Am i reading this correctly? 2016 taco still has rear drum brakes...

[Martinjmpr]

I love this thread. Its like my new favorite show on Hulu. I sit down and click through to see if there is a new episode. Score!

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It's a new Reality Show: "The Real Housewives of Expedition Portal." :sombrero:

 

[calicamper]

I really considered the new Colorado with the Duramax engine. I probably will not buy one over a Toyota though. One thing a GM truck cannot bring to the table is resale value. Toyota is the heavyweight champ when it comes to resale and that is bolstered by the love banks have for the brand.

I'm waiting for more competition and more competitive pricing vs MSRP BS that GM and Toyota dealers are demanding right now. The Taco is pretty much out due to interior comfort anyway, doesnt matter what it is if the seat comfort doesnt pass the wife test its off the list. Too bad GM went ultra retard and will only offer heated /cooled seats in the ultra stupid Denali package. Our Ford the heated/cooled seat option was just a $650 option. Way worth it too. But not worth going ultra stupid on a Denali pimp mobile. For Ranger has the Colorado beat on interior space and layout anyway. Bring it Ford!!! Nissan Frontier will be the smallest of the midsized rigs with the lowest load rating.

 

[Clutch]

Funny how that works...it was almost the complete opposite for me. I grew up driving old volvo station wagons and lexus sedans. When I got in my 5th gen 4runner for the first time, it felt like a safari truck to me...high seating position, giant hood line, big controls/knobs, somewhat numb steering, spartan interior. I'm sure anyone who has actually been on a safari will laugh at that statement, but for me a Toyota SUV just felt more 'truck-like' than anything I had driven up to that point.

I grew driving F250/350's, 2.5 Ton Dump Trucks...we had a Tri-Axle Mack for hauling our crawler loaders and back hoes. My first Toyota was a 1985 4 Runner, felt like a roller skate compared to everything else, even the seat position, is much more car like...than what I came from. When you bounce around on earth moving equipment all day long...Toyotas...feel just like that, a Toy.

I do hear what you are saying on Toyota having to adapt to the American market, and I agree somewhat. But I also see how Toyota still offers bulky, BOF SUV's with manual 4wd levers, locking rear diff's, ect...I think to some degree Toyota knows some of its more utilitarian products (Tacoma, 4runner, FJ Cruiser, Land Cruiser for those few who can afford it) are attracting a customer base that's different from the regular crossover crowd. Meanwhile, the "SUV's" being produced by most other manufacturers are unibody designs that are much more focused on onroad performance than offroad performance.

Yeah, they still offer stout off-roady vehicles... don't think many people really use them to their full potential, why we are seeing the dumbing down of off-road vehicles in general...heck look what happened to the Tacoma. The market changes, it is what it is. With tightening emission standards...I highly doubt we will see BOF 4Runner & Tacoma with the next generation when it happens in 10 years.

 

[Clutch]

I'm waiting for more competition and more competitive pricing vs MSRP BS that GM and Toyota dealers are demanding right now. The Taco is pretty much out due to interior comfort anyway, doesnt matter what it is if the seat comfort doesnt pass the wife test its off the list. Too bad GM went ultra retard and will only offer heated /cooled seats in the ultra stupid Denali package. Our Ford the heated/cooled seat option was just a $650 option. Way worth it too. But not worth going ultra stupid on a Denali pimp mobile. For Ranger has the Colorado beat on interior space and layout anyway. Bring it Ford!!! Nissan Frontier will be the smallest of the midsized rigs with the lowest load rating.

Why do you need heated seats living in the Bay Area? My ex-wife is from Cupertino...it doesn't get all that cold there...


I thought those seats in the TRD OR were pretty comfortable. Diggin' the dark gray, should hide dirt fairly well.

 

[bkg]

Related but unrelated....

How many would, if cash were not an issue, do a ground up/frame off build of an older toyota over buying new?

I would, I think.... Assuming time wasn't an issue.

 

[calicamper]

Why do you need heated seats living in the Bay Area? My ex-wife is from Cupertino...it doesn't get all that cold there...


I thought those seats in the TRD OR were pretty comfortable. Diggin' the dark gray, should hide dirt fairly well.

Nothing beats a cooled seat after a great MTB ride or hike in the summer months. Heated I could skip, but the wife likes heated seats, just discovered her heated steering wheel in the 2016 Fusion she just informed me its her #1 top favorite thing. I would be happy with 6spd manual rubber floor mats with cooled seats jolopy.

 

[Clutch]

Related but unrelated....

How many would, if cash were not an issue, do a ground up/frame off build of an older toyota over buying new?

I would, I think.... Assuming time wasn't an issue.

Since the current diesels were never available here, I'll keep it all US spec. The frame from the pre-Tacomas, (that boxed frame never had any rust issues) coil-over IFS, rack & pinion from the 1st/2nd gen., 5 Speed manual (the 6 speed offers no real advantage for gearing)...engine...that is a tough one....either the 4.7 V8 or the Dual VVT 4.0 out of the 4Runner.

A cheaper route would be a pre-Tacoma, with a 3.4, and coil over swap. I see the US spec HiLuxes 3.4 swapped trucks come up on the PNW craigslist every now and then.

All and all it wouldn't cost that much, if you started with a fairly clean truck. I am seeing low mile 3.4's out of Japan go around $1500-2000. So for around $10-15K, you can get bomber frame, engine, smooth riding suspension. Or just simply buy a clean 1st gen for $10-15K, and save your knuckles....

http://www.fourwheeler.com/how-to/s...s-86-to-95-toyota-ifs-kit-long-travel-system/

 

[bkg]

To be fair... Toyota boxed frames had a ton of rust issues......

Like the rest

 

[Clutch]

Nothing beats a cooled seat after a great MTB ride or hike in the summer months. Heated I could skip, but the wife likes heated seats, just discovered her heated steering wheel in the 2016 Fusion she just informed me its her #1 top favorite thing..

Sounds like mine, she gets cold fairly easily...she loves the heated seats in our SUV...while I am running around with the windows down this time of year.

I would be happy with 6spd manual rubber floor mats with cooled seats jolopy.

Could get a beater and just toss some swank Recaro Orthopeds in...


https://www.recaro-automotive.com/us/product-areas-us/aftermarket-seats/product/orthoped.html

 

[Clutch]

To be fair... Toyota boxed frames had a ton of rust issues......

Like the rest

Toyota has the market cornered on rust...

I never had an issue with rust on my 85 4Runner or the 92 truck....nor on my current Tacoma. Of course living in AZ for many years helps....there is that. Now in Idaho...I don't see it being an issue...they don't use salt here to my knowledge, just grit.

 

[bkg]

I've helped patch many a Toyota frame when I was in MN.

 

[Clutch]

I've helped patch many a Toyota frame when I was in MN.

I never want to live in the salt belt again. The ol' 76 F250 succumbed to rust...not much is immune to road salt. Those old trucks just took longer to rot since the metal was so thick, compared to the paper thin Yotas.

 

[silvElise]

Why do you need heated seats living in the Bay Area? My ex-wife is from Cupertino...it doesn't get all that cold there...

I live in the bay area and have heated seats... Very grateful to have them for those winter Tahoe trips I guess all the other cold places I overland too, they help as well

 

[Clutch]

I live in the bay area and have heated seats... Very grateful to have them for those winter Tahoe trips I guess all the other cold places I overland too, they help as well

I grew up in PA, now back in cold country again...the heater is enough, I often find it gets the cab almost too hot...and have to turn it down. Heated seats seem like over-kill to me....I do like the cold though.

 

[austintaco]

Speaking of seats, that's one area where I would lodge a complaint against Toyota. My 03 DC had horrible seats compared to the ones in my 84 4runner or my first 95.5 Tacoma. That was one thing that had to go, and I went with some power/heated seats. I like the heated lumbar for my back, and when we do go to Colorado or Big Bend in the winter, the heated seats get hot instantly compared to the cab.
OK, lets get back to tearing into each other over the brand we all love.