Curious to get some opinions. I'm interested in both vehicles. The JGC seems to be a little more refined on the road with a better/nice feel and fit and finish.

From what I read, the 4runner is incredible off road-something that I may only do 3-4x a year. It also seems to have a better resale value and the long term prospects of a Chrysler product worries me-though that may be a thing of the past . . .??

All of this is coming from a guy who owns a 2010 4Runner Trail Edition with 55K miles on it.

Jeep Pros:
-More Interior creature features/"Nicer" on the inside
-More powerful drivetrain

4Runner Pros:
-Better Resale Value
-Better Reliability historically (I have literally had one problem with my Runner, a seat motor broke at 46K miles, out of warranty, and they replaced it under warranty.)
-I personally like the cloth seats, they are the no stain crazy fabric that causes liquid to bead up on them. I have a 3 year old who has been riding, eating and drinking this Runner since 3 months old and after I vacuum it out it looks brand new in the back seat.

Jeep Cons:
-It's a ****ing Chrysler/Jeep, all the bad that goes along historically with their POS products.

4Runner Cons:
-Expensive for the features you get. I am not going to lie, for a $40K car you would expect a lot more creature comforts, and they just aren't there.
-Not a fast car and I average 17.5 MPG over the last 50K miles. Not GREAT mileage but not bad, just in today's world of better mileage it is not the greatest or a mid size vehicle.


All that said I love our Runner and am confident we will keep it until at least 100K miles.

Thanks, 07. I'm honestly going back and forth but leaning more to the Jeep only because it seems to be more comfortable. I'm just reading mixed reviews on the reliability front. I know its no Toyota.

Don't order the air suspension and you'll be fine.

The bad days of the Daimler interiors are over and those where the source of 90% of the problems in the previous WKs.

8 years and 130K miles and my seat motors still work. In fact everything still works, always have. Pedal adjusters, navigation unit, seat heaters I do have a led light out in the ac controls though and I ripped the side bolster.

Stupid Chrysler.

If you're worried about depreciation look at the diesel engine option. The diesel WKs didn't depreciate for ****. I'll probably keep on driving this one till I can shell out the cash for a newer one with the diesel.

[This message has been edited by p_bubel (edited 2/9/2013 7:45p).]

Between those two options, I'd choose the JGC. It's about the only Chrysler product that I'd buy. That and the new Viper.

p, why not do the air suspension? That was actually a feature I was very interested in for the clearance. I believe it is standard in the Overland, correct?

I love my jeep, great ride, the overland has the luxury feel and the offroad capabilities. I havent had any issues with my air ride suspension. No worries here.

The first year had issues with the complexity of the system, noobs messing around with it on the lot and shipping people messing things up while the vehicle is strapped down.

They say the problems have been fixed, but I have not been around an air suspension that was worth a **** on any vehicle later on in life. That said, parts are cheap and its not rocket science to diagnose these days on Google.

If I right now were getting one I would probably get a Limited with the limited slip rear diff, 5.7 Hemi and slap on a 2" lift. But that's me... and basically what I have right now. Gas mileage suffers, but from what I've read the air suspension at full height is pretty rough if traveling fast. Like say a really rutted dirt road for long distances.

I can forgive Jeep for dropping the solid axles, but I do have a hard time accepting them getting rid of the limited slip front dif. That's a nice option to have in the sand and allows the vehicle to put power down without over-loading the brakes to control spin. Sounds minor, but on an extended beach drive that's tough on the brakes and helps keep momentum. They do require, at least on mine, 15K mile fluid swaps... so check and keep that in mind if you go this route.


If it comes down to the air suspension and you're still worried then plop down for an extended warranty. I had one on my first Grand and never used it and never would have needed it on my current one. The 5.7 is a stout engine and I'm liking it more and more as the Jeep gets older but I'd serious think about the V6 with the 8 speed the next go round. I no longer tow on a regular basis, so I don't really need the horsepower. I'm going to keep an eye on how the VMI diesel does out of the box as it is a very interesting choice in the market.

As far as I'm concerned the 4Runner is safe, but ultimately an over priced, underpowered, ugly barge with an embarrassing interior for the market. People like 'em 'cause they're safe and I'm fine with that; I guess. I don't have to understand. It's not my purchase and more power to them.

Buy what you like, and if you're worried get the extended warranty. Most people on here probably have one.

I don't think there's a vehicle made in today's market that 100K easy and reasonably trouble free miles is a stretch. Buy what you want.



[This message has been edited by p_bubel (edited 2/10/2013 2:12a).]

Interesting read as I am now cursing the air suspension on our JGC. May need to replace the air pump as I seem to have diagnosed it so far.

pbubel, did you ever get a diesel?

What year is yours? Wife & I purchased a 2013 model in 2016 & have put 40k trouble free miles on the HEMI. Thinking about trading for a diesel if we can find one for a reasonable price. Would like to avoid air suspension if it it troublesome.

We replaced each of the air struts/shocks. $1k a pop plus labor. There's a lot of other components that will eventually fail. I would agree with p_bubel that they are not worth the cushy ride on the highway.

Ouch!

So TrailHawk should be a no go??