Toyota Needs to Step Up!

I got a buddy with that issue, he got a heated steering wheel cover. It plugs into the cig lighter and it was under $20 on Amazon. Might want to check that out.

 

Hey thanks for that, will definitely check it out!

 

These days people buy luxury trucks over luxury cars. What's not necessary in a truck? Even your base model Taco is Foofoo compared to trucks a few decades ago. I remember when trucks had no headliner, no carpet, no AC, no cupholders, no bucket seats, no power windows. (I do miss those corner vent windows) Can you buy such a thing now? When I have to wake up at 4am when it's 10° outside, I'll be happy to have heated seats and steering wheel.

 

I had a manual Subaru WRX wagon before I bought my 6MT Taco.

 

We should have a moment of silence for that mistake....lmao....kidding. I traded a Subaru Crosstrek for mine....I'm still a little sad.
Zim

Edit: A WRX???....really?.......moment of silence continues....lol

 

Got rid of my 2014 Subi forester for 2020 Tacoma last week, not missing the Subi AT ALL.

 

Making wishes come true

 

Funny -- how I got "interested" in buying a Tacoma:

I saw a Blazing Blue on my local dealers lot and admired the color, a few days of driving by (in my $1200 van, I'm cheap) and I stopped to look. I absolutely marveled at all the amenities -- electric windows, air conditioning, cd player, cloth seats, tinted glass -- "wow, this is a fancy truck" I thought -- it was an SR....

I guess I was a bit out of touch with the truck market.

 

If someone were brave enough to do their routine on that pole while crawling Hell's Revenge, I just might have to pay their way through cosmotology school.

It would need to be a full routine though. Both sides of the Toys in the Attic album.

 

I don't think my 08 had much more. Limited slip and a hood scoop. I had the truck for 11 years and loved it. Sadly, I outgrew it with family. Traded it in for a 4Runner. Probably has as much as my old Caddy. I don't need the features, but they're nice to have.

 

Yeah, it's one thing to add things like AC, headliner, power windows/locks etc, but to keep adding more and more FooFoo stuff to sell to the masses and deleting stuff that made it a more useful truck.

Once upon a time the pickup had a straight axle, now have IFS for "car ride experience"
Once upon a time the pickup had manual hubs, now have moved to auto hubs.
Once upon a time the pickup had a T case lever to engage the fun, now it's a knob on the dash.
Once upon a time the pickup had neutral in the T case, but because of the dash knob, it too is gone.

Are you seeing a trend here?

Pay attention:
It won't be long and 4Lo will go away because the masses don't use it at the mall.
Then 4WD will be replaced with AWD, because the masses don't know how/when to engage it properly.

Right now, if I wanted all the old stuff back, I have to pay a freaking premium to get a Landy, and it's not even a pickup!

 

I’ve shared this video elsewhere, but it’s a good interview. This is Toyota’s present direction for their North American trucks, give or take a year.

Three truths:

1- Toyota is always right and the forums are always wrong.

2- Toyota does not care about your opinion and will find great success doing their own thing, even when it is against the trend.

3- You will keep buying Toyotas, and you will also keep complaining, while threatening to buy a Ford, but you never will, cause you secretly have a hard-on for your Yota.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=YppBqPCbwqc

 

An SR in blazing blue?

Wasn't offered in blue.... Maybe it was an SR5

Still..... Fun story lol

 

oh man, to have the access cab rear windows to pop open as vents......that'd be a great option.

Not fond of the rear slider.

Those were great on my ol' Sonoma.

 

1st Gen Tacoma Extended Cab's had pop open side windows.

 

After my Saab phase (still my favorite cars ever) I ended up getting a Subaru Forrester XT -- with that rocket engine in it. Had to trade it in as my wife got pulled over like five times in six months. She got pulled over and the officer was like, "ma'am, you were going 80." She was like "it is this damn car, I had no idea the engine was so fast." She never got a ticket but that car was out of control fast. Traded it in and didn't miss it ... but it was way too much power for a wagon like that.

 

This is a great, great video! Very revealing. And shows the complete disconnect between Toyota product designers and the good folks here on Tacomaworld.

Us: Make it cool, strip it down, make them all manuals, give us a front locker, detachable doors, take us back to the simple trucks of 20 years ago. All very valid and admirable requests I might add.

Toyota: Robotically and without emotion, this is a segment. We observe trends in the segment, search for opportunities to increase our market share and celebrate our year over year growth.

 

That's just good business. Make what works.

 

and more importantly, what sells.

 

All 100% true. And perfectly understandable. If we are Toyota execs we would do the exact same thing. They have a great foundation and with their methodology and process they just keep incrementally getting better and better, tighter and tighter, more reliable and more reliable. Hard to compete with that. And we all benefit from that. Plus, the great thing for Toyota is they get all of the benefit of the customization / after market without the distraction.