Disappointing test drive

In my opinion the Frontier does not have the cramped feeling interior nor the low seating position.

I guess a 2016 owner has to choose between power and the same mpg as second generation or the economy (ECT) mode and fuel economy.

 

Trucks are built for utility. Riding comfort is secondary to durability. My wife's Honda Pilot has the adjustable seat thingy. I'm just waiting for the little servos inside to die. No chance of that on my truck. Strange that I actually find my seats to be very comfortable. Both of my hips are SHOT and hurt most of the time. My most comfortable time is spent driving my truck. Too bad my commute is only about 1.5 miles each way :-( Can't sit in my truck all day.

 

If I hazard a guess, the diesel will retain its resale value better than a gas truck. I'm using other diesels, especially cars as examples. Even the Cruze deisel sells at a resale premium.

 

Agreed. That's basically the trade off. Which shouldn't really surprise anyone because, honestly, Toyota was never going to throw a revolutionary engine in the Tacoma that could do that much better than the 4.0 L anyways.

In short, Toyota isn't going to throw a boosted engine or a diesel in the Tacoma unless someone forces them too. Maybe Ford will if they enter the market. Ford can run with Toyota. GM can't.

 

Spend a lot more to make a little more on the back end. Yes, it does help. However, then you are talking about maybe 60,000 miles till break even. Still a lot of miles to count on a trade in bonus.

 

With all respect, you have to change "Trucks are built for utility. Riding comfort is secondary to durability." to "Tacoma's are built for utility. Riding comfort is secondary to durability."

The Tundra does not have these issues. Durable but has riding/creature comforts.

 

Nissan is rumoured to be offering a Diesel in the next Frontier.

 

I'm fairly short at 5'8", so the head space is fine..feels comfortable...but that god damn front end...why sooo long!?!?!

 

I agree with the front end; it seems needlessly long. There must be 16" of empty space between the radiator and grill.

 

Wondering whether we would be able to get an aftermarket chip to change the transmission/shifting issues.

 

I rode in 2016 Taco Sports.
Felt smooth/firm! Loved it but i had to have the OR which they didnt have. So ordered it.

 

I have test driven 1 Sport Model and 3 Off Road versions ( 1 - Manual). This was at two different dealerships. What I noticed is the sales representative didn't know very much about the crawl and the multi-terrain function. That dealership's truck didn't drive very well. It seemed hesitant. At the other dealership I test drove 1 Sport and 1 Off Road. Those trucks were great. They were smooth and accelerated fairly well. Where I live there is a large incline to test trucks. The Tacoma did outstanding and I was impressed with it. Not sure why this one truck didn't drive well. I was disappointed at first as well, but thought maybe it was the series I was driving. So far the manual Off Road and Automatic Off Road from another dealership was impressive. My suggestion is not to have an opinion right away, but rather check other trucks out and see if there is a difference. I did go back to the dealership that had the bad truck to check out the manual and it was pretty cool and drove well.

 

Thanks for the post. I hope that doesn't speak to Toyotas legendary quality.....

 

Me too. This seems to be the #1 complaint about this vehicle. At 5'7", I definitely feel like I'm sitting on the floor.

 

I'm 6'5 and don't have those issues lol, OP sounds like a troll.

 

Here are some of my thoughts on these issues:

1) I was very concerned about the driving position as one of the reasons I want a truck is for the upright seating position. I have a bad back and cannot be comfortable in a vehicle with a low seating position anymore. I have not sat in the 2016 Tacoma yet, but just to see how the seating position was, I went and sat in a 2015. Yes it is lower than the seating position in the Colorado and in most other trucks, but no you are NOT siting on the floor. I drove an Acura NSX for a few years, and in that car you are indeed sitting on the floor. The Tacoma is more like your typical driving position in a small SUV or crossover. It is noticeably higher than the seating position in your average sedan, and I found it to be comfortable enough. That was the 2015. From what I have read, the 2016 seating position is slightly higher than the 2015, so I expect it will be fine for me.

2) Regarding the weak throttle response, this is an issue in almost all new trucks. They are trying to get better MPGs to appear on the window sticker, and the only way to do that is to map the transmission to shift into higher gears for better fuel efficiency. Remember back a few years ago the manual transmission vehicles always got slightly better MPGs than the auto transmission vehicles? Sorry to say, but autos have not become any more efficient over time. How they have changed is that they now are mapped for efficiency. So yes, feel free to press that ECT button every time you get in your truck, but also be prepared to lose 4-5 MPGs. On the other hand, if you leave the ECT off and you floor the throttle often to get that good acceleration that you want, still be prepared to lose some MPGs. The ratings on the window sticker are if you drive like grandma with ECT turned off.

 

Automatics have become more efficient with more gears, better lock up, and better programming. Hence why manuals rarely tout as good EPA ratings as slush boxes now. I doubt you'd lose 4-5 MPGs. It's probably more like 10 percent.

 

It's due to the gearing, not due to efficiency. An automatic can never be as efficient as a manual since the auto transmission itself uses some amount of energy. And in the case of the Tacoma, both the manual and the auto have the same number of gears, so no difference there. The difference is that the auto is geared to push to the highest gear in a hurry, while nobody would drive the manual that way. If the gearing of the auto was like the auto in the old 4.0, you would be looking at a couple of MPGs LOWER than the manual rating, as was typical with vehicles years ago. The only automatic gearboxes that are more efficient than manuals are CVTs.

 

I'm 5' 10, I had no issues. I drove the Colorado first, And I'm a GM fanboy, I don't own a GM mid size truck...I'll deal with the seats over dual climate. GM didn't have it as an option. Some care about seats, some dual climate. I agree that should have had electric seats.

 

After test driving it I've come to the conclusion that the new taco is very weak sauce ...interior is damn nice though