OR 4x4 or Sport 4x4 ??

This is A-TRAC, only on TRD Off Road >>>>>

 

if i had to do it over, id get the 4 door long bed 4x4 sport instead of the short bed 4x4 Off-road. spend some extra on good ARB lockers front and back and get the long bed benefits....the short bed, as small a difference it is between them, its just too small to sleep, for bikes etc

maybe the when the new design comes.....until then i am very happy with my truck outside of the small bed.

 

This is the OP. I am located in Southern California. I will not NEED 4x4 to often at all. Occasional trips to the mountains to the snow, a fire road here and there, and the desert once in awhile.

I think I am stuck with the Sport regardless or options or capability. I am committed to getting the double cab and long bed with 4x4. Not an option in the offroad trim. The short bed will not cut it for me. There are not to many toys I carry that are shorter than 5 feet =)

 

Doublecab longbox Sport 4x4 is a capable rig for what you are describing , I've never had an issue yet .

Now your decision should be based on if you are going to replace the suspension and lift , whether or not an SR5 4x4 wouldn't make more sense and put the saved $ towards your upgrades

 

That is probably the hardest thing for me to decide. The Sport has the color matched handles mirrors skewp=) and I want white. I don't like the look of the white with the chrome bumper and grill and black door handles. If I was getting silver, it looks ok/good. Maybe I am just too picky. This will be my first brand new vehicle if I pull the trigger. Hard to decide with 30K on the line.

 

Gotta get what makes YOU happy , either way , best of luck

DCLB FTMFW BITCHES

 

My truck is a white double cab long bed sport 4X4. Very capable to begin with, even more so with a few tweaks of the suspension. I think you'll be very happy with one.

 

This might interest you OP

http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/showthread.php?p=5153505

 

I hear ya I just made the decision to go for the OffRoad about a month ago, and swapped a hood scoop and just bought color coded door handles and mirrors (couldn't stand the OffRoad look after already owning a sport). As far as the bumpers I'm putting Relentless Fab armor all the way around so color coded wasn't an issue.
In the end of the day its your truck, either way you go I'm positive that if you like the look of the Sport, make sure you get it, whether it's the way I did or just by sacrificing A-Trac and lockers, which you can get lockers later if need be.
Good luck and welcome to the first of so many questions and decisions on how to buy/build/change/drive/fiance/ext your Tacoma will require...

 

With good tires you will. Same thing--doesn't matter what brakes you have on the vehicle, anti-lock, high-performance, brembo, klingon warp drive...

Again, if your tires suck, you are just going to slide.

The tire is the #1 most important piece of gear you can upgrade to if you want increased traction, maneuverability, and braking in any situation. It trumps 4wd, lsd, [insert tech nanny device here]..

example: In winter driving conditions, in terms of handling, performance, stopping, whatever...a rear wheel drive truck with studded snow/ice tires will run circles around a stock 'TRD Offroad' with the crappy stock rugged fail tires. I don't care if you have lsd, locker, a-trac, whatever nanny gadget you can find. The truck with the studded snow/ice tires will leave it in the dust. Period. End of story. If you don't believe me ask any RWD tow driver on Loveland Pass who is pulling out that 4WD Truck or Jeep out of the snow bank because it is stuck. He is able to go in and pull them out, not because he has 4WD or A-TRAC or LSD. He is pulling them out because he has studded snow tires and they do not. That's why they got stuck to begin with. A simple RWD truck with simple studded tires got the job done. The drivers probably desperately kept hitting the LOCKER and A-TRAC button while slamming the pedal, to no avail. "Why isn't this thing moving? How come my locker isn't working? Toyota said this would keep me from getting stuck. F This. I'm taking this thing back to the dealer and throw a fit."

The same appllies for offroad. If you do not have high quality mud tires ande venture into the mud, you will fail and go nowhere. Engage the locker all you want. Both your rear and front wheels will spin and you will need to be pulled out by someone with the appropriate tires who can come in and get you out without getting stuck himself.

People make way too much of nanny gadgets. In fact, I have seen more people that get themselves into trouble with the nanny gadgets because:

#1 They lack the experience to be where they are. They really have no idea what they are doing. They just read the sales brochure and saw the pic of the tacoma perched on a rock ledge.
#2 They think nanny gadgets are a replcamenet for skill and experience and will make up for the lack thereof.
#3 They have a false sense of security. They think these nanny devices mean they can go and do whatever they want without getting stuck/stranded/flipped/crushed/impaled.
#4 And first and formeost, their tries suck. They spent all their money on nanny gadgets, offroad lights, or went for the best looking tires, but forgot to spend on quality tires that will help them, not just look good.

 

I hope he's grilling steaks mmmmmmm

 

Very good ribs. It started to rain, though. Maybe my A-TRAC and Locker can make it stop raining.

 

be sure to use DAC so u don't slide down hill in the rain

 

It's true. My unicycle has no nanny gadgets at all and it never gets stuck. Why? Because I've got the best tire money can buy on it.

 

I think he meant deciding between a DCLB Sport and DCLB SR5

 

You have a point. I might forget to put my foot on the brake pedal and don't know how to engine brake.

 

I DARE you to say "nanny gadget" again! LOL

 

Does "trac" in 4 hi on a Sport work on both front and rear ?

 

Are you aware pumping the brake rather than locking them up will stop you faster on the same tires? ABS is a proven "nanny device" that's on 99% of vehicles today.
Same concept for the newer traction devices.
However you are right IMO that good tires do make a big difference on a vehicle, I'm currently waiting for my 285/70/17 KM2's, but I won't go there with this thread.