Tacoma loses Consumer Reports 'Recommended' rating

I just flipped through my 2013 Consumer Reports Annual Auto Rankings magazine.
I was shocked and disappointed to see that the Tacoma has lost it's CR Recommended rating as a top value choice.
Not only that, but it is ranked third in it's truck class, falling behind 1) Nissan Frontier and 2) Honda Ridgeline.

Any thoughts from the 2nd gen owners? Is the quality really slipping? Is the frontier that much better these days? Is the Tacoma just stale and does Toyota need to bring newer generations to markt sooner? What the heck is going on?

 

There have been other threads on this already. My opinion: http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/of...13-auto-issue-has-taco-3-a-2.html#post6535983

Really, if a magazine recommends the Honda Ridgeline as the best pick for a mid-size pickup, you should question their judgement.

 

^Exactly. Nobody gives a damn what CR thinks.

 

I wouldn't call the Ridgeline a truck. It's an SUV with an uncovered trunk.

 

though i have never driven the last generation frontier, i imagine it to be a good machine. i only chose my tacoma because of the aftermarket and public support.

nissan has quietly been putting out good vehicles since it started importing. aside from the radiator/ trans cooler issue lol

 

Put your flame suit on OP. It's about to be flying shit in this thread not too long from now.

 

Honda Ridgeline is as bad as the Chevy Avalanche. With that said......Consumer reports must not know what it's talking about.

The Taco is slated for a major over haul in a few years anyway.

 

CR knows just about as much as this douche:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f8oybB6Ip9s

with that said, they only did that becuase of the tacoma not being re-designed since 2005, not for any poor quality or poor reliability reason...

 

I think the ridgeline is good for what it is, but not right for CR to compare to a Tacoma or frontier. At that rate, they'll compare the element to an FJ...if they still made the element. CR may be right or wrong, time for Toyota to Up the pickup game.

 

I like how much time he spent explaining the beadlock wheels that arent beadlocks
and how much he refers to it as an AWD

 

He calls it all wheel drive. What a douche.

 

wheres DK when you need him

 

I agree the ridgeline is not an accurate comparison. The Nissan is a respectable competitor.

I guess what I am really looking for from the 2nd gen guys is this: is quality really going down? Do you feel the design is falling behind the marketplace? Should Toyota speed up generations of the Tacoma, as opposed to the 10 year cycle it currently runs on?

 

By one standard or another, its falling behind, it could be leading. Still a good truck imo. Hope I didn't start a fire.

 

I had a 2nd gen Frontier and traded it for my Tacoma. Frontier gave me no problems other than the fuel sending unit messing up. Some owners had to have theirs replaced 3 times. I did worry about the radiator cross contamination issue. The interior felt very cheap. Parking the Frontier was like trying to park a semi. Little to no aftermarket support. Good luck finding wheels for a 6 X 4.5. I almost bought a new 2012 Frontier before i got my Tacoma but after getting my Tacoma, I am so glad I didn't. Everyone seems to worry about bells and whistles, I just want a solid truck. Tacoma rides better, turns better, and not to mention a double cab doesn't look fugly like a Frontier.

 

Put a tacoma up against a ridgeline anywhere and the ridgeline would be put to shame. Tacmoa > Ridgeline for power, offroading, towing, looks. As for the Frontier, who the fuck would pick a fronter over a tacoma? Not I.

 

maybe the fronty comes up in my mind because there was one, a year newer, a grand less, with the trd o/r equivelant next to my taco. the salesman strongly suggested i test drive it as he prefers it vs the taco. 6 speed vs 6 speed anyway.

my brother also had a previous gen (03) frontier that was a solid little truck. he put it through hell always saving me in my 92 pickup. sad that his was 11 years newer and had the same torsion bar system my truck did though. . . . . its a crap shoot

 

I saw that CR piece as well. I just laughed when I read what they had to say. That thing Honda calls a pickup truck is rated above the Tacoma as a recommended purchase? Okay, sure, the single frame construction, and light load hauling capability make for a better truck? I'm sorry, I was too busy chuckling at the fact that whoever reviewed those vehicles was not a "truck person" to even bother being offended by it.

I researched and test drove a lot of trucks before I decided on my Tacoma, and oddly enough (tongue in cheek here folks) I never even considered the Ridgeline as an option to match what I was looking for in a truck. They were basing it solely on the fact that Tacoma has had a refresh, but not a redesign for a while now, and based their entire review on that fact alone, and it is pretty obvious.

The Tacoma has a wide range of models, trims, and packages to accommodate every type of truck person. For me, that was Access cab, 4x4, TRD Off Road and Towing packages, 4.0L V6 and 6 speed Manual transmission. For everyone else who doesn't like it that way, it can be configured many other ways to suit just about any individual need. XRunner for city only performance guys, Prerunner for a basic light duty hauler, Double cab for a people carrier, TRD Sport and TX Pro for those who like appearance enhancing characteristics, and an Auto transmission for basically everyone who doesn't like to row gears like me. The sheer quantity of options available with Tacoma alone ought to have put it above its competition.

With Ranger and Colorado sitting things out for the time being, that is the Nissan Frontier as its only competition. The Honda Ridgeline is something that need not even apply to a Midsize truck comparison.

 

I still don't know what was wrong with the 1st Gen.

 

Ridgeline does not belong in the same class.

They rated it low because of noise and the ride comfort.
I don't think any of us can debate those issues.
It is not a quiet truck, and it rides like a covered wagon.

The Wrangler ranked dead last... for the same reasons.