How good is a Prerunner in snow and or off road?

According to the 1999 brochure, first gen TRD's with the 3RZ and AT did not come with the e-elocker.

 

I got lucky and found a 2004 Tacoma DCSB 4x4 V6 with the E locker and it's so nice to have 3 wheel motion! Lol! It even has leather too! Get a 4x4!!!

 

Although I have seen my buddy go in some pretty crazy places in his old school Honda Civic front wheel drive! Definitely impressed me! It was in the snow. Front wheel drives do great in the snow

 

How much 'snow' are we talking? What's 'off road' to you? Some places I go 1" of snow is an OMG close the city type of storm and anything that doesn't have pavement is 'off road'. Trails are relatively flat as well, you can build up some speed and use momentum. If you're going to crawl, it's not going to go very well. Trails and light snow, a honda civic with bald tires is more than enough. You don't needs skill for that, you just need to not be an idiot.

Where I am, we get SNOW. Up in the mountains you'll be running a trail that looks like it's covered in seedlings. Dig down a few feet and you see you're driving over trees. I get 4-6 foot drifts in my driveway regularly.

Real snow, 2wd trucks with a ton of weight in the back, are stuck. Real off roading, stuck. Rear drive pickups in general are made for hauling stuff in the bed, there's not enough weight back there even with a couple hundred pounds. Take away the pull from the front axle, no steering. You'll just get pushed in a straight line. But since 4wd isn't an option, not really sure why you're asking.


The only thing more expensive than doing something right the first time, is doing it right the second.

 

OP, I was in the same boat when I was looking to buy my first vehicle at age 17. I was an old man in mind. I figured no bells and whistles that wouldn't be a necessity. I wasn't into offloading much. camping, hunting and fishing were my thing. It came down to a dodge dakota 4wd and a ford ranger 2wd. The dodge was $1,800 more so I was gonna get the ranger and save some coin. Taking the advice of my father and a couple others who've "been there, done that" I got a loan for a little more so I could get the dodge. More maintenance and not as easy to learn working on cars as the 2wd I was sort of regretting it. Then one day on a camping trip in early spring hit a patch of slop on an old logging and I was stuck. Yep, I wasn't going anywhere. Put it in 4hi and I was free! Right then and there I realized even if I used 4wd only once for the life of the vehicle, it was worth it. Saved myself a hefty tow bill and my weekend wasn't screwed with having call buddies or recovery companies.

You don't know what situation you'll be in down the road since these trucks don't die so might as well get the 4x4. It's worth it. Plus if you decide to sell, 4x4 will fetch a higher resale price.

Oh, and if you think flat, paved surfaces won't be an issue in the snow, I have gotten "stuck" in the paved parking lot after a rain/freeze situation. Popped it in 4hi until I got traction backing out and then into 2wd and away I was. You don't want to be that guy that gets stuck on a flat, paved surface. Plus, the TRD locker is not advised in snowy/icy roads. Regular ol' 4wd is the best. Being in those conditions, 4wd just seems mandatory.

 

Ive never owned one, but have looked at a couple(which obviously didnt have the locker like you say) so i guess i just assumed they had them as an option with the trd...

 

Simply put Good A/T tires is all you need for all practical purposes. If crawling or mudding is your thing then get a 4x4. And if its that bad out just stay home.

 

Nope, the Tundras didn't get them lol


My grandma has a four door first gen prerunner. It's a TRD but has no locker :\

 

Just gonna leave this here...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yMLHtApOCwc

 

Yip.......

 

Debated and debated for awhile between 2wd and 4wd before I bought mine. Live in SoCal so no snow to worry about. but I do go snowboarding but even then the roads are always plowed. Was thinking I wouldn't be wheeling much so 2wd would be easier and cheaper. But ended up going for a 4wd and extremely glad I did. Having the 4wd has allowed to me explore and see places I would have not had the chance if I went 2wd. I would never need 4wd where I live, but having the 4wd allows me the opportunity to explore and go places I cant. Now all my friends have gotten 4wd so we can explore more.

 

I was more paying attention to how well the seat belt retracted when he took it off

 

Wait a minute. Seat belts are supposed to retract?

 

I have a 4x4 and it's damn near impossible to drive straight in the snow in 2wd.

 

Must have crappy tires or too much throttle, I drive in 2WD all the time on the ice without issues, only ever use 4WD when I absolutely need it.

 

I didn't bother reading any of this post or this thread, but I'll give you this as a Prerunner owner myself. If you have to ask... buy the 4x4

 

Is it a 4 cyl? How can you be sure it's a trd if it's v6 with no locker?
Ps I know we've had this discussion before but I don't recall the results lol

 

The TRD 4 cylinders didn't come with lockers. Yes, there were 4 cylinder TRD first gen's made, not at all very common. Most people opted for the V6 because they wanted the locker. Kinda pointless to have a TRD without a locker if you ask me, pretty much the point of the whole package. Without it it's basically a SR5 with TRD stickers on the bed, not much else is different.

 

Trd had progressive coil springs....

 

@Ice Horse did you check the stock coils?