Few people will find a vehicle more capable, more reliable, and more rugged than a Toyota. This week Underlanding Journal dives in the Experts Corner of the Toyota $Runner, sorry 4runner.

Few vehicles command the brand loyalty that accompanies the modern 4runner. Since it’s inception borrowing the same frame and drivetrain as the pickups that helped build the brand the 4runner has always had a place in the off road community. Very few vehicles have started with such a humble beginning and have remained true to their core founding principles. Toyota has been able to maintain these qualities over the years and have only ever improved the vehicle. When you start with gold all you can do is polish it. The 4runner has kept its affordability and simple rugged build up to the modern counterparts. When I think of a quality affordable SUV that I can take anywhere in the world, I think 4runner.

The reason 4runners have remained so popular is that they’ve been able to adapt to modern overlanding quite well. When other manufacturers focused on improving fuel economy Toyota stayed true to its model and refused to change. When the 4th gen 4runner was unveiled Toyota kept true to its original design and never sacrificed aesthetics. When the economy dipped over the years the Toyota community offered its slightly used 300K mile vehicles for resale for a reasonable value only slightly over the blue book.

These vehicles have stood the test of time and are the best available to the overlanding community. No other vehicle could ever go to the places that you can go in a 4runner.

The opinion of the expert is to take whatever piece of junk your driving now and drive to your nearest dealership. Trade that thing in for a TRD 4runner.