Very dissappointed in test drive

I test drove different OR Tacoma's. The first was a dealer lifted Sport my wife liked, then a stock one. I never had any intentions of buying either.

I test drove an OR while there and didn't like it. Then we went to another dealer and I drove the one I ended up buying. It felt completely different and I love it.

 

Do not buy the OR manual sight unseen. Yes the auto transmission sucks and the manual is better than the auto, but it is NOT the transmission causing the power/torque issues. It is the engine and throttle mapping Toyota has gone with.

You'll see it when you drive the manual. I, personally, can not operate this truck comfortably in lower RPMs. Short shift 1st a bit (and im talking 2-2.5k rpm) into 2nd and mash the gas pedal, you will see the disaster right away. You need to drive it like you are opening up a sports car to have any sort of power and torque. Even 2nd gear at 10 mph gives you abysmal throttle response with heavy, heavy lag until adequate torque kicks in.

Oh and also keep it in 2nd at ~ 3k rpm and let it engine brake down past ~1.2-1.5k RPM to see the revolutionary new way Toyota decided to ruin something as simple as engine braking.

Good luck, test it out thoroughly though before you drop that kind of cash on it.

 

Also recommend the next test drive you explore S Mode and drive the truck with ECT on and off. The A/T doesn't need to be in D all the time to drive it. I personally use S5 for CC for speeds at 70 to 75mph, just runs smoother and holders the gear longer in undulating terrain or in a headwind. If you're not sure what I'm talking about then educate yourself more before taking the next drive. That's the purpose of the test drive right, testing how it drives in all modes and various situations and it doesn't all have to be done in a single drive.

Remember, you're the one making the financial commitment, not the salesperson so you dictate on how much you want to drive the trucks before deciding. Go on rainy or snowy days if possible to exercise the 4wd if that's what you're looking for. If they balk then ask for another salesperson or go somewhere else. Doesn't just apply to Toyota's either, it should be the way you buy any car or truck.

When I was shopping for the wife's Traverse, we were on the fence about AWD so we decided to go right after we got about a foot of snow on the ground and found an unplowed parking lot to test both to see if either got stuck. Surprisingly the FWD got through the deep snow as easy as the AWD. The dealership had a lot more available in the FWD configuration so we were able to get the color and trim we wanted.

Salesman said it was one of the more memorable test drives he's taken and we happily worked a deal.

 

Agree! Mine is the 5 speed manual but reverse is still too tall. With the clutch fully engaged it lugs unless you're going about 15mph which is WAY too fast to be backing into a parking space/driveway... Other than this minor detail I love my tacoma!

 

I came from a 2015 GTI and this truck seemed a bit sluggish for the first 2k until I said "Fuck it, warranty." and started driving like I was in the GTI. Heavy throttle, no remorse for pedal use. Now the truck likes to respond as soon as I mash the skinny pedal. Is it a Zonda Pagani? No. Is it a truck that can double pass when needed, absolutely.

 

Just drove home my new Tacoma and I didn't notice any shifting at all. It was smooth and nice power.

 

Go try the manual Tacoma. I love mine. And based on your extreme brand loyalty, that's your ONLY option.

 

At least you test drove the damn thing.

 

Same here. Mine drives exactly as day one, smooth and great, 23.5 mpg highway. Love it.

 

What kind of MPG is the F... it, Warranty getting you?

 

I really don't get all this obsession for fuel efficiency when buying a 4WD Tacoma.

Wait till you take it offroad, add weight and see the mpgs plummet.

 

Don't plan on taking it off-road much and not planning on adding weight! Drive mine daily to work. Guessing he could be the 8/11 guy if he drives it like he says.

 

Drive mine daily to work too, 40 miles round trip, have plus 1 sized tires, 80lb sliders and a toolbox full of about 100lbs of crap. I average just over 20 mpgs and that a hell of a lot better than I did in my 1st gen running the same route.

I still didn't buy it to be fuel efficient, it just ended up being better than the smaller truck.

 

I don't think it's the actual mpg people complain about, it's more along the lines of the actual mpg numbers when compared to a v8 getting quite a bit more hp and torque on an even heavier truck. Yes it's a V6 vs V8 and yes that can affect efficiency but I think people are starting to see that there really isn't a huge gain between going V6 vs V8. Full size trucks aren't too much bigger than their mid size counterparts either. I wish the gap would close enough that they took the Taco and put a V8 option in it to eat up the lower end tundra sales and let the tundra become a specialized "super duty" vehicle, but that's beating a dead horse around here.

Also with the taco, the fact that the engine performance seems extremely gutted for what feels like would be a very minimal mpg gain, unless the engine is horribly inefficient. We'll see what happens when the OVTune comes out.

 

You ever get the ShiftSense Pro?

 

Current setup, +1 T/A K02 tires, no lift, air dam removed, drop in AFE Dryflow, Magnaflow 3" from the Y pipe, Bakflip VP.

I just did 3300 miles which brought me from 5700 miles to 9000 miles. I used 133 gallons of gas driving through Utah, Idaho, Wyoming, and Montana at varying elevations, Utah has 80 mph speed limits on the I15 (this truck loved 75-80 mph). I saw an average of $2.59 a gallon. Tried to stick to 87/88 even though 85 Ethanol 10% was the low grade gas in most of those places. Rough calculation with a round trip of 3300 miles using 133 gallons of fuel is 24.XX mpg. There may have been a few places where fuel may have been more expensive that I am not accounting for since I paid cash in some places.

As far as warranty, I was trying to baby it and treat it like a mid 80's Hyundai, realizing that I have a warranty if anything failed under typical use, I started driving the truck like I own it, instead of keeping it nice for the next guy. That is when it started to impress me.

 

Nope

 

I absolutely love my 17 trd or manual. I wouldn't give it up for anything. It's a truck and drives the way a truck should with a manual transmission. It actually feels like a truck! I have more than enough power when I want it. That being said, if you're coming into a Tacoma with a manual trans and expect it to shift like a sports car and feel quick from a stop, you will be disappointed. I also drive in traffic some days and have no problem with how this truck operates. You learn the manual trans in these trucks as opposed to buying the automatic and it having to learn your driving style.

 

This.

I didn't buy mine for the gas mileage. Toyota makes a great car (and I am being sincere when I say that) called the Prius for those to whom mileage is a paramount consideration. My Challenger with a 6.4 liter Hemi and 485 hp gets better mileage than the OR. Of course, the Dodge requires 91+ octane, so there is that.

I think these trucks need to be driven with a little bit of vigor. If you do that, they scoot right along.

 

I've had two 1st gen a 4 cylinder and then a 6 cylinder, loved the first gen for it's size, then I got a 2nd gen 4x4 sport it was a good truck, but the 3rd gen imo is so much better in styling, features, technology. I'm totally satisfied with my truck, got it on June 2nd it was born in April (month of my birthday) yeah the transmission is a bit funky with it wanting to upshift so quickly but I'm not racing from red light to red light so I don't care too much. When I do need to get up to speed merging on the freeway, that right pedal gets into it and it scoots. There's definitely power there when you need it.

I feel because of the emissions laws and the mpg war, Toyota programmed the trans to do that so it stays low in the rev band.

It'll be interesting to see if Toyota goes the route of turbo charging their motors like a lot of car companies are doing. Can you imagine with a tune, you won't be complaining about power anymore