New 4Runner TRD has hustle and muscle Mark Phelan
Rough terrain is no match for this Toyota truck
Let’s face it, you’d better have a pretty strong, competent vehicle if you’re going to give one of its models the TRD moniker.
TRD stands for Toyota Racing Development, and this version of the 4Runner proudly touts the TRD name on its haunches.
The test truck was the midlevel TRD Off-Road Premium edition with 4-wheel drive and a sparkling Barcelona Red Metallic paint job. It also featured a toughlooking exterior with distinctive nose and a hood air scoop.
This 4Runner is a big SUV. It’s a sizable 15.9 feet long and weighs 4,750 pounds. So move over midsize crossovers and SUV pretenders. The 4Runner TRD version thumbs its nose at rough terrain.
That’s because the TRD packs on Bilstein shocks to absorb offroad rambles, plus extra skidplating, and it’s shoed with NittoTerra Grappler tires.
Inside, the seat fabrics are water-resistant in case your splash around in the muck manages to seep inside.
Toyota also loads this with more shift levers and terrain-control knobs and buttons than most airline pilots have to face before takeoff. Overhead are two dials for low-to-high off-road settings and multiterrain selections from mud and slush to rocks.
Ground clearance is a hefty 9.6 inches, and there are no running boards to get buried in mud.
Power is solid to say the least. Toyota uses its 4-liter V-6 with variable valve timing. This is a proven power plant that pumps out 270 horsepower and can tow 5,000 pounds.
Some will argue the 4Runner could use a 6-speed automatic transmission, but this 5-speed works well and seems well synched to the V-6.
However gas mileage is pathetic, and that’s where a 6-speed along with a stop-start feature could help. I got just 18 miles per gallon in an even mix of city and highway driving, while the EPA rates this at 17 mpg in the city and 20 mpg on the highway.
The ride is decent for a big truck. While the shocks and heavy-duty suspension are aimed at off-roading, they are fairly compliant on normal roads. The 4Runner rides like a truck. It is a body-on-frame vehicle, but bumps are mainly small annoyances. Where the truck’s stiffness comes into play most frequently is over short parking lot entry ramps where there’s a bit of rock and roll.
The interior is roomy, with plenty of space for five adults. Controls and gauges are easy to see and use. The test truck came with a black leather interior with red accent stitching on the seats and other trim. The dash top is black with a textured finish while a black gloss finish graces the steering wheel hub’s edges, door pull areas and center stack. There’s a matte gray wood-look trim on the passenger’s side dash. A carbon fiber look trim is used on the console.
Toyota provides big control knobs but a tiny navigation/radio screen. Yet the radio buttons on the screen do work even if you’re wearing gloves while punching buttons. The manual tilt/telescope steering wheel also features the usual radio, trip computer and phone functions on the hub. Cruise control is on a stalk and is not dynamic.
In fact, there are precious little enhanced or autonomous safety systems — no lane departure, blind-spot warning systems or automatic braking.
Toyota offers six trim levels, starting at the base SR5 with twowheel drive, which lists at $35,170 including delivery.
Moving to 4-wheel drive in the SR5 bumps the price to $37,045.
Consider a Nissan Pathfinder, GMC Acadia and even a Jeep Wrangler as competitors, if you plan to go off-roading a lot.
Certainly 4Runner is a strong contender in this segment and stands out from a styling standpoint.