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**The Toyota 4Runner: A Rugged and Reliable Off-Road Machine**

Since 1984, it’s been cruising across America, hauling surfboards, skis, and friggin' boats. It’s a good-looking, rugged machine (just like me) that evolved to a grand embodiment of off-road, high-tech mastery. And the resell value... Ain't bad.

**The Story Behind the 4Runner**

This is everything you need to get up to speed on the Toyota 4Runner. A lot of our stories start with the head of design, or the CEO of a car company having a blast of inspiration. But in this case, the idea percolated from the bottom up.

**The Birth of an Idea**

In 1980, Jack Safro - a motivated Toyota Dealer from Wisconsin - came up with an idea. This guy had been selling Toyotas since 1967. And lemme tell ya - he frickin' loved the things. Toyota trucks? Loved them. Four wheelers? Loved them.

**A Solution to a Problem**

But, Wisconsin, it's a cold place. Wouldn't it be nice to have all the... “SPORT” capabilities of four-wheel drive, but an enclosed space to keep you, your dogs, and all your other crap warm, you know to get more “UTILITY” out of your “VEHICLE?” Safro hit up Winnebago who was just a couple states away, and he was like:

WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enCLIMBING!HAULING!MUDDING!MORE CLIMBING!Since 1984, it’s been cruising across america,hauling surfboards, skis, and friggin' boats.It’s a good-looking, rugged machine (just like me)that evolved to a grand embodiment of off road,high-tech mastery.And the resell value...Ain't bad.This is everything you need to get up to speedon the Toyota 4Runner.A lot of our stories start with the head ofdesign, or the CEO of a car company havinga blast of inspiration. But in this case, the idea percolated from the bottom up.In 1980, Jack Safro- a motivated Toyota Dealerfrom Wisconsin, came up with an idea.This guy had been selling toyotas since 1967.And lemme tell ya- he frickin' loved the things.Toyota trucks? Loved them.Four wheelers? Loved them.But, Wisconsin, it's a cold place.Wouldn't it be nice to have all the...“SPORT” capabilities of four wheel drive,but an enclosed space to keep you, your dogs,and all your other crap warm, you know to get more “UTILITY” out of your “VEHICLE?”Safro hit up Winnebago who was just a couplestates away, and he was like:"Yo, Winnebago, if I get some Toyota trucks over here, can you guys like put backs on them for me?""YEAH"."We're Winnebago. We turn cars into houses".So Toyota agreed to the partnership and sentover some bare-bones versions of the Hilux.What this new Marriage birthed was the “ToyotaTrekker.”It's actually...er...TrekkieAbout 1500 Trekkers were sold.They featured a rear seat and a storage area,covered by a fiberglass canopy.1500, while not a huge number, was 100% ofthe modified toyotas.And Toyota’s like: "yo, we sold outof those weird truck cars…maybe we just make them less 'winnebago',and more Toyota.""Cut out the middle man, great job boss. Let me know what I got to do""Dude my job is not letting you know what you need to do.""Yeah right, totally dude. I'm sorry.""I only hired you because you're married to my sisterand if you don't improve quickly, I'm gonna chop your fuckin' head off.""What?""I didn't mean that, I've got a lot of sh**t going on at my housemy kid is getting in trouble at school""Are you Ok?""Yeah I'm fine man I'm fine I'll be fine I'm good""Let's get like friggin' lunch next week or something.I know we don't like to hang out alone but maybe we should.""That'd be real nice.""Wednesday"?"Uh, hold on...Yeah wednesday works.""Cool man, I'm looking forward to it.""You know what? Me too.""And bro?""Yeah?""It's gonna be fine.""Yeah I know.""Alright cool let's make our own SUVs..."After some quick R&D and crash testing, the4runner was unveiled mid-way through 1984.It had a fiberglass canopy, and had 4 wheeldrive through a solid front axle.And of course hadthat indestructible inline 4 under the hood.It looks awesome.In Japan, the 4Runner was unveiled as the“Hilux Surf”In 1985, (for my birthday) 4Runners had optional electronic fuel injection, that drove the power up froma paltry 100 HP to a whopping 116!That’s one thing about these cars- theyare not fast.But you don’t need speed when you’re off-roadin!People began finding out that their 4Runnerscould do just about anything, anywhere!They could handle the wind, snow, rocks,and rain.At the drop of the hat, you could disappearinto the mountains, just like my dad.In 1986, the 4Runner lost the solid frontaxle to adopt “Hi-Trac” independent front suspensionThe 4Runner was now more comfortable drivingon road, AND more CAPABLE while driving off road.These cars were now more nimble when beingused for SPORT offroad, and gave you moreUTILITY from your VEHICLE.Sport Utility Vehicle.COME ON!!!It’s no coincidence that 1986 is the FiRSTtime we heard the now ubiquitous term SUV.Broncos and TrailBlazers had been around sincethe 60s, but it wasn’t until the 4Runnerthat we needed a special class.And during 1986, while Toyota is patting themselveson the back for improving their already impressive4Runner, somebody popped the hood and noticedthat the wider track width and independentsuspension left a lot of room around thatlittle 4-banger.SO they turbo-charged the little monster!That extra room under the hood also let designerssqueeze in a more powerful, 3 liter V6 option in 1987,which would be the only drastic changeto the first gen, as a major redesign wasapproaching in just a couple years.Spoiler alert.The second Generation 4Runner was unveiledin 1989, and featured, yes a new grill, butit also ditched the fiberglass top for a realmetal roof!It's not a modified pickup anymore!And while other competitors had ass-end doorsthat opened up, the 4Runner still let youretract the rear window and use a true tailgateto get your ski-boots on, or load your surfboard,or i dunno- have a mountainside picnic withthat girl from Provo.I still remember you Heidi...♫ I just wanna be your favorite boy... ♫The times they were changing, however, and outdatedtruck safety standards didn’t hold up tothis new SUV category that the 4runner helped create.The 2nd Gen 4Runner got a driver impact crashrating of just one star.And unlike the one star I got for my art projects in Mrs. Casey’s kindergarten class,one star in crash testing is not good.So, Toyota was like:"Yo, did you see?""Yeah, that sucks, what are we gonna do?""Don't worry, let's give ourselves 5 years, develop a totally new 4 Runner.""But like what do we do in the meantime?""I don't know, throwing like some bars and sh**t""Some bars and sh**t?""Yeah dude like welding some frickin' bars and sh**t.""Ok...Do you...""What?""Wanna talk?""About what?""That night.""We said we would never talk about that ni..""I know we said that I ju...""It never happened""Can't stop thinking about it""Well stop""Stop?""Stop!""I can't!""What are you saying?""I might.......have to do something.""If you do, I swear to god I will fire you from Toyota.""You wouldn't."So in 91, they launched a complete 5 yearredesign for the 4Runner 3rd Gen.It had moree cargo room and amore aerodynamic look.Inside, however, the 4Runner was more luxuryoriented, further distancing itself from morebare-bones competitors.oh, AND there was an electric locking systemfor the rear differential.Which in layman's terms means: you good lockthe rear-diff.ELECTRONICALLY.The 4 Runner was changing the complexion of the SUV Market again.It was the Accutane of the SUV market.And sales were driven even higher by “Limited”and ”highlander” packages available starting in99, exploiting the appeal of combining ruggeddurability and functionality with a luxurious interiorThe Fourth Gen again remained trueto the aesthetics of its predecessorswhich was now being called a “mid-size,semi-luxury SUV with off road capabilities.”The 4Runner dropped the 4 cylinder and was now either available with either a V6 or, for thefirst time, a V8.These things were making more power for towingyour boat up to to lake Havasu.They still felt perfect for hauling your board to thebeach, and they’re still able to comfortablyget your gear through the woods.The SUV class now described big vehicles regardlessof off-road ability, but the 4Runner remainedtrue to its functional origins.The new 4Runners had auto-leveling, heightadjustable air suspension and friggin' skid plates......STOCK!Toyota is taking pains to ensure that the4Runner’s not just for hauling the kidsto soccer practice, it’s for hauling the kids to soccer practice on the top of a fucking mountain!The 5th Generation 4Runner was unveiled inSeptember 2009 at the texas state fair."YEE-HAW! Y'all see that new 4 Runner?Pretty good, luxurious and capable!I define BBQ by beef brisket and beef ribs!"The limited trim was now available in 2wd,because, yes, people who didn’t need fourwheel drive were buying the 4Runner becauseit looks great, and drives great.The SUV, established over 20 years prior,was now the number one selling class of car.From the moment the it replaced the frankensteinedoffspring of a winnebago-toyota marriage,the 4Runner has set the standard of aestheticand functionality in the SUV class.Head up the mountains and you'll see 30 years old4 Runner tearing through turns with their more modern sibling.It's a good looking, functional vehicle that's comfortable on any terrainand it never. Friggin. Brakes.Thanks to Audible for sponsoring this video.Audible's got almost any book you want.Right now, I'm reading "How to drive"Narrated by Ben Collins.He sounds like an angel and drives like a devil.He's the stig!Sometimes I just like to hear his voice before I fall asleep.Hi Ben!Audible lets you switch seamlessly between devices.Picking up exactly where you left off.Wether it's on your phone, or your tablet, through your car, or at home on an Amazon Echo.You can get through tons of books while doing almost anything.PoopingAudible members get a credit every monthGood for any audiobook in their store.Regardless of price an unused credits roll over to the next monthDidn't like your audio book?You can exchange it, no questions asked.Plus, your books are yours to keep.With Audible you can go back and re-listen anytimeEven if you cancelled your membership.Start a 30 day trial and your first audiobookThat's ANY BOOK YOU WANT is FREE.Go to "Audible.com/donutmedia" or text "donutmedia" to 500-500You can do it, WITH AUDIOBOOKS!We're starting to get into trucks and stuffwhat other trucks are cool?Send me a dollar, still want the Lambo.As always Like, Subscribe, Comment and ShareWe love talking to you guys, really appreciate that you guys love talking to usI love you!Dad?I haven't seen you since Christmas.