2021 Toyota 4Runner Review: An old reliable 4x4 | CarGurus
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- Опубліковано 3 сер 2024
- A long-lasting favorite among outdoor enthusiasts and off-roaders.
Shop for a new Toyota 4Runner on CarGurus: cargur.us/L5CLp
The 4Runner isn't here to surprise people. The big, boxy 4x4 hasn't changed much over the years, yet it remains incredibly popular--no doubt due in large part to its reputation for reliability and longevity. Forrest Jones test a new Trail Edition and shares his thoughts on the vehicle's style, interior, and driving dynamics.
For even more information on the 2021 Toyota 4Runner, read our full overview on CarGurus: cargur.us/L5CKk
Presenter: Forrest Jones
Cinematography: Phil Shuyler
Written overview: Christian Wardlaw
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0:00 The 2021 4Runner
0:18 Trail Edition Exterior Styling
1:39 Under the Hood
1:53 Interior Overview
3:15 Rear Seats and Cargo Space
4:38 Driving Impressions
7:05 Pricing and the Competition
8:36 Final Thoughts - Авто та транспорт
I've always loved the look of a 4Runner. Despite its age, it still looks modern. Boxy, utilitarian SUVs never go out of style. I've always wanted one of these. And once you have one, you can't go wrong. They're bullet-proof reliable, practical, have tremendous resale value, and they're good-looking. The only downside is the fuel economy. Since it's such an old engine and transmission setup, fuel economy is atrocious with averages only in the teens. If it had a smaller turbo V6 with an 8 or 10-speed automatic, it could probably average 23-25 mpg. However, you would have to compromise the long-term reliability of a proven engine. It is coming. The 4Runner will get redesigned in the next couple of years but that's only going to raise the value of the current fifth gen.
Looking at one of these to purchase and your prediction for the new improved engine seems to be, sadly, not so great. I have a short commute and the mileage doesn’t have an impact on my wallet.
Noted interior critique and well received. However, there is a breed of people who buy 4Runners for capability, reliability and dependability - not the interior. Cute interiors are useless during a zombie apocalypse.
I always consider what something can do for me during a zombie apocalypse as well!
The interior is very very well made. Just not all the bells and whistles.
Dont forget those with gloves on in the cold is difficult to use in those nicer interioriors. I never had to take mine off.😎
@@Anomize23 I mean you could also heat up your car so you wouldn’t need gloves
@Лоредан No, he wants the capability of a 4runner with a more modern interior. Many of us do.
4Runners are a different thing. They stay on the road so much longer than your average popular car. There is nothing like going down a gravel road or washboard and notice just how well constructs these trucks are. Nothing shakes. Everything is solid. It's just a separate category to me. Other cars have much better interior for sure.
The interior doesn't bother me one bit. I don't think it's lacking in quality, either. Everything is logically laid out and it just works. I'm surprised to see 4Runner's still have a keyed ignition and a key required to roll down the rear window. I thought they all moved to push-button start for 2021...guess not. 4Runners hold their value extremely well, too. That's huge.
I got mine in 2016 sr5. It looks the same as the $43k 2023. I love it and I love it more today. I get a lot of compliments with my 4Runner. It’s very reliable and good rugged looks.
This is literally my dream car. Same trim same color, everything.
Go ahead. Buy the latest and greatest with all the techy gadgets. And watch your "asset" depreciate by 40% in a few years. Toyota on the other hand will last and hold its value better then almost any other.
I hear ya!. Just traded my 2017 for a new 2021. The resales are through the roof...
No LED headlights, I stopped watching after that. Psssh. They need to put some basic tech on this bitch its fucking 40k
2016 4runner here and zero issues. Still love it and wont stop owning it til the wheels fall off. This tank is made to get beat up. From the desert heat to the cold Canadian weather its just unstoppable.
Miles?
@@lagunez1295k miles and just oil change and tires changed. Oh, and I live in the Arizona Desert heat.
I'm loyal to "DEPENDABILITY"
Love this comment!
Exactly. I think people are forgetting the one thing you want your car to do.
im with you.
Toyota tends to squeeze every possible penny from their models before doing any update. I don't mind old reliable V6 but the interior.. Come on Toyota!
I love the primitive interior!
And here we are years later people hate the touchscreen on the newer vehicles 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂 the simplicity of the 4runner isn’t looking bad now ehh? You all can keep touching that laggy touchscreen being happy with that interior😂
I have a 2021 4runner and I know it will take me where I want to go and will last forever so everything else doesn't matter.
Right. Especially for a person like me always having car issues.
Great Reviewer ! Thanks
Bought a TRD Pro last February and having been loving the capability and versatility of the vehicle. The 500lb tongue weight limit is great for hauling my motorcycle on a hitch rack. Have done two long road trips carrying moving related stuff. Have taken the 4Runner off road many times. Great all around truck. Perfect fit for my needs. Both the Jeep and the Bronco make too many off road compromises for my needs.
Smart people don't buy a Toyota / Lexus because they want an uber-lux interior or a ton of bling, they pay that price for 20+ years of flawless reliability and low cost of ownership.
I got this truck....I love it
Got my Barcelona Red 2015 SR5 last year as college graduation gift and I love and cherish it 😢
I love this truck!
The perfect off-road machine. Love my 21.
Just got the 2021 and I absolutely love it this makes my second I have owned and honestly don’t see anything else in future
Reliability, and simple. Why it’s always Toyota for me. I want a vehicle that will last and get me everywhere I need to go, not gonna happen with other makes and models, no matter what goodies they come with.
This 4Runner seems like at least 20 years old they never updated any thing the outside look is not bad but interior is ancient…
You don’t even know what ancient is😂
We are going to purchase a 2020 SR5 on Saturday. My wife likes the simplicity of the dashboard controls and she loves the look of the 4Runner. I don't think the interior is bad at all. I have an F150, so the truck like ride is fine. The road noise was not bad either. Mind you, it has road tires and not all terrains yet. We are looking forward to the legendary reliability and longevity. BTW, my wife's 12 year old Grand Cherokee has been a fine vehicle also. Just the base V6 Laredo. It's at 180K miles and still strong. We're keeping it as a back up vehicle.
Love that color, so your rear seats don’t recline back? I have a 2020 sr5 premium and mine do I figured they all did.
Love the interior.
Interior is rock solid and exactly what it should be
LED headlights are standard on the 21’s.
I love your Toyota 4runner truck limited 👍💞 I am big fan
I think the interior is the complete opposite of cheap feeling. Buttons and dials feel quality. Everything feels quality. Just not as many bells and whistles as other vehicles for the money and that’s ok.
I bought a 21 TRDORP. I had to go with the upgraded trim based on the interior alone. Big difference between the TRD trims and the SR5.
Got the same year and trim. Haven’t regretted it for a second.
I love the 4runner! Just put down a deposit on a TRD Off-road ! LUNAR ROCK!
Have you seen the interior on the new Bronco? Very plasticky and way more money than a 4runner.
$$ for $$ you get way more in the Bronco. Not even close…
This being an older design, does it come with remote start,touch screen, android?
That's definitely not a fisher price interior... have you been inside a recent GM product? Yes it uses a lot of plastic but its durable and is in all the right spots. This is a rugged off road truck not a soccer mom vehicle, although soccer moms for some reason seem to buy them.
Toyota needs to revise the interior. Dashboard looks like '90s Japanese cars. Very primitive. But exterior looks great!
@@Roman_4x5 Where would you even take a 4Runner in Europe lol. I generally agree though.
No locker on the trail 4runner?
Have a 2021 trail (army green) idgaf about the interior. It does it’s job and is apocalypse proof.
I’m good with the interior with the refresh they did in ‘20.
Love the no b.s. interior of the 4Runner
Welp I just ordered one in lunar rock so there’s my vote. 120 day wait maybe less if I’m lucky …
If Toyota had beautiful interior like ram or Ford. It would be a no-brainer to pick the Toyota every time
Gotta pick you pain, trade interior niceness for reliability, after my Jeep grand cherokee 2014, never again with Jeep... Mileage below and repairs and oh, that doesn't count the heater that would blow cold air in winter, thankfull for the knob on the 4R! Total $2,750 in non maint repairs.
20810 Bearings replaced in both front wheels
39311 Left front wheel bearing replaced
57739 Boot/CV joint repair - Driver
77013 Boot CV joint repair - Passenger
77290 Radiator Repair - Dx
77290 Radiator Repair
91086 Fix parking brake
93307 Parking brake
95117 Oil cooler fix
Just dropped off this as a rental. Drives ok, but technology and comforts are missing for the price
Couldn't get over 15.5 in town or 19 on the highway. My wrangler is better in everyway
4 runner is beyond simple, it's the ideal safe family SUV. Miles per gallon is it's only fault. F j has no air in the year seating area, game changer.
$43k and I’m staring at the blanks where the heated seat controls should be. I’d get the TRD Off Road, but I’d love a PHEV version similar to the 4xe.
This literally would end it for the competition. A plug in 4Runner. Yes.
Toyota 4runner for me --again!
Does it have remote start
I would still pick the 4runner because it is the most reliable
Someone send toyota a memo to make a naturally aspirated diesel 3l inline-6 that gets 20+ mpgs and comes paired with a 6 speed manual transmission and have switchable front wheel drive for even better fuel economy if they do that i will actually consider one
Trail edition skips some of the off road capable goodies and no softex seats.. the cloth seats are too cheap for the price range but the vehicle is solid for someone that just drives in snow. Overall in my book, dependability is king.
Bronco please.
It's definitely outdated but if I had to buy one it would be the limited model.
FORREST JONES REVIEWS FOR CARGURUS?
4Runner 4Ever
I would wait for Toyota to update the 4runner and then instead buy the previous generation for an easy bargain.
IT COMES WITH A COOLER??!! SOLD!
I've driven Toyotas for decades now (1985 my first one), but I am getting tired of their laziness. The cabins in Tacoma / 4Runner are horrible, particularly for taller people (I am 6'3"). Also, the reliability is somewhat overplayed. I am getting tired of electrical gremlins and weird controls lighting up on my Camry, with mechanics scratching their heads. Toyota dealership will gladly r#pe you dry and charge you thousands of dollars for laughable work if you bring it in for something that should cost $100. I am seriously considering a different brand for the next vehicle.
You think toyota dealerships are the only ones doing that? Then you’re in for a wake up call. EVERY BRAND EVERY DEALERSHIP does that. Also I’m 6’3 and I’ve driven back and forth across the country 3 times in my 2018 runner and now have 150,000 miles on mine and I have not had one single problem with it. Before this I owned a 2008 tacoma which also gave me zero problems. My family all drives toyota too, Camry, rav4, tundra and nobody has had a single problem with their vehicles. We can all only go off experience but I will say for myself toyota reliability is not overplayed compared to other brands we’ve had which have given us problems one way or another. Toyotas have been nothing but great to us. And yeah the interiors aren’t the best in 4runners but they are well put together machines and don’t even have a single rattle in it after all these miles and off roading and overlanding ventures. To each their own tho, I prefer the simple design with the big buttons and personally don’t like fancy infotainments with a million features in where you have to use the touch screen to turn on everything.
@@andyham6094 "You think toyota dealerships are the only ones doing that?" -- Please show me where I said that, unless you can read my mind.
"To each their own tho, I prefer the simple design with the big buttons and personally don’t like fancy infotainments " -- Please show me where I said I prefer fancy over simple and practical. You seem to like talking to straw men.
@@andyham6094 No question Toyota dealerships aren't the only ones doing that but QUALITY service depts used to be another box Toyota owners could check when it came to a reason to stay with the brand. I'm in total agreement with the other guy if your going to have to deal with sleazy, lazy and often a bunch of BS bravado from the service depts anyway maybe it's time to move on.
@@andyham6094- I was considering buying a 4Runner for the purpose of longevity, reliability and possibly driving across country. You said you also drive across country. How is it? How long does it take you to get across country? Was the 4Runner comfortable (any back pain)? Appreciate any feedback.
I like the 4Runner. I don't want the tech crap. Im in Canada so I something for deep snow. The jeep has thin doors that won't protect you in an accident. The Bronco has features I will never use so I don't want to pay for them. I will never remove the doors or the roof. I don't need a terrain selector. I know how to moderate the gas and brake.
Lets not confuse fisher price interior and simplicity to use when going on outdoor adventures.
We don't need in depth review of 4Runner its been same for how many years?
And I love it
You made me laugh outloud! Thank you! And YES! I agree that it's been the same but I still enjoy some of the reviews, more so the comments!
We love it.
The cheap interior is what has kept me from buying a 4Runner. I appreciate the longevity but the interior quality has to hold up as well. I'd like to see more value. With the popularity of these cars, it seems Toyota may never improve the interior.
The interior is not only way old in style it’s very cheap material as well.
Yes interior not acceptable at that price that is why I’ll wait for new design
Good review, nice car. One suggestion to the presenter - slow down.
For example, when explaining the 4x4 mode selector, you mentioned the TRD Pro having a manual shifter, but then quickly mumbled something to finish that thought. It’s probably an insightful observation, but I couldn’t understand it.
4runner anytime of the day ...don't want to be driving to the repair shop ..like the competition right??
Old??
Lost me when he started complaining about a cheap looking plastic interior. Evidently he hasn’t reviewed many Ford, Chevy, Jeep, Dodge, etc….blah blah blah
This body-style/generation/front face has survived years and still looks fantastic. The 4Runner is rare, because it doesn't cave to the inevitable trend toward ambiguous/boring design and cheap construction.
It doesn’t cave, unless you’re talking about the interior..
I was really excited to try the 4Runner, but I did not have enough head room. Leg room was fine and comfort was good, but I had to slouch in order to fit (I’m 6’7”). Ended up getting a wrangler because I had about 3-4 inches of extra headroom and the glove box wasn’t hitting my shins (like the 4runner). Hopefully the next generation can iron out these issues, because other than that, the 4Runner was great!
@Loredan On the next generation they might. Not the current version
Brotherman, get a sunroof. Maybe try a ‘tankers periscope’ with a full reclining seat.
I traded in my Toyota Tacoma for a 2019 4Runner SR5 premium. Much better looking truck than this new one, the interior is horrible sorry. I thought the SR5 premium was a bit ugly, but now looking at this, Jesus lol. I'll stick with my current trim, still a good 4Runner but this interior is a total no go. But that being said the most solid SUV out there
@Mctrician2 the difference is the interior looks like shit.
All this basically appears to be is a base SR5 4wd with some blacked out logos, different wheels, a cooler and a roof basket. The base SR5's seemed to languish on dealers lots in comparision to the premiums. People would be better off imho just getting which ever SR5 they want for less money and doing aftermarket stuff as they please.
Dinosaurs aren’t dead yet and I hope Toyota realizes this.
If your focus is amazing off roading and amazing practicality then yeah $43k is a good value. I would give the interior a pass at that price.
Nah man that interior isn't cheap. It's old school, but that interior will still be looking the same in 400k miles, maybe just a bit dirtier. My corolla has the same material for the interior and nothing has changed with it in all the years my dad owned it and then I've owned it after he sold it to me. Those materials will hold up fine. The 3rd gen tacoma on the other hand.......
The engine and transmission are dealbreakers for this otherwise awesome SUV. If Jeep can give us an 8-speed, modern transmission, Toyota should be able to as well. A 5-speed is totally unacceptable at this point. And, Toyota has other reliable and more modern V-6's in their lineup. If it weren't for the drivetrain, I'd be driving one of these.
I'd get a wrangler or bronco over this. This is too outdated for the money.
VW and Jeep !! they will never survive heir Relibitly way below Toyota . and Jeep is way over priced that for sure .. Awesome review thank you
bronco ftw
Rich man
After dealing with a multitude of brands and cars I will only buy Toyota. The outdated comments do not matter to me. When your super modern ride has all kinds of issues you won’t care about looks or features if you can’t use the damn thing because it always have issues
Cheap feeling, go sit in a new Tundra and feel how thin and cheap the plastic is, very sad.
Not acceptable
In fact they are taking advantage of their reliability from the past to make insane profits today and maybe in the future
God Forbid an automaker wanting to make as much profit as possible! The 5th gen has been the best selling 4Runner in the models history...It's understandable why they jave pretty much left it alone.
It’s a Japanese built Toyota.
I’ll swallow the horrendous mpg over a decade and 350000 miles of no worries
Looks like a 2010 model. Would rather buy a used one which would look the same. Pass.
In current market a used one is pricier than new.
No, it's not acceptable and it's offensive (the interior that is). Look at the Ram 1500 interior --- it is luxurious and put together well. It doesn't squeak, and although only a few years old, will probably remain durable for 10 years or so. The large amounts of cheap-looking plastic on the 4-Runner is disgusting. The same is true for many Toyota interiors such as the Tacoma, Tundra, and Landcruiser, and we know Toyota is capable of better interiors as demonstrated by the Avalon, Camry and many Lexus models, so cry me a river and update that interior. Good night nurse!
And the Ram will be the nicest looking interior in the scrap yard well before it hits 150k miles.
I love the reliability of Toyota, but their interiors look so cheap. I can't stand the grey plastic. I love my Tacoma but I will admit i like the driving experience from the German vehicles so much better.
Over priced for what you get and who spends $43,000 for a vehicle because it comes with a cooler and a roof basket.
you can ask the 129,052 people who bought it last year
THA'S A JUNK SUV!
Lol ya ok
www.youtube.com/
4 Runners are ahead of their times. The next automotive trend will be the K.I.S.S. method...."Keep it simple Stupid."
Don't crank it lol 😅
Toyota is lazy. Dependability is great but Honda is also reliable and is much better designed and up to date
My boss has the off road. Drive it and loved it. Didn’t love the terrible gas mileage and the infotainment! Awful. Went with a Grand Cherokee limited instead and am very happy, though the 4Runner is a great machine. Just dated.
Good looking truck - really….it’s UGLY af……. I guess beauty is in the eye of the beholder!
Absolute trash, that price for that interior and the same drivetrain for 10 years? Reliability only goes so far Toyota
Comment is trash
Interior is lazy. They should knock off $5K for that cheap interior
It's a very old design. My family still works in Detroit. I remember new total redesigned cars every 4 years from GM...Ford, Chrysler. 20 color paint options, 60 plus color rich interior combinations....and chrome features!! Toyota is cheap with this product line! NO BUY!
Your reasoning is laughable. Cars, even the most reliable, are depreciating assets. Your Detroit cars very well may be updated but absolutely 100 percent are much worse investments.
Get outta dodge with that crap.
@@craigsouder9334 U ass jack. I'm not debating the "Lack of Sustaining Value." vehicles have or not. For that invest in Gold and Silver like I do as an Independent Investor that I am SEÑOR. I just don't like this truck model...PENDEJO. Take it as a man. I'm not a TOYOTA lover like U. Love you!
I might get the Honda passport, but I definitely will not buy any American car. They are cheap overprice pieces of crap! So it’s Toyota or Honda for me all the way!💯🤟🏽
toyota fortuner is much better than this
One of the last vehicles on the market with a 5 speed automatic, that's pathetic.
horrible interior. Looks like a 2008 car.