Tacoma Newbie, Toyota Newbie, and Truck Newbie

Hello Tacoma World,

I've been a car guy my whole 50+ year driving life and now...? When the world went Work From Home two years ago my typical fifteen- to twenty-thousand annual mileage rate dropped to less than three; and then I changed jobs where it is permanent WFH, so long as I live near an airport. My wife and I have been toying with swapping one of our cars for a truck so we can pull a small camping trailer or a boat and do some weekend get away stuff, and then came the rub; we joke neither of us ever learned how to drive a vehicle with an automatic transmission, and being in our mid-60s is no time to start. A quick perusal of mid-size pickup trucks reveals two are available with a stick, the Tacoma and the Gladiator; from my perspective, the Tacoma has a whole lot to love, the Gladiator, ummm, not so much.

Given I've gone so many decades without a truck, clearly I'm in no hurry, so I'm planning on ordering one (if Toyota even allows such a thing); the option list I'm looking for is as follows:

• 2022 Tacoma TRD Sport
  • 4WD
  • 3.5 V6 engine
  • 6-Speed Manual transmission
• Double Cab
• 5-foot bed
• Blue Crush Metallic paint
• Black Leather interior
• Premium Package
  • Advanced Technology Package
  • LED lighting

I contacted a local dealer here in New Hamster this morning; they have no such truck scheduled at the moment so I asked about ordering; "Freddy" the person I was chatting with told me he'd have someone from Sales contact me (which to my mind was a non-answer).

So, question for the collective here; does Toyota allow customers to do factory orders (via a dealership of course)?

 

Technically it’s an allocation. If the truck is available in the configuration you want, the dealer can put in for an allocation or dealer trade if another dealer has one and is willing. On the allocation the dealer will get it once Toyota makes the configuration and allocates to your dealer, it could be short or long wait all depends. Or it may not be allocated at all. Then you keep looking.

 

Welcome to TW. The short answer is no. Toyota does not do factory orders like what you are visualizing.

The long answer is that dealers have a line of communication to their distributor, and the distributor ("port") usually knows ahead of time what configurations will be allocated to them. If you put a request (and sometimes a deposit, yuck) to the dealer, then they can request a truck that matches what you want. And then it becomes a waiting game.

Naturally, the more flexible you are on some options, the shorter your wait.

 

Thanks for the quick responses @gotoman1969 and @Rock Lobster, I have the luxury of time so I can easily wait until the exact truck I want becomes available.

Someone from the Sales department just contacted me; I'll respond and let y'all know what he says.

 

Welcome to TacomaWorld
Having a Toyota built to your exact specifications is no longer available.

 

Settle for the automatic transmission, it will make choosing the 4Runner an easier decision.

 

Thanks @Black DOG Lila, yeah, I've learned that this morning; annoying. I just let my local dealership know the options I'm looking for; it will be interesting to see the response. I'm guessing my option list isn't exactly common, so it may take a long time, if ever, before a truck like what I want is built.

 

LOL, ain't gonna happen; to paraphrase, they'll have to pry the stick shift from my cold dead hand.

 

I'd import a classic 4x4 preferably a Toyota, if I had to have a stick shift. Good luck in your search for the truck you want.

 

If it’s a towing rig you’re after and if you’re going to have passengers and gear in the truck then you will need to keep the trailer under 4,000lb (loaded) with the Tacoma . Payload is less than 1,000lb typically.

 

Welcome to the TW

 

It'll typically just be my wife and me in the truck with relatively little gear, just luggage and such. I'm pretty sure the towing capacity of the Tacoma is well beyond what I'll need.

 

I just heard back from the dealership:

Thank you for being a valued repeat customer of our dealership group. I am going to check with my inventory manager. I don't feel that your request is unreasonable as many of our customers who are looking at manual transmission pickups are opting for the TRD Sport. I know that the time may be a few months, but it is certainly doable. In order to make an allocation request, I would have to have a product specialist reach out and collect some information as well as a $500 refundable deposit.​

This could get interesting.

 

At least with a manual you won’t have to worry about the lack of transmission radiator and over heating the trans…

Good luck with your purchase..

 

FYI getting the locking tailgate and bed step installed are two very useful upgrades…

 

Awesome advice; I was pondering the locking tailgate last night as I'll most likely put a cover of some sort on the bed; I did a little nosing around and am leaning toward the WeatherTech AlloyCover Hard Tri-Fold cover.

 

Welcome to TW…Have fun truck hunting!

 

I have a cheap Truxedo roll up. The tonneau and tailgate lock are my most used/useful mods.

 

Welcome!