Input for SR5 vs TRD Off-Road

edit: went by and saw an Army Green in person and fell in love over the cement. Put a deposit down on the next one coming in!


Hi, I recently decided my wife and I are going to purchase a new Tacoma. Our local dealer has been getting a slow trickle of trucks in so I'm going to try and put a deposit down in the next week or two. I just found this site and am trying to take a crash dive into research however, in the meantime I thought I would make this post. This will be my daily driver and see some trail use, particularly hunting season. I'm coming from a built up 3rd gen 4Runner so the Taco is new to me. I am not a tech person and honestly my old 4Runner had all the tech I'd ever need/want after adding bluetooth.

I've settled on a 4-door, short bed in cement at least. I'd initially looked at the TRD Off-Road version but I'm not sure for the 3k-ish price difference I need it. I do like the look of the hood better but I dislike the grill and wheels both on the TRD. I'm planning to just get some of the black TRD wheels from parts either at purchase or shortly after. The only real thing that I could use on the TRD is the rear locker. I could care less about the "terrain mode" stuff and I don't feel like I need a truck to make its own decisions about where I'm driving. But for the price difference I think I could just mount a compressor and ARB to alleviate the locker issue. I like the standard grill better on the SR5, and although I like the contrast of the black flares on the TRD, the painted ones will be more fade resistant. I'm guessing I'm stuck with the push-button start either way unfortunately unless there's a way to change it?

My other concern is I'm planning to buy a CBI steel winch bumper ASAP and mount an 8k winch. Do I need to be concerned with the weight on the stock front end? I put a full OME lift on the 4Runner with the heavier coils at the same time as its bumper so I never noticed any difference from the weight.

I appreciate any input on the bumper weight and trim levels. I just hope it won't take too long to get the right truck in.

 

Personally, the only reason I got a TRD OR was for the manual transmission. I tossed the "upgraded" suspension after 3 months when I lifted it.

If you're not into the bells and whistles, an SR5 saves money up front and you can always add stuff in later.

 

I own an SR5. I have made all the modifications to it over the years to suit my own needs. I have added front and rear steel bumpers, bed rack, 31" tires and a Wern winch. No problem with the stock suspension. And I'm really happy with my decision. I'm sure you will enjoy your new truck either way you go.

 

Better to have it than not . Plus a off road will sell for more over the sr5 .

 

Welcome 4runner cousin!

I added about 100lbs net after a CBI T3 bumper and removing factory stuff. Dropped about 1/4” only, but it did feel like the truck was swinging a hammer around when i turned. Also some nose dive on normal stops. A winch bumper and steel line winch would be noticeably heavier than this setup.

After upgrading to 6112 650lb coils it felt normal again on turns and a nice ride. I would advise against a steel line winch unless you really need steel line for some reason. Front end weight can be very noticeable, especially so on stock suspension. I know shocks are a little softer on OR, but i don’t think springs are different.

 

I recently traded up from an SR5 to an Off-Road, specifically for the locker and the manual transmission. But if you either don't want the OR upgrades, or plan on making all those modifications yourself. Save yourself some cash and buy the SR5.

The only other note I'll make is that resale will always be better on a higher trim level if you decide to get rid of it. I got lucky, given the current market, how well i made off on my SR5 at trade in recently, but I saw TRD ORs with similar mileage and age going for $4-6k more.

 

I wish I would have saved myself some money and bought an SR5. All the extra features the off-road as I have never used or needed in all my years of driving a vehicle. I have swapped out the worthwhile upgrades that the off-road has over the SR5 anyways (suspension, headlights, leather, etc).

 

Always owned SR5 toyota access cab pickups, and this one didn't disappoint...best truck owned and i've had several since the 70's.
My buddy has always been a trd guy...love the badges and decals saying trd. While he's not overly thrilled with his 2019 trd, i think he wishes he'd bought the SR5 and installed trd badges/decals on it.

 

I have an SR which is pretty similar to the sr5 now aside from a few differences. I don't do any off roading so I didn't see the sense of going with the off road and the sr5 only had upgraded wheels and a few small interior things I didn't care about. I'm getting aftermarket wheels anyways.

 

I love my ‘19 OR and it’s features. The truck doesn’t “make any decisions for me about where it’s going”. The features are there to help me get there after I decide I want to go there. You’re free to use them or not as you see fit. If you know what you’re doing and how to use them they can be of great help. Having said that, if your not planning on anything much more technical than a firebreak or logging road, any 4X4 should suffice.

 

I wish I could get Cement or Army in the SR, I'd be all about it.

 

Should of seen the cement gen3 trd i saw today...imo the owner went way over the top...it had chrome everywhere...the wheels, the brush guard, even said tacoma everywhere on the truck with homemade chrome decals, on trucks cab sides, plus the tailgate was filled in with chrome letters to be sure it must say its a tacoma. Imo, the chrome brush guard with huge tacoma chrome letters look like chit.

 

I have an sr5 it’s been great. If I had to do it again I would’ve went off road though. Just a few minor things. The black headliner, the turn signals in the mirrors. The locker is nice but you can always get one later

 

OP, if you can wait for the new Trail truck coming out later this year, you should look into it. Effectively it's a lifted Sr5 with a rear diff lock. It might be an ideal mix of the 2 trucks.

 

This. Sounds like exactly what OP is looking for.

 

I see that becoming an extremely popular trim level...a budget Pro, if you will.

To @CavScout19D , it's the hard parts you'll need to consider in terms of what you do, or don't want. Grilles are easy and cheap to change, flares can be swaped and/or painted/plastidipped depending on the direction you want. While the Trail @Lt. Dangle mentioned above would be an ideal fit for you (I think) you have to figure out what's something you absolutely don't want to swap. In your case a locker is nice, but not a necessity as you are capable of swapping one. For that reason, the SR5 would be a good fit.

When I bought my truck, my two "must haves" (outside of a 4-door cab because family) was a manual and a sunroof, so I checked the boxes necessary to get those options. For other people it might be heated seats and power seats, for others it might be a specific color or CarPlay.

It seems like in your case, there's nothing in your "must have" that the SR5 doesn't, with the exception of the locker. If you can't wait for the 2022, that's likely your answer.

 

My SR5 serves me well. Waiting on 6112/5160s to start hitting the trails and camping. I may add a locker eventually, but don't think I'll be needing it for the stuff I plan on doing. I have a winch ready for install so that'll save my ass if needed! The SR5 was the right choice for me at the time, but sometimes I wish I went with the OR because the other features. Just like everything in life, there's always something better. Im having a blast building my truck out either way. Good luck OP

 

I love my SR5, but I do not off road and it is 2wd. You can get packages an options on the SR5 if you build. If you are buying dealer inventory the TRD may be the way to go unless they get an SR5 in with a package on it like I did. Mine came with Predator package which was 6 lug and some other stuff

 

Post a pic after install.

 

IF you don't think you need better shocks, mts and crawl control, rear locker or the larger axles front and rear, than go with the SR5. If you are telling me that all that is just a $3k difference, then why wouldn't you get the OR. Worth it just for the larger axles and the rear locker in my opinion.