Second oil change at 5000 miles. More metal debris found (with pics!)

[TacoFreak]

The fact that the 4th gen is a real truck is why I own one, and that is not a drawback. If I wanted a luxury car (already have one) or a sports car (just sold one) that is what I would have bought.

For a midsize pickup the Tacoma has the road manners and performance of our dreams. It is not just a toy but a true off road hero and yet it is quiet, comfortable and competent on the highway.

People who don't want a real truck should look elsewhere and not knock a Tacoma for what makes it special for a lot of us.

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[tacorancher]

My taco is a $70k truck , but point taken.

sketchy or different? How does it feel sketchy - I’m not questioning you at all just curious

 

[BAQ717]

sketchy or different? How does it feel sketchy - I’m not questioning you at all just curious

Curious as well. I’ve driven sketchy vehicles and this is not one of them.

 

[TacoFreak]

If one of the nicest, best handling, and most comfortable off road trucks ever is sketchy, then you bought the wrong truck.

Can we show something in a nice Honda SUV with a bed?

 

[dunder]

sketchy or different? How does it feel sketchy

You asked, so I will reply frankly. The acceleration isn’t always predictable. Manual shifting in Sport seems to be a suggestion at best. Steering is too light to provide sufficient road feel. Potholes sometimes result in unpredictable responses. The electronic nannies, such as LKA(now disabled) are borderline dangerous. Based on pushing it a bit in turns, I don’t trust it to turn near the limit. I just completed a 1,000 mile road trip with my wife and based on my complaints on the road, she asked if I was already thinking about replacing the truck. I know it’s not a fair comparison, but my 2019 G550 drove/handled predictably in all situations. The only downside for the G, other than its massive cost, was I couldn’t disable its LKA. Shockingly, the fuel economy of my hybrid four cylinder Taco is only 2-3 mpgs better than my V8 G-Wagen. So my expectations of how a Mercedes handles is a bit different than the vast majority of truck driver’s expectations. To me it’s a bit sketchy, but for someone else it may be incredibly planted.

 

[dunder]

If one of the nicest, best handling, and most comfortable off road trucks ever is sketchy, then you bought the wrong truck.

Can we show something in a nice Honda SUV with a bed?

No need to start throwing ridgeline insults. I thought this was a cordial forum.

 

[tacorancher]

You asked, so I will reply frankly. The acceleration isn’t always predictable. Manual shifting in Sport seems to be a suggestion at best. Steering is too light to provide sufficient road feel. Potholes sometimes result in unpredictable responses. The electronic nannies, such as LKA(now disabled) are borderline dangerous. Based on pushing it a bit in turns, I don’t trust it to turn near the limit. I just completed a 1,000 mile road trip with my wife and based on my complaints on the road, she asked if I was already thinking about replacing the truck. I know it’s not a fair comparison, but my 2019 G550 drove/handled predictably in all situations. The only downside for the G, other than its massive cost, was I couldn’t disable its LKA. Shockingly, the fuel economy of my hybrid four cylinder Taco is only 2-3 mpgs better than my V8 G-Wagen. So my expectations of how a Mercedes handles is a bit different than the vast majority of truck driver’s expectations. To me it’s a bit sketchy, but for someone else it may be incredibly planted.

Maybe my experience is just different. I’ve recently driven 2 Rivians, an A class Mercedes (or whatever that small Mercedes is in Europe when you go to rent a sedan), a Ranger Raptor, and a Lexus TX, and I prefer my Trailhunter over all those. I admit I haven’t driven a Gelandewagen in my life but as you said a $150K SUV is a different animal from a pickup truck. Have you driven or owned pickups before? While the G and the TH have similar diff clearances, the TH will sit much higher and one cannot expect it will handle turns the same.. the physics are just different. For me the acceleration is smooth and the truck handles super nicely even at extremely high speeds (up to and into triple digits) which far exceeds expectations for a pickup truck. I will say the suspension is stiff but I’ve gotten used to it and in fact appreciate it on the highway (handles nicely) and off-road (harder to bottom out). But anyway, I’m not saying your experience isn’t valid but it’s not what I’ve experienced.

Edit / Add: this is a purpose built vehicle and if you’re not off-roading it (which I’m not saying you’re not) you cannot fully appreciate how civilized it is by comparison to similarly capable trucks. I drove a rivian recently off-road and while it was smoother than glass on the highway it struggled off-road to remain composed while my trail hunter barely broke a sweat. TH all day.

 

[BAQ717]

You asked, so I will reply frankly. The acceleration isn’t always predictable. Manual shifting in Sport seems to be a suggestion at best. Steering is too light to provide sufficient road feel. Potholes sometimes result in unpredictable responses. The electronic nannies, such as LKA(now disabled) are borderline dangerous. Based on pushing it a bit in turns, I don’t trust it to turn near the limit. I just completed a 1,000 mile road trip with my wife and based on my complaints on the road, she asked if I was already thinking about replacing the truck. I know it’s not a fair comparison, but my 2019 G550 drove/handled predictably in all situations. The only downside for the G, other than its massive cost, was I couldn’t disable its LKA. Shockingly, the fuel economy of my hybrid four cylinder Taco is only 2-3 mpgs better than my V8 G-Wagen. So my expectations of how a Mercedes handles is a bit different than the vast majority of truck driver’s expectations. To me it’s a bit sketchy, but for someone else it may be incredibly planted.

You sound like a royal prick. Definitely get out of the Tacoma and stay in the Mercedes. Suits your type better. Laughable to compare a 200k G “wagen” to a Tacoma.

 

[TacoFreak]

No need to start throwing ridge line insults. I thought this was a cordial forum.

It wasn't meant as an insult, it just seems like you bought the wrong truck if you find yours "sketchy". I doubt that Toyota ever intended that the Tacoma be the equivalent to an expensive, luxury SUV, no matter how nice the halo trims are.

To me it seems a bit odd to compare your Tacoma to something clearly in another class and then discover that the Tacoma is lacking. My old Beatle was a bit sketchy compared to the Porsches I have driven, no big surprise there.

It was not all that long ago that the Tacoma was the least expensive vehicle in Toyota's lineup and it is silly to expect it to equal a Gelandewagen which is more comparable to a Lexus GX.

 

[dunder]

Maybe my experience is just different. I’ve recently driven 2 Rivians, an A class Mercedes (or whatever that small Mercedes is in Europe when you go to rent a sedan), a Ranger Raptor, and a Lexus TX, and I prefer my Trailhunter over all those. I admit I haven’t driven a Gelandewagen in my life but as you said a $150K SUV is a different animal from a pickup truck. Have you driven or owned pickups before? While the G and the TH have similar diff clearances, the TH will sit much higher and one cannot expect it will handle turns the same.. the physics are just different. For me the acceleration is smooth and the truck handles super nicely even at extremely high speeds (up to and into triple digits) which far exceeds expectations for a pickup truck. I will say the suspension is stiff but I’ve gotten used to it and in fact appreciate it on the highway (handles nicely) and off-road (harder to bottom out). But anyway, I’m not saying your experience isn’t valid but it’s not what I’ve experienced.

Over the years, I have owned trucks from Toyota, Chevy, Ford, and Dodge. I am not new to trucks. I also test drove a Ford and a GMC before buying the Taco. The Tacoma handles the best of that lot. It beat the others easily in the braking department. But the original statement compared to a Mercedes, so I chimed in.

My G with 32” General Grabber A/TX tires only had 10” of ground clearance vs the Trailhunter’s 11”, so there is a difference there. The seating height in the G and the TH are very close, based on my climb-in effort. Both are body on frame vehicles. The G had rear biased AWD for everyday driving and a 100% electronic nanny-free 4lo with front & rear lockers. So on-road and off-road was quite different.

 

[dunder]

It wasn't meant as an insult, it just seems like you bought the wrong truck if you find yours "sketchy". I doubt that Toyota ever intended that the Tacoma be the equivalent to an expensive, luxury SUV, no matter how nice the halo trims are.

To me it seems a bit odd to compare your Tacoma to something clearly in another class and then discover that the Tacoma is lacking. My old Beatle was a bit sketchy compared to the Porsches I have driven, no big surprise there.

It was not all that long ago that the Tacoma was the least expensive vehicle in Toyota's lineup and it is silly to expect it to equal a Gelandewagen which is more comparable to a Lexus GX.

The Tacoma was compared to a Mercedes. I found that statement to be a bit too much, so I chimed in since I have firsthand experience with the only body on frame Mercedes that is currently in production. The original statement was acknowledged to be an exaggeration. I accepted that and was ready to be done. Further questions were asked of me and I answered honestly. I’m not saying the Tacoma is a bad truck, but it’s turning out not to be the truck for me based upon my experiences. I never expected it to drive the same as a G-Wagen. Maybe, I have a lemon or maybe it’s the best a Tacoma can be and that’s not quite what I have grown accustomed to driving. Who knows?

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