Drum Brakes on SR5 4X4

I'm not having buyers remorse or anything, but I'm wondering why they still put drum brakes on the back of the SR5 and down model Tacoma's? I'm not so dissatisfied that I want to trade my truck (got it in March 21), but I was wondering if anyone has ever converted the drums to disc and what an estimated cost would be? If it's a fortune, I'll drive it for a few years, sell it, and upgrade to a TRD model....

Just curious what ideas you all have...thanks.

 

I know I should have done more research before I bought, but honestly brakes were not on my mind at the time.

 

FTFY

 

All trims have drums in the rear, TRD, Limited
. There are conversion kits you can buy to have disc in the rear

 

Drums work, there is no reason to need discs on a pickup truck. But if you must have discs, there are conversions to put in discs.

 

Love my drums. Much less maintenance and life of my rear brakes....

 

This very subject has been debated ad nauseum on this very site. Personally, I just hate drums because they slept with my wife once. I kid. I don't like them for a lot of reasons that have nothing to do with performance.

I took the plunge and converted over to rear disc. I went with the SOS Performance kit. It's the cheapest of the two or three that are floating around. I have no experience with the others. With that said, I'd never do it again. I won't go into the reasons, other than to say that it's not worth the time, effort or money invested into the SOS kit. Yes, Toyota cut many corners on this truck. They rectified some of it in later model years, but there is still a lot of nickel and diming in the build of this truck. And it's with the dumbest thing.

 

Drum da dum dum!

Drummm da dum dum doooooooooommmmmmm.

 

Thanks for the information....I'm still new to the site and learning about my first Tacoma. Nothing wrong with the drums, so I guess it would be just a preference thing for me. I'll try searching the old links before I post again.

 

Yet it still dominates sales.
There is no threat to Toyotas midsize truck crown, and the R&D for the Tacoma was paid off somewhere in the early 2nd Gen lifespan.
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, if there was a credible threat to steal their market share, they’d be slapping on rear discs on the next model year to keep that crown. Kinda like their OEM lift kit that they offer now, that’s a sign that they’re keeping an eye on things, but aren’t worried about the competition. Maybe the trucks themselves are better value, maybe not, but it’s SALES that count in this game.
Anyway… most of the bitching and whining and moaning is done on TW, which accounts for a very small percentage of actual owners.

Drum brakes are perfectly fine for the Tacoma. I batter the hell out of my ‘21 OR and I’ve never had an issue with the drums.

 

I was in the same boat as you (OP). Surprised that my Taco had drum brakes. But after reading about the subject ad nauseum on this very site drum brakes no longer bother me. They seem to last a long time and I cannot tell a difference. So, drums are fine with me. Just keep them away from your loved ones or bad things can happen- as mentioned below. My wife and daughters cannot drive my Taco for this very reason. BTW, crashhd is kidding himself if he thinks it was just once.

 

Oh for sure. I had the option of the Ranger, Colorado, and a billion year old Frontier when I bought mine. But Toyota can't rest on their laurels for too much longer.

 

I was trying to be funny. Not jerky. Believe me I was trying to save you from getting blasted by others. Sorry if I came across as jerky!

 

Welcome to TW OP. At least you didn't ask what the largest tire you could fit on your truck with a 6" spacer/block lift.

 

No worries at all and I didn't take your response as "jerky." I had originally thought the TRDs had disc brakes....still learning these trucks, but loving mine so far!

 

I never replaced drum brake shoes ever in any of my toyotas. They seem to work ok and wear like iron....besides most of your braking is done by the front brakes

 

Haven’t you only had your truck for at most 9 months? Seems like almost anything would be issue free for that long.

That said, drum brakes are fine but compared to my 4runner, my Tacoma’s brakes suck. I wish it stopped better, but I drive like an old man so it’s not a big concern for me.

 

Apparently less maintenance and better for offroad dirt, mud etc.

 

If you want to actually upgrade brake performance and not just dump the drums you'd be much MUCH better served spending your money on front brake upgrades than a rear disk conversion.
One inch larger diameter rotors (and pads / calipers to match) will make a way bigger difference than disks on the rear ever will.

 

Define "old".