Who actually likes their 3rd gen?

I like my 3rd Gen. I plan to keep it till it becomes more costly to keep it running.

The only way I plan on getting rid of it willingly is if trade in values stay insanely high and I get offered a deal too good to pass up.

The only thing the 4th Gen could realistically improve for me is the gas mileage. Outside of that my 3rd Gen can do more than I will ever ask it to.

 

Honestly I couldn't stand the Tacoma. I hated waiting til 3.5K RPMs to feel the power band at all, hated that the transmission tries it's absolute hardest to keep you under that 3.5K threshold. (KDMaxx did the best they could to combat this but for me it wasn't enough to forget about it).

It feels like a mismatch, the sienna engine and a 6-speed didn't seem paired well together. I found myself constantly driving it in "S" mode to get any enjoyment out of the vehicle. My '02 prerunner would bust the tires loose on a simple turn and it was the 4 banger. This thing felt like a Prius.

My wife hated the hard gear shifts; my '14 F150 1st-to-2nd shift was hard, but after that they were smooth as a whistle. Not this thing. Felt every damn shift as it went from being in the power to out of it. Tossed her around pretty good if I didn't try hard for a smooth ride. I don't drive like a butt head either, just wasn't for me I guess.

Could I see the vehicle getting 3-400K miles on it? Sure. The thought of me putting those miles on it made me angry. My '02 prerunner was nowhere near the hassle to drive.

When I get in my GX460 and press the gas it's nothing but smiles. There's no hard shifting, it rides on a cloud. It's still a body on frame LC/"truck" and even with the "lazy V8" I'd replace this GX with another one in an instant if I ever needed to. Can't say the same 'bout that Taco.

 

I would like to think I’m going to leave the Tacoma well enough alone, but over time I’m sure I’ll decide to start building again.

Honestly, over 20 some years I went way down the rabbit hole with the T100, built, rebuilt, and rebuilt again. Full long travel, all parts custom one off (little aftermarket support for T100) and later swapped the entire drive train out of a 2002 Tundra. California CARB approved. Was my DD for many years. Over 500k miles on the chassis, 340k on the V6 then 175k on the swapped V8.

(BTW, I wouldn’t do it over again)

In the end I had a one-off smog legal V8 prerunner, that didn’t fit me, wife, dog and kids, and also wasn’t 4wd though I found myself in the mountains more than the desert at that point.

Enter the Raptor.

Could do it all, and have a factory warranty. Ultimately I found the rear suspension lacking, the twin turbo V6 and 10 speed trans took some getting used to, and ultimately just a very expensive truck to cover in desert pin stripes. I knew within the first 60 days I wasn’t keeping it, but then wanted to get my money back out of it and took my time to sell it.

I bought another car while waiting to sell the Raptor and it became the new project/garage queen. I wanted a simple 4x4 for a DD.

When it sold I put a down on a Tacoma and waited a few months. Only got it this week.

Needs a tune bad, but I knew and anticipated this. Is it a screaming prerunner, No. but I’m older and a family man now. I’m Happy to have a simple go-anywhere 4x4.

 

I have no problem with anything except getting used to the trigger finger brakes. Other than that the tacoma is the perfect truck for me.

 

If you have an automatic, look into a getting a regear. Doing a regear to 4.875, even with stock tires, combined with a tune should solve your slow issue. You don't get any extra power from a regear, but you get better access to the power you already have. If I had an auto V6, I'd get a regear done yesterday. 3.909 to 4.875 basically puts your new 6th where your current 5th is (your new 6th will still yield lower cruising rpm than the manual 6th, so don't be scared of a big number if that's the only thing stopping you), so you won't see a noticeable loss in economy, but the extra 24% bump in torque for the earlier gears makes a huge difference in drivability. Combined with the tune, which really takes it to the next level and is recommended anyway after a regear, it could run you $3000, but if that's the only thing dragging down your perception of the truck, it's better than selling it and moving into something else that you don't know about and might have some other source of disappointment or aggravation.

 

Overall I’ll just say it didn’t provide the amount of suspension I wanted, and for the money wasn’t going to start replacing parts. In the same vein, it was too expensive to do the things I wanted to do with it. I’d say the vast majority of the Raptors I see are street queens/mall crawlers. I intended to put the hammer down, but found it lacked in some respects and was worth too much in others.

This is where Toyotas shine. Build them as wild or mild as your budget and taste allows. They always keep going.

 

That makes all the sense in the world, thanks!

I have a relatively inexpensive sportscar that I've modified to give me thrills that a higher dollar car would do. I can thrash it at abandon knowing for a small investment I could build another one just like it and and do the same all over again.

That thinking has kept me from pulling the trigger on the more expensive cars that require higher dollar parts. I'd be leery of exploring it's potential due to the increased cost to replace it.

Thanks again.

 

I lurked here really hard before I bought my 2021 OR last week. Took everything with a grain of salt. But saw a lot of common complaints.

I went from DC to NC and back today down and up 95 in all kinds of weather and traffic. I haven’t experienced any of the major complaints most Tacoma owners have, except for the standard issues Off Road suspension gripes. My trans doesn’t hunt gears, truck maintains speed well and it only jumped from O/D to 4th once going uphill with the cruise set on 80.

To be honest I really enjoy the truck. Much better truck than TW told me it would be!

 

Thanks for the honest testimonial.

Lots of general opinion here which must be taken with a grain of salt.

 

I totally follow your logic.

The Raptor/TRX, is the same as that expensive sports car, but one that you want to hurl down a nasty set of whoops and not end up on your lid.

What kind of budget sports car? I’m a nerd for that stuff too!

 

Supercharged Miata that I've had for 23 years. I've autocrossed it, HPDE at a few race courses and on weekends tear around some of our country backroads in with a local group.

I've considered jumping up to either a Porsche Caymen or C6 or C7 Corvette but every time I think I want to get rid of the Miata, I take it for a drive and realize I could never sell it.

I know every nut and bolt in the car, have built it to exactly how I like to drive it and get 9/10ths the fun for a quarter of the price. Even after 23 years of ownership, everything in the car still works and replacement parts are still pretty cheap as compared to P-car parts.

If I ever get a real wild hair they make LS2 conversion kits. A friend has a 92 with and LS6 that makes 425hp at the rear wheels, 450ft/lbs of torque in a car that weighs about 2800 lbs.

My supercharged 99 car is below.


With the hardtop off.

 

I have the Cayman you reference and feel the same way about it. I consider the investment I have in it and occasionally think I should sell it. But then I drive it.

I don’t track it and haven’t been to any driver’s events with it, but I do tour it with the local club and definitely take it out on occasion and purposely find some great backroads.

Older models are quite reasonably priced. But I suspect the P Tax is much higher than a Miata. I bought mine with the intention of keeping it until I can no longer drive a manual. I’m hoping that’s never.

I was betting you either had a Miata or an S2000.

Back on topic so this is a legit post. Lol. I’ve had my 2018 OR for 4+ years. I’ve added to and modded it the whole time and it’s served it’s purpose: reliable daily driving that’s still fun and economical (well, let’s not talk about gas prices).

 

that's why i'm considering going to 5.10's. i need 6th to be just above where 4th is. honestly, i'd prefer a transmission 2nd-6th close ratio change, but that's a lot harder!

 

I absolutely love my new OR, sure it hunts gears between 5/6 but that's the way it is, it's my 3rd Toyota, and I have only bought and owned pickup trucks for the last 40 year's so it rides like a truck, am I going to modify it, no not at my age it's suits me perfectly

 

OK, now why do some have it, the gear hunting, and others don't?
That's the real question.....

 

I think it depends on the speeds you're driving and if you're using cruise. On certain speeds mine will hunt between 5th and 6th. In cruise the truck has no idea if you're approaching an incline so it won't speed up like a driver will as he sees the rise approaching.

Mine really only hunts with CC on or if I'm at 75+ mph in hilly terrain.

65-70 mph is the sweetspot for my truck on 285s and I only have the very first version of the reflash. Anything above 70 and mileage takes a big hit because I'm in 5th most of the time.

 

Mine serves its purpose for now because I don't have a kid. If I had kids I would def move to a full size as there is just much more room which is nice. This current truck fits in the garage easily which is a plus

 

Owned a 2008 Tacoma trd sport for 5 years and now have a 2017 Tacoma trd off road for almost 4 years. If I could go back i would most likely get another 2nd gen. I love the looks of the 3rd gen, and the modern feel inside but that's where it ends for me. The 2nd gen for me was a better truck all around. More fun to drive, better engine and transmission

 

My experience is a bit different. I believe my FJ had the same engine as the 2nd Gen. It was definitely more truck like and the torque curve represented that. It felt and sounded like a truck. But the power flattened out as the rpms climbed. The 3.5 seems to keep on pulling once the rpm’s get above 3k. With most of my miles being highway commuting or errand running, the 3.5 does just fine.

I can’t say I preferred one over the other in general. In certain scenarios, yes, but overall they are just different but capable. I fully understand the gear hunting issues with the earlier models. I’ve gone through a few tunes and am totally happy now.

 

The KDMaxPro tune definitely made the truck more fun to drive but my biggest issue with the 3rd gen is I have trouble spinning the tires. The 2nd gen spun tires around corners and did donuts with ease. For some reason this 3rd gen does everything it can to prevent wheel spin even with all traction turned off. Trying to do donuts in the rain/snow is another problem, it does this weird one wheel peel. My 2nd gen held donuts with no effort