You are welcome.

Nix, rear visibility is often overrated
Even with all that stuff back there, I can still see out the rear window perfectly.
You get use to it the very first day you drive it.
This is a rig though that requires one to use mirror skills that are often not used anymore my many drivers.

 

sorry to bring this one back from the dead, but what bugged me about the FJ was that with the stick, you have to have full-time 4wd. You can, lock the center diff to give "4wd" and unlock it for "4wd; but one axle can coast", but wouldn't gas mileage be hurt? Otherwise its a great rig!

BTW Corey, I love how the back of your FJ is setup. I'm a pickup man but If I ever had an SUV, thats how I'd have it.

 

It's a niche vehicle and selling according to plan. The Holy Grail for measuring any Toyota sales performance is sales to availability that in turn indicates inventory turnover velocity. Looking at S/A, FJ is right around mid-pack sales performance.

Year-over-year sales are expected to decline for almost any series, the notable exception being Prius. When it gets to a predetermined sales volume, the series is entirely made over to respond to market trends.

You make a good point, though. Other recent niche series like MR2 Spyder disappeared after a five year run. But FJ is selling 10X Spyder so I expect it to stay around much longer in some form as an image vehicle.

Toyota doesn't have to sweat the tightening EPA regs like other manufacturers so can keep more low EPA pure utility vehicles in the lineup than other manufacturers.