4th Gen Tacoma (2024+)

Agreed. V8 would've been the way to go. The GX460 with the V8 is becoming more appealing to me !

 

My good friends V8 4Runner is night and day difference over my V6 Tacoma, thinking why in the world did the 4Runner get this and the Tacoma didn’t!? That is a great truck engine. You can really lug it.

 

I thought the v8 runner was the bad generation?

 

Had a chance to drive a 4runner v8 I believe it was a 2005 and it was awesome. That 4.7 is truly a great engine for any truck!

I just don't know how I feel about the whole 4cyl engine turbo yet. Granted, I have had 4cyl Toyota truck engines and they were extremely reliable , they were dog slow but reliable.

Also I get the feeling that the prices on this these new rigs are going to be crazy high, forget about getting a TRD offroad Manual for low 40s or even high 30s , that combined with the 4cyl turbo engine and crazy interest rates now + any markup , makes you want to think about what Rig to get in the future really hard.

I was exited about the new LC but that 55 starting price for the bare bones just threw me off big time.

Why can Toyota just release an affordable offroader hell , Jeep wrangler and Ford bronco starting at high 30s

I still have to see what the 4runner is going to bring but i don't have my hopes up

 

The iforce max will be fast through the quarter, have ridiculous amounts of torque down low, and yield class leading mpg, all in one package. It’s “the hook”, or the one most of us would want to drive.

And the basic 2.4T is what most will probably make payments on. It’s low on NVH refinement, and Highlander drivers are as of yet unable to find the extra advertised torque or mpg’s vs the 3.5. If we’re being honest with ourselves here, the 2.4T is a consolation prize for really tough emission reg’s. Toyota did their best with a tough hand, no shame in that.

You can still buy a six. They’re actually really good & will soon be gone forever. Or, save up, buy an iforce w an all new truck wrapped around it. Decent choices either way.

 

Don’t have anything against turbos, though do believe to appease government regs reliability is going to suffer. If you look at their overseas diesels that gone to strict emissions equipment, service intervals went from 500K to 250K. Still not bad, but no longer legendary. Though how many people actually keep their vehicles that long. I might be one of the few. My 1st Gen engine made it to 435K before giving up the ghost, it has a new engine now. It wasn’t cheap either, $15K for everything. Can’t imagine what the 4T would cost.

Why Toyota refuses to compete with Jeep and Ford is beyond me, the new LC is about as close as we are going to get. Closer to the Bronco than Jeep, just no removable top. Too bad the price will put it out of most people’s reach, even the base will be $60K OTD. Can get a SR Tundra in the low 40s.

Believe the 4Runner will be kept around for a non-hybrid option over the LC, would be nice if they made a stripped down SR version.Though these days nothing is truly “stripped” plenty of options that are now standard.

Think the cheapest will be the SR Xtra Cab, unfortunately to keep costs low, we loose the access doors. A ‘23 SR AC 4WD 4 cylinder has a msrp of $33K+ now. Guessing the ‘24 version of that will be $3K over that. Going to be real hard to keep it under $40K OTD.

Is it? Other than the poor location of the starter on the 4.7, and saggy suspension. My friend hasn’t had any problems with his.

 

The big disappointment for me is not offering a PHEV/Prime version. The future is electric. Solid state batteries will provide the range and quick recharge capability that will make them as easy to operate as ICE. That future is still 5+ years away but a PHEV would have been a good transition. The RAV4 Prime does well but the battery and/or ICE component is a little small. A Prime+ would be expensive but would be inline with a Raptor Ranger price but with way more power and range.

 

Yeah that would have been nice, could possibly do my commute on all electric. The truck market is going to be completely different in 10 years. So probably best just to hold out until they get everything dialed. Hybrid is just a stop gap measure, not sure if it is worth the hassle and cost.

 

From your link:
"The new engine's drivability, though, is above reproach. The turbo's boost is smoothly integrated, and response is quite linear for a boosted four. At low speeds on rolling terrain when you're just grazing the throttle, some turbocharged engines can surge unevenly, but not this one. It helps that Toyota pairs the boosted engine with a well-behaved eight-speed automatic..."

Sounds like a win IMO. Drivability is the biggest problem with the current V6.

 

The 2.4T will be a bigger improvement in the Tacoma over its use in the Highlander.

The 3.5 in the highlander made 295 HP and revved to almost 7k RPM, the 3rd gen Tacoma does not. So we are getting a bigger performance bump in the 4th gen Tacoma than what the highlander saw.

 

it depends how you look at it, Also from the link

"Still, with 4529 pounds to move, the turbo four strains at times, holding lower gears when a burlier V-6 might confidently upshift. That impression of a hard-working turbo four is born out in our testing of an all-wheel-drive Platinum. The smaller engine's 7.2-second 60-mph time lags 0.5 behind the number for the all-wheel-drive V-6, and the same was true with a rolling start in our 5-to-60-mph test"

If you talk about linear torque, I give it to your point; if you talk about engine refinement and feel I think the v6 still has the upper hand. Take into consideration also that the problem with the current Tacoma is not the engine but the transmission programming and Cruise control gear hunting. My 2016 was an automatic and I hated that truck and drivability was horrendous and I traded for a 4runner after 10k miles. My 2021 Manual is a completely different animal and for me it means that the problem is not the Engine but the tranny combo! at least that is my perspective

 

I honestly don’t care about full-throttle zero to sixty. I absolutely care about part throttle feel and torque down low in the rev range in a truck.

Also of note: the automotive journalist isn’t doing a back-to-back with the current Tacoma 3.5

 

Well I don't care about 0-60 times I care more about how the truck feels and drives

 

That’s exactly what I’m talking about

 

Sounds like it will be perfect for crawling around and towing. Have driven the Ford’s both the Ranger and Bronco, gotta say feels much more like a truck engine than the Tacomas current V6. Very punchy right off the line and cruises great. Speed hunters will probably hate it, they should probably be in a sports car anyways. Seems like the ones who complain the most about these trucks are sports sedan converts.

 

Of course we've all learned the tricks to driving the 3.5 Tacoma. I use CC when appropriate but disengage it when I know it will struggle (e.g. severely downshift when approaching even a mild incline). Climb the hill and reengage. Then there is the lugging issue. Too little throttle during acceleration and the truck will shift too quickly into 4th gear and lug before downshifting again. I hate this and often use S mode or give the skinny pedal a little more pressure to hold 3rd and 4th longer. There are times, however, where I just give it light throttle and let it lug away at 1200 rpm. Good for MPGs.

 

--- You can get a Tundra Limited with no options, but that still gonna be 60K after TTL. I'd imagine in theory you can get the Tacoma in base TRD trim with the iForceMAX, of course they will be low in number. I wish Toyota would offer IForceMax in SR, would be killer. But that's why they don't. They'd lose a lotta cash.

Also, the 18/24 for the Tundra is for a 2WD SR DC 6.5' that weighs 5K lbs, while the a 2WD Limited CM 5.5' weighs 5700 lbs, maintaining the same mpg and having more power while adding 700 lbs ain't too bad.

You get more choices with Ford PowerBoost, but only in SuperCrew only. since the LiON battery is between the bed rails, why can't you get the Regular Cab or SuperCab?

--- Toyota does this with every car with a hybrid option, nothing special about iForceMAX.

--- IF the Land Cruiser can get 27 combined with little to no aero, the big-ass chinstrap ought to help the Taco out. I have a feeling the T24A iForceMax will be tuned to as efficient as possible. The full size market is sadly about Who's who rather than what's what. That's why the hybrid is all about power, that what people want.

--- The coyote 5.0 is a mustang motor. the 6.2 in the GM twins is corvette motor, the 3.5 EB is based on the Duratec 3.5---a car motor, the 22R was a car motor. The powerboost will be more expensive than a Tacoma, and bigger then what folks want. The 3.0 Duramax was design in part by Opel. They don't make trucks. Nothing new the automotive world.

--- Japanese 4 cylinders have practically raised me. Honda, Toyota, Nissan. Plenty of power for everyday needs, less parts, less to go wrong. Of course with turbos, that changes quite a bit.

The Grand Caravan 3.3 V6 wasn't smooth at all, plus at idle it sounded like a beehive with pocket change. my Aunt and Uncle's Sienna with 2GR, while quite and smooth, but not enough for me to be impressed, or to spend extra for something that isn't that much better. Never understood the 4 banger hate. LONG LIVE THE 4 POT! DILLY! DILLY!

 

I understand why Toyota wraps options in packages, from a manufacturing and profit stand point it makes total sense. Most people are fine paying a little more, think most truck buyers don’t use their trucks as trucks though. More interested in comfort and all out power. Where-as people like me who are cheap SOBs and seeing what bang for a buck fetches them, we are clearly not Toyotas target market. Used to be that way years ago when Toyota trucks were humble, times have certainly changed.

Lookin at specs the SR Tundra is fairly decent, 400 ft/lbs tq, 1810 payload, 8000 lbs towing. 22.5 gallon tank is a bit of bummer, but have 21.5 (more like 18) gallon tank now and do fine. Getting 20 mpg tank average now. If a Tundra SR was able to do that, with a whole lot more power and capacity. Would be content with that. Currently towing sub 3000 lbs, which seems about right for the Tacoma without making it struggle. Looking to upgrade camp trailers here in about 3 years. That would be around 5-6000 lbs wet. Tundra SR would still have a bunch of wiggle room.

 

Another option is the Frontier that has a nice V6.

 

Nissan’s sweet 3.8 in a Gen4 Taco. Now that’s a decent Franken-truck.