4Runner/Tacoma alternatives?

[Tech Tonics]

Getting ready for a new vehicle, and wondering if I should try something new. I've been a Toyota fanboy for every car I've owned. (Tacoma->Tundra->Highlander)

The highlander has been good to us, but want something bigger and more capable. It's pretty gutless.

Some details:

-We have a camper and a raft-trailer so tow often, but not everyday.

-It will not be a "daily driver". My wife will use our CR-V for in-town schelpping and I'm a militant bike-commuter. So, we will use it for camping trips, skiing and road trips.

-we have a small raft trailer and a pop-up camper. So, it needs to be able to tow, but I don't feel like V8 is a necessity, though it'd be nice

-I'm not much of a jeeper, but I live in SW CO and with a decently-capable 4wd vehicle you can get into some pretty sweet places.

-we have kids, dogs, and tons of toys.

-if we go the Tacoma route, a camper shell will be necessary.

Looking for less than 60,000 miles and $20,000-$25,000. Lower is good too.

[Bobcat Sig]

Land Cruiser with the 4.7L V8. It checks all your boxes, save for the mileage. That drive train and the fit and finish is superior. They last forever. I sold mine with 260k for what I paid after four hard years of use.

They go anywhere, too.

[Sirshredalot]

Land Cruiser with the 4.7L V8. It checks all your boxes, save for the mileage. That drive train and the fit and finish is superior. They last forever. I sold mine with 260k for what I paid after four hard years of use.

They go anywhere, too.

Eco boost F150. It's a yacht, but it's not your grocery-getter. There are a shit ton of them out there to choose from. It'll tow quite well in the mountains with the turbo. It'll 4 wheel well enough. Cost of parts won't kill you. Gas mileage isn't that much worse than a Taco or 4R.

[Cruiser]

Lightly used Xterra maybe? The 4L will tow lighter loads just fine and gets real decent gas milage. 6spd manual was available in the off road or pro4x trim for a while there.

[Name Redacted]

Get a Taco. Anything else will be a compromise.

[The Tortoise]

The highlander has been good to us, but want something bigger and more capable.

Is the Tacoma bigger than the Highlander?

Sequoia would be bigger and more capable than the Highlander but I agree that a Landcruiser would be what you're looking for. Unless you want a truck. Then F-150 or Tundra.

[Dhelihiker]

VW Toureg is the best car Ive ever owned. The V10 TDI is the shit

[XXX-er]

With a camper and a raft you want a Tundra probably with the 5.7 instead of the 4.6

[Dantheman]

The highlander has been good to us, but want something bigger

If the Highlander isn't big enough, I'm not sure why you're considering anything smaller than a full-size crew cab truck (Tundra, F150, etc.) or a Sequoia-size SUV. Land Cruiser/4Runner/Tacoma/Xterra will all be much more capable 4-wheeling than the Highlander, but they don't get you extra space. Crew cab, long bed Tacoma maybe, but I don't see the point over a Tundra.

I'm not much of a jeeper, but I live in SW CO and with a decently-capable 4wd vehicle you can get into some pretty sweet places.

Probably doesn't need to be said, but real Hi/Low 4WD is mandatory. Beyond that, wheel/tire selection is more important than the make/model.

Looking for less than 60,000 miles and $20,000-$25,000. Lower is good too.

You'll probably be hard-pressed to find a relatively late model Tundra or Sequoia with those miles for that price. F150 is probably easily doable though. Odds are good that whatever you find, besides maybe a Land Cruiser, won't have tires you'll want to do any real 4-wheeling with. So factor that in when budgeting.

[Name Redacted]

With a camper and a raft you want a Tundra probably with the 5.7 instead of the 4.6

My old ass Tacoma tows either of those no problem.

However, I am making the same decision as the OP soon. Since you can get a Tundra for almost the same price as a Taco these days it is kinda tough. Don't know if I want a full size, and sure would like a manual which isn't available for Tundra. Taco is much more offroad capable than Tundra too.

[Bobcat Sig]

The Land Cruiser will be bigger than a 4Runner, but smaller than a Sequoia. It's also full-time 4wd and built much differently (read: better) than a Sequoia. And again, the 4.7L engine is a beast and tows really well. It's more than enough for a camper w/raft.

Tundras and F-150s are nice. I loved my EcoBoost, but it's HUGE. Drives big, parks, bigger, turns big and while it could get you around on some high clearance back country roads, it's just damn big. The same with the Tundra. It just depends on how big of a vehicle you want to pilot around. That may not be much of an issue in SW CO.

[mcski]

4Runner/Tacoma alternatives?

What's the mpg for a land yacht? they are called land guzzlers for a reason I suppose. Not that I would rule out cause they are bomber vehicles.

[Bobcat Sig]

What's the mpg for a land yacht? they are called land guzzlers for a reason I suppose. Not that I would rule out cause they are bomber vehicles.

Full-time 4wd will do that. OP said this isn't a daily driver, so MPG isn't as big of a concern.

I owned a Land Cruiser and EcoBoost F-150 back to back. The EcoBoost MPG was only slightly better than the Land Cruiser. I far preferred the Land Cruiser in the snow and ice, even with weight in the back of the F-150.

[nickwm21]

You could get a 4x4 Explorer or Tahoe/Yukon for $25k at under 60k mi. The Tahoe/Yukon is the perfect vehicle for road trips with a camper.

[forty]

gx470 has been treating me well last few years, bling version of a 4r/cruiser but pampered by soccer milfs and without the bro appeal and price tag attached, its a slick rig for the adventure type thats still mostly under the radar

fyi you can access all dealer maint records on the toy/lex sites with vin # for free