2023 Toyota 4Runner 40th Anniversary Edition: Pack your Woolrich coat and army surplus knapsack for a trail ride back in time

2023 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport vs. Hyundai Santa Fe vs. Toyota 4Runner: Three approaches for roomy SUVs.

This week: 2023 Toyota 4Runner 40th Anniversary Edition

Price: $47,085. Cargo mats were the sole option for $130.

Conventional wisdom: Edmunds.com likes the “impressive off-road capability, wide variety of configurations to suit many buyers, versatile cargo area, especially with the optional slide-out floor,” but not the “choppy ride quality compared with more modern crossover SUVs, V6 engine is not particularly fuel-efficient, tall step-in height makes for awkward entry and exit.”

Marketer’s pitch: “For adventurers. For legends. 4Runner.”

Reality: For nostalgia buffs. Because the ‘80s were uncomfortable. And fuel consuming. And slow.

What’s new: That’s not the question to be asking of the 40th Anniversary Edition 4Runner. It’s “What’s classic?” (Coke.) “What’s hip?” (Being square.)

Whatever the question, Toyota may have found the right answer for people longing for the Reagan Revolution, leg warmers, McDLT’s, and mom jeans. (Which back then were just called jeans.)

Yes, the ‘80s really were 40 years ago now, but they remain alive in this retro machine: An all-black, squared-off SUV, tall and skinny and gangly like its checkered Converse shoes are three sizes too big, complete with a red-orange-yellow stripe that makes it so easy to find in the mall parking lot.

Competition: Honda Passport, Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport, Hyundai Santa Fe.

Up to speed: The ‘80s didn’t have a whole lot of straight-line acceleration, emissions controls were still new back then, and the speed limit was only 55 all across the country, so who cared if horsepower numbers averaged about half of today’s figures.

The 4Runner’s 4.0-liter V-6 does provide a remarkable 270 horses, but in a vehicle this tall and stiff with this much rubber meeting the road, it’s slowed down substantially, taking 7.7 seconds to get to 60 mph. Still, it’s a couple ticks faster than the Atlas Cross Sport, although the Santa Fe leaves both in the dust.

On the road: But that doesn’t mean the 4Runner is not a fun vehicle to drive. Like a Jeep Wrangler, it has a strong sense of self (think Al Haig’s “I am in control here”) and it’s not going to charm you with any pretense.

It rocks a little from side to side, bouncing sometimes, and yet still holds to the road and provides a sure-footed ride. The 4Runner reminded me of a slightly less refined Ranger XLT, one that needs to be handled easily on the sharp curves, but still provides plenty of fun between them.

Shifty: The five-speed automatic transmission is definitely from the olden days, probably the only one I’d seen since I’d driven a Toyota Sequoia through the Midwest more than three years ago. It operated mostly OK, although it did seem to run in low gears for a long time on a chilly morning, but that problem never reared its head again.

Driver’s Seat: So much here screams 1980s as well. The cushy, narrow seat; the giant, plastic HVAC dials; the basic black dashboard.

But Toyota also offered its current gauge display and steering wheel controls, including the old-style cruise control stalk, which is retro and worth keeping.

But it’s not all olden days. The seats are heated (albeit controlled by a plastic roller dial), and the cruise control has adaptive functions.

Play some tunes: The multimedia screen also separates it from the 4Runner of old, but it’s not what you’d call “modern.” It’s the basic Toyota offering with a couple dials for volume and tuning, buttons to get between the modes, and an 8-inch touchscreen for everything else. But Toyota has added CarPlay, a game they’d been late to playing.

Sound from Toyota systems are getting better, and the 4Runner is among them, offering playback that’s about an A- or so. A couple pieces of music weren’t all they could be, but the Psychedelic Furs, Suzanne Vega, and ELO came through quite nicely.

Friends and stuff: The ‘80s were a snug decade, and the 4Runner keeps this tradition alive. Rear seat legroom and foot room are fine, but simply getting into the seat, Mr. Driver’s Seat brushed his head against the ceiling. The seat is as cushy as the front but otherwise pretty ordinary.

Cargo space is 89.7 cubic feet with the seats folded and 47.2 behind the rear seat, far and away the winner in this category. (A third row is even available in some models.)

The rear door is surprisingly a little tough to contend with, hard to open and pull out somehow.

Keeping warm and cool: A dial for fan speed, another for temperature, and a third for selection. My favorite setup, simple. It ran a little uneven for me, but I just pulled my skinny tie a little tighter for added warmth.

Fuel economy: Gas was 89 cents a gallon in 1986, so we laughed at fuel economy. Ha ha, we said. But now, 18 mpg from a smallish, slowish SUV doesn’t seem nearly so funny, even though we’re no longer making $3.35 an hour.

Where it’s built: Aichi, Japan

How it’s built: Toyotas are rock solid from any decade, and Consumer Reports’ 4 out of 5 stars confirms it.

In the end: Of the three, the Santa Fe provides the most mainstream approach to this market. The 4Runner is a nifty package and the 40th Anniversary Edition makes its retro-ness quite clear — and it’s certainly the most offroad-able. But that fuel economy, ouch; not sure why Toyota can’t get a few more gears in its SUV-tanks.