Power does make a difference in daily driving especially climbing our mountain passes here in Colorado and not so much off road and my points are aimed at the title of the thread and the 3rd gens are quite a step up in power,ergonomics and safety over the 2nd gens period.
I understand you defending the 2nd gens but it misses the point of the thread. I have nothing against 2nd gens but when it comes to a daily driver a 3rd gen is a more comfortable choice.

Yes,you paid for the locker new but on the used market they all cost the same locker or not and they it's easy to find 3rd gen Runner that is equipped with one.

FYI - Toyota states the ground clearance on a '92 4Runner is 9.1 (my neighbor's stock 2nd gen is at 9" with some miles on it) which is just less than an inch higher than a 4th gen.
I have the taller coils (available in a fair amount of the '99s and less in the '00 models) and the lowest part of my Runner is over 10". Go measure a friend's stock 2nd gen and report that it's got over a 12-13" ground clearance. I think you'll be wrong.

Hey,it's like asking "is a 4th gen significantly imroved over a 3rd gen"? The answer would be yes since it's the progression of technology and more power with the same MPG.

You really need to not take this so personal.

 

I dunno about that - they've really gone for the big car thing with the new ones......and as stated previously, there's more to a truck than power and MPG. My 3.slow will maintain 70 over Floyd Hill and in the 60's climbing out of Georgetown. That's all I ask of it. Yeah, it takes a bit of skill to get it to do that, but that's all I really need. The extra power would have been nice, but when I bought my truck 3rd gens were nearly twice as much money. Still are.

Going back to the REAL point of the original post, though: Yeah, the newer ones are more powerful. That's how it's always been. But are they significantly better engineered? No - the same morons still engineer them. They still have the same water pumps that need frequent replacement, the same horribly vibrating fans, the same lousy cooling systems that won't maintain temperature and the same general lack of durability that is characteristic of not just Toyotas but Japanese vehicles in general. Er.......yeah........

 

I didnt wanna read all posts, sorry. But when I got mine I went from a 22RE pickup with 33s and believe me the 3.0 is a miracle in that aspect. I hear people complain about it a lot and the fact of the matter is, thes a toyota V6, wasnt made to be a high wrapping horsepower monster, as far as reliability I havent had any problems with mine except for the starter. In my honost opinion all toyotas Ive seen have been high mileage so thats when problems normally arise, and yah toyotas have the rep of being reliable and all but for me buying a vehilce with 150K+ and only replacing the starter so far thats a lot better then buying a ford or chevy or dodge with that much and having to rehaul the motor shortly after purchase. Every vehicle has quirks but since toyotas are on such a high pedastule(typo) when something goes wrong everyones goes ZOMFG WTF?!?! I think the 3.4 is obviously a much better engine but in the long run the 96s and up are much more costly, I got my truck with 150K for 5 thousand roughly, on the lot there was a 97 with 180K for 12 thousand, is 32 more horsepower with that? I havent had any reliablity issues with my engine and done know the service history of 3.4s but have heard they have just as many recalls. But with every company look back at old engines to new ones, they always get better and always will. For my truck being 12 years old and running as well as its does it what makes me a toyota fan!

 

The 3.4 was a big deciding factor when I got my 3rd gen. I've driven a freind's 2nd gen quite a bit and it's rediculous how hard you have to push it to maintain just 65mph up Vail pass. it really hurts that we lose power up here period due to our altitude but it's the lack of O2 that kills the 3.0. The 3.4 deals with the less oxygen much better and the HP loss is much less noticeable.

The HG recall on the 3.4 only lasted 3 model years and was resolved and the HG issue occured much less than compared to the 3.0 and it's well documented.

If we answer the thread's title then it's a big "YES".
There's nothing wrong with the 2nd gens but 3rds are significantly improved in ergonomics,power and more importantly safety. Available diff lock and factory SC are nice too.

Is there anything that is significantly better with a 2nd gen vs a 3rd gen stock for stock?

 

But the new ones are still built just as poorly as the old ones. That was the original question - in that respect it's not improved. Pieces of crap still won't go past 300k miles without problems cropping up.....

 

Not to be arguementative, but the 3.4L's redline is only 5200rpm compared to the 3.0L's 5800rpm redline. Personally I think the 3.0 would have no issues turning at 6500, especially since the 3vzfe's are doing that stock.

The price when you buy used, lower insurance rates, a collector's tag in a few years, and just straight up pimp-assed coolness! (That's a technical term! )

 

Hey man, wrong forum. Jeep is over there ---->

 

300k means 300 THOUSAND.....not 3 Thousand!

 

These trucks are actually very good vehicles, it really just depends on the previous owner of the truck. Mine is a pure example: It has 145k miles and I have: rebult the transmission, changed plugs, wires, cap, rotor, 02, master cyl, etc, and the engine burns like 1qt of oil every 3-5 days!! But it still starts everytime, runs like a champ, and smokes like a diesel...lol!!

The prev owner of my truck really drove it hard!!!

 

It seems to me the main problem with the 3vze is that it was just "droped" into the 1st and 2nd gen 4runners/trucks. The 5vze seemed to be designed to fit in the engine compartment. The old 22re's had plenty of room to work on and the same is true with my 1fze land cruiser, which both body styles where originally designed for each respected motor (excluding the diesel motors). The 3vze isn't the most sophisticated motor but DID a great job in its application. I'm tired of hearing all the bitching about how underpowered the 3vze is, mine ran like a rocket new. THEN something caused a VERY NOTICEABLE power loss and mpg loss aroud 2003, which seems to parallel what everyone who buys one second hand speaks of.....I could not track the issue down and I just passed it to an unknowing person, just like everyone else here who bitches about the motor. Find what's the problem and you'll be surprised how well the engine runs. I came to the conclusion that the power and mpg loss was do to a chance of ecu parameters after nearly 10yrs, change in gas formulation, change in wire and sensor resistance after 10yrs etc.

 

yes they are better for a dd, and in most aspects really, i think. as for a deer camp truck, my 3 slow will always be better for haulin those deer out..

 

if i wanted POWER outlets and cup holders i would have got an RV. i wanted to GOOD LOOKING capable off-road vehicle. im sorry but other than the engine and the lockers 3rd gens are not my cup o tea. my opinion is they are ugly. plus 95percent of the ones i see are all driven by girls who dont know what 4wd means. (not saying all girls dont know what 4wd is, my girl does )

 

I missed the sarcasim in your posts...

I have 276,000 on the clock here and counting!

 

For the record, my runner runs like a dream. It runs better than yours. Yes you. There is nothing wrong with it, other than an rtv-gasket booger may be stuck somewhere in a coolant passage.

So I ranted a little about problems that are very common among 2nd gen runners and similar trucks. Get over it. I did.

This idiot thread is 3 pages long and has survived a month.

How bout we let it die?

Mr. bumpin, you were shouting at GV27 who has posted here several times in a clever and slightly sarcastic manner IN SUPPORT of the generally-recognized high quality of Toyotas.

If you want to quote someone and contest a viewpoint, then be sure to read carefully and then quote the right guy.

On this thread, that would be me, the original ranter.

However, it is my right as author of this thread to call it both lame and dead, and furthermore to declare that anyone who posts to it henceforth is a hetero-challenged pinhead and an aficionado of both the Ford Pinto and Plymouth Horizon.

If you want to contest be called Mr. bumpin, you'll have to resort to private messaging, or start a new thread. Sorry.

 

And totally misses the point of this thread but who cares since this thread sure got alot of people butthurt which IMO is hilarious.

 

Have you taken mine for a spin? Unless you have without my knowlege you should not make such foolish claims. I have yet to find any 2nd gen that will keep up with mine in a race and I usually have 500+lbs on them - and that was before the cams, valves, and pnp.