tow TOYOTA 4RUNNER 1997 User Guide

79
While the vehicle is moving, never
attempt to move the selector lever
into Pº position under any
circumstances. Serious mechanical
damage and loss of vehicle control may result.CAUTION
!
(f) Good driving practice If the transmission is repeatedly up-
shifted and downshifted between third
gear and overdrive when climbing a
gentle slope, the overdrive switch
should be turned off. Be sure to turn the switch on immediately afterward.
When towing a trailer, in order to main-
tain engine braking efficiency, do notuse overdrive.
Always keep your foot on the brake
pedal while stopped with the engine
running. This prevents the vehicle
from creeping. CAUTION
!
NOTICE
Do not hold the vehicle on an upgrade with the accelerator pedal.
It can cause the transmission tooverheat. Always use the brake pedal or parking brake.
(g) Rocking your vehicle in stuck
If you rock your vehicle to make it
out when it becomes stuck in snow,
mud, sand, etc., first check that there are no objects or people
around the vehicle. During
operation, the vehicle may suddenly move forward or
backward as it becomes unstuck,
causing injury or damage to nearby
people or objects. CAUTION
!
NOTICE
If you rock your vehicle, observe the following precautions to prevent
damage to the transmission andother parts.
Do not depress the acceleratorpedal while shifting the selector
lever or before the transmission is
completely shifted to forward or reverse gear.
Do not race the engine and avoid
spinning the wheels.
If your vehicle remains stuck afterrocking the vehicle several times,consider other ways such as tow-ing.
(h) Driving in POWERº mode In the POWERº mode, the transmission
is shifted up and down at a higher vehicle
speed than in the NORMALº mode and a
more powerful acceleration is achieved.
To set the POWERº mode, push in the
driving pattern selector button. The
POWERº mode indicator light comes on.
For ordinary driving, Toyota recommends
using the NORMALº mode to improve
fuel economy.

81
Maximum allowable speeds
To get on a highway or to pass slower traf- fic, maximum acceleration may be neces-
sary.
Make sure you observe the following
maximum allowable speeds in each gear:
Two-wheel drive models gear km/h (mph)
1 48 (29)
2 90 (55)
3 139 (86)
4 165 (102)
Four-wheel drive models
3RZ-FE engine gear km/h (mph) H2º and H4º L4º
1 45 (28) 17 (11)
2 84 (52) 32 (20)
3 130 (81) 50 (31)
4 165 (102) 64 (39)
5VZ-FE engine
gear km/h (mph) H2º and H4º L4º
1 48 (29) 18 (11)
2 89 (55) 34 (21)
3 127 (79) 49 (31)
4 165 (102) 64 (39)
NOTICE
Do not downshift if you are going faster than the maximum allowable
speed for the next lower gear.
Good driving practice If it is difficult to shift into reverse, put
the transmission in neutral, release
the clutch pedal momentarily, and then
try again.
When towing a trailer, in order to main-
tain engine braking efficiency, do not
use the fifth gear.
Be careful when downshifting on a
slippery surface. Abrupt shifting
could cause the vehicle to spin or skid. CAUTION
!
NOTICE
Make sure the vehicle is completely stopped before shifting into
reverse.
Use the front drive control lever to se-
lect the following transfer modes. H2º (high speed position, two-wheel
drive): Lever at H2º
Use this for normal driving on dry hardsur- faced roads. This position gives greater
economy, quietest ride and least wear.
H4º (high speed position, four-wheel drive): Lever at H4º
Use this for normal driving on wet, icy or
snow-covered roads. This position pro-
vides greater traction than two-wheel drive.
Four-wheel drive systemÐ (a) Front drive control (lever type)

126Heating
For best results, set controls to:
Fan speed ÐAny setting except OFFº
Temperature Ð Towards WARM
(red zone)
Air intake ÐFRESH (outside air)
Air flow ÐFLOOR
Air conditioning ÐOFF
For quick heating, select recirculated
air for a few minutes. To keep the win-
dows from fogging, select fresh after the vehicle interior has been warmed.
Press the A/Cº button on for dehumid-
ified heating.
Choose floor/windshield air flow to heat the vehicle interior while defrost-ing or defogging the windshield. Air conditioning For best results, set controls to:
Fan speed ÐAny setting except OFFº
Temperature Ð Towards COLD
(blue zone)
Air intake ÐFRESH (outside air)
Air flow ÐPANEL
Air conditioning ÐON For quick cooling, move the air intake
selector to recirculate for a few min-utes.
Ventilation
For best results, set controls to:
Fan speed ÐAny setting except OFFº
Temperature Ð Towards COLD
(blue zone)
Air intake ÐFRESH (outside air)
Air flow ÐPANEL
Air conditioning ÐOFF
Defogging The inside of the windshield For best results, set controls to:
Fan speed ÐAny setting except OFFº
Temperature Ð Towards WARM
(red zone) to heat; COLD (blue zone) to
cool
Air intake ÐFRESH (outside air)
Air flow ÐWINDSHIELD
Vehicles withA/Cº button-
Moving the air flow selector lever to the windshield position turns on the defrost-
er-linked air conditioning. At this time, the
A/Cº button indicator comes on regard-less of whether or not the A/Cº button ispressed in. This is to clear up the front
view more quickly. When the A/Cº button is not pressed in,
turning the air flow selector lever to anoth-
er position turns off the air conditioning. On humid days, do not blow cold air on
the windshieldÐthe difference be-tween the outside and inside tempera-
tures could make the fogging worse.

127
Defrosting The outside of the windshield For best results, set controls to:
Fan speed ÐAny setting except OFFº
Temperature Ð Towards WARM
(red zone)
Air intake ÐFRESH (outside air)
Air flow ÐWINDSHIELD
Vehicles with A/Cº buttonÐ
Moving the air flow selector to the wind-
shield position turns on the defroster-
linked air conditioning. At this time, the
A/Cº button indicator comes on regard- less of whether or not the A/Cº button ispressed in. This is to clear up the front
view more quickly. When the A/Cº button is not pressed in,
moving the air flow selector lever to anoth-
er position turns off the air conditioning. To heat the vehicle interior while de-
frosting the windshield, choose floor/
windshield air flow.
Side vents
Lower vent If air flow control is not satisfactory, check
the side vents. The side vents may be
opened or closed as shown.
ÐInstrument panel vents

1281. Fan Speed Selector
2. Temperature Selector Fan speed selector Push the switch toward HIº or LOº
Temperature selector Place the lever anywhere except the
OFFº position.
Rear heater system

132
The cup holder is designed for holding
cups or drink-cans fit snugly in it holes.
To use the cup holder, pull it out.

Do not place anything else on the
cup holder, as such item may be
thrown about in the compartment
and possibly injure people in the
vehicle during sudden braking or
an accident.
Keep the cup holder shut when not
in use. CAUTION
!
To secure you luggage, use the tie-
down hooks as shown above. See Luggage stowage precautionsº in
Part 2 for what to observe in loading lug-gage.To use the luggage cover, pull it out of
the retractor and hook it to the an- chors.
When opening the back door, turn back the dropleaf of the luggage cover to gain
access to the back door lever inside the vehicle.
TieÐdown hooks Luggage cover

Part 2Off-road vehicle precautions
135
INFORMATION
BEFORE DRIVING
YOUR TOYOTA
Off-road vehicle precautions
Break-in period
Fuel
Operation in foreign countries
Three-way catalytic converter
Engine exhaust cautions
Facts about engine oil consumption
Twin ground electrode spark plugs
Brake system
Brake pad wear limit indicators
Luggage stowage precautions
Your Toyota's idenitification
Theft prevention labels
Suspension and chassis
Types of tires
This vehicle is one of the class of ve-
hicles which have higher ground
clearance and narrower tread in rela-
tion to the height of their center of
gravity to make them capable of per- forming in a wide variety of off-road applications. Specific design charac-
teristics give it a hi
gher center or grav-
ity than ordinary cars. An advantage ofthe higher ground clearance is a better view of the road allowing you to antici-
pate problems. It is not designed for
cornering at the same speeds as con-
ventional two-wheel drive vehicles
any more than low-slung sports cars
are designed to perform satisfactorily under off-road conditions.
CAUTION!
Always observe the following pre-
cautions to minimize the risk of seri-
ous personal injury or damage to
your vehicle: Avoid sharp turns or abrupt maneu-
vers, if at all possible. As with other
vehicles of this type, failure to oper-
ate this vehicle correctly may result
in loss of control or vehicle rol-
lover.
Avoid l oading any items on the roof
that will make the center of gravity
even higher.
Always slow down in gusty cross-
winds. Because of its high center of
gravity, your vehicle is more sensi-
tive to side winds than an ordinary
passenger car. Slowing down will
allow you to have much better con- trol.
Do not drive horizontally across
steep slopes. Driving straight up or
straight down is preferred. Your ve-
hicle (or any similar off-road ve-
hicle) can tip over sideways much
more easily than forward or back- ward.

136
CAUTION!
When driving off-road or in rugged
terrain, do not drive at excessive
speeds, jump the vehicle, or strike
objects, etc. This may cause loss of
control or vehicle rollover. You are
also risking expensive damage to
your vehicle's suspension and chassis. Drive gently and avoid high speeds.
Your vehicle does not need an elaborate
break-in. But following a few simple tips
for the first 1600 km (1000 miles) can add
to the future economy and long life of your vehicle:
Do not drive over 88 km/h (55 mph).
Run the engine at moderate speed be- tween 2000 and 4000 rpm.
Avoid full-throttle starts.
Try to avoid hard stops during the first
300 km (200 miles).
Do not drive slowly with the manual
transmission in a high gear.
Do not drive for a long time at any
single speed, either fast or slow.
Do not tow a trailer during the first 800
km (500 miles) FUEL TYPE
Your new vehicle must use only un-
leaded gasoline.
To help prevent gas station mixups, your
Toyota has a new smaller fuel tank opening.
The special nozzle on pumps with unleaded
fuel will fit it, but the larger standard nozzle
on pumps with leaded gas will not.
Do not use leaded gasoline. Use of
leaded gasoline will cause the
three-way catalytic converter tolose its effectiveness and the emis- sion control system to function im-properly. Also, this can increase maintenance costs.
NOTICE
OCTANE NUMBER
Select Research Octane Number 91 (Oc-
tane Rating 87) or higer.
Use of unleaded fuel with an octane num- ber or rating lower than stated above will
cause persistant heavy knocking. If se-
vere, this will lead to engine damage.
Break-in period Fuel

144
When stowing luggage or cargo in the ve-
hicle, observe the following:
Put luggage or cargo in the trunk when
at all possible. Be sure all items are se- cured in place.
Be careful to keep the vehicle bal-
anced. Locating the weight as far for-
ward as possible helps maintain bal- ance.
For better fuel economy, do not carryunneeded weight.
CAUTION!
To prevent luggage or packages
from sliding forward during brak-
ing, do not stack anything behind
the front seats higher than the seatbacks. Keep luggage or pack-
ages low, as close to the floor as possible.
Never allow anyone to ride in the
luggage compartment. It is not de-
signed for passengers. They
should ride in their seats with their
seat belts properly fastened.
Otherwise, they are much more
likely suffer serious bodily injury,
in the event of sudden braking or a collision.
Do not place anything on the filler
panel or luggage cover. Such items may be thrown about and
possibly injure people in the ve-
hicle during sudden braking or an
accident. (secure all items in a safe
place.)
Do not drive with objects left on
top of the instrument panel. They
may interfere with the driver's field
of view. Or they may move during
sharp vehicle acceleration or turn-ing, and impair the driver's control
of the vehicle. In an accident they
may injure the vehicle occupants.
NOTICE
Do not load the vehicle beyond the vehicle capacity weight specified in
Part 8.
The vehicle identification number
(VIN) is the legal identifier for your ve- hicle. This number is on the left top of
the instrument panel, and can be seen
through the windshield from outside.
This is the primary identification number
for your T oyota. It is used in registering the
ownership of your vehicle.
Luggage storage precautions
Your Toyota's identificationÐ
ÐVehicle identification number

Part 3How to start the engineÐ
(a) Before cranking
Before starting the engine
149
STARTING AND DRIVING
Before starting the engine
How to start the engine
Tips for driving in various conditions
Off-road driving precautions
Winter driving tips
Trailer towing
How to save fuel and make your
vehicle last longer, too
1. Check
the area around the vehicle be-
fore entering it.
2. Adjust seat position, seatback angle, seat cushion angle, head restraint
height and steering wheel angle.
3. Adjust inside and outside rear view mirrors.
4. Lock all doors.
5. Fasten seat belts. 1. Apply the parking brake firmly.
2. Turn off unnecessary lights and acces-
sories.
3. Manual transmission: Press the
clutch pedal to the floor and shift the
transmission into neutral. Hold theclutch pedal to the floor until the engine
is started. A starter safety device willprevent the starter from operating if
the clutch pedal is not fully depressed.
Automatic transmission: Put the se-
lector lever in Pº. If you need to restart
the engine while the vehicle is moving, put the selector lever in Nº. A starter
safety device will prevent the starter
from operating if the selector lever is in
any drive position.
4. Automatic transmission only: De-
press the brake pedal and hold it to the
floor until driving off.