SR5 into aftermarket Offroad??

TL/DR, what does it take to upgrade a stock 2nd Gen SR5 into a TRD OffRoad equivalent with aftermarket/OEM parts?

I am in the market for a 2nd Gen, I have owned two in the past. TRD price tags are still nuts, so I am thinking of an SR5 and then just upgrading over the next few years. Does the SR5 lack anything that would prevent me from adding things like suspension, diff locker, steel bumpers, etc??

TIA!!

 

SR5 prices aren't going to be much better, but The hardest thing to add will be the rear locker since you have to buy a new diff amd the electronics. Everything else, which would mostly just be suspension, and seats, is bolt on

 

I can wait on the locker, but ARB seems to have a popular option for that, which means plenty of support on this forum. Thanks for the help.

 

I was in your position afew years ago and went with a gen 2.5 SR5 and could not be happier, the frame, engine transmission etc the same suspension mounting points also. The only big difference that i know of is the rear end is an 8.4" where the TRD OR is a weaker 8" with E locker that i hear alot of complaints about as its controlled by the ECU and won't let you engage unless it's in certain drive conditions. You can add an Eaton locker that can be engaged on the fly at anytime, so in theory with enough upgrades you could make an SR5 better but that's just my opinion.

 

I would prefer a 2.5gen, but again, price is a factor. Gonna look at a 2011 DCLB SR5 this weekend.

 

I think later years had ATRAC, which you probably can’t just “add”.
@Dm93 probably knows. My truck is too old. It did not come with the fancy software stuff.

 

You are in the same position I was in 3 years ago. I was convinced I had a mistake buying an SR5 2015 and that I would be doomed off-road without the TRD Off-Road package.

As it turns out, 3 years later, I hit all the same trails my friends do with the factory rear locker and ATRAC systems of their TRD off-roads and they almost never even have to use them. The other ancillary trim package offerings of the TRD Off-Road factor down to seats/materials, and the shocks which don't justify the price tag increase in my opinion.

Since I bought my SR5 with its factory suspension at almost 60,000 miles and I wanted to fit some larger tires, it required a suspension upgrade anyways. The Ironman 4x4 Foam Cell Pro Stage 2 kit I went with outclasses the TRD Off-Road factory suspension, especially the aged/used ones on our 2nd gen trucks. So even if I had purchased a TRD Off-Road trimmed Tacoma, this suspension upgrade from factory would have been necessary anyways.

Really, in summary, I don't buy into the TRD Off-Road hype anymore when it comes to our trucks. As another post said above, our SR5 rear differentials are actually a larger, stronger differential than the TRD Off-Road factory rear diffs. Thus, when/if I add a locker in the future, I can choose what I want to go with and it will be inside of a bulkier pumpkin to boot.

Hope this helps to encourage you! Any 4x4 Tacoma is a good Tacoma in my opinion, off-road upgrades and their necessity will become apparent as you drive it offroad more and see what incredible potential they have even in stock form.