I wouldn’t take a limited anywhere off-road either as it’s not designed for anything serious. My TRD Pro on the other hand, while not Rubicon capable, is capable enough with the locking rear diff, much improved approach and departure angles over the limited, and the atrac which will all take me anywhere I need to go. I’m still not 100% sold on the crawl control, but there must be something to it as Ford now has their version in the Raptor and the Ranger FX4. The looks thing is subjective. I’ll post a pic of my previous TRD Pro and the wrangler I traded in for it side by side. To me the 4runner looks a lot tougher, but looks is all just personal preference.I just traded a 14 4Runner Limited for my 19 Rubicon. I hate to say it on a Jeep forum, but the 4Runner was the better car.
Having the full time AWD system on the LTD, with road tires, in any kind of bad weather is much better than the Jeep.
It has a lot more trunk space, especially with the seats down and when they are down, there are no gaps for paws to fall into like the Jeep.
If you ever need to tow anything, the 4Runner will tow a bit more and you won't need a 5" drop hitch or have to worry about the trailer jack hitting the spare wheel.
The 4Runner is way more comfortable on the road (but still worse than my old Grand Cherokee or a say an Audi Q7), has ventilated seats (man I miss those!), is easier to get in and out of being lower with bigger doors and has better visibility. I really liked being able to rewind the radio too. I wish Jeep would add that to UConnect. Added bonus, you don't need a drill holes in your roof to add a rack that can carry some weight. I drove cross country in my 4Runner and it was very comfortable for the trip. I wouldn't want to do that trip again in my Jeep.
There really is no comparison between the two. My 4Runner with every option checked had a sticker of $45k. My Jeep with all the options had a sticker of $59k (granted I bought the 4Runner 4 years ago). If you're looking at a Limited, I assume you're like me and would want all the toys. So you're paying a lot more money for a less reliable, less practical vehicle.
That said, I knew all these things going in and I don't regret buying the Rubicon one bit!
Yes it sucks on the road. I get buffeting inside even with the hard top on and all the doors and windows closed. It's loud (the wind noise is especially horrible), it wobbles around on the road so you have to make steering corrections constantly, it really doesn't like cross winds, it's cramped and doesn't have some silly things that any car should have (auto up power window, electric seats...).
But the Jeep just looks better, that radio/nav/audio system is night and day better, has much better lights (with the LEDs), it's quicker with a better engine/transmission and it can go places I wouldn't dream of going in a 4Runner. I'll put it this way... I would take the 4Runner anywhere on road in any weather. It does just fine off road on easy terrain, but I never really trusted it not to get stuck or rip off one of its giant plastic bumpers. On the other hand, I would take the jeep anywhere off road in any weather, but I really don't like driving it around in 2WD in the wet or snow/ice. I live in the desert now though, so not much rain, snow or ice to worry about here anymore.
On paper it seems like you should be looking at a Grand Cherokee. In reality though, if you buy a 4Runner or a Grand Cherokee or anything else, as good and all as they are, you'll always wish you bought the Wrangler! So my vote is to throw logic to the wind and buy a Wrangler MOAB which supposedly rides a little bit better than the Rubicon (although it's even louder on the road with the KM2 MTR tires on it), will still kick ass off road, has all the creature comforts and gives you 4WD Auto for bad weather. You'll be happier in the end that you did.
I went through the exact same decision a year ago when I preordered my JLUS. I have two younger girls and was coming from a new Mercedes so I was worried about safety. I tried to talk myself into the 4Runner because it is safer for them, has more cargo room, has a greater towing capacity, and is more reliable. Ultimately, though, I couldnt talk myself into it. I couldn’t justify getting a $40k+ SUV that is so dated. Toyota should be ashamed with how dated they allowed the 4Runner to become. The JL is more fun, more advanced, has WAY more tech, has a more timeless look, allows more options for customizing and making it “your own”, and is more put together. Plus, you can take the top and doors off!Hi all,
I'm coming from years of about 6 jeeps. My last one was a 2008 Unlimited which I sold around 2012 due to having company trucks. In 2017 we ended our company program and I went to an BMW X3M40i, big mistake nothing but issues. I just got out of the car and looking for a very capable do anything family SUV for my wife and 2 kids.
Both kids in car seats 3 year old and new born.
I've read up on the steering wheel / steering feel issues and it has definitely deterred me. I need a reliable daily driver that has the ability to go anywhere. I can't afford to have the car in the shop as much as my bmw looking for endless fixes.
How wide spread is the JL's steering issues an other issues? How does the reliability look for the 2019?
Its come down to a 19 JLU Rubicon/sahara or a 19 4runner LTD.
Thanks for the input.
As others have mentioned, the 4Runner is definitely dated. It is lacking technology that other SUVs offer. My TRD Off Road premium package has a crappy navigation/stereo unit. There are no memory seats or climate control air conditioning. There is not a telescopic steering wheel. After 1 year the leather at the 12 o'clock position on my steering wheel started to peel. You can look at my truck the wrong way and the paint chips. LED headlights are not offered. I could keep going on with it's shortcomings but I think I'm getting my point across. But for some reason, Toyota 4Runner sales for 2018 were the most for any year since the 5th generation 4Runner was released in 2009. What does that tell you?I went through the exact same decision a year ago when I preordered my JLUS. I have two younger girls and was coming from a new Mercedes so I was worried about safety. I tried to talk myself into the 4Runner because it is safer for them, has more cargo room, has a greater towing capacity, and is more reliable. Ultimately, though, I couldnt talk myself into it. I couldn’t justify getting a $40k+ SUV that is so dated. Toyota should be ashamed with how dated they allowed the 4Runner to become. The JL is more fun, more advanced, has WAY more tech, has a more timeless look, allows more options for customizing and making it “your own”, and is more put together. Plus, you can take the top and doors off!
There are only two reasons I think you should get the 4Runner over the JL right now....1) it is your primary vehicle and you do a lot of traffic driving. If so, the 4Runner is safer with less road noise for kids in the backseat. 2) you need the extra cargo room/towing capacity.
For me, my JL is not our main family car. It’s more like a fun around the town car where there is little risk of a side impact at a significant speed.....and our kids are in car seats anyway. I didn’t need the extra cargo room/greater towing capacity, and although Jeep sucks at quality, I did enough research to convince myself the Jeep is mechanically sound if you go with the Pentastar engine.
Until Toyota updates the 4Runner like Jeep did the Wrangler, the JL is the winner by far.
Very interested to see what they do. The market has basically come to them and they haven't done anything with it. If they just update the tech and powertrains they should have a real winner.The 4runner is being re-introduced in the 2021 model year. Just a heads up http://suvsandtrucks.com/2021-toyota-4runner/
I can tell several tragic stories about people who would have been saved by this kind of tech. Remember the stupid/lazy drivers usually are not the victims. I can tell you for a fact you’re indignation does nothing to console the victims’ loved ones.Oh goodie....another vehicle sending out radar waves constantly to assess whether or not someone is in your "blind spot"; something a mirror does quite well if one were actually trained in how to adjust and use them. God, Amerikans are stupid/lazy lot.