If you haven't been around a mid-size truck in a while, let's just address the elephant in the room.
The truck itself.
Yeah, I know I called the Ranger Raptor "right-sized" just a few days ago, but that was relative to the full-size off-road pickup trucks. Stop grading on a curve, and ALL the midsize trucks, the Ford Ranger, the Chevy Colorado---and now the all-new 2024 Toyota Tacoma---are big.
How big? A 20-year-old Ford F-150 full-size pickup ranged from 211-230 inches long, 79 inches wide and 73-76 inches tall. The new Tacoma? 213-226 inches long, 77-78 inches wide and 74-75 inches tall. Equipped for off-roading, fat tires and flared wheel wells insure that you're looking at the upper end of those measurements.
The TRD Off Road is actually the beginning of the new Tacoma's trail-focused trims. The Trailhunter and TRD Pro bring even more dedicated off-road hardware to the party, while asking you to bring another $20,000 or so to the dealership.
Under the hood, it's a 2.4-liter turbocharged i-FORCE four-cylinder making 278 horsepower and 317 lb-ft of torque. Our test vehicle had an eight-speed automatic, but a six-speed manual is available, with horsepower dropping to 270 and torque to 310. The EPA fuel economy estimate is 21 mpg combined city/highway. Zero to 60 is seven seconds flat.
There is also a hybrid iFORCE MAX version of the Tacoma TRD Off Road available, with peak horsepower of 326 and 465 lb-ft of torque. That powertrain will set you back an additional $4,800.
The TRD Off Road comes with 4WDemand, Toyota's part-time 4X4 system, with a two-speed electronically controlled transfer case, an off-road tuned suspension with Bilstein shocks, coil spring multi-link rear supension, electronically controlled locking rear differential, multi-terrain select and crawl control with downhill ascent control.
The whole package rides on 17-inch wheels with 265/70R17 BF Goodrich Trail-Terrain T/A tires.
The TRD Pro is remarkably smooth and even more remarkably quiet on pavement. It's one of the quietest cabins I can recall in a pickup truck.
Off-road (in this case, a trail parallel to a highway known as Mormon Emigrant Trail, southeast of Lake Tahoe), the TRD Pro was surefooted in 4HI, negotiating ruts and gullies caused by a wet winter and some significant snowmelt.
The only thing working against the Tacoma was its width. There was no way to avoid some branches (apologies to the Toyota press fleet).
In the left side of the Tacoma TRD Off Road's bed, a cubby hole with a fuse, a 12V outlet and USB connection.
On the right side, an AC power outlet (part of an extra-cost option package).
Rear seat legroom is tight when the front seats are set for six-footers.
Accomodations are very nice up front, with supportive seats and cupholders capable of holding 50-ounce water bottles.
The base price of the 2024 Toyota Tacoma TRD Off Road is $44,395 including destination. In addition to what we've already discussed, standard equipment includes a tow hitch receiver, smart key, LED headlights, daytime running lights and fog lights, fabric-trimmed seats with lumbar support for the driver, a leahter-trimmed steeiring wheel, an eight-inch touchscreen with a six-speaker audio system including wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, a three-month trial of SiriusXM Satellite Radio and a comprehensive suite of active safety features.
Our tester had extra-cost options, as well. The TRD Off-Road premium package bumped the entertainment system to a 14-inch touchscreen with a JBL premium audio system including a JBL FLEX portable speaker, SofTex-trimmed eight-way power-adjustable front seats (heated and ventilated), a leather-trimmed heated steering wheel, multi-terrain monitor, Towing Technology Package, pre-wired auxilary switches, an AC Power inverter and a moonroof. That's $8,800.
Another $1,230 was added with the Stabilizer Disconnect Mechanism, the bed mat was $200, a ball-mount $70 and the gunmetal tailgate insert $89.
All told, the bottom line on the window sticker reads $54,784.
The 2024 Toyota Tacoma TRD Off Road is light years ahead of the previous-generation Tacoma. A thoroughly competitve entry in today's battle of mid-size off-roaders. The only critique I have is that today's midsizers take up as much space as the full-sizers of two decades ago. And that matters more on narrow trails than it does on paved streets.
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