Buying a new 2018 Toyota Tacoma TRD Sport 4x4 today, need some advice.

I would put some Crager S/S mag wheels on it if it was possible. You are correct "Old School Rules"!!!

 

I'd inquire about a wheel swap & credit. Get the cheapest steel wheels possible......then put a set of SCS Ray 10's on there.

Once you finally get the deal done.....make them throw in an OEM bed mat for free.

 

41,500? Holy *uck

 

I actually like the wheels that are on it. Do you know if those wheels are just hubcaps? I will upgrade the wheels very soon, not sure what type yet. I will check out those SCS wheels. Our 2016 Highlander Limited Platinum has nice wheels but they are hubcaps, not a mag wheel. I did not know it until after I bought it new.

 

Congrats on the new truck.


Hoping you enjoy as much as I've enjoyed mine the past 8 months.


I wish....really wished I'd have done some more research ahead of time after deciding to buy a new truck.


I test drove everything on the market and decided the Tacoma was what I wanted. I should have done more homework on the Tacoma models/options/aftermarket.


I bought the one on the lot that appealed to me in the SR5 package that I wanted. I wish I'd have looked at those Sports a little more closely. I like the hoods much better.

A wheel delete credit would have been nice if I could have pulled it off.....I've clearly found the wheels I want to add at some future point.


Sorry for junking up yer thread with my "dream wheels", lol.

Congrats on the new truck. Enjoy the beast.

 

Don’t forget The curb feelers

 

and it starts with the money pit...don't scare him away, now his wallet will definitely get lighter....lol

 

I'd put on curb feelers for the lols

 

Those are not hubs. Personally like the wheels as well. Wait and shop until you find the ones you want, and you can probably sell those for something or keep them as extras. Here where we actually get winter, you could use them as winter wheels and save your nice ones for the sunny season.

Enjoy your truck! Looks awful familiar

 

I’m glad it worked out for you! Enjoy your new ride!

 

That's what I thought. Jayzuz. My TRD OR was $34,4k. I don't even think I could have optioned it up to $41k without ending up in a PRO.

 

the predator steps :

1. they are barely tack welded on, any solid hit from a rock will knock them off
2. the paint on them is very thin
3. rocks chips it very easily, you will need to retouch them once a year (trust me I know)
4. snow build up on them is very bad, it will harden into an ice block (that even with having oem mud flaps)

this is from having them on for 2 winters up in north Dakota. more a pita than having running boards. they look nice but actual functionality for northern tier winters is crap. wont make that mistake again.

 

I saved $2,100 off of Toyotas MSRP of $43,829.00. So I ended up paying $41,723.00 cash with Tax, Tag, and Title out the door for my 2018 TRD Sport 4x4. Also the dealer had to drive 800 mles to pick up this hard to find truck and took off the Predator steps and gave me a full credit for them and installed the 2 into 1 Led DRLs/Fog lights and TRD muffler tip. I think it is a fair deal and the Toyota dealer is local. I am going to pick it up tomorrow afternoon, and my Tacoma TRD Sport 4x4 will be paid for in full. I never finance a vehicle, I just pay for it with cash and no car payments. I still would like any advice on what else to do to the truck and what things I should know about the truck. Any advice and tips are appreciated. This forum is awesome!!!

 

Sweet truck man!

 

I do like you younger guys (guessing younger) creativeness, where would we be without it. Black wheels, debadging, plasticdip on some things, etc., give trucks that "stock car" look. Plus, we all dont look the same. I think the stock wheels look much better on the access cab though.
Duane

 

Much respect, man.


Well done. Paid off on day one is huge. Hyoooooge.


This forum is awesome......however......damn thing has been a near constant source of temptation to order new stuff for my truck



I've got a "mod pile" that is stacking up and needs my attention to get this stuff done and really trick out my truck the way I want to.


In my pile...simply awaiting my time to install:

* Caliraised 32" light bar (direct spot pattern) with behind-the-grill mounts
* Caliraised side shooter light pods with low profile hood mount brackets
* Caliraised light switch bracket
* Redline tuning hood struts
* Kicker CS door speakers
* Noico sound dampening material

It also needs a good washing and detailing (I do this weekly).


I couldn't begin to tell advise you what to do with your sweet new truck.....I can only tell you what I wanted to do with my own to make it better suit my needs. My truck is a daily driver.

I work 14-16 days a month with a 45 mile commute. The commute used to be 1/2 town driving & 1/2 interstate. I also plan on doing some hunting and fishing and sold my Polaris 4-wheeler a few years ago and have no plans to replace it. The Taco will have to get me everywhere I want to go. The hunting area has lots of sand, clay and washed out roads.

Compounding things is that I needed to come up with an alternate route to work that avoids the interstate due to some upcoming bridge construction that has just begun. The first 8 miles of this alternate path literally is a path through the woods. It was recently repaved, though....and they even added lane markings, lol. Sharp turns and blind corners with tree canopies covering the roads....almost like a twisting tunnel through the trees. It's a beautiful drive during daytime......wold be hugely fun in a VW Golf GTI, Mini Cooper or the like. In the dark hours when I drive it, though.....I'm constantly on the lookout for deer, hogs & coyotes darting out. I say that to say this..............it's time to get my LED lights installed pronto. While not technically legal to run 'em on these roads.....there are seldom any traffic at the hours I drive on workdays. Time to get busy.


So.....my needs were to add new tires so I could improve my performance offroad. A good bit of the hunting, fishing and scouting is solo. I wanted something stout that would hold it's on even if that meant sacrificing mpg and overall tire life. I'd been getting 50,000+ miles out of the last three sets of Firestone Destination AT tires on my last trucks.....figured I'd try the 265/75R16 MT2 version on my new Tacoma. They've been super offroad and fairy well mannered on the road....quiet. Took a 2mpg hit.


The seats needed to be addressed. My last truck's seats really showed the wear after 11 years of same use. It was a Nissan Frontier double cab 4x4....very similar characteristics as this new Tacoma....except the Tacoma has more room for me and is much more updated inside and out.....and the aftermarket gear is virtually unlimited.

I wanted seat covers.....but I didn't want loose fitting sloppy looking. I needed something "high performance" in that it wouldn't stain, wouldn't soak up water (when I get in it soaking wet from kayaking etc), would last. I plan on driving this truck for the next 15 years and want the seats to look good. I found out about a group buy here on TW for Wet Okole seat covers. I was familiar with the brand as a buddy had them on his truck seats and they stood up to some seriously hard use.

The Wet Okoles have been super. They immediately enhanced the comfort of the seats through the padding and the material simply feels better. My clumsy arse spilled a large cup of java on the passenger seat and it cleaned up perfectly. I bought the Wet Okole seat maintenance kit at the same time I bought the covers....works perfectly.

If i didn't have dogs and other concerns then I would have gone with one of the super leather cover sets that I've seen posted here (Clazzio or Katskin).


Next two mods were simply cosmetic...not super functional.....but I like them.

First was changing the exhaust sound. I know it's a 6 cylinder, but I wanted something that sounded a little more aggressive. I truly want to add a sports car to the garage.....but I'm a couple years off as I have a kid in college and a wife who decided that work wasn't in the cards for her right now, lol. I wanted to scratch the itch for the sports car...even if temporarily. That's the reason I bought a black truck as that's the color of the Challengers & Mustang GT I was looking at. So....to further the end.....a Flowmaster Super 44 muffler and exhaust tip was installed by a local performance shop. Low cost upgrade that has me grinning every single time I crank up my Tacoma.


Second was addressing the space below the cab. It just seemed "unfinished". I didn't want low hanging nerf bars or the like.....but something looked like it needed to go there. I wanted a great set of frame mounted sliders with a rear angle kickout to get it past my rear tire (and the offset that may be there one day with a new set of wheels). I didn't want to spend the $1,000+ to get them and figured I'd get something quick and easy that would look good to me and fill up the space. Amazon had me covered 3 days later. My son came through bigtime and bolted them on for me and saved my healing back, lol.

I know these won't protect my truck from trail obstacles...like push me off rocks and such. They aren't that beefy and are not frame mounted. They do decent as steps and I like the look of them.







Later added the matching receiver hitch step, too.












Another functional upgrade....and cosmetic, too.....is addressing the windows. I bought my Tacoma late last October......once we started getting into Spring it was evident that this black truck & black interior would be punished unduly by the sun. I consulted with others here..... @RobP62 spoke highly about Suntek ceramic tint.....and that's what I went with. He was spot on (as he's been about every single suggestion ). I had my tint guy (same guy who did my last truck almost 12 years ago....stuff looked as good on the day I sold it as the day he did it) who is THE guy to go to around here....match the front roll downs and then did a full cover of the front windshield. The ceramic tint has worked wonders. It was over a 100 degrees here the other day....tint worked wonderfully.


I also bought a set of mud flaps that I've yet to install. MY factory wheels are well contained within the wheel wells and even with the mud tires there is very little junk slung up on the sides of my truck. I know that's gonna be a problem if I go with a set of wheels that have more offset and extend further outwards.

One day these will be on there......just don't have the mad money to buy them right now.






Another immediate upgrade was the Hondo Garage phone mount. It fits inside a a/c-heat vent....no drilling or modification needed to your truck. I stress this...no holes drilled. No sticky adhesive used, either. It has an interesting set of clamps that secure it wonderfully to the truck and your cellphone is placed in a super location.

Immediate-replaed the tweeters with the Subaru tweeters (Kicker CS model) and have enjoyed the difference.

Also immediate-I upgraded my car care tools. I knew a black car was going to be more work......turns out that with the right gear it's a breeze. I bought a cheap electric pressure washer that replaced two weeks ago with a stronger gas model with a Honda motor. Love it. I use soap, sealant, wax and interior products from Chemical Guys. I'm very careful in my method so as to avoid surface scratches and swirl marks. Foam cannon & rinse....sometimes repeat. Careful evaluation of surface and then the two-bucket method hand wash.

Wife bought a new RAV4 Limited in some off-white color two days after I bought my Tacoma. Turns out that her car is more work to keep clean than my own.


Another early upgrade was to install some OEM door sill protectors and then a set of decal inserts to fit in them. Functional and appearance enhancing.










I'm sure there are more things coming....but this is where I'm at now with this daily driver.


Sorry for the long reply....but figured I'd throw it out there. The "What have you done with your 3rd Gen thread" will give you some excellent examples........the only mod I can absolutely positively suggest right away is to get the OEM bed mat. It'll run you around $100 from your Toyota dealer or from vendors here on TW and it's a perfectly fitting source of non-slipping padding. You simply unroll it into your bed and it's done in 5 seconds.




https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads...-3rd-gen-today.399305/page-4672#post-18129465

 

I need advice on upgrading the stereo in my new 2018 Tacoma TRD Sport. I want to keep the stock stereo, I would like to add more power (amp) if that is possible. Also I have always preferred Infinity Speakers, any suggestions on changing out the stock speakers. Where is the best place to buy these items? Any forum discounts with some retailers? Again any advice and tips from forum member are really appreciated.

 

Check out Taco Tunes or OEM+, they make kits for tacos