I read the Ridgeline got great reviews. Curious to see how it works out for you.
I'm interested in the 2023 Chevy Colorado that is coming out. Wish you could get a six foot bed though. What do people think of this one?
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I read the Ridgeline got great reviews. Curious to see how it works out for you.
I'm interested in the 2023 Chevy Colorado that is coming out. Wish you could get a six foot bed though. What do people think of this one?
The only real replacement for a 4R or Taco is the same.
I owned a RHD Mazda bongo in NZ. It was a manual too. Wasn't't that bad, but sometimes I'd get caught driving on the right side of the road by accident. Usually late at night w/ no trafficQuote:
Originally Posted by Ted Striker
Yeah, he bought it in BC. That's how most of the of Hilux, Hiace, and Surfs got here.Quote:
Originally Posted by XXX-er
His was the 3 liter Turbo. It had less hp than the 3VZE, but more torque. It didn't like to go too fast on the freeway either, because it had a very low redline, but it wasn't lacking for power. Pulled the same regardless of load.
I meant here, and not being able to see before you try to pass, so you kinda inch over and crane your neck.Quote:
Originally Posted by Name Redacted
I learned to drive in England. When I went back a decade later as a tourist I was pretty cocky that it'd come right back, but yeah, late at night / no traffic or in open spaces without lines, I found I had to remind myself.
Passed someone waiting in a parking lot on the wrong side, he gave me the "peace sign" lol.
You decide you didn’t like the slide-in?Quote:
Originally Posted by El Chupacabra
Mrs C decided she wanted an indoor bathroom, so the slide in camper we had was no longer acceptable. And she vetoed my pick of a Northern Lite. So, we ended up with a travel trailer that I spent more time fixing than we spent using this year. That trailer is pretty small, so F350 was way overkill (it could tow four of them at the same time).Quote:
Originally Posted by bagtagley
Stupid high pricing on Super Duty trucks still, so it made sense to dump it now.
The Ridgeline fits in the garage too, barely, which is nice.
Quote:
Originally Posted by El Chupacabra
The Ridgeline is great! I had one for about 18 months. The killer feature on that thing is in-bed trunk. So weird and so cool. I even put a small lift on with BFGs... the looks I got were classic. I found the 3.5L - even with the nine-speed transmission - a little wheezy, but otherwise adequate. The seats were quite comfortable.Quote:
Originally Posted by El Chupacabra
I traded after a big vehicle reshuffle when I decided to keep my Duramax and the slide-in camper.
You'll love it.
It fits in the garage, just barely - it's a tight squeeze past the mirrors, but they can stay folded out. I can't even walk around the front end because there's about 75 bags of wood pellets stacked up, against the wall for winter.
I need to set up my parking guide tennis ball from the ceiling.
Skis fit diagonally in the bed - I put a pair of 193s in for a test fit.
There's a Ridgeline forum, as there is for everything, and it looks pretty easy to duplicate the Tacoma / Frontier bed wall tie-down tracks on a Ridgeline. There is a series of 3 bolts in the bed wall on each side, a little below the bed rail, and the bed wall is flat front to back. With a set of tracks on those bolts, I can mount a set of crossbars above the bed, and use a ski rack for winter, or bike racks for summer - which will be handy when towing and I can't use a hitch rack at the same time. https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...e6e3561cd8.jpg
That's a nice color (at least on my screen)
I saw that at the dealer and thought--while the salesman was a bit too proud of it--it would likely come in really handy. As in, weather is turning fast and you just want to stow something without putting in the cab.Quote:
Originally Posted by Bobcat Sig
Is the bed deep enough? Seemed really shallow. But I like the innovation.
Tacoma is just too fucking small. 4Runner has a real back seat and disc brakes on the rear axle.
Both of them are bomber and worth the price premium imo. Our 2003 4R is by far the most reliable vehicle we have ever owned, except for our Prius V, which at 230k has only needed a wheel bearing.
not too small, I used to expedited 4 large adults and ski gear
it wasn't perfect but it was way > the 1st gen tacoma
its midsized, the people I see driving them are skinny people
if you are a fat fuck get something fat-fuck-sized
which speaks to buying the right truck
I am 15 lbs overweight at 205 6'2" but even at my ideal 190 I'm not comfy in the back seat of a Tacoma. Back seat of a 4R is adult human sized with room to spare plus a dog for cross country travel.
Pint sized humans fine. Get the Taco and live happily ever after.
Honestly I like both vehicles a lot and I always shrug when people write them off because they spec like the dinosaurs they are. Went forest service roading this summer with our besties on the way to a relatively remote San Juan trailhead, them in their Taco and us in our 4R and all of us were happy as clams bouncing down the road with our Bilsteins no fucks given. I'm not a truck guy so my preference is definitely biased towards the more wagon like SUV. I like stuff that just works every time mostly..
Quote:
Originally Posted by uglymoney
Never liked the laid out driving positions in either Tacoma or 4RNR. Owned the 4RNR (~1998MY), but never could quite get myself to buy a Tacoma. I do own a 2013 Tundra now, and love that thing.
The 4R v Taco argument can be summed up as: if you need a pickup, it's the Taco, but for literally everything else, the 4R is the superior vehicle. And if you really need a pickup: Tundra
My crew cab tacoma is basically relegated to dog duty now. 80 lb black lab that thinks he's too good to ride in the bed. We have one of those taco seat cover things to protect my fine Italian seat covers from him. He loves it. I think he would live in my truck if I let him.
But I still need a damn truck bed for everything else anyway. Beer cans, kegs, coolers, skis, poles, bikes, dirt bike gear, trash, recycling, camping gear, paddling gear, etc. Can't imagine throwing that stuff into the cab of a fancy 4R and smelling it all the way home. No thanks.
And yeah, I shoulda bought a Tundra.
Yeah, but you only need a truck 14% of the time. You should get a RAV4 and a utility trailer. It would be so much more practical.
Yeah, we have a hybrid Rav4, it is pretty sweet for travel, flooring it over the pass, going 90, and it still gets 40+ mpg. I also have an AWD Chevy Express and a Nissan NV200 for work.Quote:
Originally Posted by Foggy_Goggles
Nice, one for all occasions...like shoes. I laugh when I see the culture war being waged by proxy in choice of vehicle. Hopefully lifed Platimum F150 guy can get along with Telsa guy when they are knocking back martinis laughing at little people out at Devil's Thumb.
That's the funniest part to me. Fully loaded full sized domestic pickups are luxury vehicles. Add fuel cost, and you're easily in "do you have any grey poupon?" territory.
That settles it for me.Quote:
Originally Posted by Ted Striker
I tried. But in the PNW in 2018/19 it was nearly impossible to buy a good used first gen (or T100). And the Toyota tax was huge on the few I saw. Wife vetoed the idea of a new Tundra.Quote:
Originally Posted by Name Redacted
Ha! If that isn't sarcasm, here are some observations from someone who's owned both of the current generation.Quote:
Originally Posted by hafjell
The 4R is quieter (but still much louder than something like a Highlander), more comfortable, and has much better forward visibility (though the top of the windshield is still low). The Tacoma developed interior rattles almost immediately after driving it off the lot (in all of the usual places according to the folks on tacomaworld). The 4R has none at 30somethingK miles, but does have "the whistle" (as discussed on both 4R forums).
The 4.0 in the fifth gen 4R is indisputably a better engine than the 3.5 in the Tacoma.
The 3.5 varies the timing to run in a part-time Atkinson cycle, to increase mpg at the expense of the torque curve. I found myself flooring the tacoma a lot in 2nd, and sometimes 3rd gear (6MT), whereas I can drive the 4R with a very light foot, and consistently get better mileage than I ever got in the Taco.
Oil changes on both are a PITA.
Dog preferred shotgun position in the Tacoma. The seat was more 'buckety'. It had better headlights too. The 4R interior is dated in that the cup holders are on the small size, and there's nowhere to put your giant phone. Both will interface with a phone or classic ipod flawlessly.
There’s a really nice T100 with 110k for sale on Wenatchee CL. $7000Quote:
Originally Posted by Ted Striker
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Interesting. I thought the “whistle” was just mine.Quote:
Originally Posted by Ted Striker
So it’s a thing.
This is when you take your foot off the gas and the 4R is coasting right?
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That one has the 3VZE aka the "three point slow". There's a possibility that the head gasket is already leaking a bit into the #5 cylinder (which will eventually happen to all of them with the factory gaskets)Quote:
Originally Posted by MagnificentUnicorn
The 96-98 extra-cab, 3.4, 4x4 is the one to get. And I stupidly let a one owner, no rust example slip through my fingers about five years ago.
Re: the “whistle”. Is it a wind noise? Could be the windshield. A lot of them come with issues from the factory and even more after the windshield has been changed.
I’ll defer to Ted. Seems to come from the wheels when you take your foot off the gas. Mine is kind of a higher pitched hum, not a whistle, so could be something totally different. Or possibly it’s always there and the engine noise drowns it out.Quote:
Originally Posted by Name Redacted
It’s totally fine and not that bad, only noticeable if you have no music on.
What do I know though, I’m not even a dentist.
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With the disclaimer that I'm not a licensed mechanic - only a "tree shade" enthusiast, that sounds like a driveline noise. The obvious guess is a wheel bearing. Especially if it seems to come from one corner (but it could be both)Quote:
Originally Posted by AK47bp
The 4R is heavy as fuck, and the front brakes can generate a lot of heat driving down from the mountain. And bearings don't like heat.
If you want to dig a little deeper, you could jack up one corner, grab the wheel at 12 and 6 o'clock and see if it has any play. Do the same at 9 and 3 o'clock.
Not sarcasm. Going back and forth and back and forth over those 3 options. Wife wants the 4Runner. We already own a 4Runner competitor--we don't need two.Quote:
Originally Posted by Ted Striker
I want a Tundra; I can afford a Tacoma.
Have heard the Tacoma auto transmission "searches" or "hunts" for gears. Have only driven the manual and was pleasantly surprised at how smooth it was. Hadn't driven anything but automatic for decades.
Oil changes are a PITA because of? The skid plate?
Oil changes are recommended every 10K miles w/ synthetic. Of course there's info out there saying that's bad, but the manufacturer only recommends every 10K. And I haven't had any issues changing the oil on mine.
Oil changes on our 03 sport 4L with factory skid plate are easy peasy. Filter is on top and easy to access. Drain plug comes out without removing skid plate.
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4Runner hunts for gears in the hills too. I imagine not quite as bad, but can be annoying.Quote:
Originally Posted by hafjell
Oil change annoyance is the filter is above the front skid plate, yes, but not only that. The front skid bolts strip super easily. If you're buying a used 5th gen, one of them will be. When I started doing my own oil after the free 30K mile Toyotacare changes, two of the four were stripped. I still do the oil on this car for that reason (Jiffylube on the other car). Various solutions on the T4R forums include retapping, new bolts, antiseize, etc. RCI Metalworks makes an aftermarket skid with a removable hatch that allows you to change it without dropping the whole thing.
With 125K on my 2013 SR5, my only complaint is the five speed auto hunts in the hills and the skid issue. And mileage, but knew that going into it. So, super minor. Love that car.
I’ll chime in on the 4R Oil change front. It is a pain.
You have to remove 3 panels. The skid plate bolts strip easy as mentioned. The oil filter is a downward facing cartridge style that always seems to make a mess. I love working on cars but this gives me no joy
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Dumb question, are the stock bolts part of the problem? Can you replace early with better / stronger bolts?Quote:
Originally Posted by motopsycha
tacoma thoughts, 3.5 auto. TRD OR crew cab
oil change as above via filter, messy but not bad. I still change mine 2x year since I tow. skid plates are easy enough, pay attention when trying to hold up the plate and start a bolt. it will strip easy if you put air ratchet to it or cross it, LR covers it. re-tap and anitsieze
combine the 3.5 atkinson with the the auto trans and you have a slush box with better search capability than Google, it is terrible stock set up. i re-tuned about 2 weeks into ownership and have not looked back.
how do you re-tune ?Quote:
Originally Posted by hawkgt
a lota gears to hunt thru fir sure
Like buttonQuote:
Originally Posted by hawkgt
There's a rumor that it was re-mapped for 2021 or 2022. The issue was that they programmed it to lug the engine for fuel economy. Feature, not a bug.Quote:
Originally Posted by hafjell
There's a known issue with the 3rd gear synchro on the 6MT. Mine had it, and you had to match rpm or it would gnash a bit.
Yes. And lack of grease/anti-seize. The stock skid plate isn't great either. But really, it's just people working too fast on other people's cars.Quote:
Originally Posted by hafjell
Oils changes use a special tool: 64mm 14 flute socket. And they're just messier, with more time lying on your back. The stock cap is plastic, and will get rounded over time by aforementioned dealership apprentices, but there is an off-book but actual Toyota metal replacement.
Just one skidplate to deal with on the Taco. No stripped skidplate bolts on mine, but I've done all the oil changes and have been careful. There are hooks to hang the front edge of the skidplate when mounting that make it pretty easy to place and hand-thread the bolts. Get the weird yoter-specific filter tool. Well worth the few bucks for an Amazon knock-off.
The transmission doesn't hunt so much as it constantly and aggressively tries to upshift. The transmission flash helped - I'd argue that it helped with throttle response as much as anything, but that might be controversial - but I still use manu-matic mode. That's partly because it still upshifts more aggressively than I'd like, but also because I've only owned manuals until a few years ago, and I'm used to using the gears to control speed. Basically, unless you're on the interstate, you can leave it in fourth or fifth and it still does the auto thing but doesn't upshift into the useless gears.
Re:whistling. Mine sounds kinda like a low howl, like wind through old windows. At the time, the internet said it was access holes in the frame or skidplates or some such. The dealer said something similar. I noticed it for about a week and haven't since.