#2020 Toyota 4runner Build

[antoine-roquentin]

Twenty-four-year-old Lauren Mestas was already having a bad day when she noticed a cop car tailing her northbound on Interstate 35, headed into downtown Austin. She wasn’t overly concerned at first, as she wasn’t breaking any laws, but the patrol vehicle remained on her tail as she exited onto Riverside Drive, headed west. She started to suspect that it might have something to do with the slogans soaped all over the windows of her 2001 Toyota 4Runner. In addition to “BROWN PRIDE” and “BLACK LIVES MATTER,” written across the rear window were the words “FUCK THESE RACIST POLICE.”

Two days earlier and not even a mile away, a few blocks south of the Texas Capitol in the center of Austin, Mestas had witnessed an off-duty Army sergeant named Daniel Perry shoot and kill an Air Force veteran named Garrett Foster, who had been at a BLM protest with an AK-47 slung across his chest, pushing his quadruple-amputee fiancée in a wheelchair. At the sound of gunfire, Mestas and two other young women had fled across Congress Avenue, the main downtown boulevard, and hidden behind a column of the Frost Bank Tower. In the process, she had accidentally lost her cell phone, as well as the remote control to open the gates of her apartment complex.

That night, on arriving home, she’d parked in an ungated portion of the sprawling, 42-building apartment complex, located in far South Austin. Badly shaken by the shooting, she must have confused the spot, because when she went out the next morning, a Sunday, she couldn’t seem to find the 4Runner anywhere. “I was not in a good headspace,” she told me. “I thought somebody had stolen my car.”

She called the city’s non-emergency line to report the suspected theft. Eight hours later, she stumbled across the 4Runner while walking her dog, a chihuahua named Optimus Prime, and redialed 311 to retract the stolen vehicle report. The operator, Mestas told me, assured her that the 4Runner’s vehicle identification number and license plate number would be removed from the police department’s stolen vehicle list, and gave her a confirmation number for verification, should she happen to get pulled over.

Monday morning, she went to her job at Planet K, the longtime Austin smoke shop where she was employed as a shift lead. She had yet to recover, emotionally, from witnessing Foster’s murder. “I spent two hours on my shift sobbing,” she told me. “I had just seen somebody get shot and killed. I was pretty much catatonic.” A little after 10 a.m., her manager sent her to the bank to break $200 into small bills and coins. She took Optimus Prime with her for company.

It was on the way to the bank that the cop car picked up her tail. The officer, a state trooper from the Texas Department of Public Safety, or DPS, later filed an incident report which made clear that his reason for running a license plate check was that, in his words, “the vehicle had anti law enforcement rhetoric scribble [sic] all over the outside.” He followed her for a mile on Riverside Drive along the south shore of Ladybird Lake, and waited a full five minutes to hit the siren and lights.

“Oh my God,” Mestas thought, surmising what must have happened. “They think I stole my car.”

She panicked, and instead of pulling over, she came to a dead stop in the middle of the First Street Bridge, blocking the inside lane. The spot where she braked to a halt might well have been the precise geographic center of Austin, with Ladybird Lake flowing beneath her toward Longhorn Dam, Auditorium Shores and all of South Austin to her rear, and City Hall directly in front of her. It was 10:40 on a weekday morning, and normally the bridge would have been packed with traffic, but four months into the pandemic, there were hardly any other cars.

The state trooper, Garrett Ray, was joined by a second DPS officer, Jason Melson. Instead of approaching the 4Runner, they drew their service weapons and took cover behind the open doors of their patrol vehicles. According to Ray’s incident report, it was an “HRS,” or high-risk stop, also known as a felony stop: a procedure employed when an officer believes that someone in the car has committed a serious crime and could be dangerous.

The tactical terminology is worth noting because earlier that very same morning, the Austin Police Department had released damning dashcam footage of officers shooting and killing an unarmed man named Michael Ramos in a high-risk or felony stop that, like this one, had been based on faulty dispatch information. A 911 caller reported that Ramos and a woman had been using drugs in a parked car, and that he was holding a gun. Ramos had been spooked by the sight of eight armed officers pointing weapons and screaming at him to get his hands up. When he tried to flee, one of the officers opened fire with an assault rifle. APD later confirmed there was no gun in Ramos’s possession.

One hour after Mestas was pulled over, at 11:40 a.m., I happened to come across the scene by accident. I was riding my bike around Ladybird Lake, and I counted at least 40 DPS vehicles blocking the south end of the First Street Bridge. There had to be 80 cops on scene by that time, if not 100. The emergency vehicles included a fire truck, an ambulance, and two BearCat armored personnel carriers.

Every minute or so, a mechanical RoboCop-like voice repeated, “Driver, exit the vehicle with your hands up.” The dystopian intonation sounded over Auditorium Shores, where a crowd of people who had been exercising or playing with their dogs had gathered on the sidewalk to watch the spectacle unfold.

[mikethepec-blog]

2020 Toyota 4Runner Rumor, Limited And Concept

2020 Toyota 4Runner Rumor, Limited And Concept

The Toyota 4Runner had been able to make a good name for by itself as a single of the most competent off-road units on the industry. Given that the very first model, the vehicle altered significantly all through the yrs. Toyota introduced the most recent model in 2009, and because they likely did not genuinely change substantially about it.

2020 Toyota 4Runner Rumor, Limited

Though, still, it…

[orbemnews]

Jobs Report Is Expected to Be Strong as Rebound Picks Up Speed: Live Updates Here’s what you need to know: A bartender at Frasca Food and Wine in Boulder, Colo. The labor market will need months of strong growth to approach its prepandemic level.Credit…Eliza Earle for The New York Times The U.S. job market is ready for takeoff — and this time, few economists expect it to come crashing back down to earth. The Labor Department will release data on Friday detailing hiring and unemployment in March. Forecasters surveyed by FactSet expect the report to show that U.S. employers added more than 600,000 jobs last month, up from 379,000 in February and the most since October. Even better numbers probably lie ahead. The March data was collected early in the month, before most states broadened vaccine access and before most Americans began receiving $1,400 checks from the federal government as part of the most recent relief package. Those forces should lead to even faster job growth in April, said Jay Bryson, chief economist for Wells Fargo. “If you don’t get a barn burner in March, I think you’re probably going to get one in April,” he said. The biggest risk to the economy is as it has been for the last year: the pandemic itself. Coronavirus cases are rising again in much of the country as states have begun easing restrictions. If that upward trend turns into a full-blown new wave of infections, it could force some states to backpedal, impeding the recovery, Mr. Bryson warned. But few economists expect a repeat of the winter, when a jump in virus cases pushed the recovery into reverse. More than a quarter of U.S. adults have received at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine, and more than two million people a day are being inoculated. That should allow economic activity to continue to rebound. “This time is different, and that’s because of vaccines,” said Julia Pollak, a labor economist at the job site ZipRecruiter. “It’s real this time.” Still, the labor market will need many months of strong growth to return to anything close to its prepandemic level. As of February, the United States had roughly 9.5 million fewer jobs than in February 2020, and the gap is even larger when accounting for a year’s worth of missed job growth. Forecasters expect the March report to show that the unemployment rate fell to 6 percent, down from 6.2 percent in February and from a peak of nearly 15 percent in April. But economists caution against reading too much into the unemployment rate, which excludes millions of people who left the labor force during the pandemic, in many cases because they needed to care for children while schools were closed or because they did not feel safe going to work. If those people begin to look for jobs again as the pandemic ebbs — as economists hope they will — the official unemployment rate might be slow to recover. “So many people have been pushed out by the pandemic and its fallout that the short-term trends are going to be really hard to parse out,” said Nick Bunker, research director for the hiring site Indeed. Ed Bastian, the chief executive of Delta, was accused by Georgia’s governor of spreading “the same false attacks being repeated by partisan activists.”Credit…Steve Marcus/Reuters For two weeks, Delta Air Lines and Coca-Cola had been under pressure from activists and Black executives who wanted the companies to publicly oppose a new law in Georgia that makes it harder for people to vote. On Wednesday, six days after the law was passed, both companies stated their “crystal clear” opposition to it. Now Republicans are mad at the companies for speaking out. Hours after the companies made their statements, Gov. Brian Kemp, a Republican, took aim at Ed Bastian, the chief executive of Delta, accusing him of spreading “the same false attacks being repeated by partisan activists.” And Republicans in the Georgia state legislature floated the idea of increasing taxes on Delta as retribution. On Thursday, Senator Marco Rubio of Florida posted a video in which he called Delta and Coca-Cola “woke corporate hypocrites.” Senator Roger Wicker of Mississippi said Coca-Cola was “caving to the ‘woke’ left.” And Stephen Miller, an adviser to former President Donald J. Trump, said on Twitter, “Unelected, multinational corporations are now openly attacking sovereign U.S. states & the right of their citizens to secure their own elections. This is a corporate ambush on Democracy.” It was another illustration of just how fraught it is for big companies to wade in to partisan politics, where any support for the left draws the ire of the right, and vice versa. Other big Georgia companies have managed to stay on the sidelines. UPS, which is based in Atlanta, also refrained from criticizing the new law before it was passed. On Thursday, the company said it “believes that voting laws and legislation should make it easier, not harder, for Americans to exercise their right to vote.” It made no mention of the law. Mannequins at a Brooks Brothers warehouse in Enfield, Conn.Credit…Amr Alfiky/The New York Times In the fallout of Brooks Brothers’ bankruptcy filing and sale last year, the retailer abandoned a warehouse in Connecticut full of junk — mannequins, sewing machines and a whole section of Christmas trees. Ever since, the couple that owns the warehouse, Chip and Rosanna LaBonte, has been scrambling to figure out how to get rid of it all. Junk removal companies have told them it will cost at least $240,000 to clear the space, which Brooks Brothers had rented through November, Sapna Maheshwari and Vanessa Friedman report for The New York Times. In order to pay the bill, the LaBontes are going to have to sell their home. Chip and Rosanna LaBonte, owners of the warehouse where Brooks Brothers stashed its stuff before abandoning it.Credit…Amr Alfiky/The New York Times Brooks Brothers, which was founded in 1818 and is the oldest continuously operated apparel brand in the United States, began renting the warehouse in Enfield in 2011, most recently at a rate of roughly $20,000 a month. The couple bought the warehouse in 2010. They said that it was their first foray into commercial real estate and that they worked on residential projects before that. They have other tenants and a self-storage section, but are frustrated about the mess and the fact they can’t use the space for anything else until it is cleared. The couple’s plight illustrates the far-reaching consequences of retail bankruptcies, which cascaded during the pandemic and affected everyone from factory workers to executives. Smaller vendors and landlords have often been left holding the short end of the stick during lengthy byzantine bankruptcy proceedings, particularly with limits on what they can spend on legal bills compared with larger corporations. And once bankrupt brands are sold, people like the LaBontes are typically left in the dust. Ford and enjoyed substantial increases in sales to individual customers at dealerships while reporting declines in sales to fleet operators.Credit…Brittany Greeson for The New York Times General Motors reported a modest rise in car sales in North America for the first quarter, but its operations continue to be hampered by a shortage of computer chips. G.M. said on Thursday that it sold 642,250 cars and light trucks in the first three months of the year, up just 4 percent even though sales a year ago slowed sharply as the coronavirus pandemic took hold. By contrast, Toyota Motor showed a strong rebound in sales compared with a year ago. The Japanese company reported that sales in North America jumped 22 percent in the first three months of 2021, to 603,066 cars and light trucks. Its March sales were a record high for that month. Toyota’s big jump helped it outsell Ford Motor, which has also been hit by the semiconductor shortage. Ford’s sales in the first quarter were up just 1 percent, to 521,334. Stellantis — the company formed by the merger of Fiat Chrysler and France’s Peugeot SA — reported its U.S. sales increased 5 percent in the first quarter. Ford and G.M. both enjoyed substantial increases in sales to individual customers at dealerships while reporting declines in sales to fleet operators like rental car companies and governments. G.M. and Ford have had to halt or slow production at a handful of plants. G.M. has resorted to making some vehicles without parts containing computer chips with the intention of installing those components before sale when supply improves. In a statement, G.M. said it hoped its strategy for building cars without some components would help it “quickly meet strong expected customer demand during the year.” That approach to building cars “underscores the dire nature” of the semiconductor shortage, an analyst at CFRA Research, Garrett Nelson, said in a report. “One of the key questions is how much better the U.S. auto sales recovery can get from here.” The chip shortage is reflected in G.M.’s unusually low inventory of 334,628 vehicles. That is about 76,000 less than at the end of the fourth quarter and is half the number of vehicles its dealers held in stock a year ago. Ford’s inventory was 56,100 lower than at the end of 2020. G.M.’s sluggish sales were confined to its Chevrolet brand, whose sales fell 2 percent in the first quarter. That included a 13 percent decline in sales of its full-size Silverado pickup truck, a critical profit maker for the company. The Buick, Cadillac and G.M.C. brands reported strong sales in the quarter. Toyota also reported a drop in sales of its full-size pickup, the Tundra. But the decline was more than offset by big increases in sales of its RAV4, Highlander and 4Runner sport-utility vehicles and cars from its Lexus luxury brand. Also on Thursday, Honda Motor reported its first-quarter sales in North America had increased 16 percent, to 347,091 vehicles. Source link Orbem News #expected #jobs #Live #Picks #Rebound #Report #speed #strong #Updates

[perksofwifi]

Too Much Performance? Toyota Commits To Two Performance Brands In The U.S.

Toyota Racing Development, or TRD, has been Toyota’s dominant performance brand in the States for over 40 years. It started out as an engine builder for Toyota’s racing efforts, and today it is probably best known for the TRD-branded Tacoma, 4Runner, and Tacoma off-road variants—and, more recently, the sportier TRD versions of the Camry and Avalon. So, if TRD is Toyota’s performance sub-brand of note, what does that make Gazoo Racing (GR), which attaches its name to the 2020 GR Supra sports car? 

As it turns out, GR also is Toyota’s performance brand. Huh? According to Ed Laukes, Toyota’s group vice president of marketing, Toyota thinks there is plenty of room for both performance brands in the United States. He said, “In the end, TRD and GR can coexist. TRD has a long lineage with the trucks that we sell . . . and the American consumer likes the TRD brand and it has some strong heritage in North America.” Laukes added that the TRD versions of the Camry and Avalon further prove that Toyota Corporate and Toyota North America believe the TRD brand is here to stay. But, keeping TRD while adding GR to the mix means that Toyota will be the only major brand with two distinct performance divisions in the U.S.

  Toyota will have to work to separate the two brands if they want this strategy to work, however. If TRD develops and refines vehicles that are already in Toyota’s lineup, GR vehicles will have to remain bespoke. Cars like the GR Supra and the recently announced—though as of yet unavailable in the U.S.—GR Yaris are two examples of the GR brand building a presence without stepping on TRD’s toes. 

When asked about bringing the badass 268-hp rally-inspired GR Yaris to the states Laukes simply said it’s, “under study” and that Toyota’s product planners are already thinking about if it would make good business sense to sell it here. That means the possibility of bringing the homologation special to the states isn’t totally out of the question. There’s hope, everyone! Whether this balancing act works out from sales and brand perspectives is yet to be seen, but Toyota is giving it a go. The GR and TRD brands, therefore, coexist—for now.

The post Too Much Performance? Toyota Commits To Two Performance Brands In The U.S. appeared first on MotorTrend.

https://www.motortrend.com/news/toyota-trd-gr-performance-brands/ visto antes em https://www.motortrend.com

[crosbyru-blog]

Toyota signals a broader truck push

CHICAGO — Toyota’s broader light-truck strategy came into sharper focus at last week’s Chicago Auto Show. While the refreshed Tacoma and new trim levels for the Sequoia, RAV4 and Land Cruiser certainly will play a part, the automaker’s actions across its light-truck lineup can be summed up by a single word:

More.

More Tundras from its pickup plant in San Antonio because another plant can now make more Tacomas, allowing for broader variations and greater improvements in the refreshed 2020 versions.

Toyota also is adding variants, including the 2020 Sequoia TRD Pro, which aims to boost the off-road chops of one of the brand’s beefiest SUVs. The upcoming 2020 RAV4 TRD Off-Road finally gives some legitimate off-road bona fides to one of the vehicles that first embodied the phrase “soft-roader” two decades ago, aiming to give even more consumer appeal to what is already the nation’s top-selling crossover. And the Japanese automaker will offer more high-end nostalgia in its light-truck lineup in the form of a limited-run, specially badged 2020 Land Cruiser Heritage Edition.

It’s all part of a strategy to strike the light-truck market while it continues to be hot, and doing so — because Toyota has the resources and discipline to pursue more than one global strategy at a time — while continuing to invest in its historically strong position in compact and midsize sedans.

In 2018, sales of Toyota-brand light trucks — its two pickups, as well as its SUVs and crossovers — in the U.S. rose 8.9 percent to 1.33 million units, making up 62 percent of the brand’s overall sales. Five light-truck nameplates had more than 100,000 sales for the year, and all had sales increases:

RAV4, up 4.8 percent to 427,170

Tacoma, up 24 percent to 245,659

Highlander, up 13 percent to 244,511

4Runner, up 8.9 percent to 139,694

Tundra, up 1.7 percent to 118,258.

Yet Toyota’s top executives still see more opportunity for sales gains. Take pickups, for example, where previous production limitations have placed a governor on sales of both the Tacoma and Tundra. Toyota addressed the problem by building a third Tacoma plant, now ramping up in Mexico.

“That will give us some growth opportunities and give us the ability to push Tacoma a little harder,” said Bill Fay, senior vice president for operations at Toyota Motor North America. “I think that will add a little more appeal, with more shoppers and more interest in the midsize pickup.”

And that, Fay said, will allow the San Antonio plant to throttle back on the Tacoma to instead focus on the larger Tundra pickup. “It gives us a chance to push Tundra a little harder,” he said. “In the past, if we did that, we had to take it out of Tacoma, and now, we don’t have to do that.”

Key to Toyota’s light-truck push is the lift it gets from its TRD performance subbrand. More than 40 percent of combined Tacoma, Tundra, Sequoia and 4Runner sales are TRD packages, said Jack Hollis, head of the Toyota Division for Toyota Motor North America.

“On the truck side, our TRD Pro has really been stuff that we’ve been working on over the years that we’ve … continuously improved over the years to make those products better,” Hollis said. “Having a performance brand really allows us to experiment and innovate, and that’s what I get excited about, whether it’s cars or trucks. I see it lifting our brand through performance.”

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2020 Toyota 4Runner TRD Pro Review, Price, Specs

2020 Toyota 4Runner TRD Pro Review, Price, Specs

2020 Toyota 4Runner TRD Pro Review, Price, Specs – Typically the 2020 Toyota 4Runner TRD Prois actually a middle of the type of SUV that features a sturdy back axle together with body-structure manufacturing the same as that from a big pickup truck. It will be the re-designed variation on the previous design, with useful functionality, and performance designed to meet either on-street and even…

[orbemnews]

Toyota sales surge, but G.M. and Ford’s rebounds are weaker. General Motors reported a modest rise in car sales in North America for the first quarter, but its operations continue to be hampered by a shortage of computer chips. G.M. said on Thursday that it sold 642,250 cars and light trucks in the first three months of the year, up just 4 percent even though sales a year ago slowed sharply as the coronavirus pandemic took hold. By contrast, Toyota Motor showed a strong rebound in sales compared with a year ago. The Japanese company reported that sales in North America jumped 22 percent in the first three months of 2021, to 603,066 cars and light trucks. Its March sales were a record high for that month. Toyota’s big jump helped it outsell Ford Motor, which has also been hit by the semiconductor shortage. Ford’s sales in the first quarter were up just 1 percent, to 521,334. Sales of Stellantis — the company formed by the merger of Fiat Chrysler and France’s Peugeot SA — reported its U.S. sales increased 5 percent in the first quarter. Ford and G.M. both enjoyed substantial increases in sales to individual customers at dealerships while reporting declines in sales to fleet operators like rental car companies and governments. G.M. and Ford have had to halt or slow production at a handful of plants. G.M. has resorted to making some vehicles without parts containing computer chips with the intention of installing those components before sale when supply improves. In a statement, G.M. said it hoped its strategy for building cars without some components would help it “quickly meet strong expected customer demand during the year.” That approach to building cars “underscores the dire nature” of the semiconductor shortage, an analyst at CFRA Research, Garrett Nelson, said in a report. “One of the key questions is how much better the U.S. auto sales recovery can get from here.” The chip shortage is reflected in G.M.’s unusually low inventory of 334,628 vehicles. That is about 76,000 less than at the end of the fourth quarter and is half the number of vehicles its dealers held in stock a year ago. Ford’s inventory was 56,100 lower than at the end of 2020. G.M.’s sluggish sales were confined to its Chevrolet brand, whose sales fell 2 percent in the first quarter. That included a 13 percent decline in sales of its full-size Silverado pickup truck, a critical profit maker for the company. The Buick, Cadillac and G.M.C. brands reported strong sales in the quarter. Toyota also reported a drop in sales of its full-size pickup, the Tundra. But the decline was more than offset by big increases in sales of its RAV4, Highlander and 4Runner sport-utility vehicles and cars from its Lexus luxury brand. Also on Thursday, Honda Motor reported its first-quarter sales in North America had increased 16 percent, to 347,091 vehicles. Source link Orbem News #Fords #Rebounds #sales #surge #Toyota #Weaker

[perksofwifi]

2020 Toyota 4Runner TRD Pro Review: More Tech, Same Powertrain

The current-generation Toyota 4Runner isn’t new, yet the body-on-frame SUV has sold more units year over year since 2011. The 4Runner has added a few updates since its launch a decade ago, but the factors helping it build the momentum are low gas prices and its good reliability. For the 2020 model year, the 4Runner is getting more updates that could help it maintain that sales push. We drove the TRD Pro on one of Utah’s most challenging trails, Hell’s Revenge near Moab, to try the new features and see how the 4Runner performs off the pavement.

Perhaps the most important update is the new multimedia system with an 8.0-inch touchscreen compatible with Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, and Amazon Alexa. This is a big upgrade over the previous 6.1-inch screen, which was small and outdated. The new display is standard across the board—from the SR5 grade to the TRD Pro—and it makes the 4Runner a bit more modern.

A new instrument panel with a 4.2-inch screen is also standard across the model line. The whole cluster has been redesigned; the speedo and tachometer look fresher, and the new screen provides better graphics and cleaner color. The rest of the interior, from the HVAC controls to the shifter and trims, continues with no changes. However, SR5 Premium, TRD Off-Road Premium, and TRD Pro trims get a push-button start, and all 4Runners now have two USB ports for rear-seat passengers.

Also standard is Toyota Safety Sense P (TTS-P), the suite of safety technologies that Toyota promised to bring to all of its models. On the 2020 4Runner, TTS-P includes a pre-collision system with pedestrian detection, lane departure alert, automatic high-beams, and adaptive cruise control. The buttons for lane departure alert and the pre-collision system are oddly located on the steering wheel, as there’s a lack of space to the left of the steering column.

What remains untouched is everything under the sheetmetal. The 4.0-liter V-6 engine produces the same 270 hp and 278 lb-ft of torque as before, and the five-speed automatic sends all that power to the rear or all four wheels, depending on which transmission you get. Given that last year’s 4Runner TRD Pro got the same Fox shocks as the Tacoma TRD Pro, Toyota didn’t make any changes to the suspension for the 2020 model year. However, all 4Runner TRD Pros come with a new TRD cat back exhaust that sounds a little better than last year’s model.

In terms of driving, the 4Runner TRD Pro behaves pretty much the same as the 2019 model. During our time on Hell’s Revenge, the 4Runner showed good wheel articulation and traction. Other than lowering the tire pressure, our TRD Pro was fully stock. Crawl Control took away some of the stress of driving on a steep downhill: All the driver has to do is control the steering and select one of the five available speeds. The system controls engine speed and braking, making it easier to go over some difficult obstacles.

Multi-Terrain Select system, which carries over from last year, is also helpful for off-roading. It adjusts the wheel slip depending on the mode you select: Mud, Sand, Rock, or Mogul. We spent most of the time driving in Rock mode as it best suited the terrain of Hell’s Revenge.

Although the 4Runner is old, it proved to be plenty capable on the trail. The Fox suspension helps to keep the cabin calm, providing good cushioning on bumps, and the Kinetic Dynamic Suspension System gives the 4Runner more suspension travel. I was particularly surprised to see the good articulation that the 4Runner had on the trail; the TRD Off-Road and TRD Pro models both got through the same obstacles that other jacked-up Jeeps and Lexus GXs rode through. The V-6 engine has a good growl, but the five-speed transmission makes the 4Runner lurch forward when you shift from park to drive. We also noticed a couple of clumsy shifts when driving on pavement.

For 2020 the 4Runner TRD Pro is getting new colors. Our favorite (just like in the Tacoma) is the TRD Pro exclusive Army Green. The SUV is also getting Super White, Magnetic Gray Metallic, and Midnight Black Metallic.

Those looking to buy a 4Runner should definitely wait for the 2020 model, as these updates really make a difference in the interior and safety. The updated 4Runner will be available in Toyota dealers by the end of the summer. Pricing should be announced closer to the on-sale date, and considering the many updates that it received, we could see a minor bump.

The post 2020 Toyota 4Runner TRD Pro Review: More Tech, Same Powertrain appeared first on MotorTrend.

https://www.motortrend.com/cars/toyota/4runner/2020/2020-toyota-4runner-trd-pro-review/ visto antes em https://www.motortrend.com

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Wood Carving - Toyota 4Runner TRD PRO 2020 - Amezing woodworking Tools , DIY Woodworking Art

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2020 Lexus GX 460 review: What's old is cool again

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2020 Lexus GX 460 review: What's old is cool again

Big grille aside, you have to admit the GX 460 looks pretty butch.

Steven Ewing/Roadshow

The GX 460 is the oldest product in Lexus‘ lineup, but it found its way back into the spotlight. With overlanding gaining popularity in recent years, the GX is enjoying newfound stardom thanks to its easy-to-modify architecture, legit four-wheel-drive chops and high-quality interior. There are lifted examples all over Car Twitter. Lexus’ ancient SUV is once again cool.

Like

Outstanding off-road performance

Plush, quiet, high-quality cabin

Plenty of room for passengers and cargo

Lots of standard safety tech

Don’t Like

Really old multimedia interface

V8 is underpowered

Fuel economy isn’t great

It seems like Lexus is finally leaning into the GX’s old-school nature, too. Last year, the company created the GXOR Concept as a nod to owners who, according to Lexus, “discovered and embraced the SUV’s perfect combination of ultimate luxury and unrivaled off-road capability.” And for 2020, there’s a new Off-Road Package which adds specific drive modes for different types of terrain, panoramic-view and under-the-car cameras, a transmission cooler, fuel tank protector and Crawl Control, which is like cruise control for super-slow off-road stuff. It’s a $1,570 option that’s only available on the top-tier Luxury trim, but if you’re planning to venture off the beaten path in your GX — and you really, really should — it’s a must-have.

Aside from that, the most obvious update for 2020 is, uh, that face. Lexus’ oversized spindle grille is almost blown out of proportion on the GX. It’s pretty bad, you guys. Thankfully, the rest of the SUV is pretty handsome, with its upright design and high-mounted taillights. My tester wears the $2,020 Sport Design Package, which adds dark-finish 19-inch wheels and some other gray body work, as well as second-row captain’s chairs, which don’t exactly convey “sporty,” but whatever, they’re nice.

Gettin’ dirty.

Steven Ewing/Roadshow

Actually, the whole dang interior is nice, with soft leather surfaces and excellent fit and finish — the kind of stuff you expect in a Lexus. The red-and-black color scheme is a bit much for my tastes, and it doesn’t exactly scream “please throw all of your muddy camping gear in here,” but it adds some visual flair to the otherwise straightforward cabin design. It brings the GX’s cabin closer to modern times, too, especially with a redesigned three-spoke steering wheel, aluminum trim and a new backlit gauge cluster.

Headroom is ample for front and rear passengers alike, and there’s even a third row of seats, though they’re best left unused. The GX offers a maximum of 64.7 cubic feet of space, though it’s worth noting you access the way-back through a side-hinged tailgate, so take special note before backing into a garage or squeezing into a tight parallel parking space. Old SUVs, am I right?

Speaking of old, get a load of the GX’s multimedia tech. This outdated touchscreen infotainment system uses low-res graphics, it’s pretty slow to respond to inputs, kind of confusing to navigate and Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are nowhere to be found (Amazon Alexa integration, on the other hand, is standard). But it’s not all terrible. In fact, the just-touch-what-you-want interface is far easier to use than any of Lexus’ more recent setups — you know, the stupid mouse-like joystick or, worse, the Remote Touch trackpad.

There’s at least an impressive roster of driver-assistance tech, with Lexus’ Safety System Plus suite fitted to every GX. This incorporates pre-collision braking with pedestrian detection, lane-departure warning, automatic high-beams and adaptive cruise control, though the latter system doesn’t cover a full range of speed, so don’t rely on it for stop-and-go situations.

Perhaps the most important driver-assistance technologies are the ones that help the GX off-road, since this is where this SUV can really strut its stuff. The Kinetic Dynamic Suspension System (KDSS) keeps the GX level and steady both on- and off-road, stiffening or relaxing the front and rear stabilizer bars as needed. Stiffer is better for controlled body motions on smooth pavement, while softer settings give the wheels a greater range of motion on rough terrain.

The high-quality leather is as good here as it is in any other Lexus. The infotainment, however…

Lexus

Interestingly, the majority of the GX’s off-road features don’t work unless you select the four-wheel-drive system’s low-range, at which point you can also lock the center differential. The GX 460 has respectable off-road geometry, with approach, breakover and departure angles of 21, 21 and 23 degrees, respectively, as well as 8.1 inches of ground clearance. The GX has air suspension tech, too, but only for the rear wheels.

The moral of the story is, the GX is far more capable than you might think. Playing around at California’s Hungry Valley off-road park, the Lexus happily bounds along dusty trails and scales steep grades with confident power. I wouldn’t press it into service as a rock crawler — that’s what a Jeep Wrangler is for, or even a Toyota 4Runner — but for the sort of get-off-the-map overlanding that’s caused this whole resurgence in GX popularity, it’s got every tool for the job.

The GX is plenty nice for commuting through civilization, too. Normal, Sport and Comfort drive modes adjust the adaptive dampers, though to be honest I can barely tell a difference. Leave it in Comfort. Go plush or go home. Besides, the relatively light steering and somewhat sluggish transmission prove the GX doesn’t really want to be hustled. Instead, it’s smooth, just powerful enough and the interior is nicely insulated to keep the outside world where it belongs.

Motive force comes from a 4.6-liter naturally aspirated V8, pushing out 301 horsepower and 329 pound-feet of torque, sent to all four wheels through a six-speed automatic transmission. The GX isn’t exactly quick, but a manufacturer-estimated 0-to-60-mph time of 7.8 seconds isn’t pokey, either. Unfortunately, this old powerplant is pretty thirsty, with the EPA estimating you’ll see 15 miles per gallon in the city, 20 mpg highway and 17 mpg combined.

Here’s hoping GX buyers actually take their SUVs off road.

Steven Ewing/Roadshow

The 2020 GX 460 starts at $54,025 including $1,025 for destination, which positions it well below its primary large-ish luxury off-road competitor, the Land Rover Range Rover Sport ($69,945). Upper-crust versions of the Jeep Grand Cherokee pose a bit of a threat, too, with the range-topping Summit coming in at $53,990. Fully loaded, the GX 460 Luxury pictured here costs $73,090.

If you don’t plan to take your luxury SUV off road, the Lexus GX probably isn’t for you. Car-based crossovers like the Audi Q7, BMW X5 or Mercedes-Benz GLE-Class offer more power, better fuel economy, fresher style and significantly better tech, with more relaxed on-road manners.

But there’s something oddly compelling about the archaic GX. Those who appreciate its rugged charm will find a lot to like. And hey, if one doesn’t make sense right now, Lexus’ proven reliability will make this GX a sweet secondhand buy when it’s time to build an overlanding rig of your own.

[cdrforea]

What is Android Auto? | Features, Functions, Compatible Cars

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What is Android Auto? | Features, Functions, Compatible Cars

Google may never build its own car, but it is already a major player in the automotive industry. Thousands of drivers use Android Auto software every day, either because they don't like their car's native infotainment system or because they prefer the familiar, smartphone-like interface. The latest updates have made it even more intuitive.

Like CarPlay, Apple's rival system, Android Auto promises to make driving safer by reducing distractions. Whether it achieves this goal depends on who you ask. AAA found that it helps drivers to keep both eyes on the road, but a British study concluded that driving is more distracting than driving drunk. The truth is probably somewhere in the middle, and common sense plays a big part in using in-car technology. Here's what you need to know about Android Auto:

What does Android Auto do?

Android Auto takes advantage of the features you love about your Android smartphone and inserts them directly into your car's dashboard by overwriting the native infotainment system. It displays information on a familiar, easy-to-use interface with cards that you can swipe out of the way, readable menus, and large icons. It recently got a darker theme, an updated app launcher layout, and a more intuitive user interface, making Android users more familiar than ever.

One of the best parts of Android Auto is the Google Maps-based navigation system, which provides step-by-step instructions and automatically finds an alternative route when heavy traffic is detected. It is a real blessing if no navigation is integrated in your car. The software is transferred from your phone via saved destinations so that you do not have to manually enter the address of your home, office or school. Finally, Android Auto gives motorists access to millions of songs and podcasts through a growing list of third-party apps when needed, allows them to surf the web, and enables them to stay connected by calling and sending messages through Hangouts, WhatsApp. and other messaging platforms.

All of the above functions also respond to basic voice commands. You can choose "OK, Google, play The Offspring" or "OK, Google, what is the capital of Australia?" Say. You can even ask, "OK, Google, what is Android Auto?" With voice commands, you can reply to messages using voice-text technology. Don't worry if your car is not equipped with speech recognition technology as Android Auto's functions are accessible via the touchscreen in your car or via the rotary knob if your car's screen is not touch sensitive. Note that your smartphone's screen will lock when Android Auto is active. However, you can swipe to unlock it if that's safe.

The integration of Google Assistant uses intelligent voice controls so drivers can keep their hands on the steering wheel. With the artificial intelligence of the assistant, fluid, precise two-way conversations are possible, and all your favorite apps are included for the journey.

Speaking of which, Android Auto works with a variety of third-party apps including Waze, Pandora, iHeart Radio, Skype, WhatsApp and Spotify. However, the vehicle settings are not part of Android Auto. Therefore, the driver must exit the application to adjust the climate control, browse radio stations or select another driving mode. However, Google is currently working with car manufacturers like Polestar to develop new Android-based infotainment systems that can access all of these functions from one place.

Which phones are compatible with Android Auto?

Now that you know what Android Auto is, let's examine which devices and vehicles are compatible with it. Users running Android OS version 9 or lower must download the free Android Auto application from the Google Play Store. However, Android 10 phones have built-in functionality. Any phone with Android 5.0 and higher has active data plan can power Android Auto so you don't need the latest device to use it.

Your phone must have a working USB port to connect to the car. However, the latest Android phones from Samsung and others support Android auto wireless connections in a small but growing list of vehicles.

Which cars are compatible with Android Auto?

Dozens of new cars are compatible with Android Auto. However, keep in mind that some manufacturers charge buyers additional functions, and others choose not to offer them in cheaper options.

Vehicles compatible with Android Auto include most members of the Mercedes-Benz range, every type plate in the Cadillac portfolio, as well as numerous models from Chevrolet, Kia, Honda, Volvo and Volkswagen. Finding a car-compatible Android car shouldn't be a problem, whether you're buying a cheap hatchback, a rugged SUV, or a high-end sports car. The full list can be found on the Android Auto website.

Lexus and parent company Toyota have been defending Android Auto for years for security and privacy reasons, but both have changed their minds. Several 2020 models – including the Tacoma, Sequoia, Tundra, 4Runner and RX – are compatible with Android Auto. We expect the list to continue to grow in the coming months and years. BMW and Porsche are still Android-free, but Porsche told Digital Trends that this could change soon.

It can be a bit difficult to find a used car that is compatible with Android Auto as it took the car manufacturers a while to get Google into the cabin. Hyundai, Kia, and Chevrolet were among the first companies to build Android auto-compatible cars after the software became available in early 2015. If these do not suit your taste, aftermarket manufacturers such as Kenwood, Panasonic, Pioneer and Sony offer Android compatible head units.

Drivers can work around compatibility issues by downloading Android Auto and using it as a standalone application. Simply start the software and mount your smartphone on your windshield or dashboard. It offers the same functions regardless of whether it is displayed on the touchscreen of a car or on a smartphone. This solution allows anyone to use Android Auto in a 2019 BMW 3 Series, a classic Mini, a 1908 Ford T, or anything in between.

Editor's recommendations

[componentplanet]

2020 Jeep Grand Cherokee Review: Luxurious, Solid on Any Road Surface

2020 Jeep Grand Cherokee Summit February 2020 Lime Kiln Road, Adirondacks

The 2020 Jeep Grand Cherokee is almost a decade old, and yet it’s currently the best-selling midsize SUV on the market: 242,969 sold last year, 200,000-plus most for much of the past two decades. The current body design has been around since 2011, there are 13 trim lines (model variants), multiple drivetrains, and varying levels of driver assistance technology.

Both despite its age and because of it – when the factory builds the same car year after year, reliability tends to improve – the Grand Cherokee has good fit and finish, a nicely controlled ride, a very nice interior on most trims, comfortable seats, and a solid infotainment system. Other than standard blind-spot detection and rear cross-traffic alert, driver-assist features are optional. The two rows of seats are both roomy, but no third-row seat is offered.

If one owner says their Grand Cherokee does fine off-road but the interior looks just okay and the center stack display is small, a second owner says it’s pretty luxe and the display is nice, and a third says the cockpit looks great and did you know it goes 0-60 in 3.5 seconds, that’s because, with those trim lines, there’s one that costs $33,000, a couple that run around $50,000-$60,000, and one that runs $88,000 with a 707-hp engine. (No, that’s not a typo.) You decide how much off-road capability, acceleration, and rear-seat entertainment you want, and you pay accordingly.

On the Road

I test drove the Jeep Grand Cherokee Summit. It is the premier Grand Cherokee for people who don’t feel the need to have a strong Dodge Viper flavor to their SUV, in which case there’s the performance-oriented Grand Cherokee V8 SRT and the high-performance Trackhawk. My test car totaled $62,775 with a four-wheel-drive system – not just all-wheel-drive – that added $3,000, a V8 engine that added $3,795, an eight-speed automatic, telematics, onboard Wi-Fi, Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, an AC socket and plenty of USB jacks, and a $1,995 rear entertainment system. At this point, you’re pushing into Audi-BMW-Mercedes territory.

My time in the Grand Cherokee Summit included a late-winter run into the New York State Adirondacks area around Lake Placid. A detour through hilly, rutted dirt roads covered with about eight inches of snow proved no problem at all.

The ride up and back into the northwoods, on interstate highways, was pleasurable, with a comfortable driving position, decent audio, and very little road noise. The Grand Cherokee Summit is plenty comfortable for four adults and a weekend’s worth of luggage. Even with cupholders front and back and bins in the doors, in-cabin storage for little items was lacking.

Good Navi, but Audio Could Be Better

The UConnect 4 infotainment system on my car was quite easy to use. But note that not all Grand Cherokees get UConnect 4 and 8-inch center stack screens. For years, Chrysler-Dodge-Ram products have had very good navigation and infotainment. It doesn’t hurt that when you press the NAV button, the screen asks you, “Where to?” The only people who don’t get that are grade-school teachers looking for a verb and a complete sentence.

This was the first Harman Kardon premium audio system I’ve driven that wasn’t breathtaking. It had 19 speakers and the issue – to me – was the woofer in the driver’s kick panel area. It was so heavily boosted that with the volume up and listening to my workout playlist (you know: the songs you’re too embarrassed to share), the sound pressure made my pant legs flap. So much so it felt like a Rockford Fosgate system, a brand happy to be known for heavy – sorry, deep – bass. It was much improved by turning the bass setting below the midpoint.

Not Enough Driver Assists

The advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS) are not all state-of-the-art and too many are extra-cost. Nothing wrong with blind-spot detection (standard) or lane keep assist (included on some trim lines). The optional ParkSense backup system auto-stops the car if you get too close to a stopped object. That’s all good. Adaptive cruise control goes down to zero but you have to manually resume forward travel, and if you’re stopped more than three seconds, ACC disengages.

Forward collision warning, a technology that requires a low-cost front-facing camera, is optional. Of the 18 midsize, two-row SUVs on the market, the only non-Jeep product lacking FCW is the revived Chevrolet Blazer, which, despite its heritage, is not a hard-core off-roader. Automatic emergency braking for highway and for city situations are also optional, and pedestrian AEB is not offered.

My Grand Cherokee Summit 4X4 was rated at 14 mpg city, 22 mpg highway, and 17 mpg overall. I averaged 20 mpg in a week of primarily highway driving.

So Many Models to Choose From

The 2020 Grand Cherokee comes in a dazzling array of trim lines, or model variants. Currently, there are 13. These prices include $1,495 shipping.

Laredo, $33,735 rear drive / $35,735 four-wheel drive Laredo E, $35,390 / $37,390 Upland, $37,685 / $39,685 Altitude, $39,830 / $41,830 North Edition, $40,285 4WD standard Limited, $41,545 / $43,545 Limited X, $46,640 / $48,640 Trailhawk $46,645 4WD standard Overland, $47,985 / $50,985 High Altitude, $50,730 / $53,730 Summit, $54,085 / $57,085 SRT, $70,085 4WD standard Trackhawk, $88,590 4WD standard

It’s hard to describe each model other than to note the Laredo E is a nicer Laredo, not a hybrid; North Edition and Trailhawk target wintry off-roading and off-roading; and SRT and Trackhawk are high-performance SUVs that also go off-road and tow boats.

Should You Buy?

The Grand Cherokee is the best of the seven Jeep models you can buy in terms of modern-day amenities and reliability without sacrificing heavy snow / off-road driving. It’s also the best-selling, with 26 percent of Jeep’s 923,2981 2019 sales. By our count, there are nearly 25 midsize, mainstream-price SUVs, and almost as many premium midsize SUVs. The top sellers, mainstream or premium, are:

SUV 2019 Sales Change Jeep Grand Cherokee 242,969 +8% Toyota Highlander 239,437 -2% Jeep Wrangler 228,042 -5% Ford Explorer 187,061 -28% Subaru Outback 181,178 +1%

(Note: The big falloff for the Ford Explorer came in the wake of quality-control problems while getting the sixth-generation Explorer and the sibling Lincoln Aviator into production at Ford’s Chicago assembly plant.)

The Jeep Cherokee is not an entry edition of the Grand Cherokee but a separate model eight inches shorter than Grand Cherokee’s 190 inches, with a base four-cylinder engine and not quite as refined.

The Grand Cherokee is your best choice among midsize SUVs if you want an one that goes off-road, not just negotiate a lightly plowed gravel road near the ski slope, and does it with a reasonable amount of passenger comfort. As a bonus, some Grand Cherokees can tow up to 7,200 pounds; the rest tow at least 3,500 pounds. If you have little kids (two), the dual rear entertainment system may be worth the healthy price. The V6 engines are good and the V8s are better but gas mileage suffers.

The mainstream trim lines fare well against the Chevrolet Blazer and Ford Edge. The roomier, longer, three-row Ford Explorer is also a competitor for those who value towing capacity. The Toyota 4Runner is very good off-road but not as smooth otherwise. If you want a competent all-around vehicle, look also at the Subaru Ascent, Toyota Highlander, Honda Pilot, and Hyundai Santa Fe. The Dodge Durango is a cousin to the Grand Cherokee, is longer, and has three rows of seats, but isn’t as skilled off-roading.

The Grand Cherokee upper trim lines compete nicely against premium brands. But it’s hard to match the NVH and highway manners of say, a BMW X5, when you go into battle in a design released the same year Ke$ha debuted We R Who We R.

Other top midsize SUVs don’t map to Grand Cherokee’s off-roader ethic. The Lexus RX is all-around excellent but is not what you want going off-road or hauling a trailer. The Mazda CX-9 is the sportiest and most fun to drive, but without the cargo capacity.

Jeep’s other sales advantage is that Grand Cherokee buyers are predisposed toward USA vehicles. According to JD Power research, 76 percent of Grand Cherokee owners say they prefer buying from a domestic company versus 58 percent for the midsize SUV segment as a whole. That means Grand Cherokee owners may not cross-shop the sporty Korean-flagged Kia Telluride (three rows but still midsize), even it’s built in Alabama, and the similar Hyundai Palisade. The Grand Cherokee would win on off-road driving. But in other areas, Kia and Hyundai are extremely competitive, particularly NVH and driver assists.

A new Grand Cherokee should be introduced this year as a 2021 model. Given how well Jeep has done to keep the fourth-generation model competitive, the new model should be impressive.

Now read:

2020 Jeep Gladiator Review: You Know You Want This Off-Roading Pickup

2020 Kia Telluride Review: The New Benchmark for Midsize SUVs

2020 Hyundai Palisade Review: A New Star Among Midsize SUVs

from ExtremeTechExtremeTech https://www.extremetech.com/extreme/306766-2020-jeep-grand-cherokee-review-luxurious-solid-on-any-road-surface from Blogger http://componentplanet.blogspot.com/2020/03/2020-jeep-grand-cherokee-review.html

[car-loanz]

State Fair of Texas: Time to enjoy the rides

  A visit to the State Fair of Texas isn’t complete without a tour of the Texas Auto Show, and this year there’s a generous helping of debuts to feast your eyes upon.

For many in these parts, it’s all about the trucks and SUVs. Ram, Chevrolet, Ford, Toyota, Jeep and Nissan all have rugged and luxurious new 2020 editions on show, gleaming under the sun in the Truck Zone or the lights of the Automobile Building.

Truck-maker Ram has chosen the fair to introduce three new Texas-sized editions; the Ram 1500 Limited Black Edition along with a Night Edition for the Heavy Duty Big Horn and Laramie. Chevrolet unveils its Rally and Midnight special editions for the 1500 Silverado, while Nissan is asking visitors to say howdy to its updated Titan.

  The Challenger SRT, in Hellcat Redeye Widebody form, is the quickest and most powerful muscle car, says Dodge.

  Fans of off-road capable SUVs will enjoy a much-anticipated diesel version of the Jeep Wrangler, the EcoDiesel, and the trail-ready Toyota 4Runner Venture Edition. At the fatter end of the utility wedge, there’s the seriously luxurious Ford Expedition, now with King Ranch trim.

The Texas Auto Show has something for every taste, however, not just behemoth trucks and SUVs. There are around 400 different models to check out, get into and makes notes on.

Automakers really go to town here in Dallas and besides the vehicles themselves, there’s a range of interactive displays, entertaining games and photo opportunities to be had. All the fun of the fair – in automotive form.

The Texas Auto Show is taking place at the State Fair of Texas, Fair Park, Dallas, until October 20.

The post State Fair of Texas: Time to enjoy the rides appeared first on RoadLoans.

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[motorsporthq]

2020 Toyota 4Runner TRD Pro Review: More Tech, Same Powertrain

2020 Toyota 4Runner TRD Pro Review: More Tech, Same Powertrain

The current-generation Toyota 4Runnerisn’t new, yet the body-on-frame SUV has sold more units year over year since 2011. The 4Runner has added a few updates since its launch a decade ago, but the factors helping it build the momentum are low gas prices and its good reliability. For the 2020 model year, the 4Runner is getting more updates that could help it maintain that sales push. We drove the…