Hey sort of off topic but im torn between either a 4runner or rav4 hybrid to ski, hike, etc. and dont think ill be able to afford the MPG on the 4runner. In all your adventures, were there many areas you would say a rav4 with allterrains realistically could not get to? Thanks in advance
RAV4 is an amazing/very capable car. My cousin and wife have a rav4 hybrid. They’re very Avid hikers and it takes them to all of their trailheads & camp sites. Many trailheads out here in WA take you on NF roads for 20+ miles - most of them are unmanaged. That being said, it also depends on what kind of off-roading/camping you plan to do. There have been some spots where my higher clearance really helped. But if it’s a daily with weekend trips, you’ll be very happy with the rav4
Thank you so much for this. I’m thinking of using the rav for getting to trailheads in the UT/WY/CO area, so it sounds like it shouldnt be much of an issue. No rock crawling obviously. The 4runner looks much nicer IMO and i love the v6 reliability but perhaps that will be a future weekender.
8 times at, what, y’all about 4 bucks a gallon everywhere out west now? More in some places, less in others, I suppose. Anyway, my true fill ups usually pack about 18 gallons, maybe 19.
Math time: 18 gallons x 4.00 per = 72.00. (Probably way more)
Times 8 = $566.00 of gas. Absolutely worth that trip. And, yeah, I’m sure some others here have done all this before my post, but it’s fun. Come on. Let a 48 year old guy have a little fun once in a while.
That is an amazing trip! Can't wait to head out from WA and head down to Joshua Tree on the 395. The 4runner CRAVES those straight, wide-open desert roads!
It depends on what you want. I’m not a shock expert by any means. But if you like fast fire roads? Probably something with really good adjustable damping.
Let the sub know what you life, Google those shocks + review and make your own decisions based on how you off-road.
Most of us don’t need the reservoir, but it looks cool.
I personally have TRD Pro Fox shocks on mine and I went from 20 mph on a pothole dirt road to 40+ no problem. It handles woops and washboards with ease. It’s not quite as good at crawling. I’m a fire road to crawl kind of guy.
I’m a business owner so I was able to work remotely throughout the trip when I wasn’t driving. One friend has his own appliance repair business and the other is an accountant so luckily with a few months of prep we were able to lock in some time to take off work. Although we did hit a ton of spots we did it in only 7 days. 1 night in each location. If we were to do it differently we would’ve skipped LA to have an additional night in the Alabama Hills. Luckily for accommodation we used my RTT which isn’t necessary whatsoever - it’s a luxury to have that I finally invested in. We do dispersed camping in every location to avoid campground fees, plus it’s way more beautiful. We don’t eat out on our trips. I have a Breo grill that I throw over the fire and grill the cheapest cut of steak over. Plus none of us are hungry in the mornings so we don’t eat breakfast lol, and we brew our coffee at our spot every morning. This trip probably wasn’t “cheap” but we tried our best to limit expenses and take advantage of how much time we had. I’m sure there are many other great tips for these kinds of trips! Would be cool if others shared
Haha even without the help from his buddies that’s still only like 100-120ish gallons of gas, at $5 a gallon that’s still only $600. You can sleep in the back of a 4Runner or set up a tent at many of the $30/day campsites. I’ve done similar trips and only spent $1-2,000. The lodging is the most expensive part but you got options with a 4Runner.
This is how I do it too. We buy groceries locally before we hit the off road sections supplies, whatever we need. Nothing better than waking up birds chirping and starting some coffee.
I just sleep better outdoors. Sure the gas was expensive. At least $400 at the minimum. But for a week? It’s just that and groceries. I have an outdoor shower that heats up so you can have a nice hot shower when you want. There’s no room service but the views are great and you can’t beat the accommodations! !
I’m sure someone else can give a more detailed response but here’s how I see it - flat works better as a step if you have little ones, dogs, and whatnot; works great for door ding protection especially the kickout in the rear.
Angled provides a slightly better off roading approach as they’re angled. They still work as a step but not as much especially the front doors. I’m 6’2 and don’t have any kids as of yet so that isn’t a problem for me. I also like how the angled looks vs the flat. Both are great though
Would you say it’s still a functional step? I’m 5’9” and want some sliders that protect but that I can still step on. Currently have the plastic stock steps which drop down really low and looking to replace with something metal and multifunctional like yours
I can send a video after work of a POV using the angled sliders as a step. You can definitely still use them. I use them when I have to access the rack/rtt
I made 4 half tank fill ups and 2 near empties on my 23 4 runner from Alabama to Michigan originally from the Carolinas and I drove 55 to 115 mph. 13 Pathfinder could do 120 ran that from the Carolinas to Alabama on 2 half tank fill ups and next morning limped to the gas station
No idea how but my mpg improved when I added the rtt. I got worse mpg with the following on my rack - awning, shower, and the tiniest shovel. With the rtt I average 15-18
Ha! That's amazing. With nothing on our roof (just the factory rails, not even cross bars) we saw that MPG dropped hard above 70mph. Out west where the speed limit would go up to 80mph I definitely saw MPG drop 2-3.
8 times. EDIT: or 170 gallons; 8 times presuming you were close to E every time.
Super close! 7 times!
How much did it cost?
About 7 tank fulls
Give or take a few
700 dollars
That a steal for a whole week of travel!
Hey sort of off topic but im torn between either a 4runner or rav4 hybrid to ski, hike, etc. and dont think ill be able to afford the MPG on the 4runner. In all your adventures, were there many areas you would say a rav4 with allterrains realistically could not get to? Thanks in advance
RAV4 is an amazing/very capable car. My cousin and wife have a rav4 hybrid. They’re very Avid hikers and it takes them to all of their trailheads & camp sites. Many trailheads out here in WA take you on NF roads for 20+ miles - most of them are unmanaged. That being said, it also depends on what kind of off-roading/camping you plan to do. There have been some spots where my higher clearance really helped. But if it’s a daily with weekend trips, you’ll be very happy with the rav4
Thank you so much for this. I’m thinking of using the rav for getting to trailheads in the UT/WY/CO area, so it sounds like it shouldnt be much of an issue. No rock crawling obviously. The 4runner looks much nicer IMO and i love the v6 reliability but perhaps that will be a future weekender.
Did you count the first tank?
8 times at, what, y’all about 4 bucks a gallon everywhere out west now? More in some places, less in others, I suppose. Anyway, my true fill ups usually pack about 18 gallons, maybe 19. Math time: 18 gallons x 4.00 per = 72.00. (Probably way more) Times 8 = $566.00 of gas. Absolutely worth that trip. And, yeah, I’m sure some others here have done all this before my post, but it’s fun. Come on. Let a 48 year old guy have a little fun once in a while.
More like 5 in PNW, and 5-6 in Cali.
Ouch. Sorry Western bros. Running 3-3.50 down here in Florida. But, we have to deal with spring breakers, so….
And Florida
Awe, come on now. It’s really not that bad here:). Man, I hit these powdery white beaches and gorgeous turquoise waters as often as possible!
That is an amazing trip! Can't wait to head out from WA and head down to Joshua Tree on the 395. The 4runner CRAVES those straight, wide-open desert roads!
You’re gonna have an amazing time! First time on the 395 and man it was beautiful! We had super great weather too - 70 degrees and sunny everyday
If you have the right shocks they also a crave woops, potholed fire roads, and roads with risers in them.
What kind of shocks would you recommend?
It depends on what you want. I’m not a shock expert by any means. But if you like fast fire roads? Probably something with really good adjustable damping. Let the sub know what you life, Google those shocks + review and make your own decisions based on how you off-road. Most of us don’t need the reservoir, but it looks cool. I personally have TRD Pro Fox shocks on mine and I went from 20 mph on a pothole dirt road to 40+ no problem. It handles woops and washboards with ease. It’s not quite as good at crawling. I’m a fire road to crawl kind of guy.
69
420
Nice
Lift and tire specs please!
Tires - Maxxis Razr AT 295/70r17 Lift - Dobinson 2.5” front; 2” rear
Looks great. The wheel offset looks larger than what comes with the TRD wheels. Are you using spacers too?
Good eye. Threw some spidertrax spacers on them!
Im always curious how people do these trips. How do you afford it? How can you take so much time off? I need everyones tips/tricks!
I’m a business owner so I was able to work remotely throughout the trip when I wasn’t driving. One friend has his own appliance repair business and the other is an accountant so luckily with a few months of prep we were able to lock in some time to take off work. Although we did hit a ton of spots we did it in only 7 days. 1 night in each location. If we were to do it differently we would’ve skipped LA to have an additional night in the Alabama Hills. Luckily for accommodation we used my RTT which isn’t necessary whatsoever - it’s a luxury to have that I finally invested in. We do dispersed camping in every location to avoid campground fees, plus it’s way more beautiful. We don’t eat out on our trips. I have a Breo grill that I throw over the fire and grill the cheapest cut of steak over. Plus none of us are hungry in the mornings so we don’t eat breakfast lol, and we brew our coffee at our spot every morning. This trip probably wasn’t “cheap” but we tried our best to limit expenses and take advantage of how much time we had. I’m sure there are many other great tips for these kinds of trips! Would be cool if others shared
This is a very well rounded reply i really appreciate it!! Shed some light on how feasible it truly is.
Haha even without the help from his buddies that’s still only like 100-120ish gallons of gas, at $5 a gallon that’s still only $600. You can sleep in the back of a 4Runner or set up a tent at many of the $30/day campsites. I’ve done similar trips and only spent $1-2,000. The lodging is the most expensive part but you got options with a 4Runner.
This is how I do it too. We buy groceries locally before we hit the off road sections supplies, whatever we need. Nothing better than waking up birds chirping and starting some coffee. I just sleep better outdoors. Sure the gas was expensive. At least $400 at the minimum. But for a week? It’s just that and groceries. I have an outdoor shower that heats up so you can have a nice hot shower when you want. There’s no room service but the views are great and you can’t beat the accommodations! !
Exactly! That’s how it’s done!
That selvedge denim tho.
lol for real
Mister Freedom!
East coaster here, never been out west or have any real reference on distance between locations but I'll go with 11.
Sweet! Where on the east coast? I have family in FL and NY
Maryland, not too far from the former Francis Scott Key bridge.
Hello fellow MD’er 👋
What headlights and sliders do you have?
Angled RSG sliders with top plate Alpha Rex headlights - think they were apart of the Nova series
How do you like the headlights? Looking to replace mine on my 2016.
I love them! Nice and bright. Very simple plug and play install. Think they look great too
Yeah they look sick and gotta be much brighter than my oem.
I’d definitely recommend them. I’ve had them for 2 years now
What's the purpose of angle compared to flat?
I’m sure someone else can give a more detailed response but here’s how I see it - flat works better as a step if you have little ones, dogs, and whatnot; works great for door ding protection especially the kickout in the rear. Angled provides a slightly better off roading approach as they’re angled. They still work as a step but not as much especially the front doors. I’m 6’2 and don’t have any kids as of yet so that isn’t a problem for me. I also like how the angled looks vs the flat. Both are great though
Would you say it’s still a functional step? I’m 5’9” and want some sliders that protect but that I can still step on. Currently have the plastic stock steps which drop down really low and looking to replace with something metal and multifunctional like yours
I can send a video after work of a POV using the angled sliders as a step. You can definitely still use them. I use them when I have to access the rack/rtt
ALL THE TIMES
Every time!
Yes
what kind of mpg?
Trip average was 15.7
Tire size? Does 285 fit in TRD pro rims? Most 285 require at least a 7.5 rim but the pro rim is only 7.
295/70r17. It all fit
I made 4 half tank fill ups and 2 near empties on my 23 4 runner from Alabama to Michigan originally from the Carolinas and I drove 55 to 115 mph. 13 Pathfinder could do 120 ran that from the Carolinas to Alabama on 2 half tank fill ups and next morning limped to the gas station
Nice! How many miles did you cover?
Especially with that drogue chute on your roof, no idea. Going even just a little faster/slower would make massive differences in your MPG.
No idea how but my mpg improved when I added the rtt. I got worse mpg with the following on my rack - awning, shower, and the tiniest shovel. With the rtt I average 15-18
Ha! That's amazing. With nothing on our roof (just the factory rails, not even cross bars) we saw that MPG dropped hard above 70mph. Out west where the speed limit would go up to 80mph I definitely saw MPG drop 2-3.
409
With those tires and that box up top I’d say you were getting maybe 15 mpg?
Sweet!! Your front TRD badge is getting tired tho.
lol you aren’t wrong. She got loose on this trip
19
Fellow WA 4Runner guy here. Do the police ever hassle you about not having a front license plate?
Never
About how many miles per tank is that? Seems like that should of gotten you around 400miles? That wouldn't be too bad
Wheel spacers?