Looks like the V6 08 isn't too hot.

Check your local classified Ads. on used Tacomas. If there are any for sale, compare their re-sale w/ the others. That should tell everything.

 

^Very good assessment and I couldn't agree more. There are more amenities built into the this truck than the others by far. I've owned Rangers and S10's and this truck is by far a better truck, no question about it. I had an F150 rental for a week a couple months ago and it was horrendous. Gas guzzler, drove like a tank, power was pathetic, and it had more creaks and rattles than an AARP convention (that's for you, Phantom ). Yeah, I made the right choice.

 

Not to mention the bed will never rust out!

 

overall.... off road and street....it could be the difference in suspension....I think it changed from 04 to 05

 

This is in reference to the observation on the handling of the 06 taco 4x4 trd off rd 4dr

 

LOL. Yeah, get a chevy I-5

 

If you're truck is black and you dont like the hood scoop i'll trade hoods with you. i have aregular hood and i want the scoop

 

Hey Guys,

I have a 07' 4X4 Access V-6 Manual Barebones (non-SR-5) truck and have found it to be awesome, especially after having the Suspension TSB done at Thanksgiving.
My truck handles like a different truck than before and is very stable, etc. I have 5000+ on her now and the truck seems very high quality (especially with the suspension upgrade). I do wish sometime I had a few luxuries to play with, but I was into saving as much as possible and still get a great truck. It's simply equipped, but practical and all business. No complaints here.

 

dodge makes the dakota

 

What's wrong with the scoop?

 

Nothings wrong with the scoop, I dig the scoop, it's fucking awesome. But other's have differing opinions regarding the scoop so they don't dig it as much as you and I.

 

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The Dakota is considered a "mid size" truck, and I also think in the last year or so they discontinued the 4cyl engine, and no longer make a reg cab. The Tacoma is still to some called a compact, although it is up in mid size territory.

 

Like most agree its all about personal preference.My opinion(we all have one) is they look great on old American Muscle Cars, Hemi Cuda,Trans Am,Chevelle SS,to name a few.A couple of people at my work have Tacomas w/hood scoops,they look ok,but I think better w/out.
As far as getting a new Tacoma or something else....Toyota makes a great product,when I get other vehicles & toys paid for I`m getting another.
I like the fact you can get the dbl cab w/6speed manual, I read though that the shift feel was like, "a broomstick stuck in a watermellon," any replies to this?

 

Agreed. This truck shifts better than many other cars I've driven (including the 98 Corolla I currently own with it's 2nd transmission).

To add to the comment above about testers, I doubt they ever have it long enough to break it in. It took a good 5k or more for mine to loosen up and smooth out. How many testers put 5k on a car before judging it? I'd say probably none unless they are doing longevity reports, and I have yet to see anything like that.

Granted, it's a newer transmission that seems a little more sensitive than most to the engine RPM. That threw me off when I first got it. I got in with the attitude "shit, I've driven sticks for 10 years now... I KNOW how to shift..." That tended to cause it to bind up as I tried forcing it into whichever gear I thought I needed. Once I learned to just move the stick back or forward and let RPMS determine the gear it started performing beautifully! For example, if I thought I needed 3rd to pass it wouldn't go into gear, but would pop in 4th smooth as a hot knife through butter and it turned out I had enough power. Maybe I tried down shifting to 5th on a hill, but was going too slow. It would pop over to 3rd easier than 5th and that gear worked better.

I think this truck has more of a "driver bonding" requirement than others. I mean, I had to change my foot positions for the pedals to work right, give it some gas while letting out the clutch during a shift, and learn to "trust" the stick to find the right gear on it's own. VERY big change for me, but once I learned to "listen" (for lack of a better word) to the truck it has never fought, complained or let me down. I have never ground a gear since I stopped fighting and just let the stick slide into whatever gear it slid into easiest.

The only time I really override this is skipping gears. But after 42k I know what gears it likes best at each rpm/mph range.

 

Thanks LRH and piercedtiger for your response to my question about shifter feel.With such good replies, its easy to understand your both true enthusiest. I will no longer have to wonder.(what was I thinking..doubting the allmighty TACO..shame on me!).

 

Thank you all I will avoid the scoop on the basic...

 

No problem! I just hate hearing people bitch about the 6spd (owners, magazines, etc) when the truck isn't even close to being broke in... Like ANY car shifts the way it should brand new with fresh fluids and no wear on the gears. Of course things will improve as the gears work, round off a little, and mesh easier. But no one ever seems to take that into account before bashing it as "stiff" or "rough" or whatever.

Of course it'll grind or not shift properly if you don't know the truck or how to shift it. It took me a couple weeks to get used to it. How can any reviewer possibly make an accurate statement about it after 2-3 days? Also, people not willing to just let the stick slip into gear with gentle motions (ie, no speed shifting like you're on the drag strip) will always have problems with it. Simplest way I can explain it is like the gears have gates or slots for the stick to go between. Miss a gate, hit the divider in the middle, and it doesn't go into gear. It hits the divider and doesn't move. So you shove it harder, it slips around the divider, and the gears grind because you forced it. Slow and gentle, and it's no problem.

I started using just 2 fingers to pull it back, and my thumb or palm to push it forward. No full hand wrapped around the knob like with my car that NEEDS to be pushed hard into gear (both transmissions, old and new, even with new clutch). Start in 1st, pull back, goes to 2nd automatically. Shift from 2nd, automatically goes to 3rd without trying to hit 1st or 5th (unlike my car). It literally seems to bump itself over to the right gear when I'm at the right speed and just pull back or push forward. Sometimes I forget I'm in 6th because I don't pay attention to gears anymore!

I had a good laugh (when, partial laugh and cringe on the inside) when a TOYTOTA guy put it 5th instead of 3rd pulling out of the dealership to drive me to work when it was in for work. Even those guys don't know how to drive it. He didn't even rev match either so the truck lurched and gave me shift shock the whole 5 miles to work.... Needless to say he let me drive it back when he picked me up after work, and none of that happened when I drove. Had to teach my wife how to do that too since it's different from every car she's driven. So I can see why people bitch about it.... But I look at it as "it's YOUR truck, you need to KNOW your truck."

Some people bond with wax and polish... I do it by making the truck an extension of myself when driving and maneuvering. (knowing where it can fit, where it can go, what it can make it through......) Hell, I can pull it in my barn and park 2" off my tools in the back without seeing them or the bumper. You just have to "know". (instinct, gut, the force, whatever you call it)

 

tacotoe, thanks for the thanks. I for the record currently own a 2.7L 5spd , but have driven a couple of 4.0L 6spds, so I do have some driving experience with both trans. The 5spd is pretty much the same way, the ratios are also wide with first gear in the 3.8-3.9:1 ratio vs the 6spd @ around 4.1:1, and the 5th OD on the 5spd is actually a little taller than the 6spd so the big ratio gaps are there also. I'm surprised that Toyota uses a 90wt lubricant, since most use thinner oils these days. The thicker oil makes cold shifts a litle more difficult to perform. Synthetics help with the cold shifts some, but seem to slippery to allow syncros to work as well as some transmissions. Years ago Toyota/Aisin trans used to call for GL4 exclusively due to lower levels of friction modifier now they call for either as ok. My BIL is a manual trans mechanic; mostly Mitsubishi's and some older Euro sports cars, and he states that the Mitsu's that call for a 90wt, call for GL4 only. He has over the years changed out several that have been improperly filled at the quick lube joints with either thinner oil, or with GL5 90wt, and states the GL4 will allow quicker, smoother shifts as the syncros grab much better. I changed out my factory fill @ 3K just to try M1 synthetic. It helped only a little, making for smoother shifts, but I can tell it is no better when the syncro's are really working hard to match speeds to allow gears to mesh vs grate/grind. I am next going to try a non syn GL4 (not a GL4-GL5 dual rating) or one of the synthetic brands that specifically state they have a formula that works better with the syncro's by not being too slippery. There are no problems or issues with these transmissions, but I am just willing to experiment with different fluids myself to see if there is a "best" fluid. As I said above, I think most of the perceived problem is just wide ratio gaps needed to have a good pulling 1st gear and a tall OD for cruising at low rpm's.