Talk me out of getting a Ranger!

It would probably cost 60K too.

 

I saw a Gladiator today. And right behind it, a new Ranger. It wasn't the twilight zone either, it was HEB.

 

My OR ran me 32k. New.
No way in hell i'm as much or more for a Ranger or such.

 

Ranger thread 55 pages deep on a Tacoma Forum... I think even the loyalist Taco guys recognize the benefits of competition. I’m sure the Taco will get disc on all 4 corners soon just the same as its getting a power seat. The thing is though that this stuff is not over complicated gadgetry that’ll fail... it’s basic and simplistic. Better late than never... maybe all along Tacoma needed the Ranger to kick Toyota in the ass to help em along... in the end we all win

 

Won’t cost more than a full size raptor which starts at 52K.

 

"starts"

I have yet to see one for less than 70 msrp. I know the sticker says the base price is 52, but I think that's for the F-150 part of it, then the "Raptor" package adds about 10k plus whatever other options they add.

 

I was talking MSRP. No 4x4 OR has an MSRP of 32k. I don't factor discounts, incentives or negotiation skills into it because that applies across the board depending on timing.

 

Curious to see your opinion in what ways the Tacoma was better on your test drive. I found the complete opposite when I test drove both vehicles.

 

MSRP vs. MSRP, the ranger optioned out as close to my truck as possible, the ranger is $1100 more. And has a manual rear window as oppossed to the power version I have.

 

That manual rear window is such old technology! Such 15-20 year old technology. Should expect more from a $40k truck!

(mockery of the heated drum brake “issue”)

 

16's have manual rear windows as well so i'm not gonna judge too harshly lol. The Ranger certainly has several advantages over the Taco anyways. I just don't like the look or price of the Ranger. I won't get into resale, but that's a factor as well.

And Drum brakes are fine lol.

 

No. The F150 Raptor package starts at 52k. Just like how the Tacoma Pro starts at 43-44. The Ranger Raptor will be targeting ZR2 and Pro buyers.

 

But does the Ranger have a gear hunting garbage transmission?

 

Exactly my point though. It always seems as though the drums are brought up in some fashion, when many of the truck owners don’t keep their vehicles even long enough to service them. I think the power rear window is the only piece of “technology” I actually use on a regular basis!

 

There's a Ford lot here in Va.... we check them out now and then, not one - ever! for
less than $82K was ever seen. We were just there a few months ago and they had 8 of
them, all $82K+ Wife just looked over at me and said please....NO!

 

I have no complaints with drums. I plan on never having to service them though lol. My drums can squeak on low speed stops, but my pads in the front shift and clunk which is far more annoying IMO.

 

no issues here either drums, they work great and the last taco I traded in w/50K on the odo,
they weren't even 1/2 worn out.

 

"the past four years" is the part that leaves question. Miles don't tell the whole story. There are plenty of examples of plenty of other engines with bajillions of miles in a short period. The hardest thing on engines isn't miles; it's time and heat cycles. Those trucks with a quarter million miles don't mean anything to me. The 5.0 in my 30 year old mustang with only 160k miles has lived a MUCH harder life than any 3rd gen Tacoma has. I'm not comparing the 5.0 to the 3.5. I'm just making a point that miles are not the determining factor in reliability. Time is. One of the most common complaints with the older ecoboost engines only applies in specific conditions that took several years to become a common issue.

Your argument about the atkinson tech being proven is also invalid because it hasn't been proven on that engine. Almost every part of every vehicle had been proven on one vehicle or another. That doesn't make an arguement for other vehicles with the same tech. Turbos have been run for millions of miles on diesels, but that doesn't prove the ecoboost is reliable. The atkinson principal has been around for eternity, but that doesn't make the parts that make it work infallible on any particular vehicle. For all we know, there might be a very specific part associated with the atkinson equipment on the 3.5 that is stressed a little bit every heat cycle in extreme cold that will become a common issue in a specific region in 8 year old tacomas that causes catastrophic failure. I doubt it, but nobody knows for sure.

I'm not saying one should base their buying decision solely on the rear brakes. They will do the job for most people most of the time. People that are willing to settle for inferior technology will be just fine because those people usually don't know any better, nor do they ask much of their truck. However, Toyota knows better. It honestly boggles my mind that they put drums on the Tacoma. There is only one other Toyota with drums that I know of, and that's the Yaris. Even the Prius has rear disk brakes for fuck sake. Why would they put disks on the 4runner, Sienna, Rav4, Camry, C-HR, and Prius if drums are just fine? I'll tell you why: Because drum brakes are obsolete. They have less heat dissipation ability. They have diminished performance at high temperatures from the expansion of the drum. They have less modulation ability from the partial self-engagement in single cylinder versions, which will hamper ESP, ABS, EBD. There is zero reason to have drum brakes. The 4runner is an off road vehicle, and it has disks because disks work more reliably and function better with the multi-terrain select system. When asked why the Tacoma has drum brakes, Toyota's answer is essentially "because we can get away with it." Again, if you don't care about performance, that might be acceptable. Like you said, different strokes, I guess.

A lot of people prefer bare bones. I used to be one of them, but after owning my 2017 Fusion, I'm spoiled. I keep seeing the argument along the lines of "I'd rather have a simple truck that won't break down every three miles" which is just dumb. The extra amenities that I've grown accustomed to in my Ford don't make it less reliable. There is nothing that shows the Tacoma is more reliable than the Ranger, and there is nothing that shows it's not. That argument is unfounded.

I wouldn't be surprised at all. I used to be a deputy in a large rural county. I could always count on my Ford *gasp* to get me where I needed to be. The Crown Vic, one of the most bulletproof and reliable cars to ever exist, had four wheel disk brakes, btw. Just sayin.

 

I know a lot of people are taking my debate as trash talk against the Tacoma. It's not. Like I said, most of my complaints against my Tacoma are personal preference. What I am trash talking is people's argument for the Tacoma. Sure, any forum you go to will have loads and loads of people praising their vehicle, but the praise the Taco gets is based on an unrealistic belief in it's reliability, and nothing more. Sure, there are plenty of Tacoma's that just keep on chugging, but that applies to any vehicle. It also applies in the inverse. There are plenty of examples of Tacoma's that have fallen apart, but Tacoma fans refuse to acknowledge those. There are very few new vehicles that will let you down as long as they're properly maintained, and I don't care how many Tacoma owners "used to own x-brand truck that was a pile of shit," because most of those trucks were bought used, and were probably piles of shit due to improper care. If you go to the Ranger forum there is a thread dedicated to former Tacoma owners which has several examples of bad Tacomas. They aren't all horror stories of course, and I don't take that as proof that the Taco is a bad truck. I just take that as proof that the Taco is a regular truck like any other that is susceptible to real life problems.

 

Agreed, so far I've been lucky in both so you might consider me a dual fan boy. People seem to react to their own experience and give it more weight so it's not surprising when a bad experience or good experience leads to hyperbole, just human nature. Every vehicle has its fans and though you might be hard pressed to find many AMC Pacer lovers I'm sure they exist. I don't think that Toyota's past reputation is underserved but its reputation in the future will be affected by current owners' experience.