There are a lot of Toyota 4Runner enthusiasts who see the 2024 model year, which marks the end of the fifth generation for the SUV, as the ending of the 4Runner.
Most are citing Toyota’s dropping of the six-cylinder engine in favor of turbocharged four-cylinder powerplants as their reason.
I think that belief is a little overstated. The 4Runner will be fine. Besides, I’ve learned that enthusiasts for specific models rarely buy them new anyway. So, automakers have little reason to worry about what enthusiasts are worried about.
Even so, I did drive the 2024 Toyota 4Runner for a week, just to make sure that changes aren’t going to ruin it. My short take? The 4Runner really, really needs updating. So I’m glad Toyota is going ahead and doing that.
The current generation 4Runner was introduced in 2010, 14 years ago. In automotive, where model generations generally span six to eight years, that makes the 14-year-old 4Runner akin to a retiree as compared to today’s Gen Z’er just leaving high school. The music, the culture, and the clothing styles are different.
It’s time for the 4Runner to catch up.
It Started As A 4-Cylinder
The Toyota 4Runner first appeared in the United States in the early 1980s as a derivative of Toyota’s small pickup. It wasn’t until 1989, the second-generation of the 4Runner, that the SUV became its own model sharing parts with, but now separate from the pickup.
Back in those days, the main powerplants were a 2.4-liter four-cylinder and a new V-6 option. The V-6 was considered unreliable due to its early fuel injection setup and the chain-driven four-wheel drive transfer case.
In the mid-1990s, the 4Runner went into its third generation and still had a four-cylinder as well as a larger (3.4L) V-6.
It was at this point that the six-cylinder option became more popular. Toyota had worked out the kinks and the 4Runner had become larger and heavier, demanding more power to move it.
The subsequent fourth-gen (2002) and fifth-gen (2010) were introduced.
The fourth generation had a V-8 option and an even larger V6 (4.0L). It was somewhere in the fourth and fifth generations that the 4Runner became a vehicle for hardcore enthusiasts.
It moved into Jeep Wrangler territory in terms of branding.
And like the Wrangler, the 4Runner then became the object of scorn, love, respect and derision, depending on who you were talking to. At the same time, new factory models became similarly loved or hated by the enthusiast community.
Again, depending on who you were asking.
Not Much Changes
The 2024 Toyota 4Runner ends the fifth-gen of the SUV by not changing anything.
There are seven trim levels, all with various aims. The two SR5 and the TRD Sport models aim for low cost of entry and simplicity.
The other TRD models give various amounts of off-road capability (or at least visual credibility). And the Limited model reminds Millenials and Gen Xers of previous-generation 4Runners when they were the only SUV option from Toyota that was family friendly.
Because pre-2000, the far better Toyota Highlander didn’t exist yet.
The 2024 4Runner has a 4.0-liter V-6 that runs to a five-speed automatic transmission. This was an already mostly outdated combination for a powertrain in 2010 and is downright antiquated for 2024. Sluggish and inefficient are the best adjectives to describe it.
That setup is pretty great off the pavement and in the dirt and mud, but terrible on the road and when the weather gets shifty.
Towing with the 2024 4Runner is possible, I guess, but I don’t know why anyone would want to do it.
My 1986 Ford Ranger back in the day had a similar drivetrain and was terrible for going uphill and dropped to a snail’s pace when towing anything. At 5,000 pounds capacity, the 4Runner is no better than the Toyota Highlander.
The 2024 Toyota 4Runner. (Cowboy State Daily Staff) 
The 2024 Toyota 4Runner. (Cowboy State Daily Staff) 
The 2024 Toyota 4Runner. (Cowboy State Daily Staff)
Some Upsides
Everything else is an upside for the 2024 Toyota 4Runner — provided you think of it as a truck instead of a family hauler.
It has a good amount of cargo space, drives OK most of the time, and it’s great off-road. In most packages, anyway.
The Limited model isn’t too savvy on the trail, but any other 4x4 version of the 4Runner is good or great, depending on its packaging.
The TRD Off-Road model offers good general duty off-road capability, for example, while the top-end TRD Pro model comes pretty much ready for Beartooth Pass or Poison Spider Mesa.
The 2024 4Runner’s interior is very dated in design, but mostly that’s a good thing since it means strong seat bolstering to hold the driver and front passenger in place.
It has an older, simpler infotainment system that doesn’t require a master’s degree to operate. Plus, the doors open and close with a solid “thunk” like a truck should.
With the coming 2025 model, though, most everything about the 4Runner will change.
Even losing some of the nostalgic bits and old school quirks of the current-gen 4Runner will probably be worth those upgrades, though.
The new 2025 4Runner will still be truck-based, so the 4Runner won’t be going the way of the other contemporary, body-on-frame sport utilities that went crossover-soft.
And maybe now 4Runner buyers will be more interested in what it CAN do rather than on what it used to do.
