2026 Toyota 4Runner Limited First Test: Maybe the Hybrid Should Be Standard
While it performs well overall, the 4Runner Limited is held back some by its 2.4-liter turbo I-4.
Pros
- Available third row
- Real knobs and switches
- Strong brakes
Cons
- Noticeable turbo lag
- Odd transmission behavior
- Engine sounds gritty
There's a lot to like about the 2026 Toyota 4Runner Limited we just tested, other than maybe the at-the-limit performance of its 2.4-liter i-Force turbocharged engine and transmission combo. But aside from our minor motivational concerns, we found that the Limited, much like the rest of the 4Runner lineup, shines in other areas.
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Case in point: Despite being equipped with Toyota’s 14.0-inch infotainment screen, you retain physical control of the climate settings. There are knobs and switches that don’t require you to swipe a menu just to change the cabin temperature or activate the seat cooling or heating.
The screen takes up a lot of real estate, but you can use it to your advantage, such as to set up the navigation map to share space with entertainment sources. Yes, it has the tablet-stuck-on-the-dashboard look, but it doesn’t seem totally out of place, nor does it encroach on the respectably sized center air vents, and it’s not the highest point of the dashboard. And, yes, there’s a physical volume knob, too.
Another thing we appreciate about the loaded, leather-trimmed 4Runner Limited is that it’s available with a third-row seating option ($1,330). It's a tight fit for adults, but the 35.3 inches of headroom is plenty for most kids. The 31.8 inches of legroom isn’t ideal, and when the third row is deployed, you’ll be limited to just 12.1 cubic feet of cargo space behind them. But it’s a great option for occasional use in a midsize SUV like the 4Runner, and it stows mostly flat.
Fold that third row, and there’s a respectable 48.4 cubes of cargo room, more than enough to store a couple of medium-sized coolers or four standing to eight stacked on their back carry-on hard-case bags without blocking rear window visibility. With the second row stowed, it expands to 84.1 cubic feet. That’s enough room for a standard full-size bed to fit, but it would need to rest on the wheelwell humps. The only bad part here is that the high cargo floor height might be a difficult lift for some owners.
Stops Hard, Starts Not So Hard
The 2026 4Runner Limited moves like a typical, off-road-themed SUV with four-wheel drive (especially a body-on-frame one), so expect more than a bit of lean and tire howl if you push it at all on a curvy road. But anyone used to the old 4Runner won’t have any issues adapting to the new version. The good news is the 4Runner’s 13.4-inch front and 13.2-inch rear brakes, augmented by a 20-inch wheel and 265/55R20 tire combination, hauled our Limited tester down to a halt in 119 feet, one of the better numbers you’ll get from an SUV of this type. Be advised, though, that it will nosedive under hard braking, but it’s predictable behavior.
The numbers we weren’t so impressed with, however, were what we recorded when we straight-line-tested the Limited powered by the 4Runner’s standard 2.4-liter turbocharged I-4. On paper, it sounds like a winner with its 278 hp and 317 lb-ft of torque that peaks starting at just 1,700 rpm, especially when you consider that the 4Runner’s old 4.0-liter V-6 had 8 less hp and 39 lb-ft less torque. But a 2023 4Runner V-6 we tested had far less weight to lug around: The 2026 4Runner Limited tipped our scales at 5,074 pounds versus the last generation 40th Anniversary model at 4,657 pounds.
That 417-pound difference makes a difference, as both models recorded a 7.9-second 0–60-mph time and nearly identical quarter-mile times. Mash the gas in Sport Plus mode, and you’re likely to notice some turbo lag and some slow shifting from the eight-speed automatic transmission (weirdly, under hard acceleration we also found it too eager to upshift at times). To further underscore the weight issue, a 2025 4Runner SR5 RWD version we tested with the same engine registered at 4,532 pounds thanks to ditching the transfer case and front differential (among other items). That was enough to push the SR5 RWD to 60 mph in a quicker 7.3 seconds and pass the quarter mile in just 15.4 seconds at 91.8 mph.
If we were to apply the SR5’s 16.3 lb/hp ratio to the 2026 Limited, it would need 311 hp to match up. To further drive the point home, Toyota reports that the Limited with the i-Force Max hybrid weighs 5,370 pounds, giving it a 16.5 lb/hp ratio—darned close to the SR5 RWD’s. Additionally, we tested a 4Runner Trailhunter equipped with the hybrid weighing a whopping 5,586 pounds that hit 60 mph in 7.4 seconds. Considering all that, it may be worth splurging on the hybrid powertrain if you’re dead set on a 4WD 4Runner and desire modern acceleration—just beware that its battery eats a couple cubic feet of cargo space.
