Trail Edition Questions and Need Help

Dino9803 · 2012-08-10T21:44:06+00:00

Hi Guys. I’m a complete newbie to the forum and this is my first post. I’ve done some browsing around on the site and the web but I haven’t been able to find the information that I’m looking for. And I’m sorry in advance that this post is a little lengthy! I’m in the market for a new Trail Edition and I’ve taken a couple of test drives of one at a nearby dealership. I love the truck and I’m drawn to it over the Limited and SR5 because I really like the looks of the black plastic fender flairs and the trim on the bumpers. But on the other hand, I’m a little concerned on the overall quality of the pieces. It seems that the material is made up of the same kind of plastic that they make mud flaps out of. It’s been my experience that this kind of plastic scratches really easily and fades too. I’m going to be having this truck for a very long time and I’m worried that the plastic is not going to stand up well. I guess I’m asking the guys with the TE models if they’ve had good luck with this or is it a maintenance nightmare. The other question revolves around the rear axle. The TE axle has an open differential with the locking feature. I had a Tacoma Off Road edition with this same axle and I wasn’t very happy with the way the truck handled on snow covered roadways. Keep in mind that the locking dif only engages in 4 wheel low. Every other truck I’ve owned had a limited slip difs and a number of time I never had to switch into 4WD to get the truck to handle through the snow. More times than not, I was engaging my Taco’s 4WD just to keep the truck from getting all squirrely. Is this about the same story with the TE or does the A-Trac and stability control help that dramatically? I don’t know if the ABS engaging on the wheel that’s slipping can really take the place of a true limit slip differential. Again, I’m sorry for how wordy this post is but I don’t want to make a $36,000 mistake! I appreciate any input you guys might have! Great forum and thanks in advance!

Thread starter Dino9803
Start date Aug 10, 2012

Dino9803

New member

Aug 14, 2012

Thanks 36! I went on Forever Black's site and it looks like a great product. When I was at the dealership the other day I took the nail of my thumb and I was able to create a minor scratch on the plactic. I was thinking that Armor All would be the best bet to fix something like that but I think your idea's the way to go.

I was thinking the samething about replacing the plastic bits if one of them gets damages. Just buy it and slap it on instead if going to a body shop for paint work.