ok, y'all are gonna make me go see if the local toyota dealer has one on the lot now. loved my 4runner, still miss it. every other 4 wheeled vehicle in our family is a toyota, they simply make long lasting, quality vehicles.

 

Exactly..That's what spiked my interest in them initially[sm=smiley2.gif]

 

You guys buy one if you want, but they are seriously fugly.

To sum up my opinion on it: There's nothing on that Toyota that Hummer hasn't already perfected with a lot more style and class.

 

Oh you can bet your doggy bones I ain't gonna buy one..I just will acknowledge the TOYOTA quality and reliability overall..Ain't got nothing to do with looks...Butt ugly is what I call it.[:'(]

 

Yeah and I am always the one who has to lock in the hubs on the bronco! Actually I am surprised they are like that. I didn't notice.

BTW the white roof is the whole retro thing. Go look at the old ones on ebay for example. I think it's also an optical illusion making it not look so tall. Although the ones with the roof racks look even taller.

Here's a cool pic from our Phoenix trip where one parked right in front of us. It was cool. Like I said, if it was just the two of us I think it'd be cool but don't take the backseat as a full back seat.



They are also stickered $5k or so less comperably equipped.

 

Cruzer, thanks for the pic of the FJ next to a Hummer. It's good to see a comparison.

 

I must have missed it before but you said it drove bigger than an H2? I don't see how that is possible. It is the same size roughly as an H3. [sm=dontgetit.gif]


Check this out.. http://www.edmunds.com/apps/nvc/edmunds/VehicleComparison;jsessionid=GCTGd3ptJ8N7L3Lvxl8Pv PlZLC4PhTzLKdKz6y3JLjbSvgX3LThN!-201803605?styleid=100512301&styleid=100688146&styl eid=100541823&maxvehicles=5&refid=&op=3&tab=featur es

http://www.edmunds.com/apps/nvc/edmunds/VehicleComparison;jsessionid=GCTX2j2yrpJN6JhpXnq2H 4lc6WhJPmlvT9R4jM0kN0nLyvLWyntL!-201803605?styleid=100512301&styleid=100688146&styl eid=100541823&maxvehicles=5&refid=&op=3&tab=specs

 

the benefits of working from home - i get to dress the way i want. the benefit of that - car salesmen see someone in desert camo pants and a hard rock t shirt and figure you can't afford a new toyota, so they leave you alone.

i figured driving this beast would have been a waste of everyone's time - but here's my take on it.

the only one on the lot at the time was silver, which made it look less idiotic than the blue ones. this one had upgraded blingy rims with simulated beadlock and it listed a lift, but everything i saw underneath looked stock.

i'll start outside - tiny sideview mirrors, with incorporated turn signals that are just asking to be smashed by tree branches. the undercarriage protection looks pretty useless, the only thing covered is the engine, and the top of the leading skidplate has no mechanical connection for the first 6 inches - you hit something, it's going to be bent into your plasitc bumper. the exhaust from the driver's side, as it passed across to join the single muffler, is a good 1/2 - 3/4" BELOW the frame! there are 2 tiny bars connecting the crossbeam to the side rails, that's it for protection. the transfer case and tranny are totally unprotected. for all their bluster, this is not a toyota made to take off road out of the box. one thing i did like though, the rear suspension is kept tucked up nicely above the axle, or tight against the rear hubs, something that should have been done for the H3.

once i opened the door, it just got worse. the interior looks like they stole a page from GM. cheap plastic! i expected that in the H2, but not in a $35k toyota. the center console is completely open, there's no lid on the storage box. which means anything bigger than a california highway pothole is chucking your stuff throughout the cabin. although it wouldn't be hard to reach on the backseat, which wouldn't fit my son's carseat without moving the front seats forward.

the only thing i liked about the inside was the level guage on the center of the dash (the compass could go though). it does both side and approach angles.

sorry, no drive test, so i can't say whether it drove bigger than the H2 or not, but it has to be easier to park.

 

Nice review...I'm almost certain this is one Toyota I'll pass on....Sorta like I did on the MR2.

 

my wife still has the logo from her mom's MR2. it was the only thing still straight after the T-bone. she didn't exactly walk away, but she's walking now, and driving my old 4runner. should have taken out the supercharger though . . . she likes it too much . . . .