General Discussion and BS thread -Safe Haven

Ok so overall I absolutely adore this truck...except for the motor. Like everything else it has its good and bads. For me the interior layout and features have been a huge plus. The seats are more comfortable than my '14, the sunroof is nice, the gauge display is amazing and the JBL system sounds good and works really well. The keyless start with smart unlock on the driver's door and moving the e-brake next to the shifter are a couple more nice features. It's definitely more quiet than my '14 as well.

The grill is "growing" on me, but I think I'll probably trade it out for one from an SR model when I get around to it. The motor and trans combo is where I lay most of my gripe...especially now with a lift and 32's on it. The old 4.0 had the torque at a lower RPM where is should be in a truck...even a compact. Are they even called compacts anymore? The trans is smooth, but tends to be a bit lazy at times. I find myself manual-shifting pretty much all the time in this truck just to keep the R's up in the power band.

The fuel mileage, which I know does not matter to everyone, was great before the lift add and tire/wheel swap. The few tanks I had through it were getting me an average of around 24 mostly hwy. I'm now sitting just under 20 running the same route to and from work. The motor shifts in and out of 6th constantly so I've come to the conclusion that 6th is pretty much only good for very flat surfaces or downhill. 5th seems to hold the speed a little better, but it's such a small rpm change from 6th that even a small incline will cause a shift to 4th. Once in 4th and the R's are at 3k or more, the truck will climb any hill out there. Again...not ideal for a truck really. I find myself brainstorming on ways to get that hwy cruising back without the motor having to work so hard to maintain a speed, but right now other than a tire change to an AT for less rolling resistance or removing the lift completely, I'll just have to deal with it. Just sucks because I had this same lift/tire combo on my '14 and it didn't change the mileage by not even a tenth and the hwy power was solid.

I suppose I'm venting my woes a little as well as laying some praise on the great features it does have. If fuel mileage is your thing and you don't plan to mod the truck, then hell yes...go for it. If you are like me and can't leave well-enough alone because you spend every weekend on mountain roads, then I suggest you keep your first or second gen.

Couple shots from before and after.

Before (aka stock) on top of Hagerman Pass


After (3" fr and 1.25" rear lift with 32" KM's):

 

that's awesome.. Just bought the same exact truck in the Blue.... May not lift for a bit but would love to know the specifics on your exact lift.

thanks

 

Discount offered me $40 per tire which is way low, even they admitted it. They did however tell me they retail for $180 new, mine have 15 miles on them. I will be posting them online.
People have been mentioning the engine being meh, I think it feels smooth with plenty of power. I have to admit, when I stepped on my old taco that shit went. I have yet to pin it in my new truck. I did however when I test drove one and it had a very small lag, but had good power. Seemed like the 4.0 V6 was a bit more responsive. Overall, seems suitable for the 3rd gen

 

Great honest information, review & pics.
Your truck looks awesome.
You're little ranger helper in the driver's seat is cute.

 

Oh yeah...he adores his time in the mountains! Was mapping out the entire route via a Breckenridge ski area map and a pen. haha

 

I actually have the tire/wheel package listed on eBay right now. I've always used either CL or eBay to sell the old stuff because as you found out, they do not give you near the value of your old stuff via trade-in.

 

Sold my '15 MT for a '16 MT. Love everything, but the lag/lack of power in 6th (& 5th) on hills. Yes (for all you haters), a '14 Tacoma dropped me on a grade heading home this weekend...
This confirmed my observation of having to downshift to 5th on same grades my '15 could stay in 6th...Went with 2 1/2 lift stayed w 265/70s. She still runs the same, with same mpg. Opted out of going with larger tires, seriously, imo motor doesn't seem strong enough unless you want to fish for gears all the time.
Tested an AT too before choosing MT, initial test drive impression was AT downshifts/shifts too sporadically when moderately accelerating or on grades compared to the MT.
Happy with MT as at least it prevents transmission from hyper-surfing. Hope Toyota comes up with some flashes/power mod improvements soon.

 

It's called a "hood scoop" and it's freakin' awesome!

 

all these first hand reviews of the power makes me glad I walked away from my trade deal. that was the reason I was so hesitant.. the lack of power, especially coming from my current blown Taco. everything else about the truck I LOVE.. but the power was just a deal breaker for me. the torque curve is wrong for the truck imo.. just feels.. lazy or sluggish.

thanks for the honest feedback gentleman.

 

Well I'm glad to hear it's not just me feeling the lack of power. Interesting you're feeling it in a Manual too...thought it might just be the auto guys with the extra gear floating around in there.

I too am hoping for a flash over the course of the year. Maybe enough people will complain about it that Toyota might do something. Maybe.

 

Air dam is below the front bumper. Hood scoop is well above the front bumper. Big difference.

 

The new 2016 Custom Grille inserts from DBCustomz are ready to go, and they're on sale starting now!

Check out the thread here.





-Nathan

 

Pics on truck? I don't have a 2016 but I'm sure people want to see that.

 

I didn't want to spam this thread with too many pictures, but here's one. There are a few more in the thread linked above.

 

Can you step back and take a picture so we can see how the whole truck looks with it?

 

Can't go wrong with a honeycomb grill. Toyota should have taken notice.

 

This is as good as I can do at the moment. Of course the black grill washed out in the photo, but hopefully you'll get the idea.

TOYOTA take notice of the aftermarket trends? Never!

 

if only the lights in the grill were bigger...

 

Yeah, bigger lights might work better. No offense to the manufacturer because it's not there fault, but with the new grill lights in the middle almost seem like nostrils in the snout...