4.6i in Tacoma

That's disappointing

 

Toyota is proving they don't need to innovate. They are just resting on their reliability and resale crown, and laughing as people stand in line to buy their products. Ford is changing the game with turbo engines, and GM is changing it with diesel engions. They should have stayed with the 2nd gen powertrain, and just changed the body style. They would have saved millions, and had happier customers.

I've driven the Ford 5.0 V8 and the 3.5 ecoboost. My vote is for a v6 with a turbo over a v8 any day. I never thought I'd say that, but the ecoboost is a fantastic engine. Since Ford doesn't make the Ranger yet, I voted by trading my 3rd gen for a diesel Canyon, and love it.

 

They almost certainly have a presence here, but it is just a miniscule fraction of the info they use for marketing and development and taken with a huge grain of salt at that.

 

V8's are going the way of stick shift transmissions and crank windows. 15 years from now I wouldn't be surprised if there won't a v8 option in half ton trucks anymore. It will just be for straight work trucks.

 

Very true, I had a chance to drive a friends F150 which had the smaller 2.7 ecoboost. The motor felt very strong and moved the f150 quite well. I just wish toyota would have kept the power band in there new motor a little lower and of course bumped the torque up somewhere close to 300ft lb.

 

Meh. Look at the GM twins, put a v8 in the Colorado, sales were still shit compared to the taco.

 

Had a 1st gen tundra and loved the V8.
That being said I like my 4.0 more... now that it's supercharged

 

I would have paid $5k more for the V8 but only if it still offered the manual.

 

For everyone complaining about the Tacoma drivetrain: How often are you actually going WOT and still wanting more power? Is this really a matter of too little power, or do you just want the feeling of more power without having to press the pedal so much?

I've never felt like my V6 Tacoma has been lacking in power. Of course I wouldn't turn down an opportunity to have more power on tap if everything else was equal, but that extra power would come at the cost of increased weight and decreased gas mileage, neither of which would be worth it for me. The 4.6L V8 only has 11% more horsepower, and some of that additional power would be consumed by the additional weight of the motor. Vehicle balance would also shift more toward the front. Really not a convincing argument unless you want a V8 for the sake of having a V8 and you don't mind paying for it with worse gas mileage and higher costs.

I had a V8 4Runner years ago. As much as that V8 model is glorified on the internet, it wasn't actually much quicker than the V6. The low-end torque would give a false impression that it was substantially faster, but it ran out of power quickly where the V6 kept on pulling.

 

Better power would be nice. The 3.5 struggles on the highway. An F150 with the 3.5 Eco boost gets the same mileage as a taco, but it's not working so hard at highway speeds. It's a heavier truck, but the engine isn't revving high, trying to keep up. Same with the Silverado V8. Heavier truck, but similar mileage.

 

Power as a measurement is so much more than just a number on a sheet of paper and what you experience when you go heavy on the throttle. If you cannot achieve power without mashing the throttle and waiting until the engine revs up to 4k rpms to hit the torque sweet spot, you're not really getting the experience that most of us care to experience.

The truck is underpowered for sure, and being as underpowered as it is, it should be more fuel efficient...but did that stop any of us from buying the truck?

 

You're misinterpreting what the vehicle is doing. The vehicle selects the best gear and best RPM based on optimizing gas mileage, not just because the engine is struggling. There's nothing wrong with the engine revving higher.

This is one of the reasons why the automatic Tacoma gets better gas mileage than the manual Tacoma. The truck is better at picking an optimal gear than you are. It's unsettling to people who think the only reason the transmission shifts is because the engine doesn't have enough power, but that's not actually what's going on.

 

Honest question: Why does it bother you so much? If the power is on tap and you can unlock it by pressing the pedal more, what's the problem?

 

Unfortunately, I don't think we'll ever see a V8 in the Tacoma. I would have ordered one if it was available with a manual. It will be interesting to see if Toyota responds when the 2018 Ranger 2.7 (turbo V6) shows up with 325 hp @ 5750 rpm and 375 lb-ft @ 3000 rpm.

 

All I know is the truck struggles at highway speeds, and gets at least 6 MPG less than the window sticker for most people. My SR5 4X4 was rated for 23, and I never got over 18. My Canyon diesel has a ton of torque, and I've actually gotten better MPG that what the window sticker says. It Apples and oranges I know, but poor highway performance might be acceptable to most of us, if it got anywhere close to the MPG ratings, or the reverse, tons of power and shitty mileage. We got both, shitty highway power and crap mileage. If a heavier truck with a V8 can get 18 plus, the Tacoma should get over 20. This truck would be perfect with a eco-boost type setup or with a diesel. My diesel has 97 less horsepower, yet it feels like it has much more useable power on the highway, because I don't have to put my foot through the floor to stay at 70 and maybe even accelerate. Toyota screwed the pooch on this powertrain, and they need to lower the EPA ratings. No way I would have bought a mid sized truck if I had known it would get 18 or less on the highway, especially with the new "fuel efficient" Atkinson cycle engine.

 

I wouldn't expect anything to change anytime soon after. They will wait a year or two and view sales numbers before making any changes. Toyota will look at the first 6 months of ranger sales being due to a new truck so they won't count those. The next 6 months they will consider competition. They will then wait to see what happens the following year, same quarter. If tacoma sales are down they may then consider something, but as long as Tacoma sales stay up, you will continue to see what you see today.

 

There are many who would disagree with you, myself included. However, the nice thing about capitalism is that there are competition and options. Good for you for buying a GM and making a statement with your wallet. So many on here whine and complain about their Tacomas yet for some reason hang on to them.

 

Smokes what exactly? Not in acceleration that is for damn sure. Yes it tows more, but 95% of the people who buy trucks have no clue how to even use a hitch much less alone tow anything.

For serious towing NO ONE BUYS A MIDSIZE TRUCK, period end of story. Who ever started this thread should be put in the corner.

 

Whoa, Ford Ranger in America? Has it been confirmed by Ford? All information I have and been told: Ranger was eliminated in the US because it took sales away from the All mighty F150.

 

Ford confirmed the Ranger and Bronco are coming back. When Trump was raising hell about ford taking sedan production to Mexico during the election, Ford had to acknowledge that the sedan production is being moved to make room or Ranger and Bronco production. 2018 subject to change.