Potential upgrades and enjoy opinions

I am purchasing the 2016 Tacoma Trd Off road, short bed, tech out here on Big Island. My goals as far as end product I want a Taco that handles most anything Off road, has plenty of power for when I want to put it down, and maintains a happy gf on road. First things budget is not a factor. I seriously want to have a dream taco as far as performance, but am not too crazy about cosmetics. In the future I do plan on towing a boat within reason. I have been looking at the Icon stage 7, afe stage 2 "Momentum"cold air, Borla cat back. I am interested but questionable to Carbon fiber drive shaft, xenon headlamps, Thule xsporter, Bf good K02, and front and rear guards. If anyone would please be so kind to make some remarks about are these products the best, are there better out there, if so which brand and why. Also if you think I should tune it after I do all of these, and would you add something else?

http://afepower.com/shop/details_ne...del=Tacoma&year=2016&engine=3.5L&&brandID=135

http://iconvehicledynamics.com/shop...75-suspension-system-stage7-w-billet-uca.html

Tacoma 2016 Cat-Back™ Exhaust S-Type part # 140680

 

Anybody out there? Plenty of activity, but no one actually has anything to say.

 

You'll end up with a Tacoma that has stock suspension and a pricey drive shaft.

Let me break your heart first: driving good on and offroad are two VERY different beasts and quite mutually exclusive.

 

Not to be rude but I don't believe a stock Tacoma suspension compares to a Stage 7 Icon. This is an adjustable system so I have the option to alter it based on my conditions. Improving the intake and exhaust have been explained so I'm not going to beat a dead horse. Saying that it'll be a stock suspension with an expensive driveshaft is not a sound remark it doesn't make sense.

 

'improving' the intake and exhaust on this truck will net you zero power gains. If it's sound you're looking for, then I guess it will be good for that.

 

Ok so nevermind Tacomaworld mahalo.

 

Not trying to argue with you. Note that AFE posts no dyno numbers.. why? because there are no power gains. Same for exhaust. More air flow doesn't mean jack if the ECU is adjusting for it. It's 2016 man, cars nowadays are not getting any benefit from breathing better.

 

OP these are guys who have many miles on these trucks telling you to first spend some time with the vehicle and get to know it: put some good tires on it that match the stock size and enjoy it for awhile. Changing out your exhaust and intake will not net you any real meaningful power change. Period. It'll "sound" cool, sure, but it will not perform better.

I own an Icon suspension. The fact you want to take a brand new vehicle with less than 1000 miles to pull off the shocks and springs and put on $4500 (with tube arms which I bet you think are worse than billet arms) system is just simply silly. Relax a bit. Drive your truck. Figure out what you want to do and what the truck needs and how it falls short THEN work on THOSE shortcomings you find don't just start ripping off warrantied parts and replacing them because "offroad."

 

I understand some of these people know what they are talking about, and the ones that do speak from experience more often than not. However, when Ive got people telling me to leave it stock and that this is wasted money clearly do not understand my off road needs. Living in the Big island, dealing with the a'a fields, and living on an ever changing landscape requires the gear I've selected. The fact that I want to spend more towards the top end is of no concern. If you have advice that I asked for ie: what do you think of these particular pieces of equipment, do you think there is better on the market and why. This was not a question for people who need to leave it stock or want to.

 

I can read your post and tell you that you do not know why you need an Icon Stage 7 lift.

 

Thank you for the advice sir. I do plan on buying the K02's which I have Nitto Mud's on my '15 TRD Pro 4runner how do you think they compare? I've heard about the rear leaf package from OME do you know anything about them?

 

Digital thanks for joining in but I'm good brother.

 

Mahalo brother. I appreciate the advice, and wasn't trying to come off rude. I just have a few vehicles and am making the plunge into the Taco sauce.

 

Aloha DonkeyFresco, always good to see a fellow Big Islander here. I gotta ask what you have in mind for your truck? What areas you looking to check out? All those are factors in how you build your truck. If you want the most capable truck, then I would go tires, suspension, and if you need gear/armor. Power upgrades are basically non-existent for the 3.5's as of yet. No TRD supercharger in the works either. Unless you're looking to get REALLY out there, then a stock Tacoma TRD Off-Road will do 99% of the roads out here. Before I got my license plates, I took my mostly stock Tacoma to Makalawena, across Kekaha Kai to airport, and from South Point to Kalualu. No problems, but some parts take driver skill. With that being said, if I were going to upgrade, it would be with coilovers and UCA's up front and a leaf pack in the rear. 33's would be as large as I would go tire wise, probably stick with 285's width wise. Definetely AT's over MT's. I'm not a fan of bracket lifts, because in some hunting grounds, and even some beaches down south, you will scrape the roof on a tall truck. Gear/Racks/Armor will be your personal choice for your needs. I would try the truck out and see how you like it first. Stock rides great actually, but you may want it stiffer or softer. You should decide after a few hundred/thousand miles. The kit you were looking at is badass, no doubt. Just may not be what you need to build your dream truck.

 

ALOOOOOOOOOOHHAAAAA Brother. Im planning on making this truck rather ridiculous as you can tell boss, and I've got the ok from the girlfriend. I met brother shaymus yesterday who had the stage 4 on his runner and it was super clean. Im going to be on the trails from Naalehu to Kalapana mainly with random excursions to Kaena point on Oahu. Cheers for the advice, and it looks like I'll do some more research on fitting the Taco. Budget isn't an issue with this so money won't be wasted.

 

For sure man, lots of Toyota guys out here to steer you where you want to go. I'm kind of on the conservative side haha. Enjoy what the aina has to offer, and hope you have good times with the new truck. Keep us posted on the progress. Aloha

 

Guarantee. I'll be slapping it all together over the next 3 months

 

TRD air filter with

$890 MagnaFlow 19291 : Cat-Back, Street Series, For 2016-2023 Toyota Tacoma 3.5L, 73.7" Bed Length, Extended Cab, 60.5" Bed Length, Crew Cab, Single Passenger Side Rear Exit

MagnaFlow 19291 will open things up for you. Don't listen to all the buzz kill. The only issue with the Magnaflow the exhaust tip is big... I'd skip stock mud flaps and get the flexible ones aftermarket or just skip them .. if in a lot of mud you may want them.

ICON FMFW - there and then bigger tires and/or wheels. Go with some negative offset on the new wheels so you get more clearance on the inside and they look badass too.

Good luck with your new truck.

I have a friend on the island lives down around Waimanalo.. he used to live up in Punaluu he sends me pics of the big waves when everyone gets off work for the Eddie Aikau contest... woah that's crazy.

 

Aloha and thanks for the advice. I did notice that magnaflow were the only ones so far that have a dyno tuned cat- back. Have you seen any results from reducing the tip diameter? I haven't been able to locate any headers for this gen3 yet. As far as wheels I'm looking at the Mickey Thompson Sidebiter II, and the Fuel Recoil D584 paired with BF K02's or Nitto Terra Grapplers. Yeah Big island is an Off road dream world with all of the lava field, plenty of mud, sand but rare, and you can snow ski and surf in the same day. The Eddie has to be a minimum of 30'+ waves or they'll wait until next year lol.

 

Here's some interesting words from ICON
"The best kit for your Tacoma would be our Stage 7 system. This includes our rear OMEGA bypass shocks which offer both compression and rebound adjustability and the front coilovers are equipped with our CDC Valve and offers compression adjustability. The OMEGA series shocks require more tuning by the end user than most of our shocks so the Stage 6 would be the next step for a more simplified tune. This stage includes the CDC Valve in the rear shocks as well as the fronts.
We make all the components of ours kit ourselves. This ensures that the shocks and springs are tuned to complement each other and that maximum wheel travel can be achieved without worry of compatibility issues with other manufacturer’s parts. Also the standard tuning of our shocks is set up to provide an excellent balance of performance and ride quality for vehicles that are driven both on and off-road yet still giving you the option to customize the tune to your liking."