I’m planning a 6th gen 4Runner purchase and deciding between Trailhunter, TRD Pro, and Off-Road Premium.
my credit score is ~820
Down payment: $18k–$20k
Primary goal: keep either lease and/or finance payments in the ~$450–$599/month range.
Trying to figure out the smartest structure:
• Finance from day one
• 36-month lease then buy at lease end
I understand the Trail hunter and TRD Pro will have less lease / purchase incentives but i’m trying to justify the higher trims in order to be satisfied without upgrading suspension ect. on the lower trim.
• Is Trail hunter/TRD Pro realistic in that payment range with my down?
• Does lease then buy make more sense for my financial expectations?
Planning to shop during Toyotathon but probably sooner if deals or incentives aren’t expected for the 4runner
Would appreciate feedback on how you’d structure this to hit that payment target without doing something financially dumb long-term.
This is probably partly an emotional purchase, but I intend for this to be the last vehicle I own for a very long time, so I want to structure it in the smartest way possible from the start.
Good question. My assumption is financing from day one is cheaper over five years since I would avoid lease fees and essentially financing the vehicle twice.
The only reason I am considering leasing first and then buying is to hedge first year pricing and lock in a strong residual on a new generation.
If anyone has run the numbers specifically on Toyota truck lease to buy versus straight financing over five years, I would love to see how close they actually are.
There are multiple Toyota brokers here. Check the Marketplace.
I would caution against putting that much down for a lease, since you do not fundamentally own the car (and would lose that down payment, in the event the car is totalled).
I don’t quite understand what this means, and I don’t see how leasing would helps w/ this. The new generation has been out for more than a year (I think), and the residual value is set by the bank (not sure if you’re referring to real-world resale value?).
What I meant is not that the generation will change, but that pricing and resale on the early years of a redesign are still settling. My thought was that leasing sets the buyout price at the start, so I would know exactly what I can purchase it for in three years.
Yes, the residual is set by the bank, but if real-world resale ends up higher than that number, buying the lease later could work in my favor. If resale ends up lower, I would not be stuck owning it at a higher financed price.
So it is less about the generation being “new” and more about using a lease as flexibility while the market value of the 6th gen stabilizes.
unless you go full cash or use a credit union buying a premium priced 4runner isn’t ideal – the rates for prime borrowers from TFS is around 6-7% – some dealers buy down the rate – I don’t know what that means
overall I think its a great car as it shares the same platform as the premium Lexus trucks
It’s been out for over a yr. I don’t know how much the price will “settle” in the future vs. now.
Could also depend on much the MF is vs. interest rate for financing (or absolute amt of interest paid, esp w/ such a large down payment).
It’s a Toyota and it’s specifically a 4Runner. Even if this generation is crap, I suspect it’ll take awhile (if ever) for that potential reality to affect resale values. You already know what the RV is; it’s unlikely the newer generation will have superior resale value to older generations, so you can perhaps begin to make some educated cases.
My own take is that you should probably finance, not lease, but do the math (and I think there might be enough data already available to do the math).
This would make zero difference. 4Runner is a niche model with low inventory, you aren’t going to get a better deal on some seasonal promotion. Buy when you find someone who has what you want (because thats going to be a big part of the challenge) and isn’t raking you over the coals, i doubt you will find a dealer hungry to move a TRD Pro
I wouldn’t even bother attempting a lease. Only the SR5 has any decent programs.
To keep it simple, decide on the trim you want and find the best deal, largest discount. Maybe just go to your CU and bring your own financing since Toyota doesn’t seem to have any special rates on the trims you’re considering. I would expand your search to used as well as there’s a fair amount of these with under 5k miles selling well under MSRP.
FWIW I bought a 6 gen TRD ORP 4Runner last year and it’s been great. Rides pretty rough that’s my only complaint. TRD Pro or Trailhunter will ride much better. MPG has been solid around 20 combined (non-hybrid). I paid around $51k for the ORP (msrp was around 57.7) and I personally wouldn’t shell out another $15k or so for a TRD pro or Trailhunter. I’d consider an LC, GX or something else for that money.
