Mike Sweers on 2016 Tacoma

My autotrans runs like a top. I wish the truck would coast a bit more. Cruise control activates the brakes 5mph over set and the brakes come on around 20-22 mph if you are coasting to a stop. I wish all that would go away. I'm getting 23.5 mpg now after 3300 miles. No howling, whistling, vibrations, or sluggishness. My only other gripe is a wanted a power driver seat at purchase I feel like Goldilocks. One notch is too far away and the other notch is too close.

 

Maybe they are fixing stuff.

 

Of course they going to claim error, and it probably was, but they have to sell product at the price "advertised" until they fixed. If they go to court they will lose it and not only its going to cost them but than its going look like they did that on purpose, which now brings FTC on the case and those folks can make bad day to be much worse.

Thats why I provided link to FTC cases. read them.. All it has to be proven that what was advertised is not true, thats all.

 

Again, I really don't care. This still doesn't justify buying a $35k truck and having issues that the dealership refuses to address. So just because these guys get paid shit and/or have a shitty way they get paid has nothing to do with being given the runaround and treated like a moron and lied to? You are hired to do a job and explained the pay scale, etc. when you get hired. Same with my job, and believe me, I work my ass off. I don't determine how hard I work based on what I think is worth working hard for and what isn't. I'd be fired in a heartbeat if I did that. I treat everyone the same, regardless. Not saying the way that industry pays the techs is right, and is obviously a big part of what they do things the way they do, but again, that's not my problem, and as a result I'll that asshole who keeps bringing back the truck over and over, and int he end they are going to lose more time and money because of me when they should have addressed and fixed it right the first time.

 

I understand and agree. What I think your not understanding is there really are different characteristics of vehicles. The dealerships should be more than willing to listen to our concerns. However they can't fix something that they have no idea how to possibly fix. They are mechanics not engineers. If Toyota doesn't find, acknowledge the problem/issue, and release any bulletins than the dealerships/techs can't do anything to fix the problem. Even if a tech knew exactly what was causing the concern, if Toyota doesn't have a "fix" there is nothing really more they can do more to help you out. They won't be reimbursed for their time, and they aren't suppose to come up with some backyard solution for your brand new vehicle.

If you feel one dealership isn't listening completely to your concern, or is the weak link between you getting your concerns repaired then simply go somewhere else. I'll agree with many on this forum who have had issues with their dealer giving them a hard time about checking their transmission fluid level. Especially if the concern is being presented. But I also know that their are probably a lot of paranoid users on this forum taking their trucks in and asking for the level to be checked and they experience no problems. Again that would be the dealership eating this cost, or the techs working for free.

If your not happy with Toyota with your purchase, and/or the dealerships you have taken your truck to then in my opinion you should do one of 3 things. 1) Either get rid of the truck. 2) Keep being persistent and going to other dealers 3) Wait and see if in the future, they release a TSB that will cover your concern.

I understand 35k is a lot of money. However for a truck that's pretty cheap. Go take a look at a loaded full size. Your talking 50-55k. Everyone bitches that new trucks keep costing more and more. However everyone wants the latest and greatest. They want them to drive as smooth as a Lexus, and look and feel like one too. At the end of the day it's a truck. It has leaf springs, a driveshaft shaft, a frame, ect they are meant rigid. This trucks main purpose is to be a truck and a very capable off-road vehicle. Go hop in any built vehicle meant for off-road and tell me how it drives. I'll gaurentee your truck drives a hell of a lot better. In fact I'll gaurentee your truck probably drives better than my 50 thousand dollar F150 FX4. Your more than welcome to take a road trip and come drive it

 

I see what you're saying, and regarding the paranoid users running to the dealership and demanding the trans fluid be checked, etc. I understand that too and try to see it from the dealership perspective. But again, from the perspective of the owner of a vehicle, it's very hard not to want to do that. As well all know now it is in fact an issue with many of these trucks, and it's also a known fact that Toyota isn't acknowledging this as a real thing, so as a consumer I don't blame people for demanding it get checked. Think about it, years down the line once the truck is out of warranty and the transmission starts having major issues from premature wear, etc. could have easily been prevented by simply checking the fluid. The way they pay the techs and the way the dealerships do business should change, but until then it is the way it is and it sucks for them, but hey, nobody is putting a gun to their head and making them do that job for what they get paid. Heck, I'm on my second career and have a nice lump of student loan debt from three degrees and I work my ass off. If I don't like what I'm doing for a living there's nobody to blame by myself and I find a way to do something different.

And as fas as comparing a mid-size Tacoma to a loaded full size truck and calling the Tacoma "cheap" (affordable or a bargain in comparison) is not a fair comparison. If you're going to do that comparison make it apples to apples. I do see what you mean though. I think what most people are sore about when spending this much on a mid-size truck is they forget that it's, well, a truck! They want the luxury AND capability of a truck, but only expect to pay for one thing (truck capability) or the other (luxury), but that's totally different topic for discussion.

 

I completely understand what your saying. There is a lot of non Toyota like quality controls issues that are making Toyota look bad and taking away some of the integrity of the brand and tarnishing the Tacoma name a little. While I don't think that there are any major issues with the engineering of these new trucks, I understand it's still too early to tell. I expect a software update to be available soon, as most other manufactures have these all the time. That should take care of the gear hunting issues and some other complaints. Obviously if people have a concern with it slipping into gear or taking more time than normal to get into gear, then I absolutely would recommend they check the fluid level or have it checked by the dealer. If a dealer is hesitant because of Toyota or they just don't want to take the time to do it, I would recommend telling them if they check it and it's not low, You would pay for them for their time. However if it was found low, you would want it topped off and it documented and submitted to Toyota that it was low. Then if it was low I would also call Toyota corporate with your copy of the invoice and try to get some type of warranty extension, since they have already given some of these out. Atleast if it's documented on a repair order, in the future of you have an issue with the transmission, you can use this as your arsenal to fight with them.
Also I'm not saying the Tacoma is cheap. Obviously a mid size truck is going to be cheaper than a full size. I'm honestly say for what the Tacoma is, it's really priced pretty good. Tacomas are great trucks (minus the frame issues). Their resale value is a reflection of that. I can honestly say I think this generation of Tacoma will be the best yet. I loved the first gen Tacoma. I owned an 03 and loved it. I didn't care much for the second gen so I simply went with something else. I still haven't drove a new one yet, by I have one coming in on Monday, I'll be working on so I'll take that for a spin. I hope whatever issues your having with your truck they end up fixing. I'm sure you like the truck other than the few issues you have. Best way to get them solved is to keep pressure on Toyota. The complaints and issues that go to the dealerships, the sooner they should acknowledge the issue and off a fix.

 

I don't blame ya.

For what its worth, my 65 y/o grandfather drove it to home depot when i first got it. With two bad knees a bad elbow and being a bigger guy he kept wanting to drive around, lol. Got to some traffic and he was pissed... 5 minutes later he said "damn, i barely have to touch the gas when i release the clutch."

He's got a 96 5 speed and he kept saying how much technology has improved and how much he liked the truck because of the smooth shifting. It put a smile on my face.

 

This is how a Japanese Toyota Chief Engineer displays a vehicle. This was around the time when Toyota was releasing the FJ Cruiser to global markets in 2010 (FJ was North American market only from 2007-2009).


The Japanese don't mess around.

 

The price for the Tacoma is irrelevant to its value. Toyota designed the truck, Toyota built the truck, Toyota set the price for the truck. Toyota didn't give us what we paid for and the dealer doing pre delivery didn't do the job that they contract for. This is not a fault on the customers or the service Techs. It's a systemic failure. It isn't even a warranty issue, as it isn't a broken part needing replacement. It is a basic incompetent failure and butts should be burned. Failure to fill the differentials, grease the driveline, and glue the hood, fill the automatic transmission and torque the axle u-bolts are failures on the assembly line and there is no excuse for it once Toyota has been notified of the issues. Toyota has a spec and their not following it and it's not being caught in its check and balances and corrected.
Shame on Toyota

Whether the truck is designed to what the customer wants is up to the customer's wallet and whining about power seats, low head room and other what not is not Toyota's fault, it's you the consumer. If you wear size 10 shoes and buy size 9 shoes because it's a good price shame on you for not being happy with your purchase.

As for the Techs being improperly paid due to a faulty system, this is out of the control of the consumer. It is directly controlled by the techs. Don't like the pay, don't work the job, join a union and force the system to change and the employee to be heard. If enough techs walk away the faulty systems collapse and have to be redesigned just like our transmissions need corrections to have a viable future.
Forcing change from the bottom up is never going to be easy. But having respect for someone's work as a tech is very important. Everyone I have met works their ass off and has more advanced learning skill than most people with degrees making 3 times the pay. Yet they have to fix the problems the big money guys have created.

 

I laugh every time I see Sweers referred to as "Seatbelt Mike".

 

You know this guy doesn't inspire a lot of confidence. I saw him in a TFL truck video and he's not very well spoken. He seemed to have a tenuous grasp at best on some engineering concepts. I guess he's just a marketing figure, but still.

His discussion of the Atkinson cycle offers some insight. He mentions the lack of torque in the Atkinson mode and then really quickly mentions they've fixed it with gear ratios and quickly changes the subject. His demeanor here and quick changing of the subject leads me to believe he knows it's àn issue that hasn't been resolved.

I'm an engineer and Ive had to try to sell crappy solutions to clients that I don't believe in. And that's exactly how I probably looked. Just change the subject quickly and hope nobody asks a more detailed question...

Note it's from 0:30 - 0:50 in the Atkinson cycle video.

 

Let's take it a step further. Most people would not believe how the government waste so much of your tax payer money 2.2 billion dollars for a IT form that collects and tracks data. You could have hired some high school kids to develop that.

 

It's simple people. First year redesign truck equals PROLEMS I mean when are folks going to learn. First year anything is bound to have problems. I remember last year when Toyota announced the newly redesign taco and so many people where begging dealers to take their money. People have got to stop believing all of the marketing hype these corporations put out there. For something new everyone wants to try to beat out the other person to see gets it first. I don't see the same sort of excitement now on this forum that I saw last August. I love Toyota and I plan on buying a taco. I am just going to wait out until they fix the bugs.

 

You can tell the difference between Sweers and Nishimura san (FJ designer in post 92 video). Sweers just yaps on how much better the redesigned Tacoma is. Nishimura san hops in the driver's seat and demonstrates the beating the FJ takes through the trails while smiling and laughing.

 

That's great, he beat the crap out of that thing. Loved the dive into the stream

 

I think I found Mikes email address. Maybe someone should compile a nice letter with all the complaints and issues and quality control concerns and email him and see if we get a response

 

LOL. He probably has key phrases like "Low automatic transmission", "gear hunting", and "U joints" flagged so they can go directly to his his junk/spam folder.

 

Lets hope that never happens...

 

I’ll be honest when I first got my Tacoma I’m like there isn’t a chance in hell the 3rd gens will have problems. Now I’m not so sure. Either way I probably won’t have mine long enough to find out