All-new Tacoma much bigger, stronger
Toyota officials are rarely coy but they retreated into something like it at last year’s launch of the 2005 Tacoma.
None took the bait when a writer asked “at what point does a compact truck become a midsize truck?”
The question was a gentle barb at the industry; Dodge had long before super-sized the Dakota, trampling the barriers between compact and midsize. Tacoma’s growth spurt was a response to market forces.
The 2005 Tacoma is larger in every dimension and is therefore significantly roomier. There are two new engines, the standard equipment list is longer and includes safety items inherited from the sedan family.
How big is the new Tacoma? Big enough that more than one journalist mistook a full-size ‘05 Tundra, which was also at the event, for a Tacoma. The new truck looks big and beefy. Its trademark fender creases are traded in for bulging wheel wells and a body-length character line. New, flush-mounted headlamps flank a boldly designed chrome-trimmed grille.
New bright-work adds sparkle to the interior, which has been redesigned in the image of the 4Runner cabin. It’s a sturdy, serviceable design with traditional controls, rather than an electronic interface, and brushed aluminum-look gauge surrounds and trim. The switchgear is big-truck hefty and the seats are large, supportive and well bolstered.
At the launch we drove early prototypes, which are used primarily for testing purposes, and interior fit-and-finish were excellent, an impression that was confirmed on the test vehicle.
Toyota claims 18 Tacoma iterations based on three cab types — Regular Cab (from $13,980) Access Cab (from $17,395, including destination) and Double Cab ($24,435). There are 2WD and 4WD configurations, short and long beds and two specialty editions, the PreRunner and the X-Runner.
For review purposes, Toyota sent us a six-cylinder Access Cab with the TRD (Toyota Racing Development) Off-road Package No. 2. It, along with assorted goodies, bumped the six-cylinder Access Cab’s $23,125 base price to $30,329.
This year, no matter which Tacoma you order, anti-lock brakes with brake force distribution and brake assist are standard and even the base truck can be ordered with stability control. Other across-the-board options include Hill-start Assist Control, which is useful when starting from a dead stop on a slippery surface, and Hill-descent Control, which controls the truck during slippery descents. Both options require the automatic transmission.
Two new engines bring Toyota into parity with the class. A 2.7-liter four that makes 164 horsepower and 183 pound-feet of torque replaces both the 2.4- and 2.7-liter fours offered last year. A 4.0-liter six making 245 hp and 283 pound-feet replaces the old 3.4-liter six.
Both engines feature a new Electronic Throttle Control System, and the six gets variable valve timing with intelligence; it makes nearly as much power as the Dakota’s optional V-8.
Properly equipped, a V-6 Tacoma can tow up to 6,500 pounds, a 30-percent increase over the ‘04 model.
Regular and Access cab models are available with either engine; Double Cabs come only with the six.
Specialty models include the sport-oriented X-Runner, an Access Cab model that aims for the youth market, with a lowered and tuned chassis, ground-effects package, 18-inch wheels, six-speed manual gearbox and six-cylinder engine. Named for its reinforced “X-braced” frame, which increases torsional rigidity for reduced chassis flex, the X-Runner runs from 0-60 sprint in 7 seconds and sticks to the pavement with lateral acceleration numbers that rival some sports cars.
Just beware — the X-Runner rides like the truck that it is, the price that’s paid for stiffer suspension settings.
PreRunner is a name given to a line of 2WD models — they’re available in Regular and Double cab configurations — with off-road suspensions and the jacked-up look of an off-roader. When equipped with one of two optional off-road packages, which include off-road suspension tuning, Bilstein shocks and a two-speed rear transfer case, the PreRunner is surprisingly capable in rocky and slippery conditions.
Among the benefits of a larger truck is a big-truck ride and the Tacoma complies, specialty models aside, thanks largely to a stiffer chassis and revised suspension settings and steering tuning.
Our off-road-ready TRD tester betrayed its calling with a skittering, bouncy ride over rough patches. It was much fun, though, to skip over with impunity the worst of the summer’s street construction.
Generous ground clearance, appropriate angles of approach and departure, and the two-speed transfer case provide a platform for secure and capable off-roading.
Be advised that the $4,405 Off-road Package added not only such four-wheeling essentials as a specially tuned suspension, locking rear differential and underbody skid plates, but also basics like cruise control, remote keyless entry and power windows, mirrors and locks.
Those options are available in a variety of other packages, as well, but, obviously, it’s still possible to get a more or less barebones Tacoma.
Toyota adds some innovation out back, where inner bed decks and walls are now made of a new sheet-metal compound that’s 10 percent lighter than steel, yet more durable and rugged.
Bed decks include two-tier loading and integrated rails with four adjustable tie-down cleats. The rails are the basis for a series of add-ons, including cargo-bed crossbars, a fork-mounted bike rack and diamond-plate storage boxes.
It appears that Toyota has thought of everything, with its all-new Tacoma, including the competition. Bigger, stronger and more comfortable than before, it’s likely to capture the attention of small-truck buyers. Or midsize truck buyers. Whatever.