New Tacoma to be shown in Detroit

Oh yeah, I bet $8 that we never see a V1000 in a mid-size.

 

Great link. Definitely a must read for a lot of folks asking for diesel and why the '16 was designed the way it was. Good info on body and frame changes. This is most definitely a 3rd gen rather than 2.5 based on Sweer's comments.

 

So the hilux is the real truck and the tacoma is mostly for looks. Why not bring both and let the market decide.

 

From the link above.

A: What is carried over from the previous Tacoma in this new truck?
S: Not much. Maybe a seatbelt bracket! The base frame has been modified. The base frame rail design is similar but it’s not carryover. The body shell and body structure are new. For the structure, we use hot-stamped steel.

 

And the steering wheel

 

Another from the article. I think tacomaworld would like to hear this. Toyota see and understands that a lot of people mod there truck and they took that into consideration.

A: The midsize pickup truck market is far more competitive today. How will the 2016 Toyota Tacoma grow sales and stay competitive in this “new” market?
S: It’s an interesting question because I can’t grow sales; I can’t produce any more trucks. We’re at capacity; we’re running over capacity. To protect that, we’re excited about the new market, the new competition in the market. Simply saying, we think the market is going to grow with it. People coming back in, etc. Having GM back in is a good thing for the market.
What we did is we went out and talked to our customers and we talked to competitor customers. Right now, [the Tacoma is] over 60 percent of the market share. Keeping our present customer base is important. Things you see on the new truck are direct reflections of what the customer is asking for. In this market segment, QDR [quality, durability, and reliability] is the number one purchase reason. That’s different from a full-size truck. This is a lifestyle truck. It’s really the image for the customer that’s selling the truck. We see customers putting a lot of cash into their truck after they leave the dealership, to modify and personalize the truck. From the styling right down to the features, that’s reflective of what we heard from the customers. It’s what they want their truck capable of doing based upon the image of the truck for them.

 

Can't believe people are still crying about the truck

 

I'm seriously hoping someone surprises me with one in the driveway with a bow on it. Before production.

 

Sterdog, your right the Canadian sticker price with no extra dealer options is about a $3000 difference between the SR5 V6 vs the TRD off road V6.

In my case I did not pay sticker
It was end of year and this was one of the last AC SR5 4x4 to be found in the spruce green mica so I got a good deal, they wanted to move it to make room for the 2013. The two TRD off roads that were left on the lot both had dealer installed extras so they were both above the sticker price.

No urge to buy on my end either, my 2012 only has 41000ish km on it so it’s just getting broke in LOL Nice to dream out loud though.

 

But not the cabs? They look very similar. Especially the extended cab. Looking at the pictures of the TRD Off Road the exterior cab looks like no changes.

 

I had not seen that article. Thanks. That is a great article that answers a lot of questions. Probably won't quiet the skeptics on here, but they're entitled to their opinions.

 

I agree Sir Helmet. I don't get it. Everyone should read that article. I think it really explains Toyota's thought process on not only the Tacoma, but vehicle production in general.

 

While it was just a concept it was probably based on a Mopar (AEV?) kit that was designed for the JK Unlimited. I actually saw and wheeled with one live and in person this weekend up in Grayling, MI. It's a very cool design and looks great in person. The bed is almost useless though at only 8-12" tall and about 3 feet long.

 

That's exactly the problem with your and many others on TW's viewpoint, just because it looks the same doesn't mean that it is the same. The body is merely a cover of the internal components. As you should have heard in the release they changed how they make the metal panels using a new hot stamping process and that the design has been altered so that sound is better damped out. Additionally there could be all kinds of unseen structural changes to either strengthen or accommodate new features on the interior. So just because it "looks" the same to you doesn't mean that it's not a new part. Looks are only skin deep.

Look at it this way, since the platform was partially reused and updated, the aftermarket already exists. You will probably be able to use the same suspension and armor components already available.

 

So how would you change the exterior cabs? What is your ideal change?

 

I love negotiating on the vehicles with dealer extra's that I actually want. They make so much profit on them it increases there willingness to move on the price. My point was, on an average dealer lot, you won't find 7K CAD difference between a stock SR5 and a TRD Offroad lol.

I didn't even pay close to sticker for my Tacoma .

 

A change similar to this would have been nice, a little wider and little longer, not enough to make it close to a full size though.

 

Yeah I don't how he says the cabs are different either. Sounds like the dimensions of the cabs is identical and the doors are 90% identical, they just used a different method to form the steel, so apparently that makes it all new? Not trying to sound cynical, I am really just curious how they are different. Appears the cab is not actually any bigger like some initially thought.

 

Thanks for posting this link for the interview, good stuff IMHO!

 

I think they knocked it out of the park with the interior, however. That looks really sharp. The exterior is still something I am warming up to. I wish we could see more configurations/more trims/colors etc.