The Toyota 4Runner’s Defining Feature Isn’t Four-Wheel Drive
What's the most important feature on a Toyota 4Runner? Is it a removable roof? No, Toyota got rid of that after the first generation, one and done. Is it four-wheel drive? Nope. The standard SR5 is rear-drive, ...
What's the most important feature on a Toyota 4Runner? Is it a removable roof? No, Toyota got rid of that after the first generation, one and done. Is it four-wheel drive? Nope. The standard SR5 is rear-drive, so it's more like a 2Runner. The most crucial 4Runner attribute, its defining feature, isn't strictly necessary or even particularly useful, but imbues the Toyota's Tacoma-adjacent SUV with a certain undefinable cool that eludes competitors. If there were a Family Feud category called "What makes a 4Runner?" the survey says the number one answer would be—the power rear window.
I'm not sure why the power-operated hatchback glass is so compelling, but if I see a 4Runner with the rear window down—ideally with a couple of dogs peeking their heads out—I have to be chained down like a werewolf during a full moon to keep from rushing to the nearest Toyota dealer to put down a deposit. It's just that cool. Somehow, the roll-down rear window says adventure. You could poke a surfboard out through there, or fishing poles, or skis. Sure, you're not supposed to drive a 4Runner with the rear glass down (per the owner's manual, on account of exhaust possibly wafting back into the cabin), but everyone does. And if the rear window is down, all the other ones probably are too.
I think part of the 4Runner window attraction is that it's a rare feature, and one surprisingly difficult to execute. For one thing, power hatch glass dictates the shape of the rear end, since the glass has to be (mostly) flat and the lower part of the liftgate must accommodate the lowered window, along with the motor and regulator assembly. Take a look at the latest Sequoia, which lost its power rear window in the 2023 redesign. The flush rear window looks sleek, but there's clearly no way to roll that thing down into the liftgate. Yes, the Sequoia's rear glass opens by flipping upward, but that's just not the same. Jeep Wrangler hardtops do that. Engineering a window that disappears, with proper sealing, a defroster, and a wiper, is way harder to execute. Check out the 4Runner owner's manual, and there are several pages devoted to the various nuances of the rear window—for one thing, you'll notice that the power liftgate goes dead if the window's down, to discourage owners from opening the hatch unless absolutely necessary.
And yes, that complication can breed headaches, eventually. The 1978–1996 Ford Bronco had a power rear window, and when I had to replace the window motor on my '93, it was like tinkering with a set bear trap—because the rear glass pane is so huge, the motor was assisted by a powerful spring connected to a scissor lift, basically. And if the Bronco glass is stuck in the lowered position, the spring is loaded against the motor. Thus, when you replace the rear window motor, you first wire those scissor arms in a straightjacket so they don't snap upward and leave your fingers in the tailgate. I don't know if 4Runner windows use a similar mechanism, but it probably doesn't matter because after more than 40 years and millions of vehicles, Toyota has power rear glass pretty well figured out. I don't know anyone with a 4Runner who's ever had a problem with their rear window.
Of course, it must have been tempting to just build the 4Runner without the power rear window. I asked Brock Cartlidge, senior manager for vehicle marketing at Toyota trucks, whether that idea was ever on the table during the 4Runner's most recent redesign. And, uh, no. "Few models are as closely identified with a single feature as the 4Runner is with its power rear window," Cartlidge said. "It was very important to preserve that signature feature with the sixth-generation 4Runner." Turbocharged four-cylinder powertrains, hybrid models—the 4Runner is allowed to evolve. Except for that one part.
Why yes, there is a wiper hiding above that window.
Maybe the biggest question posed by the 4Runner's power rear glass is why that feature is such an anomaly. Well, Rivian evidently asked itself the same thing. You can say the R2 isn't a direct 4Runner competitor, being electric and all, but in one important way, it's signaling its intent. If you want to take on the 4Runner, you need to roll down five windows.
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Ezra Dyer is a Car and Driver senior editor and columnist. He's now based in North Carolina but still remembers how to turn right. He owns a 2009 GEM e4 and once drove 206 mph. Those facts are mutually exclusive.