Dropped off my 4R and picked up a Chevy Colorado...
- Thread starter Gecko
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Now this sounds interesting!
Gecko
New member
Following up on this, there was some extended work that had to be done on my 4Runner (dealer's fault) so I returned the Colorado to Enterprise and the dealer had to give me a loaner.
Low and behold, it was a 2018 Tacoma SR5 4x2 V6. Couldn't be more comparable to the Colorado I drove. So, I spent two weeks behind the wheel of the Chevy and two and a half weeks behind the wheel of the Toyota.
Excuse my french *puts on flame suit*, but the Tacoma is a flat out piece of garbage and the only way Toyota is selling any of them is the name alone. I come from a Toyota family, I've been employed by Toyota, I've only ever driven Toyota products, and I will sit here and tell you the Colorado is a vastly superior truck to the Tacoma in about every conceivable way. Only two merit points I can give the Tacoma are the TSS+ and perceived reliability, but I'm not sure that's worth much these days with the well documented reliability issues this generation has experienced.
The Colorado's 3.6L/8AT combo is not only an indisputably superior powertrain with regard to power delivery, drivability and efficiency, but it is so much smoother and more refined that it makes that iteration of the 2GR-FKS feel like it was dug out of the dirt in a landfill. Driving the Colorado like a reckless teenager, I got 20.7MPG. The Tacoma got 16.7MPG. My 2016 Limited (full time) 4x4 returns 16.5MPG average. These are all manual calculations.
I got out of the Colorado and directly into the Tacoma, turned the key, and it felt like starting a lawnmower because there are so many vibrations in the drivetrain, not to mention it being loud and lacking what many would deem modern NVH standards. I can't believe I'm talking about how much more refined and well built a Chevrolet feels compared to a Toyota.
The Colorado motor is great - it's predictable and smooth throughout the power band, not to mention linear and very powerful. The Tacoma is gutless and frighteningly dead under 4k RPM, at which time, the motor magically comes to life with a scary force that throws you forward until 6k RPM. It is enough force to break the rear wheels free at 40MPH or so. Try pulling out of a line of traffic, putting your foot down, inching out and then hitting 4k RPM and taking off like a bat out of hell with the wheels struggling for traction. Welcome to driving the Tacoma in city traffic - it feels out of control and unmanageable in some scenarios.
The Tacoma's 6AT has this weird characteristic with kick down where when you're coasting to a stop, as the transmission drops gears, it lurches you forward so much so that you feel like you need to hit the brakes. The Chevy's 8AT is, again, much superior.
The only two things I like about that powertrain (Tacoma's 2GR-FKS) more than the 1GR is:
- Faster gear changes (our 5AT is painfully slow and clunky at this - the 6AT is better, but modern 8ATs are MUCH faster)
- Better passing power on the highway (with this being a high revving motor, merging and overtaking on the highway is a lot easier than in the 4Runner).
I can say that if the 2GR-FKS/6AT goes into the 4Runner as it is, I would probably not buy it. The outdated 1GR with a confused, clunky 5AT is easier to drive because it's got the power band for a truck/SUV.
Last but not least: While the interior of the Colorado is not visually appealing to me, it feels like comparing an S Class to a Fusion when parked next to the Tacoma. I would describe the interior of the Colorado as decent but outdated looking. The interior of the Tacoma is just flat awful with slabs and valleys of hard plastic everywhere. It's not outdated - it's ugly. This one had 3k miles on it and it had a rattle on the passenger side of the dash, another behind me in the rear driver's side door, and the front passenger door rattled when the window is down - it sounded like glass/metal contact. Not to mention how much better the sound insulation is in the Colorado compared to the Tacoma.
I hope the upcoming Tacoma refresh is significant, and I hope the 4Runner doesn't ever get this motor. The Colorado is already a much better truck, but we now have the Ranger coming as well as the new Gladiator. Toyota has to get on the ball.
Low and behold, it was a 2018 Tacoma SR5 4x2 V6. Couldn't be more comparable to the Colorado I drove. So, I spent two weeks behind the wheel of the Chevy and two and a half weeks behind the wheel of the Toyota.
Excuse my french *puts on flame suit*, but the Tacoma is a flat out piece of garbage and the only way Toyota is selling any of them is the name alone. I come from a Toyota family, I've been employed by Toyota, I've only ever driven Toyota products, and I will sit here and tell you the Colorado is a vastly superior truck to the Tacoma in about every conceivable way. Only two merit points I can give the Tacoma are the TSS+ and perceived reliability, but I'm not sure that's worth much these days with the well documented reliability issues this generation has experienced.
The Colorado's 3.6L/8AT combo is not only an indisputably superior powertrain with regard to power delivery, drivability and efficiency, but it is so much smoother and more refined that it makes that iteration of the 2GR-FKS feel like it was dug out of the dirt in a landfill. Driving the Colorado like a reckless teenager, I got 20.7MPG. The Tacoma got 16.7MPG. My 2016 Limited (full time) 4x4 returns 16.5MPG average. These are all manual calculations.
I got out of the Colorado and directly into the Tacoma, turned the key, and it felt like starting a lawnmower because there are so many vibrations in the drivetrain, not to mention it being loud and lacking what many would deem modern NVH standards. I can't believe I'm talking about how much more refined and well built a Chevrolet feels compared to a Toyota.
The Colorado motor is great - it's predictable and smooth throughout the power band, not to mention linear and very powerful. The Tacoma is gutless and frighteningly dead under 4k RPM, at which time, the motor magically comes to life with a scary force that throws you forward until 6k RPM. It is enough force to break the rear wheels free at 40MPH or so. Try pulling out of a line of traffic, putting your foot down, inching out and then hitting 4k RPM and taking off like a bat out of hell with the wheels struggling for traction. Welcome to driving the Tacoma in city traffic - it feels out of control and unmanageable in some scenarios.
The Tacoma's 6AT has this weird characteristic with kick down where when you're coasting to a stop, as the transmission drops gears, it lurches you forward so much so that you feel like you need to hit the brakes. The Chevy's 8AT is, again, much superior.
The only two things I like about that powertrain (Tacoma's 2GR-FKS) more than the 1GR is:
- Faster gear changes (our 5AT is painfully slow and clunky at this - the 6AT is better, but modern 8ATs are MUCH faster)
- Better passing power on the highway (with this being a high revving motor, merging and overtaking on the highway is a lot easier than in the 4Runner).
I can say that if the 2GR-FKS/6AT goes into the 4Runner as it is, I would probably not buy it. The outdated 1GR with a confused, clunky 5AT is easier to drive because it's got the power band for a truck/SUV.
Last but not least: While the interior of the Colorado is not visually appealing to me, it feels like comparing an S Class to a Fusion when parked next to the Tacoma. I would describe the interior of the Colorado as decent but outdated looking. The interior of the Tacoma is just flat awful with slabs and valleys of hard plastic everywhere. It's not outdated - it's ugly. This one had 3k miles on it and it had a rattle on the passenger side of the dash, another behind me in the rear driver's side door, and the front passenger door rattled when the window is down - it sounded like glass/metal contact. Not to mention how much better the sound insulation is in the Colorado compared to the Tacoma.
I hope the upcoming Tacoma refresh is significant, and I hope the 4Runner doesn't ever get this motor. The Colorado is already a much better truck, but we now have the Ranger coming as well as the new Gladiator. Toyota has to get on the ball.
Toffees
Member
It's clear the new Colorado/Canyon is not the same POS as the first generation model, but let's see where we are in 3 years. If GM has produced a reliable product, good for them.
As for the current Tacoma, it's notably poor; hopefully Toyota can revert back to a good machine in the future. I had a 1st gen Tacoma and it was a badass, in the Toyota sense.
I still think the current Taco outlasts the current Colorado/Canyon, but it's certainly not as fun to drive (as everyone reports).
03_4x4Runner
Senior Member
I still have a hard time figuring out how Toyota sells so many 4runners with the powertrain it has. I got really spoiled at Thanksgiving time. My son bought a 2014 AEV Rubicon. It has the 6.4 480 horsepower Hemi V8 in it with 4:56 gears and 38 inch tires. What a hot rod. Made it hard to get back into my 4runner.
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Toffees
Member
I think that's actually easy to answer--the 4Runner only has one (?) real competitor with the demise of the Explorer, Pathfinder, and Blazer and since the Exterra was discontinued. Is there anything outside of the JGC that is even similar?
Gecko
New member
I don't know if it is so much about the competitive set changing - those vehicles have all sold increasingly well after transitioning to unibody, and consumers don't usually know the difference.
4Runner has a well documented and envied history of being rugged and reliable. As the 5th gen has gotten older and barely changed, there is some appeal in something being "constant" as everything else has changed. A lot of shoppers are leasing, but 4Runner remains a vehicle many people buy and keep because of both reliability and resale - same for Land Cruisers, Tacomas and Wranglers.
Make no mistake, low gas prices are a big part of what is making the 4Runner so attractive. As they say, a rising tide lifts all boats. In this case, the rising tide is low gas prices and the boats are anything with more than 6 inches of ground clearance.
4Runner has a well documented and envied history of being rugged and reliable. As the 5th gen has gotten older and barely changed, there is some appeal in something being "constant" as everything else has changed. A lot of shoppers are leasing, but 4Runner remains a vehicle many people buy and keep because of both reliability and resale - same for Land Cruisers, Tacomas and Wranglers.
Make no mistake, low gas prices are a big part of what is making the 4Runner so attractive. As they say, a rising tide lifts all boats. In this case, the rising tide is low gas prices and the boats are anything with more than 6 inches of ground clearance.
4Xplorer
New member
Just recently traded my 2017 ZR2 for a 2019 TRD Pro 4R.
Funny thing is I love Toyota’s and was looking at buying a Taco when the Taco FB guys turned me onto the ZR2. Well, when you do an unbiased comparison between the 2, I really do not see how you go with a Taco. Seats are horrible and the V6 tranny thing etc. Front Locker on ZR2 is a big plus. I actually prefer the ZR2 styling. I had the V6 and it was fun to drive and good mileage. Tranny did what it was supposed to do with no strange issues. The only reason I traded for the 4R was wanting more back seat comfort for passengers and wanting to keep my mountain bikes locked inside.
The 4R is a different animal and I actually love some of the old school vibe. Manual transfer case, real gas cap, old school clock that does not take 30 minutes to reset time on. I’m OK with the less power and 5 speed. Comfort in knowing it is dead reliable and the resale is 2nd to none.
Altogether different vehicles but both have their place.
Don’t be a fanboy and buy what you love...
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Funny thing is I love Toyota’s and was looking at buying a Taco when the Taco FB guys turned me onto the ZR2. Well, when you do an unbiased comparison between the 2, I really do not see how you go with a Taco. Seats are horrible and the V6 tranny thing etc. Front Locker on ZR2 is a big plus. I actually prefer the ZR2 styling. I had the V6 and it was fun to drive and good mileage. Tranny did what it was supposed to do with no strange issues. The only reason I traded for the 4R was wanting more back seat comfort for passengers and wanting to keep my mountain bikes locked inside.
The 4R is a different animal and I actually love some of the old school vibe. Manual transfer case, real gas cap, old school clock that does not take 30 minutes to reset time on. I’m OK with the less power and 5 speed. Comfort in knowing it is dead reliable and the resale is 2nd to none.
Altogether different vehicles but both have their place.
Don’t be a fanboy and buy what you love...
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
03_4x4Runner
Senior Member
Another factor in the high 4runner sales is that suvs are outselling cars so as people abandon cars the 4runner is a reasonably priced option. I just wonder if the average consumer will be happy with the 4runner long term verses a crossover suv.
Toffees
Member
Is the average consumer happy with any car?
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