Test Drove a Tacoma

[Hadelson]

Was thinking about trading my 14TE. I'm old school and like shifting gears so getting a Taco 6speed had a lot of appeal. I drove both a Taco TRD Sport and TRD off Road and just came away with nothing. The transmission and clutch were nice. The engine performance and ride really did nothing for me. The steering is heavy and lacked road feel. The throttle response ??? was flat. My TE only has a TRD CAI and Borla Cat with some minor mods to suspension is just a substantially better ride......

Anyone else test drive a Tacoma and what were you observations?

 

[Aurora85]

Was thinking about trading my 14TE. I'm old school and like shifting gears so getting a Taco 6speed had a lot of appeal. I drove both a Taco TRD Sport and TRD off Road and just came away with nothing. The transmission and clutch were nice. The engine performance and ride really did nothing for me. The steering is heavy and lacked road feel. The throttle response ??? was flat. My TE only has a TRD CAI and Borla Cat with some minor mods to suspension is just a substantially better ride......

Anyone else test drive a Tacoma and what were you observations?

It's sad go over to Tacoma world and read all the diasspointed 3rd gen owners. Toyota needs to step up their powerplant and transmission game. Compared to the competition Toyota is lacking.

 

[Repsol13]

Own both and the Taco is peppier and feels lighter overall. It does need a power bump but what vehicle doesn't.

 

[4Rager]

My best friend got a Taco TRD Pro about two months ago. The TRDP comes with TRD exhaust and CAI for the Taco. I drove it for about 30 miles and I would say it felt pretty similar to my 4R and you have to rev for the power, but I would definitely like that extra gear. It doesn't seem significantly more powerful, but if it gets better fuel economy that's a worthwhile improvement. FWIW we haven't done any drag races (which kinda surprises me...) We all knew getting into it that 4Runner's engine/tranny is about reliability not power or cutting edge tech. What I'm curious about is what version of that engine makes it into the 6th gen. The 5th gen version of the Taco's 4.0L made about 30 more hp, so I'm curious to see how that translates this time around.

 

[1engineer]

Moved to proper forum.
-mod-

 

[DesertFish]

I test drove a 16 TRDOR back when they first started showing up at dealers. Throttle response/acceleration wasn't really a big deal at all for me, I'm very light on throttle no matter what I'm driving, and both the Tacoma and 4R are heavy and slow, at least coming from a Forester XT.

The ride was very soft and smoothed out potholes much better than the Trail with KDSS. The Tacoma did however have significantly more body lean compared to the 4R. With that, the 4R's interior and build quality are leaps and bounds ahead of the Tacoma. The 4R has proven reliability, and as mentioned above, a quick visit to TacomaWorld will reassure you that you're in the better vehicle. Vibrations, ungreased joints, transmissions low *quarts* of oil, howling control arms, all straight from the dealer. The peace of mind from owning the 4R over the Tacoma is worth more than anything the Tacoma offers.

 

[(none)]

I crossed shopped a tacoma briefly before picking up my 4R. For me, about the only thing the taco has going for it is the manual trans and maybe some better fuel econ. But, the manual isnt available with teh access cab TRD OR, so no thanks.

Other than that, i'd also also have to deal with:
-Tacos significantly smaller brakes all around, and drum rear brakes :doh:
-no longer a fully boxed frame
-leaf spring rear suspension, compared to coils on the 4R
-and teh heap of issues that have already cropped up (multiple rear axles replaced, auto trans shifting issues (also, the 6-speed is just essentially our 5-speed with another overdrive. No thanks), high pressure fuel pump replacements/ direct injection noises, etc.
-notable also is the Japan vs texas or Mexico build quality.
-the tacomas have to be optioned with the tow package our 4runners all come with (engine oil cooler, 130a alternator, wiring for both plugs, trailer brake prepped, hitch), the only thing we lack is the aux trans cooler and the one included in the taco tow package is tiny. Much happier with my larger B&M.
-Larger wheels and tires stock (because we can't fit 16" wheels over the huge front brakes :humble:
-OEM mudflaps on all trim levels
-No front lower facia to remove

I'm sure there is more. I do like the taco front end design more though.