Shifting a little clunky

First time truck owner, new 2018, 1k miles.

Since I bought it, it has always been a little clunky when shifting in and out of park and into drive/reverse, and also going between drive/reverse. The effect is noticeable when I remove my foot from the brake.

It is almost like the truck studders a little bit. Is this normal?

 

welcome to the world of 3rd gen Tacoma's! everyone's been saying this since day one, they released an update to help out a little bit but mine still does it. Something that you just got to live with now,

 

If it bothers you enough, there IS an aftermarket solution. OVTune fixes the shifting issues (including clunking) on these trucks. It'll set you back $800 which will seem annoying on a brand new truck but it's worth it. Search and you'll find good threads about it including a sticky for reviews. I had the exact same clunk until I was tuned and no more clunking

Alternatively you can TRY to address it by greasing the zerks on your driveshaft. Should be a couple U-joints toward the front that have zerk fittings to pump some lithium-based grease (use what is recommended by Toyota) and that can ease the clunking a bit but most of it is in how the ECU is controlling the shift and torque converter behavior.

 

When new, my Tacoma was clunking when shifting from Park to Reverse and from Reverse to Drive.
I added 1 quart of transmission fluid and the clunking was gone.

At a later date, I checked the transmission fluid level using the overflow and only a few ounces came out. So, the transmission fluid level was a bit low from the factory.
It has been my experience that automatic transmissions can clunk when low on fluid.

Additionally, the rear differential was about 1 quart 8 ounces low.

It’s good to check your fluids when new.

 

I've got some clunking/delayed engagement on cold from reverse to drive. Not sure if it's always been like that or not, but I did only recently start noticing the delayed engagement. Could be all in my head, though I have never had my ATF checked. There is a MASSIVE thread on this, and I think some people reported it on their 2018. Haven't decided yet if I'll bring it up at next service because I'm a little dealered-out at the moment. Also, I'm leasing it. May just mention it to get it documented.

7100 miles on my 2017. Good luck.