New member observations of new truck

I have driven Land Cruiser, Prado, and Hilux trucks overseas and was always impressed so I bought a new, Texas built, dark metallic grey 2019 four door, short bed, TRD OR w/the manual transmission last year. So far I have lifted the driver’s seat rear end; removed the body decals; extended the a/c drain; added WeatherTech floor-mats, Carhartt seat covers, Husky mud-flaps; and extended the rear differential vent. I’ve added a full Bedrug and Total Chaos bed supports in preparation for a new ARE Z series cap with the OTR finish (I’ll post photos when it’s installed).

Some observations:

1. The 2GR-FKS has 11.8:1 compression and was originally designed for premium gasoline so that’s what I run (mostly Shell 93 octane). The engine is smooth with absolutely no hint of knocking. Even towing a 3800 pound load over hilly terrain. Whatever problem the earlier trucks with automatic transmissions had I am not experiencing it.

2. I wire brushed the very minor corrosion on the frame, drivetrain, and suspension - then painted with Rustoleum. I then treated the inside of the frame, under-body, suspension, rocker panels, doors, hood, and tailgate with Rust Check Inhibitor (the red colored running fluid) and Coat and Protect (the waxy coating). This should hopefully negate any future problems.

3. The front differential gear oil was way too low from factory and only the transfer case was topped off fully. Some of the information on TW regarding which crush washers go where did not correspond to my experience.

4. The accumulator forces me to be pay attention while shifting but I’m ok with that.

5. There are zerk fittings on the front driveshaft u-joints but none on the rear.

6. The OE Goodyear tires have worn down from 11/32” to 9/32” since new (just over 7k miles on odometer). They work ok on gravel roads and rough dirt trails with heavy ruts but they pick up a lot of small pebbles. I was only able to get them to slip on a soaking wet slushy grass incline in 2WD. Otherwise they work fine on the highway to include heavy rain.

I am very happy with the truck and am considering Hammer Hangers, Hellwig sway bars, OME 884 coils with 5100 Bilsteins (to level out the ride) and Yokohama Geolander 265/75-16 AT tires (every truck I drove in the Middle East, Africa, and the Balkans had them and I never managed to destroy a single tire or get a flat).

 

Welcome aboard

 

Nice! Welcome!

 

Welcome to TacomaWorld!

 

Welcome.
I tried premium gasoline kept getting 19-20 mpg
Ran 89 and it gives me better mileage...I can hit as high as 25 on a trip. Tank average around 21-23

 

Welcome to TW!

 

welcome , thanks for your service

 

I am an old school guy. Grew up on magnetos, points and condensers, and carburetors, etc... I run premium to minimize the possibility of poor engine performance or damage caused by inadequate gasoline. Besides octane, ethanol, and additives there are other factors to include water and contamination. This is a very high compression engine. Just because Toyota is emulating the Atkinson cycle with variable cams and has de-turned the software to accept regular doesn’t ensure that 87 octane at the corner station will work well. I don’t follow fuel consumption closely but once in Canada I found a station which sold 94 octane with zero ethanol and the performance difference was obvious. The km per liter ratio was better so there must be some relationship between octane, ethanol ratio, and the computer’s mapping. Lack of knocking equals advance in timing? I don’t know with these computer controlled fuel/ignition systems. Then again, when Canada switched to their winter blend the consumption ratio became worse. I came back to the States and switched the onboard software to mpg so too many variables for me to compare. I just want the engine to run as well as can be expected which it does on the Shell premium.

 

Welcome to TW!

 

Welcome!