Pedal Commander – Throttle Response Controller 5th Gen Toyota 4Runner
After I installed this, I said; WOW, HOLY SH**, THIS IS EPIC, WTF, INSANE.
I drove the supercharged 4Runner when we visited with Magnuson, so yes I understand what real 4Runner power feels like. The Supercharged 4Runner was awesome. But for the small price on the throttle controller compared to a supercharger, this thing is awesome. It sounds crazy to even mention this product in the same paragraph as a supercharger but it’s valid. The product is seriously impressive.
With that being said, let’s jump into the overview.
What is the Pedal Commander/ Throttle Controller?
This unit is a small electrical component that plugs straight into your gas pedal’s assembly. The Pedal Commander is designed to increase your throttle response. With the unit installed, you will have absolutely no lag time on your gas pedal and complete control of power in your 4Runner.
A throttle controller will eliminate all factory settings for limiting your throttle response and take all those settings from the ECU into the new controller, allowing you to adjust your throttle response on the fly.
Pedal Commander/ Throttle Controller Model:
- The PC for 5th Gen: Check Price
Just remember there are different models for different year 4Runners. The link above will take you straight to the correct model. Get increased performance or save fuel up to 20%!
Stock 5th Gen 4Runner Gas Pedal Control?
In our stock 4Runner, we have a very “mushy” gas pedal. You really need to push down on our gas pedal to get our 4Runner’s to do anything. With the PC installed, this will be eliminated. There is an instant jump in power. The difference is truly impressive. If you like to drive your 4Runner fast, and love power, then you need to grab one of these.
The Pedal Commander combined with an aftermarket 4Runner exhaust and a TRD Intake really makes a difference as well. As you rev up quickly with the PC, you can really feel the power from the intake and the exhaust instantaneously. The PC really brings your intake and exhaust to life. After we install the Doug Thorley Headers, things are going to start getting interesting.
Is the Pedal Commander worth it?
I think so, YES. After installing many different 4Runner performance mods, we have something to stack it against. If you have an Intake or an Exhaust installed on your 4Runner, I would say 100%, YES grab one of these.
You will have fun. Obviously, there is no HP gain, but it definitely makes your 4Runner much more fun to drive. With an Intake and Exhaust, you can feel and hear the true performance of these performance parts.
If you do not have an Intake or an Exhaust installed on your 4Runner, you can still install one of these. The only difference is that you will not hear and feel your intake/ exhaust as much. Either way, intake and exhaust or no intake and exhaust, this is an awesome little unit.
Seriously impressed.
Pedal Commander Features & Settings
- Eco-Mode
- Daily Driving
- Spirited Driving (Sport)
- Racing Purposes (Sport+)
- Decrease Response
- Increase Response
- On/Off Program Buttons
The Pedal Commander offers four program selections and they vary from eco-mode, city, sport, and sport+ which all have their own set of features and benefits. Each mode has nine different sensitivity levels and up to 36 levels in total, which can be accessed by pressing the program button.
- 4Runner Stock: When all of the units lights are off, your 4Runner is operating stock.
- 4Runner Eco-Mode: Eco-Mode is used for fuel savings, smoother driving, better traction and heavy weather conditions and can also be used for off-road purposes. The unit will not be active wall cruise control system is engaged.
- 4Runner City: The Pedal Commander’s city mode is perfect for daily driving.
- 4Runner Sport: enable in Sport-Mode is great for what the unit calls spirited driving, which must mean aggressive driving.
- 4Runner and Sport+: Running your 4Runner in the Pedal Commander’s sport+ mode is mentioned as “great for racing at the track“. Now, we all know we’re not going to be racing at the track so sport+ is going to be used if you’re on the freeway or driving on long stretches of road, and really want to push it. Running the Pedal Commander in sport+ mode is likely to decrease your MPGs big time.
Note from pedal commander: The Pedal Commander is intended to boost your 4Runner’s performance, including its speed and acceleration capabilities. Pedal Commander is not designed to increase your 4Runner’s horsepower. With all of the features that the Pedal Commander offers, they encourage you to drive safely and never use Pedal Commander other than it’s intended instructions.
Pedal Commander Installation Instructions
Installation Instructions from Pedal Commander
The installation instructions on the pedal commander pretty straightforward. You want to start by turning off your 4Runner ignition. Second and a very important note is that if your 4Runner has a keyless entry (which most 5th Gen 4Runner’s do), keep the key fob at least 35 feet away.
The signal from your key fob can give power to your 4Runner, so you want to make sure that you turn off your ignition and keep your key fob away from your 4Runner before installation.
Start by locating your Accelerator (Gas) pedal assembly plug connection. This is the plug above your gas pedal. Remove the plug on your gas pedal, and then plug the male and female connectors on the Pedal Commander into their coordinating plugs on the gas pedal assembly.
Make sure the cables are tucked in place so they do not affect or cause danger while you’re driving. Route the Pedal Commander to where you can access it easily.
Preferably, you want to mount the Pedal Commander somewhere on the dash of your 4Runner to where you can easily adjust the controls while driving on the fly.
Use the include alcohol wipes to clean the area where you would like to mount the bracket.
Apply the Velcro to the bracket and clean area. Put the Pedal Commander into the bracket and you’re all set. If you need visual assistance for installing the Pedal Commander you can visit the Pedal Commander website at pedalcommander.com.
SENSOR NOTE: If you unplug the gas pedal too soon from your 4Runner you’ll receive a check engine light because the ECU still has power and will detect the sensor as defective.
SERVICE NOTE: If you’re visiting a dealership for regular service, you do not need to remove the pedal commander. Just turn it off and tuck it away so that you can put it back into its bracket after your service is complete. What is Pedal Commander trying to say on this one? Well, it probably voids some type of warranty after installing it.
Pedal Commander Step By Step Install – 4Runner
Step #1 – Locate Gas Pedal Plug
The pedal assembly plug connection is mounted directly on top of your Gas Pedal.
Step #2 – Unplug from Gas Pedal
Unplug the pedal assembly plug connection from the top of your Gas Pedal. I took off the gas pedal using a 10mm socket. There are two (one on each side of the gas pedal). You do not need to take off your gas pedal.
But the pedal assembly plug connection is hard to access. If you find you are having a hard time pressing down on the tab where the red arrow is pointed, just remove the gas pedal. It’s easy.
We really just took the gas pedal off to get some better shots, but we really didn’t even need to do that.
Step #3 – Plug In Female Outlet
Step #4 – Plug In Male Outlet
Step #5 – Mount Your Pedal Commander Bracket
You do not have to mount your Pedal Commander bracket right here. You can mount the bracket wherever you want. We just found this to pretty a pretty quick and easy installation spot. If you find somewhere better, please let us know.
Pedal Commander to Bracket
After you have mounted your Pedal Commander onto its bracket, you will have some loose wires. From underneath the dash, Ziptie together the loose wires together. There are not a ton of options for securing the wire to the 4Runner. I zip tied the wiring together and it was tucked underneath the dash enough to keep everything out of the way.
Pedal Commander Model:
- The Pedal Commander for 5th Gen: Check Price
This is a pretty simple little install. The hardest part is figuring out where to mount the bracket. After you install the Pedal Commander, play with the settings and see what you are most comfortable with.
- Sport+ Mode was out of control. The instantaneous power production was unbelievable.
- Sport Mode had advanced power production but was not as intense as the Sport+. This was a very manageable mode and also made driving the 4Runner more exciting.
- City Mode was more along the lines of stock with a slight boost off the line.
- Eco Mode really did make our MPGs go up. We are running 34″ tires and our MPGs were sitting at 10 MPG around town. MPGs on town went up to 12.5 which is right along the lines with what they quote at 20% fuel savings.
Whatever you are buying the Pedal Commander for, you will be happy. There is a reason why there are so many 5 star reviews on this product.
I have a 2014 Limited totally “outlandered out”. Due to the added weight and considering that it wasn’t like it was a drag racer to begin with anyway, a few years ago I had a Magnuson SC installed. Love it. I’m considering installing a Pedal Commander. Will it make a difference on the high end? Does anybody have an opinion? I want the commander just for the fun of it. The SC provides enough umph. Obviously fuel economy went out the window and is not a concern at this point.
Thanks!
Have sr5 2021 so far pedal commander works fine on city plus 1 … if i take it 4 wheeling and have to use 4hi, 4lo etc…. what mode should i be in ? or should i turn off the pedal comander when going off roading? Thanks for any advice!
For any concerns or questions, please don’t hesitate to contact us directly customerservice@pedalcommander.com, or message us on Facebook or Instagram! We’re here to help you!
We love it! Thanks for this great, in depth review of our product, and we love to see them on more 4-Runners!
just traded my 4runner in and i have one for sale will work on all the 4.0 i also have the trd pro exhaust which toyota wont sell you. and a trd cold air intake would sell all for 1400.00 or 1000.00 for the exhaust 200 for the pedal commander and 300 for the cai 949 2353266
i have the smog sticker installed on the upper box incase you plan on smoging your 4runner
Pedal Commander worked fine for 8 months then started causing Engine Check light to appear and acceleration immediately dropped to nothing twice. Both were dangerous situations. Cost me $140 twice to have diagnostics checked at local Toyota dealership. Have others had similar problems with Pedal Commander?
Trail4Runner.com is a great website. Thanks for all the reviews and advice.
Looking next to add S&B Cold air intake. I need more power but can’t afford Magnuson S/C.
Scott
Dallas, TX
never had a problem with mine i did have a customer come in with the same problem but only because there was a pin fit issue from when the customer removed plug originally so start there.
i work in the service dept at toyota
SCOTT I have had the same problem and tomorrow my 2015 goes back to Toyota for the second time in less than 1 year. I really love the pedal commander but i think it may be my problem. A couple of different none dealer mechanics have told me they don’t believe that the pedal commander is causing my issue. The first time at the dealer I was told the throttle body was clogged with carbon so they cleaned it and worked great for about 4 months. Let’s see what they say tomorrow.
I’ve had my Pedal Commander installed for about 4 months. In the past month the Check Engine and TRAC OFF lights have turned on and off 3 times, also causing the car to go into limp mode. After taking my 2015 4runner into the dealership (I removed the PC before taking it in), they had to replace the entire Gas Pedal Assembly. I’m not sure if this was caused by the PC but I’m worried to re-install it.
Just used this article to figure out why I couldn’t remove the pedal connection. Removing the pedal altogether was a smart move. Thanks brother!
Ryan – you know I got you brother!
2010 Limited, with TRD Air intake and Borla Muffler – added Pedal Commander over the wknd after a year of debating on spending 300.00 on it – well 15% discount on Amazon, and 60.00 off to open a amazon card, I bought it, arrived the next day. and after playing with different modes, why did i wait so long. It really works, and I mean responsive it will change the way you drive in Sport mode your 4runner – fast yes, just feels like your driving a much smaller responsive car now, not a 4000 lb sled. Amazing difference..a must buy.
Installed mine today and combined with the CAI system I have, this is an incredible system. Great mod!
Bought direct from pedal commander. Got the new Bluetooth model.
Installed in 10 min. Plug and play.
Night and day difference! This thing gives insane jam on the high end and seriously mild eco mode.
This is one of my top recommendations for an easy low price , high performance mod.
Hey, so… I can’t for the life of me stop the car from revving up to about 5KRPM and the check engine light coming on… What am I doing wrong? Should I take all batteries out? I really want this to work… help.. please… Thank you! -E
I just installed this product. Wow! It is great. It’s like a different engine is under the hood. Highly recommended!
Just installed the Pedal Commander today on my 17 4Runner SR5. I am absolutely blown away at how responsive the throttle is now. Not that I hated driving my 4Runner before, but I love it even more knowing that I can zip through traffic and pass cars on the highway without taking forever. Learned about it from this site. Thanks! Installing the TRD CAI this week. Excited to hear how she is going to sound now that it really pushes the RPM’s. I HIGHLY recommend this product to anyone trying to get a little bit extra push out of their 4Runners. You won’t be disappointed.
I saw that Eco Mode doesn’t work while Cruise Control is engaged. Is that all modes or just Eco?
Cruise works in the other modes. Have sued in many times in Sport.
Just curious but wouldn’t you get the same results by flipping over to “manual” and upshifting on your own?
Would kind of be interesting to feel a Pedal Commander / Mag SC combo. One of us will have to work on that and report back in 🙂
Thanks for the review! You described that your stock 4Runner had a “mushy” gas pedal. How does the feel of the pedal compare when in Eco-Mode to your previous stock pedal?
Ethan, it is much more responsive over stock even in Eco-mode. But, there is a noticeable difference in response from Eco-mode to the other modes with each mode being more responsive. In Eco mode, there is some throttle lag/ mushy feel but not nearly as bad as stock. City mode will pretty much eliminate the mushy feel. I daily drive with the Pedal Commander in Sport mode. No mush, very responsive.
Great review! Any idea how the Pedal Commander compares to the Sprint Booster 3 that you can buy through aFe? I have a 2018 4Runner with aFe CAI, and throttle body spacer. This will be my next performance upgrade. Thanks.
Erik,
Good question man. I don’t have any experience with that unit but we would love to see an overview of it for sure.
Yes you keep your words ,its just amazing experience , I was very confused between supercharger or pedal commander yes this thing truly wins 6000 USD vs 300 USD
Thanks for such a true and positive review
I feel I fell in love with my FJ cruiser
Just installed on my 2018 4Runner Offroad. What a difference. I got the new model with the Bluetooth module. It paired to my phone easily. I still like the buttons where you have it but it’s nice to know you can use your phone too. Thanks for introducing me to this product.
Will the PC27 work with a 2015 Limited 4Runner?
As I recall, the PC27 works for 2010+ models. Always double check with the manufacturer.
I just bought and installed one…drove around for a bit. I really like it.
I played around with city and sport modes. City plus 3 or 4 or sport make it more drivable IMO.
Coming off an X5, the spongy and not very responsive stock pedal feel on the 4runner is really noticeable. With this Pedal Commander box, it’s a completely different experience. IMO, this is the way the throttle response should have been from the factory.
I presume gas mileage will suffer however, so I’ll be watching that.
So as long as it doesn’t cause any problems or kill my gas mileage (which already isn’t anything to write home about) I’ll be happy with the $300 spent over the life of this vehicle.
motojb, we dropped ours to sport, not sport+ and our gas mileage went up from 9.5mpg to 12.5mpg. 9.5mpgs was due to our 34″ tires and factory 3.73 gears. We need to re-gear. The PC helps mpgs, even in sport mode. You will be happy with the increase.
Hey Brenan- Been doing the research on this and can only find reports of increased MPG in the Eco mode. Did you really see increased MPG when using the Sport mode? Thanks for all your great information on the website!
No way increase MPG in sport. Maybe in eco.
I just installed this in my 2018 4Runner TRD PRO and absolutely love the response! This is a great product that is flexible for your driving needs.
I was contemplating purchasing this but I couldn’t justify the $300 + price tag, until I noticed the eco mode. Even though my 4runner is a 100% stock, the fuel economy is laughable. I understand there’s a lot of factors on why it’s a gas guzzler but if I could squeeze a couple of MPG out of her it would be great. Thank you for the write up!
Milton,
Yeah, the pedal commander kicks ass for sure. We dropped ours to eco mode and jumped up about 2mpgs. We went from about 9.5 (big tires and not regeared yet) to 12.5. So, this is quite a big difference.
Yea definitely a plus! I was concerned about how safe it was and after a couple of google searches I’ve come to find out some people have problems but it’s usually user error. So as an FYI to people who have issues with theirs, it is usually the connector not being plug in properly. Thanks for the response.
Definitely something I’m going to have to invest in lol
Vince,
Oh man, this thing is so worth it. LOL. It changes the way you drive your 4Runner. The pedal commander has to be one of my favorite mods so far, and I have done quite a few mods. I highly recommend this thing.
What’s diference betwen PC27 and PC38? I have at 2017 5SR 4 runner
Jaime,
The PC38 Pedal Commander is for the 4th Gen 4Runner (2003-2009). The PC27 Pedal Commander is for the 5th Gen 4Runner (2010-2018-Current). If you have a 2017 4Runner, the PC27 Pedal Commander is for you. This is the Pedal Commander model that we installed on our 2014 4Runner. There is no difference in the actual performance or technology though.
Cheers!
Are there similar mods for 1st gen 4runners? I know the first gen is a mechanical throttle cable, not electronic. Any ideas?
Tyler,
Throwing curve balls, huh? I don’t think there is a throttle controller out there for a 1st gen 4Runner. Maybe just buy a supercharger? lol
When you first showed this product I thought it was a throttle controller for slow crawling. Sort of like a cruise control. But that’s not it at all. So it really enhances the response time of your gas pedal?
Jimmy,
Yeah, exactly. The Pedal Commander increase the response time on your gas pedal big time. It not only increases the response time and reduces pedal lag, it also gives you the ability to adjust settings to increase MPGs. We need to do a video overview on this product to explain and show what it really can do. Amazing little product though. I should have purchased this one a long time ago.