Buying a new Tacoma Access Cab - 2.7 or 4.0? Auto or Manual?
- Thread starter Sisyphus
- Start date
I traded in my 98 2.7 4x4 5sp regular cab on a 2015 AC with the 2.7 and 5sp. Now I am 61 and likely a bit older than many forum members and don't race places. I have never felt like I was lacking with the 2.7L. In fact with the 4.10 gears in the new truck I feel like it is more responsive than my 1st gen. I live in Albemarle County Virginia and travel through WV and PA frequently and have no difficulty keeping up with traffic. I even tow a 6x10 cargo trailer which I figure is about 2500 pounds loaded (did it with the 1st gen too.) I take it over to Spruce Knob WV once a month from April through October. Sure I don't race up the hills, but it gets me and the trailer there quite nicely. The only thing I don't like about the new truck is the 4WD dial. I liked my shifter :-(
Oh, I also got the convenience group, the SR package and hitch with 4 pin plug. The only thing they didn't give me was a backup camera module. Wiring is all there, they just skipped the camera. I think I will get one this spring.
Oh, I also got the convenience group, the SR package and hitch with 4 pin plug. The only thing they didn't give me was a backup camera module. Wiring is all there, they just skipped the camera. I think I will get one this spring.
montypower
Adventure Time!
Some thoughts...
2.7L Taco AC has comparable power to weight ratio of the 80s 4runner 22re. So... Judge for yourself if it has enough power. It will get there but you won't be blasting past slow moving vehicles on 2 lane hwy. 3RZ motor isn't as robust as 4.0L. You're likely to need head work around 200k and possibly timing chain tensioner 150k plus range. 5 speed is a much better transmission than the 6 speed. Do some searching on throw out bearing. Many FJ guys having issues.
6 speed will get 1-2 mpg less than auto on the highway. In town, if driven carefully you can match the auto. 6 speed revs much higher which is why the mpg suffers on the highway.
I owned a 2013 Taco 4.0 / 5 speed. Even fully built weighing around 6k lbs, it would get 20mpg driven carefully on the highway (skinny mt tires and stock gears). Mix driving around town 15-16mpg.
Biggest advantage with the 3rz motor is range off road. It will kill the 4.0L for travel range in 4wd low... If you like exploring back roads and trails the 4.0L eats fuel like non other. In the snow it would get in the 5-8mpg range (deep snow trips, low range, no highway). Typical day trail / highway trips would be 11mpg. Range is one of the biggest challenges with the small factory tank. I was planning to install a 20 gallon aux in bed fuel tank to compensate.
I'd be seriously considering the 4 cylinder for the travel range if you spend most of the time off the interstate. Biggest challenge is keeping the weight low!
2.7L Taco AC has comparable power to weight ratio of the 80s 4runner 22re. So... Judge for yourself if it has enough power. It will get there but you won't be blasting past slow moving vehicles on 2 lane hwy. 3RZ motor isn't as robust as 4.0L. You're likely to need head work around 200k and possibly timing chain tensioner 150k plus range. 5 speed is a much better transmission than the 6 speed. Do some searching on throw out bearing. Many FJ guys having issues.
6 speed will get 1-2 mpg less than auto on the highway. In town, if driven carefully you can match the auto. 6 speed revs much higher which is why the mpg suffers on the highway.
I owned a 2013 Taco 4.0 / 5 speed. Even fully built weighing around 6k lbs, it would get 20mpg driven carefully on the highway (skinny mt tires and stock gears). Mix driving around town 15-16mpg.
Biggest advantage with the 3rz motor is range off road. It will kill the 4.0L for travel range in 4wd low... If you like exploring back roads and trails the 4.0L eats fuel like non other. In the snow it would get in the 5-8mpg range (deep snow trips, low range, no highway). Typical day trail / highway trips would be 11mpg. Range is one of the biggest challenges with the small factory tank. I was planning to install a 20 gallon aux in bed fuel tank to compensate.
I'd be seriously considering the 4 cylinder for the travel range if you spend most of the time off the interstate. Biggest challenge is keeping the weight low!
montypower
Adventure Time!
What type of mpg do you get in 4wd low?
As far as I know the 3RZ is now the 2RT-FE. The new 2.7 has Variable Valve timing and a wee bit more HP and torque. My 98 3RZ was a solid engine. I had 190K when I traded up and it didn't use a drop of oil. I was still running the original clutch. I have never heard that the 2.7 wasn't as reliable as the 4.0.
jeverich
Luddite
Yes.
3RZ died in '04.
Same. Never heard anything regarding reliability issues versus the 4.0 L; not saying they don't exist. Both motors have been around since 2003..
My sparkplugs are cheaper than the 4.0!
Doesn't the 4.0 need plugs every 30k mikes and the 2.7 more like every 100k? It's a small cost relative to the vehicle itself, but everything adds up.
Tacovendor
Explorer
That's a good question, I have no idea, but only use low range for short periods, so it's never been a factor.
montypower
Adventure Time!
Really? You don't run trails with the Taco?
Toyota told me to change the plugs on my 2012 2.7 at 30 k. Opps have not yet done it. Plan on swapping them with the 60k interval I am about to do. They seems to be doing just fine. I find that with the 2.7 unless you need the 4lo for climbing up wicked steep stuff ( or going down for that matter) You spend most of your time in 4hi. it is such a light little truck that with a bit of clutch work 4 lo just aint needed. I will put it in 4lo for lots of rocks of if I just want to go slow and have better control to avoid beating on the truck in the rough stuff. Then again my truck ( reg cab five speed ) is all stock except for the AT tires and shell.
the 2.7 has an impressive range with lots of 4x4 use. I got 18.5 miles a gallon with a lot of around town and mountain driving on the last tank. Idaho recently got a lot of snow so I think half of that tank was 4x4 use. This summer while pulling a wood trailer and useing a lot of 4x4 I was getting about 16-17 MPG but that was moving 2000+ pounds of wood up and down jeep trail style single lane mountain passes. Over all that little 2.7 preforms very very well in many situations doing a lot of things. Sure having the 4.0 would be nice for getting that wood, I could pull a bigger trailer. But to be fair the 4cyl moves a cord and a half just fine and thats about all the energy I have for cutting in one day. I have found that even when under heavy load and pulling around 3k on the highway I can still return 14-15 mpg and I suspect that the 4.0 is not going to do any better. Cheers
the 2.7 has an impressive range with lots of 4x4 use. I got 18.5 miles a gallon with a lot of around town and mountain driving on the last tank. Idaho recently got a lot of snow so I think half of that tank was 4x4 use. This summer while pulling a wood trailer and useing a lot of 4x4 I was getting about 16-17 MPG but that was moving 2000+ pounds of wood up and down jeep trail style single lane mountain passes. Over all that little 2.7 preforms very very well in many situations doing a lot of things. Sure having the 4.0 would be nice for getting that wood, I could pull a bigger trailer. But to be fair the 4cyl moves a cord and a half just fine and thats about all the energy I have for cutting in one day. I have found that even when under heavy load and pulling around 3k on the highway I can still return 14-15 mpg and I suspect that the 4.0 is not going to do any better. Cheers
Did the dealership tell you 30K plug change for the 2.7? I just looked at the maintenance schedule in the toyota owner app and it says 30K for the 4.0, but 120K for the 2.7. That seems a bit excessive to me, but that is what their schedule says. Of course I suppose it could be wrong 
DaveInDenver
Middle Income Semi-Redneck
We're seriously considering making a jump from a 22R-E powered truck to a newer Tacoma. We are looking for a 4.0L and it's specifically because of the highway. The 4 cylinder trucks just don't cut it for us anymore. Back when I bought my truck the difference in traffic speed wasn't too bad, even with the WilderNest. When my truck was built in 1990 it was really pretty average, actually.
However since then I've added an ARB + winch, fridge, roof rack (Heaven help us with bikes on top!). I also went to 33" tires, added sliders, quarter panel protecting bumper and all of it. My truck was so, so slow up hill and with any head wind even with 5.29 gearing. I ended up going back to smaller tires, gearing back to stock and cutting off as much of the protection as I could and lowering in an attempt to reduce drag. That stuff helped, but now my truck is just tired.
Fast forward 15 years and even the tiny commuter cars have such improved power to weight ratios that merging on the highway is sphincter tightening. Used to be I wouldn't worry much until I could see the dead raccoons in the Mack grills. Also we're doing more long pavement trips than just banging the truck on local trails, being so much slower is frustrating and my wife won't even drive my truck on Interstate. Couple that with having just less time to spend driving than we used to (I personally work a full time gig and moonlight), the need to just put stress-free miles down is growing. I'm not young kid anymore (mid 40s), either, so A/C will be nice, too.
The only way I would go with the 2.7L in a Tacoma would be in a regular cab with a stick shift and even then it would have be with the expectation that it's mostly for low speed use and not primarily an Interstate vehicle. More so if there was any intention to 'build' it. The roads in the U.S. are just not conducive (read that as few friendly, tolerant drivers) to vehicles that can't keep up. I dunno.
However since then I've added an ARB + winch, fridge, roof rack (Heaven help us with bikes on top!). I also went to 33" tires, added sliders, quarter panel protecting bumper and all of it. My truck was so, so slow up hill and with any head wind even with 5.29 gearing. I ended up going back to smaller tires, gearing back to stock and cutting off as much of the protection as I could and lowering in an attempt to reduce drag. That stuff helped, but now my truck is just tired.
Fast forward 15 years and even the tiny commuter cars have such improved power to weight ratios that merging on the highway is sphincter tightening. Used to be I wouldn't worry much until I could see the dead raccoons in the Mack grills. Also we're doing more long pavement trips than just banging the truck on local trails, being so much slower is frustrating and my wife won't even drive my truck on Interstate. Couple that with having just less time to spend driving than we used to (I personally work a full time gig and moonlight), the need to just put stress-free miles down is growing. I'm not young kid anymore (mid 40s), either, so A/C will be nice, too.
The only way I would go with the 2.7L in a Tacoma would be in a regular cab with a stick shift and even then it would have be with the expectation that it's mostly for low speed use and not primarily an Interstate vehicle. More so if there was any intention to 'build' it. The roads in the U.S. are just not conducive (read that as few friendly, tolerant drivers) to vehicles that can't keep up. I dunno.