tacoma newbie (and potentially soon to be first time owner) here

hello all!

been thinking about a tacoma for some time now, but this past weekend i went to the toyota dealership (priority toyota chesapeake, va) with my girlfriend who was looking at a RAV4 when a tacoma in the show room definitely caught my eye. it has made me re-thinking about getting a tacoma now. i was going to hold off and wait for a 2016 model with a few more bells and whistles (sunroof, etc) but maybe sometime between now and when the 2016s come out i could snag a deal on one. i'm not sure i am that i am 100% excited about the new body style. thoughts?

i am interested in one that has an aggressive "off-road" look but won't completely ruin the gas mileage for driving to and from work everyday. i am about 1 hr away from beaches in NC that allow jeeps/trucks so that would be a possibility however i don't have much interest in "true" off-roading.

the model in the show room had a $7k "tough toyz" package on it which included a westin bull bar, westin running boards, a 3" lift, nitto terra grappler G2s and some other things im sure im missing. i was hoping to learn some stuff from everyone here since i know nothing about tacomas and what off road/performance accessories makes them great. where would be a good place to start to learn?

EDIT: i am also very curious how the premium entune system sounds in the 2015 models. local dealership mentioned they have a partnership with Audio one for sound systems.

any and all suggestions are welcome!

 

Welcome, I am new to Tacoma's as well but purchased mine last month (July18th). I am not a crawler(rock or mall). My Taco serves as my daily driver, teardrop TowVehicle, camping, fishing, hiking, backpacking, kayaking vehicle. I also bought it because I have always wanted a Toyota truck ever since I saw Back to the Future. I have put 2000 miles on my Tacoma in just over a month. My last two tanks I've averaged 29mpg because i commute 70 miles per day at 60mph and baby the shit out of it(change gears at or below 2xxxrpm, coast down hills and pay attention to lights and traffic etcetc). I love this truck and plan on having it until it dies. I do not need the bells and whistles but as it seems like they are very important to you maybe i'm not the best to reply but seeing as how nobody has yet, i'll throw down my 2 cents. I personally wouldn't buy the first year of any generation of any vehicle. I'd give it a year or two to work out the kinks or get a 2015. I think one of the main reasons people haven't replied is because you could find quite a few of the answers you're looking for if you search for them.. But Hey, everyone has been there-

Welcome and i hope you find a good Tacoma/vehicle that fits what you're looking for!

 

Thank you very much for your response! Very good point about the new generation coming out. I haven't thought about that yet. I'm currently looking at 15 models that I would add custom off road stuff along with multimedia/audio stuff to.

Still open to suggestions on good/proven brands for off road stuff along with multimedia/audio equipment!

 

Of course!! Like i said i'm not into anything major for Off Roading. But if i was you i wouldnt pay for it with it already on a truck(major rip off). I'd buy a less expensive truck and do the mods my self. Tons of guys that are into the crawling and armor and stuff on here should chime in at some point or you could "search" for it. Entune on my truck is ok. Speaker quality is ok. There are tons of threads on TW that talk about all of these things my friend. Take some time a search around! Then If you have specific questions that you cant find answers to, shoot them in a post in the appropriate threads and people will answer.

 

Understood. Thanks again!

 

I think you would like the 2015 model. I can't comment on the new entune systems, but I thought the old premium JBL systems were awesome.

You mentioned something about an offroad look.... PLEASE do not fall into that salesman off-road package scam. I can help break it down for you. Definitely not worth 7K!

Westin Bull Bar - $200-$300. Here we call them "Damage Multipliers" They reduce ground clearance and offer no protection up front. Instead the bend up into the bumper causing damage. They also look like an ugly jutted out lower lip to most people

Westin Running Boards - $200. The exact opposite you'd want for "off-road" They also reduce ground clearance and offer no rocker panel protection. Many people on here - Commuters and wheelers alike run sliders. You can get a budget set under $300

3" Lift - This is going to be $200 spacer lift on stock UCAs. The worst way of lifting that will cause your shock to bottom out prematurely. It will also ride like crap. There's tons of better options out there.

Nitto Terra Grapplers - I don't know what size... I'm assuming 285s. They're a mellow AT tire... nothing special. They will not be worth more than $300 a tire... you do the math.

I would never do the dealer package. Total rip off for something that makes your brand new truck perform and look (imo) worse than stock. I think you would be happy with a nice, non dealer molested, 2015. And if you hang around on here you will learn lots of better and affordable options to build your truck.

Good luck and welcome