Toyota | Trucks and Trailers

Toyota 4Runner - Evolution

July 16th, 2008 by shenron

One of the more popular SUVs on the market these days is the Toyota 4Runner. The 4Runner combines Toyota’s signature reliability with the size and capabilities of the popular SUV type of vehicle. The Toyota 4Runner has come a long way since it’s inception in 1984 and was key in Toyota’s transition from a primarily small car and truck maker into a automobile manufacturer of vehicles of all sizes. The continued improvements and redesigning have elevated the Toyota 4Runner to be one of the more sought after SUVs on the market today.

Toyota 4Runner First Generation (1984-1989)

When Toyota first released the 1984 4Runner onto the market, it was essentially a Toyota pick-up with a fiberglass shell over what was once the truck bed. Toyota was spurred to get into the mid-size SUV market based on both the success and upcoming releases of competitor’s models like Chevy’s S-10 Blazer and Ford’s Bronco II. Although designed to compete against these other mid-size SUVs, the original 4Runner more closely resembled the full-size Ford Bronco and Chevy K5 Blazer because of its removable fiberglass top over the rear section of the vehicle. From the dashboard to the front bumper there was little or no difference between these first 4Runners and the Toyota pickups of the same year.

In 1985, Toyota made rear seats available in all 4Runners, not just the upscale SR5 package as had been the case in the original 1984 version. Another addition coming in the model’s second year was a new electronically fuel-injected 2.4 liter engine. The overall stability and handling was improved on the 4Runner in 1986 when Toyota widened the wheel base by a few inches and added an independent front suspension system. An interesting thing to note on the 4Runners imported to the United States from 1984 through 1986 is that most came without the rear seats. In this way they were classified as trucks and avoided the higher custom duties associated with larger passenger vehicles. The last significant change to these first generation Toyota 4Runners came in 1988 when Toyota also offered an optional 3.0 liter V-6 engine. This more powerful engine proved very popular with motorists and Toyota rewarded buyers with other features exclusive to the V-6 models like a whole new transmission and transfer case which resulted in a significant reduction in cab noise from the previously made 4-cylinder models.

Toyota 4Runner Second Generation (1990-1995)

1990 saw Toyota make vast changes to its signature SUV. All 4Runners made from 1990 on were no longer built on the same frame or platform as the company’s pickup trucks. The 4Runner now had its own body designed and mounted on its own frame. Because it was no longer built on the basis of the Toyota Pickup, this was also the end of the removable fiberglass shell as all 4Runners from there on out were built as a whole unit. One of the carry over design elements from the first generation models was a tailgate that still had a retractable rear window. To open the tailgate, the driver still had to first retract the window into it and then lowering it similar to the tailgate of a pickup. There were changes made during the life of the second generation Toyota 4Runner, but most amounted to little more than cosmetic changes like headlamp redesign.

Toyota 4Runner Third Generation (1996-2002)

While the look of the Toyota 4Runner third generation models remained similar to the second generation, there were enough interior and otherwise upgrades that the 4Runner was now seen as a competitor to the higher end Nissan Pathfinder, and a step above the Ford Explorer and Chevrolet Blazer. The engines available for the third generation 4Runner were the same engines being made for the new Toyota Tacoma pickup trucks that were hitting the market. Both the 4-cylinder and V-6 engines were enlarged, the 4-cylinder from 2.4 liter to 2.7 liter and the V-6 from 3.0 liter to 3.4 liter, with the newer more powerful engines becoming very popular with SUV buyers.

Many cosmetic and interior upgrades and changes would be included in the 1997-1999 model Toyota 4Runner. These included color matched cargo covers, updated switches and knobs, a new steering wheel, a redesigned air bag system, new bumper design, turn signals, color matched running boards, and reorganization of the controls for the vehicle’s rear window related features. Other changes during this model’s production resulted in both increased interior space and cargo space.

Toyota 4Runner Fourth Generation (2003-)

The fourth generation of Toyota 4Runner changed significantly, although it continued to be marketed towards the same high end/sub-luxury SUV market. The vehicle was now being based on the Land Cruiser Prado which resulted in a very different look than that of previous 4Runner models. The engine upgrade to the 4.0 liter V-6 was now standard on all models and for the first time the 4Runner came with the option of upgrading to a powerful V-8 engine. The V-8 engine available for the 4Runner is essentially the same V-8 available for the full size Toyota Tundra and Sequoia models. 2004 saw a tire pressure warning system added as one of the many standard features on the 4Runner while an option for a third row seat was also introduced.

With the introduction of the 2005 model came a new transmission as now a five speed automatic transmission was now considered standard equipment. Many cosmetic and add-on features also became available in the following few years like roof racks, chrome grilles, black running boards, a rear spoiler that had been redesigned, LED tail lamps, projector-beam headlamps, fog lights, a seat memory system, new bumper design, MP3 capable stereo systems, as well as both sixteen and eighteen inch wheels.

With its constant redesign and a commitment to putting a quality SUV product on the road, the Toyota 4Runner doesn’t only look like one of the more popular SUVs today, but it looks like it will remain so for a number of years. The vehicle that is now considered a borderline luxury SUV has come a long ways from the days that it was a pickup truck with a fiberglass shell. The continual adding of popular features and redesign of the overall vehicles has kept up with the public’s demand for a quality modern vehicle that can also hold a good amount of cargo, whether that cargo is in the form of other passengers or in the form of goods and products. The Toyota 4Runner is one of the most sought after SUVs on the market for good reason, it not only meets the expectations of those looking for an SUV, but it exceeds them.

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Toyota Hilux III

August 5th, 2007 by shenron

The Toyota Tacoma and Hilux underwent the 1995 update and were then sold with better engines, larger bodies, and were re-styled again in 1998, while maintaining a decent line of engines. The Hilux maintained its 2.4L four cylinder engine that now rates at 142 horses, along with a 2.7L four cylinder that is rated at 150, and finally a nice V6 3.4L that is at 190 horses, so close to 200 it isn’t funny. In 2005 the Tacoma and the Hilux underwent a massive shift in size and make. The Tacoma is now based on the Land Cruiser Prado, while the Hilux is based on the ladder frame that has been in its previous versions, and is sold in Europe, Australia, Asia, South America and Mexico, along with being sometimes found in Canada and the U.S., although rarely. The newest model of Hilux has many engines to choose from, however most are area specific, and most likely the only ones someone in the US is going to see are the 160 horse four stroke 2.7L, and the 4L V6 228 horse.

The Hilux has gained its reputation of being indestructible through years of heavy use and abuse, along with being beaten around. On the popular show Top Gear a Hilux from the 80’s with over 308 thousand kilometers was put through abuse no normal vehicle could survive, including driving it down steps, scarping buildings, crashing it into a tree, being washed out to sea, dropping a caravan on top of it and smashing it, hitting it head on with a wrecking ball, setting it on fire, and finally placing it on a 240 foot block of flats that was demolished. After all of this it was still holding together and amazingly running with minor repairs found in any common car toolkit. The vehicle has been known to go past 300,000 miles with regular and constant care without suffering any loss of performance and has been known as a militia fighting vehicle in many African conflicts, being used as a kind of cavalry wartime vehicle that can survived being peppered with small arms fire (not the occupants mind you, just the truck).

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Toyota Hilux II

August 5th, 2007 by shenron

By this time the Toyota “Pickup Truck” or better known as the Hilux, had become something of a mini legend, as they just would not die. In 1981 many major improvements were made and the company teamed up with Winnebago to make an SUV, which was basically taking the Toyota Hilux chassis, and strapping things to them to make them SUVs. In order to facilitate this, structural changes were made to the Hilux, improving its weight capacity and overall ruggedness. Additionally a new engine was introduced to the mix, and yes it still kept that now considered underpowered 96 horse four cylinder, what was added was a 62 horse diesel engine. In 1984 a new redesign hit the market and two new diesel engines came with it - although in 1985 they threw them out faster than an Ex with a drinking problem - however a year later came the much coveted fuel injection systems that did much more good by the vehicle.

The old 2.4L four cylinder that had been added to replace the aging 2.2L was still included, along with that 62 horse diesel, and two new diesels which were the 2.4L at 83 horses and its bigger brother at 92 horses (which were both tossed out in 85). In addition to this several updates were made with the fuel injectors to the 2.4L series which culminated in the bump up to 112 horses, and finally the turbo at 135 horses. There was also a V6 (thank god) added which gave the vehicle 150 horses. In 1989 the truck underwent yet another redesign which saw better wheelbase options for longer beds and the dropping of any non-fuel injected engines leaving it with the 2.4L at 112 horses, and the 3.0L V6 at 150 horses (for which an award was won). Finally, in 1995, it was updated to become the Tacoma in North America, but maintained its name in the rest of the world and is still distinctly different in small variations.

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Toyota Hilux I

August 5th, 2007 by shenron

The Toyota Hilux is a compact pickup truck that has been in production for a grant total of seventy two years. It was first manufactured under the name and class of a type G1 Truck and was a 1.5 ton stake-bed truck that first caught on. Later, after the Second World War Toyota continued with the design and called it the Model SB, which lasted from 1947 to 1963 - and had a four stroke 27 horse engine to boot. Finally in 1964 Toyota launched itself into the U.S. market with the 1964 Hilux, called the Stout, and it was bigger than the Datsun and the Mazda trucks of the time, and it had a 1.9L four cylinder engine that rated at 85 horses. In 1969 the name was given, and the truck was released as the Hilux. This truck had more engines to choose from, although they were all four cylinder engines rated at 85 horses and 97 horses at 1.9L, along with the 2.0L 108 horse. It was a simple thing, with just one body style and had a regular cab, a short bed, and only came in front engine mounted rear wheel drive with a four speed manual transmission.

In 1973 the new Hilux was released with a better interior and an optional longer bed that would allow it to be used for many more things, and it dropped the two weaker four cylinder engines, but kept the 2.0L 108 horse. The Hilux name was eventually dropped in the U.S. Market in 1975 - referring to the vehicle as just the Toyota Truck, however the truck is indeed the same one. In 1978 a new revision was made and this one was much improved. This big update came with the addition of four wheel drive and a better transmission, not to mention better axles and leaf springs to improve its abilities on the road. It was about this time its reputation for being “Indestructible” was rearing its head. The new engine it used was only 96 horses as a four cylinder 2.2L.

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Toyota T100

August 2nd, 2007 by shenron

The Toyota T100 is the predecessor to the Toyota Tundra, and was a full sized pickup truck manufactured between 1993 and 1998, and it comes in the standard layout of a front engine rear wheel or front engine all wheel drive with the choice of cabs being a normal or extended cab, along with various engines to choose from. However, the T100 was heavily criticized for its smaller stature and inability to haul as much as the larger competitors in the full size truck ring - namely the Ford F-Series, Dodge Ram, and Chevy S-10. Only about forty thousand were sold each ear of its production run, with other manufacturer out pacing it by a much wider and larger number, with Ford going from half a million to three quarters of a million, Dodge going form a hundred thousand to nearly half a million, and GMC/Chevy staying close to a quarter of a million without change. Although Toyota was the one to beat when it came to compact pickups, it was beaten down in its full size truck venture until it dropped the T100 in 1998 for the Tundra. Another interesting note about the T100 is the fact it was the very last truck built in Japan and shipped to the U.S. until Toyota finally opened up a plant in the U.S.A. closing the final chapter on Japanese imported trucks for the most part.

The T100 was not without its better areas though, as it was very reliable and pretty much able to survive anything, along with having a very good fuel economy, being lightweight, and could reach speeds faster than a normal behemoth Full Sized pickup truck. The T100 had two transmissions, a five speed automatic and a five speed manual, along with three engines to choose from. There was the 2.7L 150 horse 4 cylinder, the 3.0 V6 150 horse, and the 3.4 C6 190 horse, which could be modified using an after market kit that would allow it to be bumped up to nearly 240 horses with enough power to make it a very fast vehicle. An interesting note and popular opinion amongst owners of the T100 is that the ones manufactured in Japan are much more reliable and well built than the ones that were finally manufactured here - along with repair report statistics that showed the American built pickups were prone to mechanical failures more oft than the imports.

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