Long time owner/member, first post!

Hi all-

Long time/first time...

This is my first foray into becoming an active user of an online forum of any type - might be a bit of a learning curve at first (linking, replying, etc) but I think I have some good thoughts to bounce around here.

Owned a Black 2002 Extended Cab 4x4 2.7 MT for 12 years... Unbelievable vehicle, only "work done" was replacing 2 batteries, one clutch and one set of tires in that time. Couldn't have asked for a better vehicle during that phase of my life. Unfortunately the beautiful black paint eventually started to flake off, simultaneously I decided it was time for an "adult" vehicle with 4 doors and leather seats. More on my personal flaws of my "adult" theory in later posts...

Cue the current ride, purchased new Cement 2017 TRD Pro MT in September of 2016. I was living in Dallas at the time, bought it over the phone, sight unseen, from a dealer in Statesboro, GA. Cement/TRDPro/MT was the only truck I was going to buy, I just needed to find it somewhere. It was a miracle I found it before it got snapped up by someone less deserving than me ... Flew out to Georgia, signed on the dotted line, then drove it back to Texas. A year later I pulled a trailer to Seattle where I'll be for the foreseeable future. I smile every time I see the truck, driving it is an absolute joy. I still get compliments on it 2 years later. Plan on having this thing for 15+ years (or until the robots take over...)

Ink still wet


As it currently sits 2 years later.

I can't say enough good things about it, it's the only vehicle I own, it raises my mood every time I drive it, and has performed wonderfully on a few adventures already. It is everything I currently need in a truck, not much I don't. <<<this will be a common theme moving forward- FUNCTIONAL modifications.

I do have a few gripes, which is the reason I'm becoming an active member of TW. I want to join in on meaningful discussion and hopefully find solutions. I'll elaborate on each of these in the near future as I become more comfortable figuring this forum out. Here we go:

Toyota Dealer Inventory Network(s) - it's very unique, something I learned A LOT about during the buying process, hence needing to buy it in Georgia (Southeast network), not Texas (Gulf States network)

Manual Transmission - this is a biggie. Transmission/gearing/clutch is fantastic- smooth if you know what you're doing. Engine itself is great, HOWEVER- fly-by-wire engine fuel/air control/engine-mapping (specifically at low rpms) is beyond frustrating, and borderline unsafe. A few others on here share my views on that, I want to join in on the gripefest (hopefully followed by a solutionfest!) I've done a bit of reading already on it- more to come. I'm most passionate on this issue.

Audio/Navigation system - This would be clunky and unintuitive in 2006. Newsflash: it's a 2017 model. Simply put, after riding and seeing other 2017ish vehicles audio/nav interfaces, it blows my mind that Toyota is putting out something like this.

Hood Scoop and Sticker - I could live without it. That's just me.

Cabin space - I'm 6'1". Any taller would be too tall for this thing. I think it's optimally designed for a 5'8" occupant.

MPG - 20ish. Not great, but is industry average. I think the industry has the technology to improve economy on truck engines they just don't. I'm aware that's pretty deep-level conspiracy stuff and I'm very uneducated on the matter. See next paragraph to sum things up.

Tacomas still put up ridiculous sales numbers, hold ridiculous resale value, and Tacoma fanboys like me don't care and still buy it, so joke's on me!

Again- Amazing truck for what I need, don't mistake my specific gripes for a bad review!

Wrapping things up-

Didn't mean to make this first post this long, maybe I should have saved stuff for subsequent posts, but apparently I'm excited to share current and future adventures/pictures/ideas with everyone here. After reading this forum for a couple years, I've learned to sift through the nonsense that comes standard on forums like this. There's some great stuff on here, I hope to add sensible ideas to it once I learn the best ways of navigating this site.

Talk to y'all later.

P.S. Crom should win awards for what he's done to his Tacoma. (see above about functional modifications). If had 1% of his know-how and ingenuity I could die a happy man.

P.P.S. It almost embarrassing how much time I took to edit and re-read and re-edit this post. You should see me try to type a work email in less than 10 minutes.

 

Nice rig congrats.
Not gonna lie I skipped a lot of ur intro. Lol.
Sounds as though your happy with the truck.
Welcome to the forum.

 

Can't say I blame you... "New Members" probably isn't the place for my ramblings

But Thanks!

 

Welcome to TW

 

Welcome to TW!
You are in the right place! The members of this community are simply fantastic. Knowledgeable, helpful, supportive, and somewhat sarcastic. What else could a guy, and his truck ever need?
...But seriously, the things I’ve learned on here, the friendships I’ve made are truly priceless. Last December 24th, my wife, son, dog, and myself were rear ended by a jack-knifing semi on a snow covered highway in my 2017 TRD Pro. The truck performed wonderfully, sacrificing itself to save us. I posted pics later that day, and was simply overwhelmed by the support of this community. Members on here saw me through the worst Christmas ever, gave great advice about dealing with the insurance nightmare, and helped me celebrate finding my replacement pro!
This forum WILL make you smarter!

 

Nah your in the right place. It’s my attention span that’s the. issue.

 

Welcome to TW...Chatty feller aren’t ya, nice looking ride!!

 

Welcome!

 

Welcome to TW!

 

Welcome! That's all I got.

 

Looks good, welcome

 

Welcome!