantage of our free boards. Sending eyeballs elsewhere doesn't help pay our bills, and running Town Hall isn't all that cheap. You wouldn't believe how blatant some of the posts (ads really) were.

I don't remember seeing sales figures posted recently but Sept. results are out:

Best-Ever Third Quarter (Yahoo)

Steve, Host

claymore1 · October 2003

I know other people (including myself) who have inquired about the option to have NAV system and side air bags installed in the 2004 4Runner Sport.. I have sent e-mail to Toyota Corporate through toyota.com website (had to go through about 15 different web pages to get to it). They have sent their generic reply as well as what looks like personal replies. Perhaps all of us who are NOT interested in the Limited but would be interested in paying extra for these options can let them know about this. They appeared to listen to all the anti-cladding e-mail several of us sent before. I plan to ask them again ...and again.. or try 1-800-go-toyota.

s852 · October 2003

The dealers just don't order many except for Limited models. You can special order it.
It might be nice to have navigation available as an option on the Sport models though.
Since navigation is so expensive (and many are buying the Sport to save money over the Limited) and the navigation is not that popular anyway, the dealers probably woould never have them in stock, but it would be great if it could be special ordered for those willing to wait.
On the other hand, if you don't get the same types of discounts and dealer incentives on factory-ordered models, you might as well just take a discounted Limited from dealer stock.
It would also be nice if the 5 speed automatic came with the V6 since the V6 probably needs the extra gears and closer ratios more than the V8.

jcliffro · October 2003

I agree totally on more side airbags on SR-5s and Sports. It ticks me off that if and when rebates are offered on 2004 models, those will only be on dealer inventory models and none of those, as things now stand, are likely to have side airbags. So if you think emailing them is best, I will do that. If you think calling the 800 number is best, I will do that. Also willing to do both. The point made about the gray cladding was well taken, but I also have a feeling a lot of people were passing over 4-Runners so attired; I don't know if there are enough of us who are going to refuse to buy one without the airbags. I for one won't, but don't know about the masses. But I am glad you are undertaking this effort.

arouth · October 2003

Thanks for the advice on the side airbags guys.

Another question. Ok, the sport and SR5 are going to run like $30,000. Why in the world won't they put a power driver's seat on those models. Like the airbags, that is only on the Limited model.

Can I have a power driver's seat put in if I special order and if not is there a aftermarket thing I can do withouth tearing up the seats?

thanks for the advice. This forum and website is great. I'm going to save thousands just from this site.

bcmalibu99ls · October 2003

Steve, did you notice that all Lexus passenger vehicles are suffering serious losses year-to-date, and the same could be said about all Toyota passenger vehicles except for Corolla. Do we see people selling their beloved Lexus to get a Corolla???

stever · October 2003

SUVs rule :-)

Steve, Host

jcliffro · October 2003

I do not believe you can special order a power seat on SR-5 or Sport models, although a power lumbar adjuster is standard on all models. So just go ahead and special order your SR-5 or Sport with the side air bags/curtains and look at the bright side with regard to the manual seats....you will be getting a nice calf, hamstring and glute workout each time you adjust the seat, all courtesy of Toyota.

bcmalibu99ls · October 2003

What would the owners say about the power lumbar? Does it make a real difference in the seat's comfort?

Also, Toyota's website claims the following MPG for 4Runner:

V6: 21 city, 26 highway
V8: 18 city, 25 highway

Could anyone tell us if these numbers are too high or just right? From what I've read so far, the numbers seem to be somewhat high.

jcliffro · October 2003

We must be looking at different Toyota websites. When I go to the Toyota.com website and click on 2004 4-Runner, I see the following MPG estimates:
2WD V-6 18/21 MPG
4WD V-6 17/21 MPG
2WD V-8 16/20 MPG
4WD V-8 15/19 MPG

hotdogonastick · October 2003

i got my V8 4x4 sport 2 weeks ago. so far (break-in period)hwy = 22 mpg and city = 16-17 mpg. although i have been driving very conservatively. we'll see what happens when i start driving normally.

bcmalibu99ls · October 2003

Could it be that 4Runners sold in Canada have better MPG than those in USA? Weird

Here's the link, scroll down to FUEL ECONOMY L/100 Km (mi/gal.)

http://www.toyota.ca/cgi-bin/WebObjects/WWW.woa/11/wo/Home.Vehicl- - es.Go.4Runner-ChWYlct7OnbFyzm4sHzMkw/5.11?v122040e%2ehtml

amheck · October 2003

Gave the dealer $500 deposit today. Had them look for a Black (wish me luck) 2004 Limited 4x2 V8 with X-REAS, side/curtain airbags, sunroof and JBL. This seems to be a fairly common selection of options, but believe it or not, the dealer cannot find a black one anywhere. Their comment was that there seems to be plenty of the light colors (white, gold, titanium) but none of the dark ones. She won't really know more supposidly until next Thursday's allocation. Who knows, if it takes too long, we might just go for the Gold.

I think we got a very good price. Got it for $300 over invoice (they are calling it sold at invoice plus a $299 dealer fee) but I guess that's pretty fair.

For anyone wondering about the V6 vs V8, all I can say is drive them both. I had pretty much decided on the V6 and never considered the V8 as I don't go off-road or have anything to tow, but from reading some of the past comments, I went back to the dealer this past week and drove both and was pretty happy with the V8. For me, I think it will just be more fun to drive, not a necessity. But you really have to drive them both to see your personal take on it.

Anyway, thanks to the group and we'll let you know how it all works out! Here's to getting a trouble free (brake pedal vibration, sunroof rattle, etc) truck!

Aaron

nedzel · October 2003

Sorry, but I'm skeptical. I'm getting 17 - 18.5 mpg, with half of that being highway, going 70-75 mph.

great4runner · October 2003

I have about 5000 miles on my V6 SE, I avarage about 20 to 20.5 mpg on my daily driving. Mostly highway, some city and some stop and go trafic. The computer shows 21.5 or so. When I drive her hard she drops down to 17 to 18 mpg easy. bcmalibu99ls, I would imagine it is a typo on toyota.ca web site.

stever · October 2003

Well, it's Canada. Must be Imperial gallons, eh?

Maybe Tides can do the math for us and convert the numbers to US gallonage.

Steve, Host

bcmalibu99ls · October 2003

V6: 17.17 MPG/city, 21.98 MPG/hwy
V8: 15.17 MPG/city, 20.45 MPG/hwy

Here's a site with a nifty converter tool:

http://www.teaching-english-in-japan.net/conversion/litres_per_10- 0k

(how ironic, teaching English in JAPAN!)

So, it looks like Toyota indeed uses "imperial" gallons when showing these incredible 25 and 26 MPG numbers on its Canadian site. Which smells of a huge stinky rat, since no one in Canada (at least no one I know of) even thinks in terms of imperial gallons, since we constantly watch the price of fuel across the border, then convert it to our litres, and in the states it's US gallons, not imperial. Shame on Toyota!

bcmalibu99ls · October 2003

check this converter tool out. Type in US gallons MPG from my previous post, and you'll see the UK gallons number. Booooooo!!!

http://www.teaching-english-in-japan.net/conversion/miles_per_gal- lon

jagsdad · October 2003

Aaron:

You said your dealer is "looking" for your truck but told you they are having trouble finding it in black. What region are you in? In Calif and Nevada you cannot find a 2WD Ltd with XREAS in any color. There are only a few Ltd's with XREAS, and those are 4WD and also have the rear air suspension. I'm concerned your dealer may be misleading you. Are you sure they are not placing a build order for you? If so, expect to wait about 4 months. And by the way, if that is the case, I'd say the wait is worth it. I'm curious to see if they try to talk you in to a different option package after they are not able to find what you wanted. I would not wait too long for them to "find" the truck you want. You could be wasting time and may have to eventually put in a build order. Keep us updated. Good luck.

Brian

hotdogonastick · October 2003

yes... on the 5 fwy coming and going back to san diego i averaged 22 mpg best going 65 mph - light traffic, fwy miles only. i'm also in the break in period so i don't drive it aggressively. i havent kept it at the constant 65 - slowed down to 55 then gradually accelerated back to 65. on the city when i first got it - i got 11.7 mpg (that i forgot to mention). my friend suggested to me to be patient and break it in slowly...but on average it's on par with factory specs.

hotelseven · October 2003

Hey there. Just a quick question. I have a 2003 Sport with under 10,000km on it. All of a sudden it has started to shake really bad when I hit speeds over 110km/h. It doesn't seem to be pulling to either side and I havent hit anything. Does anyone know why this would be happening? I can feel the gas pedal shake, and the whole floor area (feels like something wiht the tires???).

Any feedback would be appreciated.

tidester · October 2003

To convert from Miles per Gallon [British] to Miles per Gallon [US] divide by 1.2

tidester, host

amheck · October 2003

Jagsdad,

No, I am pretty sure my dealer is not going to special order. In fact, I don't know that'd we wait for the truck if that were the case.

There seem to be quite a few Limiteds listed on buyatoyota.com with X-REAS. We are in the Southeast (FL actually) and I just found this truck this am.
http://setbuyatoyota.com/inventory/monroney.asp?recno=25445&m- - - odel=8678&dealer_name=Stadium+Toyota%2C+Inc%2E&phone=813%- - - 2D872%2D4881&dealer_code=09154&msrptotal=38738&vehicl- - - e_price=38738

How the dealer said it would work was that once she had the $500 deposit, she'd take this request to her district manager who has more "pull" with the allocation process. Every other Thursday the dealers can find out what's now available and start tracking that particular truck. So hopefully they can put in the request this week and find a truck by next Thursday. If not in black, then we have some thinking to do. I don't know if we want to wait for a special order. We'd either get the truck above in Dorado Gold or look for another vehicle, maybe the Honda Pilot or something. Since I do 0% offroading, I'm sure that would be just fine for a family car, too.

Bottom line, no, no problem finding a Limited 2WD with X-REAS here. Just a problem finding them in the color I want.

The only REAL problem I've really found with the "stock" Limiteds is that you either have to get the 3rd row or sunroof, neither of which I want. So in lieu of special ordering, I chose the lesser of 2 evils, the sunroof, as cargo space is more important to me and while I would appeciate the extra 3" headroom, having the sunroof didn't particular bother me.

Aaron

bcmalibu99ls · October 2003

From 4Runner specs it looks like the sunroof eats up 1.7 inches, not 3. Still, could be important for someone tall

rsholland · October 2003

steve_ Oct 3, 2003 1:47pm

Will all due respect, that just a bunch of $%#@. Regulars here at Edmunds laugh at this policy, because it is so silly -- and so petty. If it is intended to keep people from visiting other sites, it is an utter failure. When will Edmunds ever realize that?

I have read posts on other sites from people who have complained at great length about this Edmunds policy. If it's intended effect was to make Edmunds a better more respected site, it has had just the opposite effect. Really all Edmunds has done, is shoot themselves in the foot...

Oh well, I'm tired of complaining about it, back to our regularly scheduled program...

Bob

nedzel · October 2003

First thing I'd do would be to have the tires balanced at a top-notch tire shop. You might have thrown a wheel weight.

rogers12 · October 2003

Or a tire might have gone south and slipped a belt. This is potentially very dangerous. See if either of your front tires looks strange from any angle (bulge or out of round, etc.) Even if they look ok, this might still be the problem. Drive it carefully until you can get this looked at.

rensho · October 2003

This site is the only site with this policy. I don't visit the entire web, but i do read 10-20 forums, and Edmunds is a standout in this area.

Just FYI.

stever · October 2003

We standout in lots of areas!

If y'all want to continue this off-topic thread, you could try Ask the Town Hall Hosts, but first look at the thread around #1491 in there.

Steve, Host

stephend2 · October 2003

If you look closely you will see on the toyota.ca site it shows all vehicles and the mpg using Canadian/imperial gallons and also the liters per 100 km which is actually a better tool as far as estimating your fuel use. The toyota.com site would of course use the US gallon which is only 4/5 th's of the imperial gallon. My 01 sequoia had a fuel consumption gauge which could flip back between metric and US gallons. I got tired of doing the 4/5 th's conversion so often I finally got my head around the Liters per 100 km. Now I use that exclusively and find it much better for comparison in real cost of fuel for any given trip . Now my 03 4runner has only that calculation and It seems just fine. It just takes time getting use to metric.
Ps. A 03 4 runner sport V8 with 35lbs in tires uses 10.7 liters per 100 kms. at 110 km per hour. Or 21 us gallons per hour at 70 mph or 26.4 miles per imperial gallon at 110 km /70 mph. Also note it was at 15000 k or 9000 miles when it felt really broken in and began to deliver better gas milage.

Cheers steve

jagsdad · October 2003

Aaron:

Good for you. I gave have a dozen dealers in Calif the chance to sell me a 2WD 4Runner with XREAS and airbags. I would have taken either a Sport or Ltd. No dealer out here could find one. My special order should come in soon. Best of luck with yours. Let us know what you get and how it works out for you.

Brian

vodgut · October 2003

I know there have been a lot of posts about this, but...

during the break-in period, I tracked highway mileage most closely. It was about 16mpg. (US). Since then, after the break in, I've gotten 15/16 or so in the city, 18/19 on the highway. This is using regular grade gas. I have a Limited V8 4WD.

And as far as X-REAS availability on the Limited, it varies by region. I think when I was shopping all of them around here had it. I'm glad I got it, the truck handles very well.

tidester · October 2003

This site is the only site with this policy.

Can we put this one to rest once and for all?

A majority of commercial sites have similar or nearly identical restrictions on the posting of messsages.

Here's one from Car Central's Terms of Use:

You agree that when using our services you will not: ... Advertise or promote businesses or services that compete against Car Central.

Audi World is a bit less specific but the meaning is clear:

You agree, through your use of the Discussion Forums, not to post advertising of any kind in the Forums whether you are a private party or company.

Others, such as about.com's automotive forums reserve the right to remove postings of any kind at their sole discretion - no questions asked!:

About.com and its affiliates reserve the right, in their sole discretion, to edit, refuse to post or remove any material submitted to or posted on the chat rooms, bulletin boards or on any other user or member generated pages.

If you bother to read the Terms of Use at most commercial sites you will find them written in legalese but it's clear they don't want links to competing sites.

edmunds.com's policy is pretty much industry standard and, IMO, quite reasonable.

Now can we take this "discussion" elsewhere and focus on 4Runners here?

tidester, host

terrafirma · October 2003

Jeez Tidester,
Steve pretty much clarified and got things on track in a brief, courteous way. The only other post after Steve's is yours. I think you're making a big issue out of something that had freshly died.
I think everyone is clear on the policy and a couple people just needed to gripe about it that's all. I don't think anyone tried to break the rules...well, a little bend with the .com/.org thing

No big deal, back to our normally scheduled 4Runner discussion...

Toyota 4Runner

Comments

Helpful Tools

Most popular vehicles