Summary
- Toyota teased the upcoming 2025 4Runner with minimal details like taillights, bumper, and license plate.
- The 4Runner is long due for a model overhaul.
- It’ll likely share a platform and engines with the Tacoma and Land Cruiser.
While Toyota has recently teased the upcoming 2025 4Runner by way of a photo it posted on its social media platforms, the carmaker remains incredibly tight-lipped about the details. That photo didn’t show much, except for parts of the tailgate, rear bumper and taillights. Only the 4 RUNNER font underneath its license plate confirms that it is, in fact, coming.
None if this is surprising considering that Toyota is in the process of overhauling its entire SUV portfolio, including the continuation of the iconic Land Cruiser nameplate. Remember, the 4Runner is as old as the Earth itself. The current-generation model has been sold on our market since 2010, with very few mechanical changes during its lifecycle. While reliable, it’s been long due for a model overhaul for quite some time now.
It’s still unclear when Toyota plans on dropping the sixth-generation model, but its teaser image could include the details. Some outlets referred to the license plate number, LUS 282 as being an Easter Egg of clues. Lands in US in 282 Days was one hypothesis, while the truck’s output of 282 horsepower was another. But none of this has been confirmed by Toyota. However, something tells us we’ll be seeing the entirety of the new 4Runner some time next week.
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A Secret Vehicle Reveal Is Coming
Our hunch comes from the fact that the Topspeed.com team will be attending a Toyota media event in San Diego next week. That’s where we’ll be driving a myriad of new Toyota models, such as the new Camry, the upcoming Land Cruiser, the Tacoma Hybrid, as well as the all-new Crown Signia. We’ll be coming back with full detailed reviews for each.
But Toyota also seems to have something else planned for that event. We were informed that another vehicle will be revealed on April 9th, without additional details. Now this could also mean something else, like a new Corolla or RAV4. After all, those two models are also approaching the end of their current generational lifecycles.
But given that this will be a truck and SUV intensive event, and that Toyota just recently hinted at the next 4Runner, it wouldn’t be surprising to see the carmaker use this event as a launching point to reveal its adventure-ready SUV to world.
A Mix Of Tacoma And Land Cruiser
Since we know how Toyota is currently mismatching a single platform and drivetrains across its truck and SUV lineups, it’s rather easy to predict what the new 4Runner will hide underneath its sheetmetal. For starters, it’ll ride on the same TNGA-F modular architecture as the Tundra, Tacoma, Sequoia and Land Cruiser, as well as the Lexus LX and GX.
Power will undoubtedly come from Toyota’s now ubiquitous turbocharged 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine, but it’s still unclear if the base 4Runner will utilize the Tacoma’s non-hybrid 278 horsepower and 317 lb-ft of torque layout, or the Land Cruiser’s hybridized configuration, which is good for 326 combined horsepower.
I predict the latter since Toyota will most probably position the 4Runner as a shorter, two-row version of the longer, three-row Land Cruiser. But we’ll need to wait until next week when Toyota pulls the drape off of this mysterious new vehicle to find out more. We’ll make sure to share all the details on these pages once we have access to them.
