Saturday, February 12, 2011

Pathfinder to 4Runner? Well, No, I'm not Treading Water

Carol is still trying to figure out what got in me to buy a 98 4Runner (that would be a "third generation" T4R, ladies and gentlemen) and to give to the Miami Rescue Mission our (Mary's former) 98 Pathfinder, where the 4Runner has even more mileage on it. (The people who came by from the Rescue Mission loved the Pathfinder.) With the 4Runner, however, I got Don. Don is the former owner of my 4Runner.

Last weekend, Don and I changed the spark plugs, the oil, and the oil filter in my "new" car. This morning we flushed the radiator. I'm learning all kinds of things I have always wanted to learn how to do, and getting a kick out of Don in the process (or should I say "in the bargain"). He is in his early 50s, a retired Miami-Dade policeman, single (divorced), lives in Virginia Gardens, is a motor-cycle enthusiast, has a modest Mullet, and is a Toyota fanatic. He bought a spanking-new 4Runner. I met Don when he started coming to my Sunday School class several months ago.

I have discovered that there are all sorts of Toyota 4Runner and related websites out there. In the process at looking at them, I came across this one. Here the owner has an FJ, but he initially had a 4Runner. The photos of the camping adaptation of his rig makes me want to hitch up the camper and head to Western NC with the first breath of spring.

3 comments:

Lindsay said...

I loved my pre-minivan 4Runner!

Kellsey said...

Ha! I love it. I am also a bit of a Toyota fan. We LOVED our 4Runner (a 96), and drove it until it cost more to fix it than it was worth (which was 13 years of happy driving.) Glad you are now the proud owner of 2 4Runners! Enjoy! and it sounds like Don is quite the catch!

Paul Stokes said...

After driving the T4R for two weeks, I can say that its steering is an improvement over the Pathfinder, its engine runs more smoothly, the radio is far better, and the entire vehicle seems "tighter." On the other hand, its ride is definitely more truck like, which is more an observation than a criticism. The interior of this particular vehicle is like new, as Don kept seat covers on the seats, a cover on the back floor and otherwise kept it scrupulously clean.