Compare the2023 Lincoln AviatorVS 2023 Toyota 4Runner

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Transmission
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Chassis
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Towing
Servicing Ease
Ergonomics

Safety

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For enhanced safety, the front and second-row seat shoulder belts of the Lincoln Aviator have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision and force limiters to limit the pressure the belts will exert on the passengers. The Toyota 4Runner doesn’t offer pretensioners for its second-row seat belts.

Both the Aviator and 4Runner have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The Aviator has power child safety locks, allowing the driver to activate and deactivate them from the driver's seat and to know when they're engaged. The 4Runner’s child locks have to be individually engaged at each rear door with a manual switch. The driver can’t know the status of the locks without opening the doors and checking them.

The Aviator has standard Post Collision Braking, which automatically apply the brakes in the event of a crash to help prevent secondary collisions and prevent further injuries. The 4Runner doesn’t offer a post collision braking system: in the event of a collision that triggers the airbags, more collisions are possible without the protection of airbags that may have already deployed.

Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The Aviator (except Standard) offers an optional Reverse Brake Assist that use rear sensors to monitor and automatically apply the brakes to prevent a rear collision. The 4Runner doesn’t offer backup collision prevention brakes.

For better protection of the passenger compartment, the Aviator uses safety cell construction with a three-dimensional high-strength frame that surrounds the passenger compartment. It provides extra impact protection and a sturdy mounting location for door hardware and side impact beams. The 4Runner uses a body-on-frame design, which has no frame members above the floor of the vehicle.

Both the Aviator and the 4Runner have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver and front passenger knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, driver alert monitors, available all wheel drive and around view monitors.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Lincoln Aviator is safer than the Toyota 4Runner:

	Aviator	4Runner
OVERALL STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
	Driver
STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
HIC	125	267
Neck Injury Risk	26.3%	47%
Neck Stress	167 lbs.	438 lbs.
Neck Compression	26 lbs.	54 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	230/210 lbs.	488/468 lbs.
	Passenger
STARS	5 Stars	3 Stars
HIC	318	367
Chest Compression	.4 inches	.7 inches
Neck Injury Risk	29.2%	57%
Neck Stress	187 lbs.	271 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	380/405 lbs.	453/353 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

A significantly tougher test than their original offset frontal crash test, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety does 40 MPH small overlap frontal offset crash tests. In this test, where only 25% of the total width of the vehicle is struck, results indicate that the Lincoln Aviator is safer than the 4Runner:

	Aviator	4Runner
Overall Evaluation	GOOD	MARGINAL
Restraints	GOOD	GOOD
Head Neck Evaluation	GOOD	GOOD
Head injury index	97	142
Peak Head Forces	0 G’s	0 G’s
Steering Column Movement Rearward	0 cm	12 cm
Chest Evaluation	GOOD	GOOD
Hip & Thigh Evaluation	GOOD	GOOD
Femur Force R/L	1.9/1.8 kN	3.9/2.4 kN
Hip & Thigh Injury Risk R/L	0%/0%	1%/0%
Lower Leg Evaluation	ACCEPTABLE	ACCEPTABLE
Tibia index R/L	.6/.64	.95/.85

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Lincoln Aviator is safer than the Toyota 4Runner:

	Aviator	4Runner
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Chest Movement	.9 inches	1.1 inches
Abdominal Force	161 lbs.	179 lbs.
Hip Force	224 lbs.	233 lbs.
	Rear Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	86	89
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
Max Damage Depth	12 inches	20 inches
HIC	288	507
Spine Acceleration	39 G’s	43 G’s
Hip Force	573 lbs.	895 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

Instrumented handling tests conducted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and analysis of its dimensions indicate that the Aviator, with its four-star roll-over rating, is 9.5% to 9.9% less likely to roll over than the 4Runner, which received a three-star rating.

For its top level performance in IIHS driver and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, side impact, roof strength and head restraint tests, its standard vehicle-to-vehicle front crash prevention system, its standard vehicle-to-pedestrian front crash prevention system, and its available headlight’s “Good” rating, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Aviator the rating of “Top Safety Pick” for 2022, a rating granted to only 164 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The 4Runner is not a “Top Safety Pick.”

Warranty

The Aviator comes with a full 4-year/50,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire truck. The 4Runner’s 3-year/36,000-mile basic warranty expires 1 year or 14,000 miles sooner.

Lincoln’s powertrain warranty covers the Aviator 1 year and 10,000 miles longer than Toyota covers the 4Runner. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 6 years or 70,000 miles. Coverage on the 4Runner ends after only 5 years or 60,000 miles.

Reliability

The Lincoln Aviator’s engines use a cast iron block for durability, while the 4Runner’s engine uses an aluminum block. Aluminum engine blocks are much more prone to warp and crack at high temperatures than cast iron.

The Aviator has a standard “limp home system” to keep drivers from being stranded if most or all of the engine’s coolant is lost. The engine will run on only half of its cylinders at a time, reduce its power and light a warning lamp on the dashboard so the driver can get to a service station for repairs. The 4Runner doesn’t offer a lost coolant limp home mode, so a coolant leak could strand you or seriously damage the truck’s engine.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Lincoln vehicles are better in initial quality than Toyota vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Lincoln above average in initial quality. With 5 more problems per 100 vehicles, Toyota is rated lower.

Engine

The Aviator’s standard 3.0 turbo V6 produces 130 more horsepower (400 vs. 270) and 137 lbs.-ft. more torque (415 vs. 278) than the 4Runner’s 4.0 DOHC V6. The Aviator Grand Touring’s standard 3.0 turbo V6 hybrid produces 224 more horsepower (494 vs. 270) and 352 lbs.-ft. more torque (630 vs. 278) than the 4Runner’s 4.0 DOHC V6.

As tested in Motor Trend the Lincoln Aviator turbo V6 is faster than the Toyota 4Runner:

	Aviator	4Runner
Zero to 60 MPH	5.4 sec	7.8 sec
Quarter Mile	14.1 sec	15.9 sec
Speed in 1/4 Mile	97.7 MPH	87.3 MPH

Fuel Economy and Range

On the EPA test cycle the Aviator running on electricity gets better mileage than the 4Runner:

			MPGe
Aviator
	AWD	Grand Touring Electric Motor	54 city/58 hwy
4Runner
			MPG
	RWD	4.0 DOHC V6	16 city/19 hwy
	AWD	4.0 DOHC V6	16 city/19 hwy

On the EPA test cycle the Aviator running its gasoline engine gets better mileage than the 4Runner:

			MPG
Aviator
	RWD	3.0 turbo V6	18 city/26 hwy
	AWD	3.0 turbo V6	17 city/24 hwy
		3.0 turbo V6 Hybrid	22 city/25 hwy
4Runner
	RWD	4.0 DOHC V6	16 city/19 hwy
	AWD	4.0 DOHC V6	16 city/19 hwy

The Aviator Grand Touring can travel with zero emissions for 21 miles. The 4Runner can’t move without running its internal combustion engine.

Regenerative brakes improve the Aviator Grand Touring’s fuel efficiency by converting inertia back into energy instead of wasting it. The 4Runner doesn’t offer a regenerative braking system.

In heavy traffic or at stoplights the Aviator’s engine automatically turns off when the vehicle is stopped, saving fuel and reducing pollution. The engine is automatically restarted when the driver gets ready to move again. If the conditions warrant or the driver wishes, the system can be manually disabled at any time for the duration of a trip (not available Grand Touring). The 4Runner doesn’t offer an automatic engine start/stop system.

The Aviator has a standard cap-less fueling system. The fuel filler is automatically opened when the fuel nozzle is inserted and automatically closed when it’s removed. This eliminates the need to unscrew and replace the cap and it reduces fuel evaporation, which causes pollution. The 4Runner doesn’t offer a cap-less fueling system.

Transmission

A 10-speed automatic is standard on the Lincoln Aviator, for better acceleration and lower engine speed on the highway. Only a five-speed automatic is available for the 4Runner.

Brakes and Stopping

For better stopping power the Aviator’s brake rotors are larger than those on the 4Runner:

	Aviator	4Runner
Front Rotors	13.6 inches	13.3 inches
Rear Rotors	13.8 inches	12.3 inches

The Aviator stops much shorter than the 4Runner:

	Aviator	4Runner
60 to 0 MPH	119 feet	138 feet	Motor Trend

Tires and Wheels

For better traction, the Aviator has larger standard tires than the 4Runner (255/60R19 vs. 245/60R20). The Aviator’s optional tires are larger than the largest tires available on the 4Runner (275/40R22 vs. 265/70R17).

The Aviator’s standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 60 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the 4Runner’s standard 70 series tires. The Aviator’s optional tires have a lower 40 series profile than the 4Runner Limited/TRD Sport’s 60 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the Aviator has standard 19-inch wheels. Smaller 17-inch wheels are standard on the 4Runner. The Aviator’s optional 22-inch wheels are larger than the 20-inch wheels on the 4Runner Limited/TRD Sport.

Suspension and Handling

For superior ride and handling, the Lincoln Aviator has fully independent front and rear suspensions. An independent suspension allows the wheels to follow the road at the best angle for gripping the pavement, without compromising ride comfort. The Toyota 4Runner has a solid rear axle, with a non-independent rear suspension.

The Aviator offers an available driver-adjustable suspension system. It allows the driver to choose between an extra-supple ride, reducing fatigue on long trips, or a sport setting, which allows maximum control for tricky roads or off-road. The 4Runner’s suspension doesn’t offer adjustable shock absorbers.

The Aviator has a standard automatic front and rear load leveling suspension to keep ride height level with a heavy load or when towing. The Aviator’s height leveling suspension allows the driver to raise ride height for better off-road clearance and then lower it again for easier entering and exiting and better on-road handling. The 4Runner doesn’t offer a load leveling suspension.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Aviator’s wheelbase is 9.3 inches longer than on the 4Runner (119.1 inches vs. 109.8 inches).

For better handling and stability, the track (width between the wheels) on the Aviator is 3.3 inches wider in the front and 3.3 inches wider in the rear than the average track on the 4Runner.

The Aviator’s front to rear weight distribution is more even (51% to 49%) than the 4Runner’s (53.6% to 46.4%). This gives the Aviator more stable handling and braking.

The Aviator Grand Touring AWD handles at .83 G’s, while the 4Runner TRD Off-Road pulls only .73 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The Aviator Grand Touring AWD executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 3 seconds quicker than the 4Runner TRD Off-Road (26.5 seconds @ .72 average G’s vs. 29.5 seconds @ .55 average G’s).

Chassis

Unibody construction lowers the Aviator’s center of gravity significantly without reducing ground clearance. This contributes to better on the road handling and better off-road performance and stability. In addition, unibody construction makes the chassis stiffer, improving handling and reducing squeaks and rattles. The 4Runner uses body-on-frame design instead.

The front grille of the Aviator uses electronically controlled shutters to close off airflow and reduce drag when less engine cooling is needed. This helps improve highway fuel economy. The 4Runner doesn’t offer active grille shutters.

The Aviator (except Standard) offers available computer-generated active noise cancellation to help remove annoying noise and vibration from the passenger compartment, especially at low frequencies. The 4Runner doesn’t offer active noise cancellation.

Passenger Space

The Aviator has 16.7 cubic feet more passenger volume than the 4Runner (144.7 vs. 128).

The Aviator has 2.2 inches more front headroom, 1.3 inches more front legroom, 2 inches more front hip room, 3.7 inches more front shoulder room, 1.1 inches more rear headroom, 6.1 inches more rear legroom, 2.6 inches more rear hip room, 3.5 inches more rear shoulder room and 2.6 inches more third row headroom than the 4Runner.

Cargo Capacity

The Aviator’s cargo area provides more volume than the 4Runner.

	Aviator	4Runner
Behind Third Seat	18.3 cubic feet	9 cubic feet

Pressing a button automatically lowers the Aviator’s second row seats and pressing a button automatically lowers or raises the third row seats, to make changing between passengers and cargo easier. The 4Runner doesn’t offer automatic folding seats.

To make loading and unloading groceries and cargo easier, especially for short adults, the Aviator has a standard power liftgate, which opens and closes automatically by pressing a button, or on the Aviator Reserve/Grand Touring/Black Label, by just kicking your foot under the back bumper, completely leaving your hands free. The 4Runner doesn’t offer a power liftgate.

Towing

The Aviator’s standard towing capacity is much higher than the 4Runner’s (5600 vs. 5000 pounds).

Optional Trailer Sway Control on the Aviator uses the AdvanceTrac® sensors to detect trailer sway, then uses individual brakes to counteract any swaying and help keep the tow vehicle and trailer steady. The 4Runner doesn’t offer electronic trailer sway control.

Servicing Ease

An Intelligent Oil-Life Monitor is standard on the Aviator to save the owner time and money by calculating maintenance intervals for oil changes based on actual driving conditions. This takes the guesswork out of keeping your vehicle in top condition and helps it last longer. Toyota doesn’t offer a maintenance reminder on the 4Runner.

Ergonomics

The Aviator has a standard remote vehicle starting system, so the vehicle can be started from inside the driver's house. This allows the driver to comfortably warm up the engine before going out to the vehicle. The climate system will also automatically heat or cool the interior. The 4Runner doesn’t offer a remote starting system.

The engine computer on the Aviator automatically engages the starter until the car starts with one twist of the key and disables the starter while the engine is running. The 4Runner’s starter can be accidentally engaged while the engine is running, making a grinding noise and possibly damaging the starter and ring gear.

The Aviator’s standard easy entry system raises the steering wheel and glides the driver’s seat back, making it easier for the driver to get in and out. The 4Runner doesn’t offer an easy entry system.

The Aviator (except Standard) offers an available heads-up display that projects speed, certain gauge, warning, turn signal and navigation instruction readouts in front of the driver’s line of sight, allowing drivers to view information without diverting their eyes from the road. The 4Runner doesn’t offer a heads-up display.

The Aviator’s power parking brake sets with one touch and releases with one touch or automatically. The 4Runner’s parking brake has to be released manually.

The power windows standard on both the Aviator and the 4Runner have locks to prevent small children from operating them. When the lock on the Aviator is engaged the driver can still operate all of the windows, for instance to close one opened by a child. The 4Runner prevents the driver from operating the other windows just as it does the other passengers.

In case you lock your keys in your vehicle, or don’t have them with you, you can let yourself in using the Aviator’s exterior PIN entry system. The 4Runner doesn’t offer an exterior PIN entry system.

The Aviator’s rain-sensitive wipers adjust their speed and turn on and off automatically based on the amount of rainfall on the windshield. This allows the driver to concentrate on driving without constantly adjusting the wipers. The 4Runner’s manually variable intermittent wipers have to be constantly adjusted.

To improve rear visibility by keeping the rear window clear, the Aviator has a standard rear fixed intermittent wiper with a full on position. The rear wiper standard on the 4Runner only has an intermittent setting, so in a hard rain visibility isn’t as good.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) conducts detailed tests on headlights for their range both straight ahead and in curves and to be certain they don’t exceed acceptable amounts of glare to oncoming drivers. The Aviator’s available headlights were rated “Good” by the IIHS, while the 4Runner’s headlights are rated “Poor.”

The Aviator has a standard automatic headlight on/off feature. When the ignition is on, the headlights automatically turn on at dusk and off after dawn. When the ignition turns off, the headlights turn off after a delay timed to allow you to securely get to your front door. The 4Runner has an automatic headlight on/off feature standard only on the Limited/TRD Pro.

To help drivers see further while navigating curves, the Aviator (except Standard) offers optional adaptive headlights to illuminate around corners automatically by reading vehicle speed and steering wheel angle. The 4Runner doesn’t offer cornering lights.

Manual rear side window sunshades are available in the Aviator to help block heat and glare for the rear passengers. The 4Runner doesn’t offer rear side window sunshades.

The Aviator’s power mirror controls are mounted on the armrest for easy access. The 4Runner’s power mirror controls are on the dash where they are possibly hidden by the steering wheel and are awkward to manipulate.

The Aviator’s standard rear and side view mirrors have an automatic dimming feature. These mirrors can be set to automatically darken quickly when headlights shine on them, keeping following vehicles from blinding or distracting the driver. The 4Runner offers an automatic rear view mirror, but its side mirrors don’t dim.

The Aviator has standard heated front seats. Heated front seats are only available on the 4Runner Premium/Limited/TRD Pro. The Aviator also offers optional heated second row seats to keep those passengers extremely comfortable in the winter. Heated second row seats aren’t available in the 4Runner.

Optional air conditioned front and second row seats keep the Aviator’s passengers comfortable and take the sting out of hot leather in summer. The 4Runner doesn’t offer air-conditioned seats for the second row.

On extremely cold winter days, the Aviator’s optional heated steering wheel provides comfort, allowing the driver to steer safely and comfortably before the vehicle heater warms up. The 4Runner doesn’t offer a heated steering wheel.

The Aviator (except Standard) offers optional massaging front seats in order to maximize comfort and eliminate fatigue on long trips. Massaging seats aren’t available in the 4Runner.

The Aviator has a standard dual zone air conditioning allows the driver and front passenger to choose two completely different temperatures so people with different temperature preferences won’t have to compromise. This makes both the driver and front passenger as comfortable as possible. Dual zone air conditioning is only available on the 4Runner Limited/TRD Pro.

To quickly and conveniently keep personal devices charged without cables tangling and wearing out, the Lincoln Aviator Reserve/Grand Touring/Black Label has a standard wireless phone charging system (Qi) in the center console. The 4Runner doesn’t offer wireless personal charging.

The Aviator (except Standard)’s optional Active Park Assist Plus can parallel park or back into a parking spot by itself, starting, stopping and changing direction automatically. The 4Runner doesn’t offer an automated parking system.

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