* * * * * * * * * * * *
It’s…BACK.
Now it’s…BIGGER
And a bit BADDER.
“Drive…He Said” is speaking of everybody’s Go-To mountain goat when a full-size half-ton pickup truck is too much.
WHAT: All-new 2016 Toyota Tacoma TRD Sport Double Cab 4×4 – a.k.a. “TACO”
Remake of the most off-roaded pickup truck sold in the America. Previous generations brushed aside the competition from Chevy Trucks/ GMC, Ford, and Dodge [Dakota]. But re-introductions of very worthy Chevy Colorado/ GMC Canyon last year posed a challenge Toyota could not ignore.
WHAT (A) DIFFERENCE:
Over The Previous Gen. 2015 “TACO” TRD Sport Double Cab 4×4:
Design:
√ Thinner, wider white LED trimmed headlamps; √ Wider Trapezoidal grille subs bright meshwork with twin horizontal bars subbing for previous black inserts and single bar; √ Elevated hood air snorkel w/ deeper front fascia pronounced wheel arch cladding for athletic look; √ up to 18″ diameter alloy wheels;
Build Quality: √ Cabin noise insulation ; √ soft padding on door arm rests cabin noise insulation; √ Driver’s assist tech;
Dimensions/ Capacity: +4″ total L, +0.25″ box L; +1″ Front Legroom
Power/ Chassis / Efficiency:
√ +18% horsepower despite nearly –500cc DOHC V6 displacement; √ Torque ≈; √ 5% Fuel economy boost from fewer CCs, extra over-drive gear variable Atkinson cycle; √ 17″ wheels; √ – 2.25″ front brake rotors; √ +4″ turn radius; √ Ride compliance; √ Multi-Terrain control w/ e-locking open rear differential and CRAWL control
WHY: Lots of loyal Off-Roaders prefer a “Mountain Goat” to “Big Horn [Sheep]”
WHEN: On-Sale (in the U.S.) since late fall 2015
WHERE: Toyota new car dealers
WHERE MADE: San Antonio, Texas, U.S.A.
HOW STRONG: A twin-cam gas 2.5L I-4 : 6-speed manual gearbox is the base RWD drivetrain, the 3.oL 24V twincam gas V6-: 6-spd. slushbox combination will have the higher take rate. Initial throttle travel remains tepid. If shifts are smoother there is still some driveline whine in 4-wheel drive. And electronically shifting the transfer case generates plenty of shudder.
HOW LIMBER: Variable steering rack assist is never really fast and weighting is too rigid; Springing is pliable enough to prevent the overboard 19″ alloys and 40-aspect ratio tires from thwacking backsides, allowing some brake dive; Ride is acceptable on 17″ wheel, but likely to be barely tolerable on 18″-inchers; Brake pedal feel is commendable for having rear drums: dive is moderate.
HOW FAR: 20 mpg combined fuel economy is nothing to sneeze at, besting the V6 powered Chevy Colorado/ GMC Canyon consumption. Yet, new for 2016, only the GM duo offer even more Camel-like diesel motivation.
HOW BIG: Now matches beam of Chevy Colorado/ GMC Canyon. How can running boards possibly be optional with so much ground clearance?
HOW LITTLE: Still fits in a 2o’ deep garage. Just barely. Pretty easy to perpendicular park face-in on the first approach. Back seat legroom stayed the same remaining knee-room challenged.
HOW USEFUL: Sliding backlight center pane makes short bed more practical for lumber hauls. Easy to adjust J-track HD sliding cargo box anchors; Optional box tonneau folds compactly; jacknife rear split bench seat w/ floor mounted storage caddy.
HOW SAFE: 10 airbags, extensive use of high tensile steel; Driver assist technology: √ BSW, √ Park Assist w/ rear camera, √ Rear Cross traffic warning.
HOW FRIENDLY: Why can’t all cars get such oversized, gripable and convenient switches? Why is the ATRAC switch inconveniently overhead abutting moonroof switches?
Colorized multifunction LCD display flanked by 2 dial analog gauge cluster; Night backlighting = Bright Blue; √ Leather wrapped helm partly perforated; √ More soft touch materials on doors with elevated switchgear chrome door latch releases; √ Tapered turn light / turn signal stalks; √ Abundance of hard plastics partly rectified by faux brushed metallic accents chromed dial bezels.
HOW “APP” -LICABLE: 7″ high-res capacitive touch screen is flanked by glove friendly dedicated soft controls; Configurable 3-pane screen seems slightly grim at night; JBL audio rocks loud but distorts at limits. Siri Eyes discriminates against non-“I crowd” and remains step behind the times without implementation of Car Play [and Android Auto]. Not sure how many wireless devices out there can take advantage of Qi inductive charging; Entunes apps = Pandora, Slacker, IHeart, Yelp, OpenTable, Movie Tickets, Facebook.
HOW MUCH: $38,995 for a loaded 2016 Toyota Tacoma TRD Sport Double Cab 4×4., including such frills as moonroof, automatic dual zone climate control, cargo box tonneau cover. Be on the lookout for a more lifted 2017 TRD Pro variant.
WHAT’S MISSING: More rear legroom on Double Cab; Less driveline whine transfer case shudder.
ANY COMPETITION:
2015 GMC Canyon SLE Crewcab 4×4 : cabin space, box size towing 2016 Tacoma. Tacoma Double Cab V6 autobox off road clearance + 11% fuel economy Canyon V6.
CUV-based 2016 Honda Ridgeline gets no heavy-duty off-road transfer case, but is plusher and roomier. Nissan Frontier soldiers on anonymously unchanged since no one remembers when. Beware upcoming next generation Jeep Wrangler variant with an open bed. Ford has hinted that the Ranger pickup shall return.
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2016 Tacoma review, 2016 Toyota Tacoma review, 2016 Toyota Tacoma TRD Sport Double Cab 4×4 review, 4×4, automatic transmission, Chevrolet Colorado competitor, Double Cab, four-wheel drive, gallery, GMC Canyon competitor, images, mid-size pickup truck, Nissan Frontier competitor, off-road, pickup truck, review, specifications, Toyota, Toyota Tacoma, transfer case, TRD Sport, V6
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