2nd gen to 3rd gen back to 2nd gen?

Anybody go from a 2nd gen to 3rd gen back to 2nd gen?

 

Yup, I did.

 

What were your reasons why? I'm a bit torn between the two.

 

Let me explain what transpired and my recommendations.
I had purchased a 2017 Tacoma TRD Off Road (AT) and this was still early on in the production of the 3rd Gens with little mods available. The engine powerband paired with the stock transmission tune is what drove me nuts to the point where I hated driving it. I had my ECU reflashed with all the "shifting enhancements" from Toyota and it did nothing. First let me tell you why I didn't like it:

• My daily drive is up and down the mountain slope. Downhill and flat surface driving is fine. Going back uphill is when I saw the shifting quirkyness. It's not that it was shifting too much. I could've dealt with that. It's that it always upshifted into a higher gear, losing power from my previous gear. Then I'd mash the pedal to get the power and it would end up downshifting too much and ...it was annoying. There was also a noticeable lag in response. You mash the pedal down and you'd wait a couple seconds before the ECU said "ok let's go!". So you'd have to time things, like merging or passing. A couple seconds make a big difference.
  
• The 3.5 has power, but it doesn't come online until about 3700 RPM. I really appreciated the low end torque of the 4.0. I really noticed this when I was off-roading at higher elevation. 11,000 ft in 4Lo. It climbs, but 1st gear was needed a lot since 2nd gear just didn't have the power.

That said, I loved everything else about it. The looks, the ride, and the features.

I'm particular about my stuff, but never would've thought I'd sell a new truck and go back to a 2nd Gen. My recommendation is do a good test drive, which was something I wasn't allowed to do. Go up hills and a bit on the freeway. See for yourself if it's something you are okay with. I mean, there's a lot of people that love the 3rd Gen and don't notice an issue. For the people I've spoken too that have one (and had a 2nd Gen), they all say the same as me.

If I was in the same position today, I wouldn't sell the 3rd Gen. BUT, I'd regear to 4.88 and run OVTune's reflash. I wouldn't consider owning one without these base mods. It's just unfortunate that I'd be voiding parts of my warranty from the get-go.

I drove a manual transmission 3rd Gen a little later at a used dealership and I liked it better. Better gearing and, of course, more control over the shifting. I could've lived with that, but half the people I take hunting, fishing, and spearfishing with me doesn't know how to drive stick. So, I'd be stuck. Plus, after all these years driving stick, I prefer auto's for my rock crawling.

 

I couldn’t agree more! I had a 2016 Off-road and a 2012 Sport at the same time.
I loved the new technology of the 16, but absolutely hated the drivetrain! I also had the pcm reflashed by Toyota because the truck was always “gear hunting.” I hated driving it on the interstate because it would constantly downshift and up shift at the slightest incline! The power was great mid to top end, but don’t pull out in traffic from a start, lol. I’m sure the 6 speed would’ve been a game changer for me. Knowing what I know now, I would get a 6 speed in the 3rd generation.
The 12 sport seems to produce torque faster and at lower rpms. The truck rarely downshifted on the interstate and just felt better to me.
I ended up selling both and really regret selling the 12 sport. I had lots of mods in both trucks including a trd supercharger on the 12 sport....