2020 Tacoma, an unexpected improvement

Could I have a passenger taillight ? Mine is cracked. One thing that I could say that bothers me is the lumbar, I wish had little different adjustment.

 

Excellent, keep us posted on the tranny flash.

 

Mat just posted today that he finally has a 2020 ECU dump and there are no changes between 19 and 20 shift tables/throttle maps, etc.

 

Just for this I'm waiting for the 2021's to trade, then Ima start a thread about how it makes the '20 look like a clapped out Chevy Luv.

Nice truck, glad you weren't hurt.

 

Glad to know that you are okay. Congrats on the new truck. Regarding your first impression write-up, very cool...

 

I would hook you up but my insurance has already hauled off my old truck.

 

She's lucky she didn't have her kids in there

 

No problem, glad that you are okay, though.

 

This is good news. I like that the 3rd gen is improving with age. I still like my middle of the road 2017

 

fingers crossed that older 3rd gens can update the transmission software

 

Apples to oranges. Report back once you put those wheel:tires combos on the 2020

 

I bought into that paranoia, and found my transmission to be filled perfectly. Literally within a teaspoon. My guess is most people who reported low transmission fluid didn’t do a good job of measuring what went in compared to what came out. I think that was another TW wild goose chase.

The issue with the 3G Tacoma, in my opinion, if it is even an issue at all, is this:

The 2G was already a bit of a dog with the 4.0L (lets be honest guys) and wasn't exactly a powerhouse platform to build from.

For the 3G, Toyota took the 2G and designed a very lightweight (but heavier?) truck with just enough power to be acceptable. The new engine has just enough jam to get the stock truck rolling with its fake plastic bumpers, tin plate skids, on stock 30” passenger radials.

Most guys on TW, myself included, almost immediately burden their trucks with heavier tires (at very least), and larger tires and a tonne of heavy mods (in many cases). Regardless of TSB, or OVTune, or 5.29, or 2020 tune, or 93 Octane, the engine is just adequate for the stock truck, and a little, or perhaps a lot underpowered once the mods start adding up.

Every new 3G model year starts out with a bunch of fellas reporting more power and smoother shifting (saw this in 2017, 2018, 2019, and now 2020), while the truck is still stock. Two to Three weeks later, the KBros go on, and then the sliders and RTT, as then the complaining starts in earnest about torque, and shift points (like, how can a transmission shift properly when it doesn’t know how big the tires are, and the truck is 1000lbs heavier?). We see this trend most with former 3G owners who forget what a stock truck drove like.

Unless the 2020 comes with a more powerful engine (for real, not on paper), we’ll see the same trend.

I’m OK with this reality. In my mind the 3G is a return to what Toyota has always offered, and does best: gutless but reliable pickups, that are super cool, capable, and mostly loved by their owners.

I love mine.

 

No, you miss read. I ONLY ran those wheels and tires with OVtune and it was perfect.

I am specifically comparing the factory 2018 to the factory 2020.

 

Just to be clear, this truck does not feel like it has more power nor did I say that. I am specifically speaking about its drivability at highway speeds and shifting with greater predictability without gear hunting when compared to my 2018.

 

I’m not accusing you of saying anything. Just musing to myself, in public, about a recurring theme I see here.

 

Not in my case. Although I changed wheels and tires, they were 17” Ray 10’s and 265/65/17 KO2’s. Nothing else. The weight change was minimal.

The truck drove fine in the city (with ECT). However, long distance freeway driving was annoying. In Texas, we roll down the freeway at 70. 75-85mph is common. The six speed auto on cruise control at those speeds was an annoying mother fucker. That was my Inferno 2017.

No such issues with my 2015.

I prefer the 3rd gen, including the powerplant. But not on long distance cruises. When I believe that is fixed, I’ll sell my 2015. It’s gonna take a few more months of anecdotal evidence before I’ll even bother to test drive one.

 

Is it just me, or does the first picture look like the perfect meme format?

 

Maybe the transmission fix isn't in software and that part is being kept quiet. I remember putting a valve kit in my dodge transmission about 35 years ago and it changed it quite a bit.

 

She actually looks like she's in shock. Probably thinking "What if the kids were in the car". She's in the wrong but you never know what someone is going through or thinking just prior to something like this. Shit happens.

 

So has mine and it’s a 2019. I’ve been saying the same thing on this site since I’ve been here. Don’t worry, the guys who insist there is something wrong with all of them will either say you’re lying or just ignore you completely.