Hello All, honest thoughts on 16' Tacoma

Don't dewwwww it. Get a 2nd gen. FTW!

 

I don't really miss a full size truck to be honest. The generally poor gas mileage of a full size truck paired with an appropriate engine, the incredibly poor turning radius', and what I feel is lack luster off road performance of the full size pick ups really turned me off from them. I went from an 08 Ram/hemi to a 13 JKU and it naturally turned into a nightmare... Thanks, Fiat.... And now I'm in a '16 Tacoma and loving it thus far. It's got most of the off road ability my JKU had, the gas mileage of a V6 (18-23mpg), and the maneuverability of my JKU. I'd prefer slightly lower gearing like 4.10 or perhaps a turbo engine but overall I enjoy it.

I've found it to be a nice step up in creature comforts from my JKU and with any luck, far better reliability than my jeep... Which needed warranty service 6 times inside 25k miles.

 

Thanks for all your inputs guys.
Surprised how many people are recommending the 2nd gen Tacoma too.
I agree with the 3rd gen having an ugly-ish grill but to be honest the 2nd gen grill isn't that much better.

I plan to go drive a 3rd gen this week, maybe they'll have a Cert Pre Owned 2nd gen to compare it too as well.

 

I may be in the minority but the grill doesn't bother me really. Everyone complained about the mid cycle front end update on the second gen too. I really think people are too nit picky over this stuff, and there is always a knee jerk reaction to styling changes. Tacoma's have never been particularly good looking trucks, so I don't really know what people are so worked up about. Seriously, if you need a new truck and you like Tacoma's, just get one. There aren't any more problems with this one than any others, and its probably a lot more similar to the 2nd gen than people care to admit. It basically feels like a 2nd gen with a few interior updates to me. If you have a 2nd gen just keep it till the wheels fall off, you already have a good truck! If you need something new, get the 16, its a great truck too!

 

My Tacoma doesn't seem to have any issues so far, and is more comfortable than any car/truck I have owned in a while. Really enjoying it!

 

I went from a 2012 Ford Raptor Supercrew to a 2016 Tacoma TRD OR DCSB. I gave some of my thoughts above. The Tacoma "is what it is" so to speak. If you can accept a much smaller truck it might be perfect for you, especially if you're a "car" guy, you off road in tighter trails, or need to park in cities or suburbia.

My local Toyota dealer gave me a great price for the new Tacoma; in addition, they gave me exactly what I paid for my Raptor 4 years earlier as a trade. Under these terms, I figured I'd try a Tacoma as I've wanted one since the 1990's. I gave the Taco a shot, but I will be trading my Tacoma toward the 2017 Raptor this fall.

I'm off road a fair amount of the time; the Tacoma does well off road as it can fit on narrow trails better than the Raptor. However, I really, really miss the Raptor. It is a beast off road (goes anywhere it will fit), it also tows our boat much, much better than the Tacoma. It also is much roomier inside for our growing family. I live in a very rural area, so Raptors width/size isn't much of an issue.

 

Well, I went to the local Toyota dealership today to check out the 2016 Tacoma.

They had several but a shiny new Red Sport TRD 4x4 Double Cab short bed caught my eye.
It was open (and even had the key sitting in it all the while unattended) so I climbed in.
First thing I noticed is the seat to floor relationship is small. I adjusted the seat to what was comfortable to me, and though acceptable, it still seems a bit weird, like the floor board needs to be lowered by 2 inches.
The Sport's hood also sticks up quite high with it's hood scoop. My Hellcat's hoods scoop, which is of course functional, doesn't sit up so high.

But all those things so far are acceptable, though not ideal.
The cabin was pretty nice, but still felt a bit cheap, the plastics around several areas seem a bit low rent.
Then I climbed into the back seat.
And at 5'10" tall, my knees were rubbing up against the driver's side seat back. My brother had a 2006 Chevy Colorado and I rode in the back of that several years ago (when he owned it) and don't remember my knees hitting the back of the front seats.

A VW GTI has more leg room in the back, and my full size Ram was limo like by comparison.
Now I understand that this is a smaller truck than the full size Ram, but having less leg room than a compact sports hatchback, and less rear legroom than probably most compact cars these days, seems unacceptable. Having a 3 year old that is still in a car seat, it would make it really tight back there for him, with little to no leg room. And getting into the seat may be tough as there isn't much room for him to climb in and then climb up onto the car seat.
I didn't even go so far as to ask for a test drive.
The truck looks nice and it's interior is not so bad, but the level of plastics seems more apt for a subcompact priced below $20k, and even those these days have pretty good interiors.

So to be honest guys, I was disappointed. Though the Tacoma has legendary off road abilities, unsurpassed resale value, the 2016 Tacoma still felt like it was a 5 year old truck inside.
Bummer. I was hoping for more.
With that and the issues I've read about the hunting transmission, and gas mileage that is maybe 1-1.5 mpg better than full size trucks, it's a pass for me on this Tacoma at this point.
Thanks for all the input folks.
Cheers

 

doubtful they will get rid of it, they may offer a v6 3.5 for tundras, like they do on the tacoma with the 2.7L 4cyl, but how the v6 is for the tacoma, the v8 will still be the tundra standard. not holding my breath the v8 will make it into the tacoma anytime soon.

 

You couldn't be anymore wrong then what you are in this post...The 3rd gen Tacoma IS NOT wider, it tracks the same as the 2nd gen to the mm...the only thing is, its longer due to the snout (plastics) of the truck not because the frame or width or wheelbase is any different. Also you stated the turning radius is worse then the 2nd gen...how so if its the same frame and LCAs and UCAs are all the same as the 2nd gen???...its all the same bud you just got consumed with all this bullshit on this forum.

 

I always smack my knee on the little auxillary console lower left of steering column where the bed power outlet and cargo light switch is located. The way it's designed it protrudes just right to catch my shin on it if I happen to jump in and swing my leg over too quickly. Sumbitch hurts

 

Alas, the saga comes to an end.

Good luck finding what you need (want) OP! Glad you took the time to investigate, ask the right questions, and finally explore your choice before dropping 30+ grand on something that doesn't suit you and then bitchin' about all the things Toyota should have done to the 3rd Gen Tacoma like a whole lot of people do on this site.

I agree with the child seat though, we take the grand kids every once in a while in my truck (and did in the old 2nd Gen too) the car seat barely fits in there and I have a dirty seat back to prove the lack of legroom for the 2 year old. I don't drive with them too often, so not an issue for me, but if it was my main commuter with young kids it would be a problem. I'm 5' 8", so my seat is probably more forward than yours would be.

BTW, he can climb in on his own, but that kid could climb an oak tree if you turn your back on him.

 

Dealers are usually less-informed than normal car gurus. Corporate offices of any automakers keep that stuff top secret because they don' want their competition catching wind. A V8 Tacoma will never happen either. We need to get over that.

 

i'm not at all consumed with the BS on this forum, i don't read this forum and i rarely post anything, minus a few dog/motorcycle pics and some items i've sold. it is hard to argue with your approach shoot down my opinion that the 2016 is larger, and drives larger; do you even own a 2016, how do you even know how it compares?

i drove a 2012 TRDOR for 4 years and my 2016 TRDOR instantly drove and felt noticeably bigger to me. granted, i've only driven 800 miles and just might not be used to it, but i park daily in a very tight beneath ground parking garage in downtown Seattle where inches matter when navigating the roundabouts and many parking levels, it absolutely does not go into parking spaces as effortlessly as my previous shorter and slightly narrower 2012, of course this was all just my opinion until i pulled the dimensions directly from Toyota for the 2012 vs. 2016. nearly identical is not identical.

if you dispute these toyota numbers then go measure them for yourself and put the argument to rest.
2012 Tacoma Product Information
overall width 74.6
overall length 208.1

2016 Tacoma Product Information
overall width 75.2
overall length 212.3

 

Justbwas looking at my neighbors old tundra, its "nearly identical" in size to the new taco

 

The width is from the fender flares and the length I think from the front bumper ... the wheel base is identical, 127.4in, and the rear wheel track width is too, 63.4in ... the only difference are the bumpers, and fenders. It might feel larger, but the suspension/drivetrain is the same dimension.

 

what i said exactly was...
"it feels more like the size of a 1st gen tundra than a tacoma... IMO."

and i'm perfectly aware of the dimensions. the fact that some don't consider the larger body to have any impact on how much larger it feels and drives compared to the 2012 is really doing a disservice to thos looking for opinions, and certainly illustrates why some should not be giving opinions, for which they have obvious bias against factoring in certain dimensions when comparing the two side by side. i owned a 2nd gen and loved it, and i would still own it had some idiot not smashed and totalled it. i now reluctantly own a 3rd gen, some of the reluctance is likely because of how i came to own a new one, and i suppose at some point i will love this 3rd gen as well. but i believe the OP was looking for honest "opinions" of the 2016, which i gave. so go ahead and argue away and try to convince me otherwise.

 

just buy it, your only concern should be what to put in the cubby hole to the left of the steering wheel.

When your test driving, ask the salesmen what they recommend you put in there.

There's only one right answer.

 

Like I said its bloated with plastic your argument is still invalid. I said it tracks the same as in same wheelbase and same width from hub to hub. Its the same damn frame. Its bloated up front because of new govt safety regulations for pedestrian impact. I've driven the 2016 a few times and the only difference is the ride quality and quiteter, not sure how it drives so much bigger on the same platform. So I will try this.. since its the same frame (2nd vs. 3rd gen) I will put my tailgate down so it can make my truck technically longer and I will see if it drives so much bigger, some concept right???

 

Could it be because the 2nd Gen sandbox is no longer fun and they are trolling the 3rd gen threads offering essentially useless "opinions" without owning or even wanting a 3rd Gen