Is the 3rd Gen TRD Pro Even Necessary Today?

There's millions of dollars of engineering built into stock vehicles. Yes the Pro is not as offroad capable as a built up truck but it's most likely very reliable and for 90% of my driving it's perfect. Go read the long travel thread then decide which is right for you and remember, because 1 style is the style you want doesn't make what other people like wrong.
2.5 inch Fox shocks are no joke, I had a 2012 Raptor and that baby was fine with 2.5" fox shocks.

 

Exactly,
Camaro zl1= +150 hp
Raptor= +70 hp
Corvette zo6= +190
Ram power wagon=+15

Trd pro=+0

The difference between the two RD pro and the OR just doesn't seem that big. Throw a supercharger on there or even the front locker like someone mentioned. The mods they do just don't seem that significant or hard for someone to do to their truck after they buy it.

 

And forward just increased the raptor shocks to 3".

 

Just some comments based on what I read in here...

The Sport is the biggest waste of money because it costs as much as the OR when similarly equipped.

MTS is a good feature which I believe is worth the money for the OR upgrade. Along with the locking diff, MTS is very nice when you are driving through shitty terrain. My wife has neck issues and MTS allows me to make the ride much smoother at very low speeds in very shitty conditions. The first time I used it was in Calico coming down a rocky section into the Bismarck mine area. There were shelves, large loose rock, and no solid ground. MTS really made it easy to keep the truck in control and smoother than if wheels were locking and flipping and rolling over rocks and dropping off shelves. It really did help. I could have done without it but it helped. The PRO will have MTS

A disadvantage I see in the PRO is the short bed. I started looking for Tacomas in 2015. I wanted an OR but was prepared to buy an SR5 or even a Sport because of the long bed. I stopped looking at 15s when I heard the 16 would have new options. I then spent 3 months searching for a DCLB OR 4X4 because it was now available on the long bed. With no long bed available in the PRO, I have no interest in it.

 

Technically the PRO with the short bed would be better off road with the shorter wheelbase...but I see what you're saying. I figured if they offered the off road with the long bed, why not the trd pro. I'm okay with that, although I would prefer the long bed.

 

We off road a few times a month but we also move shit and ride dirt bikes so the long bed was a must. I've never by hindered by the long bed other than trying to turn around on a tight trail or two.

 

Yeah mostly the only thing I'd be hauling would be motorcycles...which would be able to fit but with the tailgate down. Worst case scenario i'd have to get a utility trailer to fit something larger.

 

I wish I knew that before I bought my off road. Oh well. I do like those fox shocks that come with the PRO. But I'm sure they will be more expensive than
a pair of ICONs.

 

My wife's quad fits with the gate up. My bike will fit across the bed if I put it in the bed and her quad on the trailer. Can't fit both in any width truck bed.

 

FYI, I always thought that the dirt bikes wouldn't fit in the short bed. But they actually do. They would fit better in the long bed, but you can do it.

 

My 250s rear tire sits on the end of the gate on a short bed. I didn't like that in my cousins Tacoma.

 

Ford did go to 3" fox shocks which are huge and stiff, of course you can tune them but what do you want is the most important issue. If you want a Raptor then get one. The raptor also is rumored to have 13-14" of travel which means higher speeds over rough stuff. I'm sure the 2.5 shocks on the pro will be great for the 9-10" of travel I'm suspecting it will have.
For me the reliability, lower maintenance cost, lower sticker price, and better mpg are major selling points for the pro.
I've prerun 1000's of miles in Baja in both a raptor and a full tilt alumni-craft 4 seater. You end up going only as fast as the slowest guy in the group. If you have just a tiny bit of skill and are a little aggressive there will for sure be slower people driving more capable trucks that you end up waiting on or sitting in their dust.
PS. It's more fun to drive a slow car fast than a fast car slow.

Dirt bikes don't fit a raptor bed either without the tailgate down or at an angle which only allows 1 bike.

 

Hey bud! That was my thought! (and my wallets)

 

The sport has a hood scoop, OR doesn't. That's easily more valuable that any suspension stuff.












Ok full disclosure... the scoop was actually a big reason I bought a sport.

 

I work as a VW tech, and Im building a honda. I want the pro because it's capable for what i want it to do, and then some. I (hopefully) won't have to deal with stuff breaking, and if it does break there's a warranty. I fix enough broken shit at work and with my summer/project car, I don't want to have to fix the truck.

 

You must have extreme patience to work on VW/Audi every day. I wouldn't be able to. They're fun as hell til they break down. Good luck with the honda build.

 

Thanks! They say once you can work on Audi or VW you can work on just about everything. Every brand has its quirks but some (as in most VW's) just don't have any thought going into the design of the vehicles haha