Dude you need to drive both yourself. The 3.slow makes more torque at idle than the 22RE does peak. You cannot just bolt on mods to get the 22RE to make the power of the 3.0. Even if you do, you will not have the torque, it will be a high reving engine, and longetivity will be sacrificed. If you really need the MPG, and today that is an issue, go for the 22RE. Otherwise, the 3.0 is better.

I have 294,000 on my 3.0 right now and it runs perfectly.

The HG recall is performed by the dealer so you don't actually have to do anything. Most likely, any 3.0 you find will already have had the headgaskets replaced. The 22RE has it's issues too, timming chains, etc.. which you will fix yourself so you will work on it as well.

If you are looking for 4runners, the 3.0 is a good choice as they are heavier than pickups. In a pickup, a smaller engine is easier to live with.


Frank