New 2016 Tacoma Limited

Since I can't get any satisfaction from the dealer I thought I would look on the web and see if there were any sites where I could get information and find out more about my $40K Tacoma investment. Every ten years I purchase a new pickup truck. I have had Chevy's, Izusu's, Fords, Nissans and now, for the first time I broke down and spent the money for what I thought was the truck of my dreams, the Tacoma Limited. Everything on the vehicle is perfect and when I drove one at the dealer I didn't have to be convinced to spend the $. Now the Tacoma I ordered is turning out to be a nightmare with transmission and engine mismatch problems. The automatic transmission doesn't seem to know what gear it wants to be in, continuously shifts up and down on slight grades that wouldn't have caused any shifting on the previously mentioned trucks. There's something not right about the torque settings or a transmission/engine mismatch. When it shifts up the engine doesn't seem to know when to shift down and I've hit 5500 rpm on the highway in a lower gear and had to release the cruise control for fear of over-revving the engine. I love everything about this truck but fear that Toyota may not have the drive train figured out. What a shame! If anyone can help or offer suggestions I would appreciate it. Big investment for me and the thought of dealing with this for ten years or getting rid of the vehicle and taking a huge loss doesn't appeal to me.

 

Welcome to the club OP!Hopefully someone else can chime in for you!Sorry for your frustration with your 3rd gen.!

 

Really love the truck. Waited years to put the $ into a Tacoma. Saw them on the road and owners always spoke highly of their Tacomas. It's like the transmission is schizophrenic. Took it back to the dealer after 1000 miles...."technician says transmission operating as required". Thanks. Just don't know how to get this corrected.

 

Welcome to TW. There have been a lot of mixed feelings about the new transmission on this site. Hopefully you will get used to it or it will work smoother as it gets broken in. I do believe based on other comments that the very shifty transmission is normal.

 

The continual shifting is annoying and I suppose I could get used to the "hunt and peck" transmission behavior. The wild over-revving (5500 RPM) up close to red line can't be good for an engine (I'm a aerospace design engineer). I can only remember a dozen or so times in my Nissan Frontier that I pushed the 4 liter V6 that close to red-line. Not pleasant to hear the engine scream like that. Thanks for the reply. This is not a rant, just very frustrated.

 

The problem didn't get any better after 4,000 miles so I finally got a Toyota mechanic to ride with me. Wow! He says it's not normal and can't understand why it hangs up in 3rd gear at 5,000 rpm in cruise control. Might be the gear schedule or the firmware for the cruise control. The Service rep says he will let me know when the Toyota rep (whoever that is) is at the dealership. I have a bad feeling about this. Washed the Tacoma and found the cowl around the grill was warped and there were two areas on either side of the grille where the paint had wrinkled almost like they uses a paint with solvent or the plasticiser in the injection molding was goofed. Tijuana Tacoma?

 

Yikes! Sorry to hear about your issues. Good luck.

 

All of this has really changed my opinion on the Tacoma. I traded in a 2014 Toyota and it was flawless. My new truck was assembled in Tijuana, Baja Mexico. I would think that Toyota would train the employees to their standards. I'll give them another chance if they can get the transmission/engine issues ironed out. It's a new drivetrain and sometimes the bugs need to be ironed out. The grille cowling is another matter. I looked at it again tonight and it's got to be the injection molding process or plastic used.

 

I don't play with the throttle. That's not good for fuel economy. I accelerate to the speed required and unless the terrain changes or I need to pass another vehicle the throttle stays solid. This shifting issues seems to be a common complaint with the new Tacoma, so the service tech told me this morning at the 5,000 mi service. It's a new drive train and I would expect that there are bugs to be encountered. He says that Toyota is most likely working on the problem. If the transmission is just "busy" with all the gears then I'll just have to get used to it, annoying but I got used to a CVT and this is perhaps another thing I have to accept. The cruise control is another issue entirely. I don't know what is causing it to hang-up in 3rd gear at high RPM and not wanting to shift up. I'm confident that Toyota will get it straightened out.