Car and Driver Rates Tacoma Second to Last

Tackles that 8-lane blacktop like a fine Quarterhorse/Arabian blend on a prairie trail....

 

Oh god not another one of those threads!

 

If you pay those guys enough, they'll even say VW makes the best truck!! lmaoo!

Hope that helps
Cheers!

 

That black ridgeline looks like it would be looking good in a funeral procession loaded with flowers something real delicate like the truck they are in .

 

CAR and Driver. Nuff said.

 

I find it interesting how many state the RL is "ugly". Seems not long ago when the 3g Tacoma was being released, many on here stated the front end was "ugly". So it the 3g Tacoma now not "ugly"?

While many are classifying the RL as a mid size truck, it is not aimed at the same market group. Seems many have stated the majority of owners of midsize pickups don't go off road (unlike many Tacoma owners), so the RL or the GMC twins don't need to have the off road capability of the Tacoma. That is fine for some and not for others. I highly doubt that the RL being ranked #1 is going to change a person dead set on buying a Toyota.

While I enjoyed my 06 Tacoma and its functionality, the 3g has not won me over yet. As I get older, my needs change in a vehicle. By the way, the RL has not won me over either. Its turn diameter is worth in the mid size and I am not a fan of Honda's multi displacement system.

 

Tru dat.

I invite Car & Driver to try out my sport, on Icon stage 4, complete with a ton of extra weight and all-terrain (KO2) tires. I'll bet the ride annihilates the Ridgeline by a mile in all conditions.

Different strokes for different folks.

 

My lieutenant is an apparent drug dealer and just bought a new tesla. I drove it today and holy shit balls does that thing get up and go for a mobile lithium bomb. If Tesla made a "truck" I think it'd actually be pretty good. And not front-wheel-lame. Wtf is that Honda?

 

I have remained consistent in my message that the 3rd Gen front end is ugly.

 

I'd agree with Ridgeline at #1 and Tacoma at #4 given what most folks want in a commuter-truck. Now if we are talking real off-road use, then obviously the Ridgeline falls out of contention altogether. C&D doesn't always get it 100% correct for me, but I do find that my own experiences with vehicles tend to align well with theirs. Forget BMW and Honda; Mazda is their shining star now. They generally think Toyota is boring and stodgy, which it generally is.

The Tacoma is awesome looking (to me), capable, has great features and rides reasonably well. It's largest issue is that damn noisy, complex, and bipolar 3.5L. Toyota really needs to fire whoever thought this 3.5L was a good idea. And I still can't believe they didn't at-least plug the LCAs on the 2017s. A fix just doesn't get any easier than that... they really just don't care... so I'm not feeling too sorry for them being ranked #4.

 

Good to know. It was a general statement, hence the use of "many".

Guess I should have stated , wonder how many who thought it was ugly before they purchased a 2016, still thinks it is ugly?

My point, buy the vehicle you want. It is a personal choice.

 

Hell, put the casket in the back and make every dead person that ever said "I wouldn't be caught dead in a fucking ridgeline" a liar.

 

It is a great mafia truck... you can hide a body in the rear trunk (under the bed storage)...fill it with ice and everything...





I am having too much fun...

 

I think the Honda would be a great utility vehicle and daily driver. If you can put two refrigerators, a dishwasher, a stove, basically move a small apartment in one load it's a truck.

The Honda let's say you go to Lowe's for a load of sod. The sod is on 4x6 pallets, you tell the Lowe's guy to forklift the pallet into your soccer mom Ridgeline. The Tacoma, you get to load the sod into the bed one roll at a time.

The Honda AWD (not 2WD) is probably the best triple purpose truck. Despite the 8" ground clearance I wouldn't hesitate to take it offroad in most situations. I'd get rid of the front airdam ASAP though.

 

Is he wearing Keds?

 

Just wait for the new Jeep pick-up to come on board and knocks Toyota down another notch. Jeep manages to give its customers what they want. If you think Toyota's getting a spanking now, being below the Honda and the GM twins Jeep is going to start a whole other round of whining.

 

He is....

Some cowboy. Ridgeline estrogen factor just increased 25%. I called the Ridgeline a vruck (van-truck) but now the V stands for something else.

 

I haven't respected Car and Driver's truck reviews for years. All of the gripes they have about any truck are that it's trucklike.

They always say it rides rough, it's loud, the seats aren't comfortable, the seats aren't high enough,etc. Each and every negative point they make is thats it drives like a truck.

When the winner of a shootout like this isn't even a truck (front wheel drive) and is awarded based on the novelties of storage and speakers in the bed then the reviewers completely missed the point.

If you're going to compare trucks, first make sure they are all trucks. Only include cab-on-frame vehicles with the primary drive going to the rear wheels. Second, compare truck-like qualities such as tow rating, clearance, durability, etc.

Along those lines the Tacoma still fares well,and that's coming from someone who appreciates trucks for what they are and has had his fair share of issues with a 1st year release.

 

This.
Tons of people crap on the RL. Yea it's ugly. No it's not a Tacoma. My Dad has a 2010 RL 4x4. He's hauled/towed as much or more than what I've done with my Tacoma. It's also gone everywhere my Tacoma has gone, with ease. Admittedly, we don't 'off-road.' But we do take our trucks through some nasty old logging roads in the mountains to go hunting and camping. I can attest that his RL has more 'woodland pinstriping' than many of the Tacomas on this forum.
To end my rant, I'm a Tacoma guy and I'll get a 3rd gen when the time comes. Just saying that aesthetics aside, the RL has earned my respect as a functional and capable truck.