Does the top pop up?
I Got a New Horse
- Thread starter JimFox
- Start date
That looks super cool Craig! You were sure lucky to get that."The last 2 days as I have driven around, every time I saw another Transit van, I silently shed a little tear...."
That's not a good sign.
I like the color of the Toyota, but if you don't love your new vehicle every time you see it, then maybe continue looking for your van and strike while used prices are up. Don't set a timeline. If it happens tomorrow, then do it.
I bought a new Jeep Rubicon once, and immediately hated the color. Every time I looked at it I was mad at myself. I ended up taking my loss and traded it in within six months on the right color that I special ordered.
Here's my newer acquisition. It had been stored since 2007 and only 20,000 miles.
The sticker in the window says it will be due for an oil change in July... 2008.
View attachment 51133
I don't hate the 4Runner, I hope no one mistakes the shortcomings of it compared to my old Jeep Grand Cherokee as hating the 4Runner. I know you used the color as an example, but I will say I really like the look of the 4Runner and I really like the color.
I will have to make some adjustments for sure. I went out last night and bought a couple of different plastic totes compared to what I have now so that hopefully I can just stack my gear in the back a little differently.
And to your point about trading it in. Maybe in a year or two. Until there are more new Ford Transits being shipped here, there is no point in even crossing that bridge. For now, the 4Runner gives me a reliable bridge vehicle. And that's the main thing I needed as the Grand Cherokee with 300,000 miles had just worn down to a point that I couldn't trust it on my long trips traveling around the country.
Hey Jeffrey, let's see some photos of the inside!
This thread is getting a bit long, why not start a new one in Sit and Chat and you can showcase this really cool vehicle you got.
Jeffrey
Well-Known Member
No, and I'm happy about that. (this time around).
Bob
Well-Known Member
Jim,
Congratulations! I too have the TRD off road. I have a 3 inch lift kit and over size tires that gives me an extra inch. I am glad I have that extra clearance because I needed it on some roads. The only draw back is when you sleep in the back it is hard to get out of in the middle of the night if you have to pee.
PS my 4 runner was purchased in transit on the boat coming from Japan
Bob
Congratulations! I too have the TRD off road. I have a 3 inch lift kit and over size tires that gives me an extra inch. I am glad I have that extra clearance because I needed it on some roads. The only draw back is when you sleep in the back it is hard to get out of in the middle of the night if you have to pee.
PS my 4 runner was purchased in transit on the boat coming from Japan
Bob
Nilo Photography
Well-Known Member
Congratulations on your new toy!
Bob
Well-Known Member
Jim,
The lift kit gives you more room in the wheel well so you can put the next size larger tire on the vehicle. This gives you by default another inch lift.
Bob
Bob
Well-Known Member
Jim,
Ok! Here is my 4 runner.
As for the price on the lift kit. It all depends on which kit the installer uses. They usually run from $2000-$3000. Toyota will not continue your warranty if you lift the vehicle more than 3 inches. In order to get around that limitation I had the next size up tire installed which gave me the extra inch. The tires run around $1500. Having said all that because you live in L.A. I would look for an independent dealer to install the kit if you decide to go that way that might save you some significant money. It takes all day to install the kit and it should be installed by someone your confident in.
Bob
Ok! Here is my 4 runner.
As for the price on the lift kit. It all depends on which kit the installer uses. They usually run from $2000-$3000. Toyota will not continue your warranty if you lift the vehicle more than 3 inches. In order to get around that limitation I had the next size up tire installed which gave me the extra inch. The tires run around $1500. Having said all that because you live in L.A. I would look for an independent dealer to install the kit if you decide to go that way that might save you some significant money. It takes all day to install the kit and it should be installed by someone your confident in.
Bob
Bob
Well-Known Member
Jim,
No on the skid plates. I left the factory plates on the vehicle. As for the size of the tires I think they are 285/70R17
CRTAstro
Well-Known Member
Congrats Jim on the new wheels !Well, after 300,000 miles I decided it was time to turn my faithful steed out to pasture.
Many of you know that I want to get an all wheel drive Ford Transit and build out the inside and enjoy the #vanlife as I travel. Currently that's not meant to be as a van with the specs I want just aren't available.
So for now I needed a plan B so I had reliable transportation as I travel to the far reaches of the US. New vehicles in general are hard to come by, due to the chip shortages and labor shortages the pandemic caused. So with very few new cars available used car prices have sky rocketed, with often used cars with 20-30k miles being listed for more then a brand new car with 0 miles.
I had narrowed down what I wanted to a Toyota 4Runner, and I wanted the TRD Off Road Premium version, as it adds a ton of bells and whistles for 4x4 like a bunch of crawl modes in 4x4 low, locking rear differential, a front facing camera so you can see the terrain in front of you that is hidden by the hood, etc..
I won't bore you anymore, but after several days of looking, with used prices so bad, I thought I would make a last grasp at calling local dealers to see if they did have any new ones in stock. The closest Toyota dealer had 2 in transit. I went in and 1 of them was just being unloaded from the cargo ship, and one was still in Japan getting loaded. But both of them were reserved. A manager there was driving their Demo version of the TRD Pro, which is really tricked out for 4x4. But it was at his house. He was going to bring in on Monday and I could test drive it.
(Sorry this is still getting long)
But this morning (Monday) I made a call to another local dealer, and he said to wait a minute, he thought he had one that was just delivered from the port. Fresh off the cargo ship). He texted me back with 2 photos of it, and said it was available. I ran down there, test drove it and bought it!!! An hour or two after I got there, someone else came by looking for the exact same 4Runner.
So it turned out, there was this narrow window for me to have gotten this 4Runner. It's brand new, and I bought it for less then what used ones are going for. It still wasn't cheap... and I am totally not ready for a car payment... but hey... it was perfect timing.
I have already looked up prices for new tires. Not sure why 4x4's come with highway tires on them, but new real 4x4 tires is what I will be getting on Tuesday, along with looking to see if I can get it raised an inch or two. I don't need too much, and can probably get by without any lift, but if I can do a lift where it's not too expensive, I will.
So... if you aren't asleep yet, here is a picture of it at the dealers lot.
View attachment 51057
rfkiii
Well-Known Member
If you are looking for bullet-proof MT tires, you are going to pay between $300-400 per tire (assuming 35s here). I had to settle for the brand I have now (i'd have to go out to the vehicle and look to see what brand they are) because hardly nothing was available during the pandemic. My next tire will be a Nitto.
I have 37s on the FJ now but if I had to do it all over again, I'd do 35s or less, and stick with a 3" lift. If you try to buy tires that are larger than factory spec, you might need to change your gearing. I had 32s on from the dealer, then as the tires wore out, I went to 33s and then to 34s and I didn't really notice the difference in power and acceleration from either of those upgrades, but when I went to 35s, I could feel a huge difference in acceleration and highway driving. When I put the 37s on, I changed the gearing as well.
I lean my passenger seat back all the way in my FJ. It's not totally flat but when I bunch up my sleeping bag at the V, it levels things a little more. I can sleep on my back totally stretched out or sleep fetal, both of which I do in the passenger seat of the FJ. I do not understand Toyota and why they do not put an inside handle on the rear door. For some reason, they are trying to discourage exiting the vehicle from the back. I was going to put a tent up on the roof but with the lift, my roof rack is 7 feet off the ground without a tent. I can't enter parking garages because of the height.
Thanks Rick. Yeah, I won't be going to 35's or 37's. I currently have 265/70/R17, and perhaps I go to 285/70/R17. But that's a huge maybe. I am not trying to do the off road that you and Ben are doing, so there is no need for me. I may not even lift it as the stock 4Runner has plenty of clearance for the 4x4 trails I currently take in Colorado.If you are looking for bullet-proof MT tires, you are going to pay between $300-400 per tire (assuming 35s here). I had to settle for the brand I have now (i'd have to go out to the vehicle and look to see what brand they are) because hardly nothing was available during the pandemic. My next tire will be a Nitto.
I have 37s on the FJ now but if I had to do it all over again, I'd do 35s or less, and stick with a 3" lift. If you try to buy tires that are larger than factory spec, you might need to change your gearing. I had 32s on from the dealer, then as the tires wore out, I went to 33s and then to 34s and I didn't really notice the difference in power and acceleration from either of those upgrades, but when I went to 35s, I could feel a huge difference in acceleration and highway driving. When I put the 37s on, I changed the gearing as well.
I lean my passenger seat back all the way in my FJ. It's not totally flat but when I bunch up my sleeping bag at the V, it levels things a little more. I can sleep on my back totally stretched out or sleep fetal, both of which I do in the passenger seat of the FJ. I do not understand Toyota and why they do not put an inside handle on the rear door. For some reason, they are trying to discourage exiting the vehicle from the back. I was going to put a tent up on the roof but with the lift, my roof rack is 7 feet off the ground without a tent. I can't enter parking garages because of the height.
As to sleeping, I have no idea how you can sleep sound in the passenger seat. It's okay to sleep in the front seats if all you want is a nap. But for real sleep, I want to be able to lay flat and stretch out. So that means being able to lay in the back, similar to what Ben does in his truck. I had an Xterra about 15 years ago, and I loved it. I would equate it to the size of the FJ you have, and man.... the one thing I hated, was not being able to stretch out in the back. When it was time to replace it, I made sure I went to car dealers with a tape measure in hand, and I laid in the back to make sure I did fit in the back.
That's where the 4Runner bit me, as it's bigger then my Jeep Grand Cherokee, so I assumed I would have plenty of room in the back. I didn't take into considertion the way Toyota had designed the back seats. Oh well, with the platform I am going to build, it won't be an issue for me for long.
Rick, be sure to post some photos of your rig in Ben's thread. You will see an alert about it if you don't know where it is.If you are looking for bullet-proof MT tires, you are going to pay between $300-400 per tire (assuming 35s here). I had to settle for the brand I have now (i'd have to go out to the vehicle and look to see what brand they are) because hardly nothing was available during the pandemic. My next tire will be a Nitto.
I have 37s on the FJ now but if I had to do it all over again, I'd do 35s or less, and stick with a 3" lift. If you try to buy tires that are larger than factory spec, you might need to change your gearing. I had 32s on from the dealer, then as the tires wore out, I went to 33s and then to 34s and I didn't really notice the difference in power and acceleration from either of those upgrades, but when I went to 35s, I could feel a huge difference in acceleration and highway driving. When I put the 37s on, I changed the gearing as well.
I lean my passenger seat back all the way in my FJ. It's not totally flat but when I bunch up my sleeping bag at the V, it levels things a little more. I can sleep on my back totally stretched out or sleep fetal, both of which I do in the passenger seat of the FJ. I do not understand Toyota and why they do not put an inside handle on the rear door. For some reason, they are trying to discourage exiting the vehicle from the back. I was going to put a tent up on the roof but with the lift, my roof rack is 7 feet off the ground without a tent. I can't enter parking garages because of the height.
Jim I saw the alert briefly but now I can’t find it
Ben, just click on the Bell Icon up in the Upper Right, it will show you past Alerts.
David S
Well-Known Member
This is a rad vehicle !Well, after 300,000 miles I decided it was time to turn my faithful steed out to pasture.
Many of you know that I want to get an all wheel drive Ford Transit and build out the inside and enjoy the #vanlife as I travel. Currently that's not meant to be as a van with the specs I want just aren't available.
So for now I needed a plan B so I had reliable transportation as I travel to the far reaches of the US. New vehicles in general are hard to come by, due to the chip shortages and labor shortages the pandemic caused. So with very few new cars available used car prices have sky rocketed, with often used cars with 20-30k miles being listed for more then a brand new car with 0 miles.
I had narrowed down what I wanted to a Toyota 4Runner, and I wanted the TRD Off Road Premium version, as it adds a ton of bells and whistles for 4x4 like a bunch of crawl modes in 4x4 low, locking rear differential, a front facing camera so you can see the terrain in front of you that is hidden by the hood, etc..
I won't bore you anymore, but after several days of looking, with used prices so bad, I thought I would make a last grasp at calling local dealers to see if they did have any new ones in stock. The closest Toyota dealer had 2 in transit. I went in and 1 of them was just being unloaded from the cargo ship, and one was still in Japan getting loaded. But both of them were reserved. A manager there was driving their Demo version of the TRD Pro, which is really tricked out for 4x4. But it was at his house. He was going to bring in on Monday and I could test drive it.
(Sorry this is still getting long)
But this morning (Monday) I made a call to another local dealer, and he said to wait a minute, he thought he had one that was just delivered from the port. Fresh off the cargo ship). He texted me back with 2 photos of it, and said it was available. I ran down there, test drove it and bought it!!! An hour or two after I got there, someone else came by looking for the exact same 4Runner.
So it turned out, there was this narrow window for me to have gotten this 4Runner. It's brand new, and I bought it for less then what used ones are going for. It still wasn't cheap... and I am totally not ready for a car payment... but hey... it was perfect timing.
I have already looked up prices for new tires. Not sure why 4x4's come with highway tires on them, but new real 4x4 tires is what I will be getting on Tuesday, along with looking to see if I can get it raised an inch or two. I don't need too much, and can probably get by without any lift, but if I can do a lift where it's not too expensive, I will.
So... if you aren't asleep yet, here is a picture of it at the dealers lot.
View attachment 51057
Peter Michal
Well-Known Member
Congratulations Jim, perfect motorization!
Peter
Peter