2025 Toyota 4Runner First Look
This classic SUV stays true to its mission but adds power and tech.
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QuickTakes:
Brawny and boxy, the redesigned 2025 Toyota 4Runner strays little from its rugged, capable predecessor — at least at first glance. Look beneath the surface, though, and you'll find modern tech, turbo power, and off-road-ready features.
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Traditional Looks and Modern Flair Mark the Redesigned 4Runner
The latest 4Runner's chiseled, boxy looks are closely linked to the automaker's redesigned-for-2024 Tacoma pickup, inside and out. You'll find a hexagonal grille up front and high-mounted headlights.
From the side, the two are clearly from the same mold. The distinctive C-pillar behind the rear door visually ties the latest, sixth-generation 4Runner back to four decades of predecessors. At the rear, the near-vertical liftgate features a standard power-retractable tailgate window — another 4Runner signature.
The rugged new Trailhunter trim has its own take with bronze Toyota lettering across the grille, an LED light bar, and Rigid-branded LED fog lamps. The overlanding-oriented Trailhunter trim also includes an Old Man Emu-branded suspension, 33-inch Toyo all-terrain tires, additional skid plates, rocker-protecting rock rails, and Rigid-branded LED exterior lighting. The Trailhunter also comes with an ARB roof rack.
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New Tech Abounds Inside the 4Runner
It took more than a decade, but the 4Runner finally sees a big tech upgrade. Base versions will come with an 8.0-inch touchscreen, while a big 14.0-inch touchscreen is optional. Regardless of screen size, the 4Runner includes wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatibility.
USB-C data ports come standard up front and are available for rear-seat riders, while a Qi wireless charging pad and even a 2,400-watt AC inverter with a household-style plug are available to power up devices. A 7.0-inch digital instrument cluster comes standard, while a 12.3-inch cluster is optional.
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A new Platinum trim level tops the lineup with such 4Runner firsts as a head-up display, heated rear seats, and rain-sensing windshield wipers.
With Toyota's subscription-based Remote Connect system installed on their smartphones, owners can use their devices — as long as there's a 4G connection — to lock, unlock, and start the 4Runner. This digital key system can be shared remotely with others, too. Additionally, all 4Runners now have push-button start.
The automaker's Toyota Safety Sense 3.0 comes standard, including such features as adaptive cruise control, automated emergency braking with pedestrian detection, lane-departure warning, and lane-keeping assist. A driver-assistance system can provide some braking and steering support in certain situations, though it is not a full hands-off setup.
The 4Runner comes standard with five seats, though available third-row seats offer additional capacity in a pinch.
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The New 4Runner's Specs Give It a Budget Land Cruiser Vibe
The 2025 Toyota 4Runner shares a lot in common with Toyota's new 2024 Land Cruiser. Its 112.2-inch wheelbase is the same as the Land Cruiser's, which comes as little surprise because the two models utilize the same body-on-frame construction.
The new 4Runner is no pint-size SUV. At 194.8 inches long and 70.8 inches tall, the 4Runner is about an inch longer between its bumpers yet stands about 5 inches lower to the ground than the Land Cruiser. (It's also about 4 inches longer than the outgoing 2024 4Runner.)
The 4Runner's 9.2 inches of ground clearance give it 1.2 inches of extra rock-surmounting space underneath than the Land Cruiser. Toyota has yet to say how much the new 4Runner weighs, but the Land Cruiser's 5,000-pound curb weight may serve as a guide.
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Toyota will offer two four-cylinder engine choices in the 4Runner, both of which easily beat the outgoing V6 in terms of power output. SR5, TRD Sport, TRD Off-Road, and Limited trims come standard with a 2.4-liter turbocharged four-cylinder making 278 horsepower and 317 pound-feet of torque.
Optional on TRD Off-Road and Limited, and standard on Platinum, TRD Pro, and Trailhunter trims, is a Land Cruiser-sourced hybrid version of that four-cylinder marketed as i-Force Max. That setup adds a small 1.87-kWh nickel-metal hydride battery and a 48-hp electric motor, good for a boost to a total system output of 326 horsepower and a hefty 465 lb-ft of torque.
Those figures compare favorably with the 2024 4Runner's 270 horsepower and 278 lb-ft of torque from a big 4.0-liter V6.
Both engines use an eight-speed automatic transmission, with some 4Runner trims powering just the rear wheels, while others can be had with either part-time or full-time four-wheel drive.
According to Toyota, when equipped with the i-Force Max powertrain, the 4Runner can tow up to 6,000 pounds.
Fuel economy estimates should be available when the 4Runner goes on sale.
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The New Toyota 4Runner Offers Various Levels of Off-Road Utility
Drivers looking to get their 2025 4Runners off the highway will have lots of options. All models have an independent front and solid rear axle setup. Rear-wheel-drive 4Runners come with a limited-slip rear differential, while all models fitted with four-wheel drive have a separate low range useful for descending steep hills or traversing obstacles at low speeds.
TRD Off-Road trims add a locking rear differential, a system called Multi-Terrain Select that includes various drive modes for different kinds of terrain, and Crawl Control that selectively uses the brakes to operate like a low-speed cruise control system for especially difficult terrain.
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Some versions of the 4Runner will be available with a system that disconnects the sway bars to increase wheel articulation to help keep the tires planted on particularly challenging terrain.
Toyota has yet to spill the beans on the new 4Runner TRD Pro, though historically that trim has had special shocks, bigger tires, and forged alloy wheels.
The 2025 Toyota 4Runner is expected to be on sale by fall 2024.
