SOON TO BE TACOMA OWNER .... LOOKING FOR ADVICE

Hello Everyone , I am brand new to this site as i just signed up yesterday . I have viewed the site on many different occasions and was very surprised at the popularity of this brand . I am very impressed by the amount of information and knowledge being passed around here on a variety of Tacoma topics . After reading through many threads i can understand why that is now. While i am sure i will have a ton of questions in the near future i will keep this particular thread to only 1 or 2 . I am planning on purchasing my 1st Tacoma within the next few months , not sure if it will be by the end of this year or into the beginning of next year . Basically i am trying to find out what everyone's opinion is on the 2 different models that i am thinking about , Sport or Off Road. I have already made up my mind on a couple things with my upcoming purchase , 4wd, double cab , automatic , and color will be either blue or inferno ( not that this matters to the performance ) . Just not sure of the model at this point and what each one of the 2 brings to the table as far as pro's and con's . I live in the Northeast so 4wd is a must for the winters . Other than taking it on the beach on a rare occasion i dont think it will be going off road at all . It appears when i go on dealer websites in my area the cost of the 2 models is relatively similar . I figured i would leave it to the experts (Tacoma owners) to give me their opinion on the pro's and con's of my upcoming purchase . Anything as far as options i should be thinking of or steering away from would be greatly appreciated as i want to do this right . Also should I try to get a 2017 by the end of the year or wait until the 2018 start showing up at the dealers. Thanks in advance to everyone's info and thoughts on how i should handle this very exciting purchase . Look forward to hearing back from all of you . Take care and stay well .

 

If you're not going to go off road there's no point in the features that the OR offers. Get the sport, and if you don't like how stiff it is you can always swap out suspension to the OR shocks that come up for sale all the time here.

 

Okay msrp is exactly the same between the two off-road and sport.

That being said only get the sport if you find you can get it at least $650 or so cheaper.

If not go off-road and if you want the scoop people will trade out with you for your non scooped hood plus about $200.

I have a sport. If I could do it again I'd have went offroad and replaced the elocker with an arb I just couldn't find one and my first new vehicle I was impatient.

So now I have a sport locked with ARB front and rear with a dual compressor.

 

Congrats on joining TW & on your upcoming purchase! I have a 2014 TRD Sport, so I don't have a lot of info on the 3rd Gens. But, stick around....if you can't get an answer here, then there probably isn't one.

 

The Bilsteins that come with the OR make for a nice ride IMO. Haven't used A-TRAC or the locker yet but if it ever comes to it, I'll be glad I have them.

Also, the hood on these damn things is hard to see over. It's even worse with the fake hood scoop. Which begs the point... do you really want to drive around with a fake hood scoop.

 

I would get an extended test drive of both Sport and Off Road, manual and automatic to see what you like.

 

Its basically function vs form. If you want form, get the sport, if you want function get the OR. If you don't need function, then get form.

 

I would have a hard time recommending a new Tacoma to anyone after my terrible experiences with mine. I think you have a lot of researching to do bc these trucks are giving a lot of people a bunch of problems that I never expected from a Toyota and the dealer service is bad to! I am hoping to trade my terd gen by end of this month maybe you want to buy a used one?

 

Test drive, test drive, test drive. Also test drive other makes and models for comparison.

Study up on the common complaints and issues. Make sure you are OK with them.

Here's an example: https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/3rd-gen-tacoma-areas-of-concern-listed.470778/

 

I would test drive a few like someone said earlier. It comes down to your preference. I have never had an issue with seeing over my hood and I own a sport, but maybe that is an issue for drivers of varying heights. For me it came down to 2 things...
1. I already have a dedicated trail/off-road vehicle. 94 Wrangler.
2. This is my DD. I wanted something that I enjoy looking at when parked outside the house. I prefer the look of the sport much more than the OR and they both carry my Boards, Bikes, etc. I did get a 4x4 for the runs up to Mammoth in the winter.

 

Much like you, I'm researching buying one of these within the next few months. I've done a lot of research on this as well.

I'm a function over form guy, so to me the OR is a no brainer. It comes with functional equipment, as opposed to the appearance stuff on the Sport.

For me it comes down to not liking the fake hood scoop or the wheels on the Sport vs. the more attractive (IMO) wheels on the OR, plus I like the look of the black fender flares vs. the Sport (or SR5) painted flairs. The OR also comes with better (but still not 'great') tires than the Sport, as well as such functional items as, front recovery hooks, the stronger rear axle with locker, the crawl control, and the multi-terrain select. Yes, the electronic things are a little gimmicky, but I'd rather have them and not need them than vice versa. I have no plans for serious offroading with my new truck, but maybe I'll change my mind. I'd rather start off with the more capable platform. The Sport appearance items can be added to the OP, but the functional OR items are not so easily added to the Sport.

In my mind, unless the Sport has options not available on the SR5, the real choice is between the OR and the SR5 model. Visually, the SR5 has better looking wheels (IMO) and is only lacking the sticker and fake hood scoop. Otherwise it looks just like the Sport. Maybe even a bit cooler, as the SR5 has the contrasting interior color options.

Other than the Pro, the OR seems to be the flagship Tacoma model. It seems to be the one most tested by media and shown in ads. I'm generally nota car snob, but for me, I'd always feel a bit disappointed knowing I didn't get the flagship model.

Also, I wouldn't be surprised if the OR has better resale down the line too.


Just my .02.

 

OP - I'd be very cautious about buying a Tacoma until Toyota is willing and able to fix/maintain them. I'm really sorry to say that.

 

Let's really break down the sport vs the off-road. Basically you say you won't be off-roading so here's what you have to look for

Sport:
Color matched bumpers and fender flares
hood scoop
17" wheels
More rigid suspension
Bumper wind deflector

Off-road
Chrome bumper (unless you get it with tech package)
No hood scoop
Black fender flares
No wind deflector under bumper for ground clearance
16" rims
Crawl control (won't use much if you don't go off-road but if you get stuck on the beach it'll be handy)
Softer suspension

 

Dont let the forums scare you.

If I came to the forums before purchasing, I wouldn't have my Tacoma. Now that I have it, no regrets.

 

and locker, and multi-terrain select.

 

I didn't mention locker because he said he won't be off-roading. Multi terrain to me is a gimmick, but you can put that with crawl control of you'd like

 

After owning a Sport and OR I greatly prefer the ride of the OR. Also, CRAWL would be great on the beach if you get in the wet sand a little too deep. Having said that, my best advice is do do a LOT of research before you pull the trigger. Read some of the links on here others have posted carefully.

 

I kind of feel like that the crawl-control, locker and multi-terrain select are for people who dont really offroad because it really hold your hand on how you use them. It kind of infuriates me, but glad i have it.

 

I wish I had paid more attention to the warnings and problems on the forums now I am living with the issues and going to take 1,000s of loss on a trade. I seen plenty of people here dumping there truck so i know i am not alone