Bronco or 4Runner? One takes its top off. The other is on every beach ramp up here.

Settled and precise with the top on; the independent front suspension and quick steering make Highway 12 easy. With the roof panels off it’s loud at 55 and you won’t care.

A wide, flat hood with the corners in view, doors you could take off this afternoon, and a dash laid out like a modern SUV. It feels like a toy in the best sense before you’ve pressed the start button.

Four-high, Sand mode, aired down, and it floats. Lockers front and rear are available; you won’t need them on this beach.

With the hardtop, the panels over the front seats lift off by hand. The doors come off. The beach comes in from above.

Four doors, five seats, 38 cubic feet behind the back seat.

The driver who wants the beach to be the whole point, and doesn’t mind a vehicle that is a little bit of a production.

A little more truck in the ride, a little more noise, and an interior built for the long haul: a big flat cargo floor, a back window that rolls down, and the feeling that it will still be doing this in 2040.

The step up is a real step, and the view out is the one every 4Runner has had: upright, square, a hood you can see the corners of.

Shift into four-high before the ramp, pick Sand on trims with Multi-Terrain Select, and go. The TRD Pro and Trailhunter ride on 33-inch tires that make the soft stuff easy aired down.

Rolls down with a button. The Bronco’s top comes off; this is the quieter version of the same idea, and the sand stays outside.

Five seats, or seven on the gas SR5 and Limited.

The family that wants one vehicle for the next decade, the beach on the weekends, and nothing that needs putting back on before it rains.