Will Toyota ever build a bigger torque engine?

No. Power isn't even half the story when it comes to towing. Putting a torque monster in a Tacoma won't help. If you need to do serious towing the Tacoma isn't and will never be the truck for the job.

 

Uggghhh.

Dinosaurs still walk among us.

 

I think they like having above average fuel economy across their whole fleet. May be part of the reason they put such low power engines in the Taco. They sure are missing the boat however. If they put a eight cylinder, turbo six or a diesel out for the Tacoma I’m sure they’d CRUSH!

 

Honestly, I don’t think the Toyota Tacomas are built strong enough for those things. If you spend any time under a Tacoma, compared to say an F150, they are a lot lighter duty. The truck is built nicely, but I doubt you could drop the torque of a V8 or a heavy diesel v6 in there, without major changes to the trucks underlying structure.

 

I hear ya. However if the many mid size SUV's can handle a V8 I'm sure the Tacoma could, most likely with some suspension tweaks/upgrades. As far as diesel goes, my wording might have been confusing but I was referring to four cylinder turbo, i.e Hilux engine. Or a V6 turbo. None the less I love my truck till the end, low power/tourqe and all. It'd just be so sweet to see/own a beefy Tacoma from the factory!

 

Agree, just got a 2019 Tundra SR 4.6 for a work truck. The engine gets really decent mileage, last tank averaged just under 19mpg (mostly highway), & it has adequate power in the full size truck.
--- Now, put that same 4.6 in the lighter Tacoma.. now, that would be sweet!

 

How fast does the 4.6 feel compared to the 4.5 in the tacoma?

I tested a 4.7 in a 4runner and it felt quicker and the 4.6 is better than that but the Tundra is also heavier than the Tacoma.

 

Dude it's a Japanese Truck, what did you expect. The Japanese dont even have a word for Torque, much less understand what it is.

 

Dinosaurs were real, they just went extinct is all.

 

No.

 

I don't like the DPF and DEF requirements either. But I really do see the diesel industry turning a corner of sorts. Europe pretty much has the same emissions regulations that we have in place (that wasn't always the case) and I know, from first-hand experience, that their diesel cars and trucks run and handle just fine...great torque, they get up to highway speeds just fine (though they're certainly not the same as their gasoline counterparts), and they seem reliable enough. Car companies and engine makers have made a lot of progress of satisfying and exceeding the expectations of the EPA, as unreasonable as they might be.

Literally the entire global economy relies upon diesel powered vehicles...while we might see short-range/regional vehicles transition to hybrid and even EV, diesel is going to play a huge role for many years to come. All of the OEM's and governments understand that, which is why you still newer and improved designs being put out.

The Japanese most certainly do understand the relevance of torque. They make overseas diesel engines which provide it in gobs, and they deliberately sacrificed some mpg's on the Tundra for the sake of better torque delivery. The Tacoma is meant to be the lifestyle truck, which prioritizes practicality and efficiency just as much as it does reliability and offroad performance. The 3.5l v6 was a logical choice, even if it isn't all that impressive from an emotional perspective. The only way Toyota can offer better torque and still meet the mpg requirements is to offer a diesel or turbo gasoline or hybrid.

 

I believe one of the new Lexus vehicles has a turbo v6 gasoline engine.

There are rumors that the engine, or variant thereof, will find its way into the next generation LandCruiser and Tundra.

Personally, I'm skeptical of that as Mike Sweers has repeatedly told reporters that Toyota looked at the possibility of using a turbo gasser for their trucks, but saw very little mpg advantage in working applications. I think this view is validated by the fact that F-150 ecoboosts, on average, get only ~2 mpg better than the Tundra when empty and pretty much the same mpg when towing/working. The new ecoboost Ranger has already been tested by several magazines; it gets pretty much the same mpg as the Tacoma, albeit with better low-end torque delivery.

I see an updated v8 (port and direct injection) maybe with some part time Atkinson (like the Tacoma), a hybrid or a diesel as possible options for Toyota's bigger trucks. I have no idea what Toyota has planned for the next generation 4runner or Tacoma. I think it would be a mistake to use the 3.5l v6 in the 4runner...I'm sure Toyota has already gotten a fair bit of feedback about that engine's lack of low-end grunt.

 

While the F-150 is definitely built to be a bit more robust, I do think the Tacoma is overbuilt to some degree. From everything I've read, it uses many of the same chassis and driveline components as the overseas Hilux, though the underlying frames are different. The Tacoma has a C-channel frame, but I've seen some comment on how its noticeably thicker compared to other midsized frames. I'd definitely prefer a boxed frame, but there isn't anything inherently wrong or weak about the Tacoma's current design.

Honestly, I'm sure Toyota could make the Tacoma capable of handling a higher-torque engine with only some minor engineering changes. Or better yet, they could bring over the Hilux, something a lot of people have been asking for quite some time now.

 

I don't think the Tacoma has much of anything in common with the overseas Hilux, and the frame is only C Channel under the bed, it's boxed up front and transitions as you go back.

 

My Focus ST hatchback has more torque than my Tacoma.

 

Based on what I've seen and read, i think quite a few of the chassis chassis components attached to those different frames are somewhat similar if not the same.

I wouldn't consider them to be the same exact platform as is the case for a 4runner/FJ/LC Prado, but they do seem to share some core components.

 

I still find it hard to believe people are paying $40,000 for a Toyota mid sized pick up. My 100% made in Japan Toyota pick up was only around 10K OTD lol.

Durability goes down. Prices go up. Middle class is getting wiped out in the US while China's middle class soars to record highs. Globalism & NAFTA have been brutal on the American people.

 

V8's in anything but specialty cars are slowly but surely going extinct. It's even getting hard to find a V8 in a full size truck. Small displacement turbo engines are going to be the norm and there is nothing we can do about it.

 

Why not buy a first gen?

 

Not in a Tacoma they sure wont,with gas prices going up,and at $3-4 gallon already no way.