Chose 16 Tacoma after 4 other truck test drives, In Depth review, color choice,price paid

Hello,

I am new to the forum and new to the Tacoma Club. I am located in Pittsburgh, PA and would be glad to tell anyone local on where to get the best deal on the Tacoma. Ill try to make this short and explain the trucks I drove and ultimately why I chose the Tacoma. Pittsburgh is just all hills, beat up roads, traffic and narrow avenues. First my trade in is an 09, VW CC, with 66k miles. Max max budget after trade is 30k out the door after everything.

I first drove the 15" F150 because they just started offering 0% and incentives. I was only interested in the XLT sport package with center console. None to be had within 200 miles of Pitt. I drove an XLT standard package instead and came with the 2.7 eco. Driving it, the truck felt great, got up to speed nicely and drove pretty good. However, the interior is CHEAP. Was not comfortable at all, no tailgate assist, cab is higher than all full size 1500's, and aluminum body is all they talked about. They advertised over 10k off, realistically most average people qualify for about 3-4k off. So, that put it out of contention.


Next, I drove a 15' left over Sierra Elevation package. Very nice looking truck. However, interior is all base model. Manual floor shift 4x4, small 4 inch screen, and all very minimal. However, the 5.3 truly does get good gas mileage for a V8 and felt great, ride was nice and I did like the truck SECOND most out of everything. Price came out to be $35,500k after all rebates.

Next, at the same dealership I drove the 16' Colorado Z71 and a Canyon SLE. The Colorado was the better of the two although the GMC offered Auto 4x4, which is something I really liked. The Colorado, since it was a Z71 had the better interior and sportier appearance. They drove relatively the same. The GMC had a softer feel, which I knew because it didnt have Z71. However, the transmission couldnt find the right gear, I felt a lot lower, like I was in my girls Nissan Rogue low, even the Z71. The interior is pretty nice and ample room in the rear seats as well. However, it just felt more SUV like than truck like. It is clearly designed for the person to say they have a truck and never put anything in the bed. The GMc full size actually got the same if not better MPG. We drove the same route, same amount of time with no traffic. they were nice but the price killed it. Best they could was $34,000 on the Z71 and $34,550 on the GMC. Neither had the Tow package.

Now to the Tacoma. I loved the new design the most out of all the trucks. That's what attracted me, then the resale value cant be ignored. Also, the reliability. I drove a blue TRD Sport and a Black TRD OR. Both double cab and short box. The sport definitely has the looks to it that it off where the OR looks more bad ass.
I drove the Sport first. It was a bumpy ride. It seamed pretty stiff. Also, if you are under 5,7" have fun looking over the hood scoop. I hated it! love the way it looks, but I cant see correctly and it obstructs my view. Sales guy thought I was nuts by saying I didnt like it. I really like the new design of the interior. Navigation is pretty much standard on all TRD's and most have the Tow package too, which is something important to me that the GM twins didnt have! Only problem is the seats sit low, like I'm in my car low. However, still wasnt too bad, but id hate to be 6,5". Also, no power seats, which is something I really wanted. I also wanted heated seats but not willing to upgrade the package to all the other stuff I wont use or need. It cornered well for a truck and felt very stable. It did search for gears but actually wasnt too bad. Also wish it had more USB offerings and a power outlet for the rear seats would have been nice.
Lastly, the TRD OFF ROAD. I immediately fell in love! It looks better, drives better, rides better and is just plain better in every way. The ride was much more smoother, there is no hood scoop so I could actually see good as well. It felt better on the highway too, even though cornering wasnt as tight as the Sport. You could also definitely feel the off road tires. So that was a pain, but Ill get used to it until they wear down and get different tires. You also get more for the same money. You get useful upgrades rather than non. Locking rear, crawl control, better shocks, tow hooks, under body protection panels, better tires, ect.

The TRD Off Road had the best ride out of all the trucks, even the GM twins. It felt like a truck and not an SUV, perfect height, perfect size for what I wanted. It had no hood scoop so I could actually see as well. I felt the seats could be better and the transmission needs to have a programming update from Toyota. However, its not so bad that I am going to stray away.

Closing Pricing and Colors: I had a deposit on a black OR SB, after thinking about it I didnt like how dirty black looks and it doesnt show off the curves and true look of the truck. I only went with that one at first because they were offering 2k off of the msrp, YES 2k off!! (Bob Massie Toyota). So I went to a bigger dealership closer to me, showed them the paperwork and their offers. They matched the discount, gave me more for my car, and said I could build me own to my liking! all for $33890 and a total of $2980 out the door after trade. So exactly what I wanted! Now to put the color? I liked the Sandstone the best, they had one there, but it was already sold. What would you choose?

 

Mine is black, but that sand is beautiful! Don't settle get what you want.

 

Get a manual. Drives 5.7x better than the auto. Scientific fact.

 

Quicksand!

 

Get the quicksand, think about all the swirls and dirt the black will show. Have a look at this guy's truck

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/build-commences-in-3-2-1.414134/page-2#post-11882767

 

To me as it stands it's Sand or the MGM grey.

 

I'm glad you posted this. I felt the exact same way. I looked at F150, Ram, Sierra, Canyon... I would love to get 28-30mpg (Ram/Canyon diesel) but -30 degree temps with no plug is a reality for me and a risk I can't take. Likewise by the time I was happy with an F150 or Sierra it was $50k with incentives and the trucks even though not much longer than the DCLB I drove feel huge by comparison (making the expensive electronics in them even more desired by me).

Basically everything you explained are my observations as well.

Oh and I don't trust the 4L50E transmission in the small GM diesels...I had a 4L70E in my Camaro and that was not that much more torque.

 

Thank you. I didn't even look at Rams because I have seen 2013's with rust through the pain on multiple occasions. I was tempted to look at the diesel from ram but can't trust the truck and heard many horror stories as well. The f150 I wanted was $46k they advertise so many incentives but no one qualifies. The fm diesels as wayyyy too expensive and no one has them yet, very back ordered. The Tacoma was perfect for me at the price I wanted and everything I wanted.

 

I actually love the diesel they put in the Ram. My father has a beautiful '15 Grand Cherokee with it that gets 30mpg in traffic...and in general his GC is just awesome but I didn't want an SUB and the Ram just isn't my kind of truck and I was worried about the diesel and the potential extreme temps... I've got a black DCLB OR on order...