Toyota Reliability??? My Brand New Toyota Tacoma Is Not What I Expected.

Well, I guess I can add one more to the list of YouTubers that when they tell you good morning, they've told you everything they know.....

 

I don't know what he's pissing and moaning about getting these trucks in 4wlo on a hill. I've used mine just them other day to pull this guys beemer out of a mud rut located on the hilly road i have to travel every day. I switched into 4wd lo while parked in the middle of this hill....no issues at at all. Even used it last fall to get my boat up a good grade from the lake below. Granted the hills weren't a 60 degree grade, but more like 35 degrees.

 

There is one thing I learned from this video that I did not know and he does make a valid point about.

I did not know that you could not use your rear e-locker and craw control unless you are in 4L. This would be a deal breaker for me.

Seems to me you need that Rear E Locker in 4H as well as 4L. Crawl control I get that, it's "crawl control". But that Rear E Locker only in 4 low Ugh.

I can lock my Air Lockers in 4H or 4L. the rear Air locker can be locked on 2WD. Seems limiting to me.

 

You say this as an informed and experienced driver.

I'd like to now turn your attention to the person going 75 and pushing the rear e locker

 

Sounds to me like he's jarred something loose in the electrical system in all of his bouncing around and rock crawling. That's exactly why activities like that can void factory warranties, even if you have a so-called Off Road model.

I didn't watch the entire video, but I wonder if he tried putting the original grille back on and seeing if that cleared up his issues with the front sensor. If the sensor was still defective in the OEM grille, then it is probably a faulty sensor. If the sensor works okay in the OEM grille, then it's probably something to do with his aftermarket grille.

 

It’s definitely finicky in my experience , but it’s not directly related to inclines. It’s related to bind up in the drive train and maybe spline alignment. @ShimStack gave a good explanation somewhere on here.

Simply stoping on a hill probably won’t cause any bind up, but getting stuck on a hill causing uneven traction and wheel spin probably will. Turning on high traction surfaces will too.

If you use it in enough situations you will encounter cases where it won’t want to transition. I’ve learned to put it in 4lo well before I get into any gnarly sections where I really need it. Ditto for the locker.

I have been in situations where I am stuck with no locker, could not get it to engage, used a gentle clutch to spin the wheels a tiny bit, and got it to engage.

 

I personally have no use for my locker in 4hi because I only use 4hi on roads. I have a manual transmission and 4hi forces me to use more clutch than I am comfortable with off road.

 

I don't get too worked up about all of these subjective reviews and experiences.

 

The truck already has simulated Limited Slip to help you in 4H, the E Locker is fine in 4L.

 

• Aftermarket grilles throwing the "please clean" error is well documented. Toyota engineers programmed that sensor to be at a certain height, sensing through a precise thickness of plastic, at a precise angle, with no freaking bull bar through the middle of its field of view.
• He calls it gear hunting, but I call it Toyota engineers programming in aggressive upshifting for fuel economy. Annoying yes, but not a flaw. People would bitch if it stayed in gear longer, there's no win-win here.
• Not being able to engage the rear locker unless in 4-Lo is Toyota's way to cover their own ass. If you could engage the locker in 2wd or 4-Hi people would absolutely forget it was engaged and break their trucks left and right.
• I can almost give him credit for the tail light problem, but that was caused by crawling which busted some electrical connection.
• The truck not being able to switch into 4-Lo on a steep incline is the only legitimate gripe he gets points for. This is why old timers prefer the manual selector rather than the fancy tech. You can just crank it in 4Lo manually.

 

I still miss the LEVER on the floor, too!

I like manual locking front hubs (95% of the time, RWD is fine).

Everything is CAN-Bus controlled. Tempted to have a dummy module that speaks CAN but lets me have some evil features. I suspect I would have a huge market on TW for such an item; alas don't have a month to spare to analyze and log the bus.

My first vehicle with "everything controlled from inside" was a V8 Jeep Wagoner. All vacuum-line controlled from the cab! I bitched about all the rotted vacuum lines and controls, but low speed idle, you had plenty of vacuum. The irony is I sold it and bought an FJ60.

 

If one spends more time with their mechanic (unless mechanic is your significant other) then you do with ones family, then one has a reliability issue

 

A simple wire mod enables the rear e locker in any drivetrain mode. Im sure they did it that way from the factory to save wear and tear on components and keep people from turning it on when it doesnt need to be.


TBH, I hardly ever need a rear locker.

 

I really think you're undermining Cecil and I's friendship.

 

I get what you're all saying and yes, your right, someone hitting the rear E locker at high speed would probably be bad lol.

But why limit it to 4L only? It takes away a really useful tool in a 4WD equipped vehicle.

I think a lot of people with the 4L only E locker are giving up a lot of extra capability IMO. It's kind of like cruise control. If you don't have it you're fine with out it. Once you get it you don't ever want to be with out it. This is how I feel with the lockers. Now that I have them I don't really want to be with out them.

Mind you I am not out driving in the African wilderness or Moab every weekend, but I do my fair share of 2 track driving in the swamps here in North Florida and having a lockers while I am in 4H makes for a more comfortable and confident ride off the pavement.

 

^^^ this is all you need to know. He’s working on his clickbait skills. Gotta get the add revenue up!

 

Its funny you say this but I am the same way. The open diffs with the traction control turned off seem to act as a mechanical locker some how? My truck come with no traction aids other than the limited slip rear when traction control is off. I assume it works in 4H not sure. =)

I keep my traction control off and stay in 2WD while wheeling and I have switched to 4H and climbed some pretty steep sandy hills with out the need for the Air Lockers. I only put them in because I do a lot of my 4 wheeling solo and I need all the help I can get as to not get stuck with no assistance.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BXYFxXUcdYA

 

Do you not find that turning is all wonky with the lockers engaged in 4hi? Even in just 4hi I find the steering in snow/mud to be wonky compared to an AWD vehicle. I don’t think I would enjoy driving fast with a 4 wheels locked together. The traction control system seems like a much better option for driving fast.

 

I found this post confusing. Are you sure you understand your traction control modes?

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/3rd-gen-traction-control-modes-explained.530695/

 

I don’t think Toyota is any better than Ford or Chevy right now as far as trucks go. Biggest reason I bought mine is because it looked cool and I couldn’t afford what I really wanted which is f150 lariat or perhaps a raptor.