My Vehicle

One essential item for any adventure that's not in your immediate area is a method of transportation. About 6 months ago I was fortunate enough to be able to purchase what I think is a fantastic vehicle and I wanted to share a little bit about it to potentially give a little more info into the other posts that I write.

So, without further ado, here's my vehicle:

It's a 2015 Toyota Tacoma TRD Sport Double Cab Long Bed. Whew! That's a mouthful. The previous owner had a level kit installed so that they could fit larger tires on it. It currently has 31" tires. It's rims are the Warlord from Black Rhino and its tires are Nitto's Terra Grappler G2's. I've done a few small things to it since then. The first was replacing the antenna (which you can see in the picture above) with a much smaller, car wash-friendly option. I've also done the Uni Filter mod, changed the climate control knobs, and replaced the interior lights with LED lights.

Review

The Toyota Tacoma has long been the top dog in the midsize truck market. While it's gaining more competition in recent years (which has been refreshing to see), it's still the truck to beat in the segment. This Tacoma comes from the last of the 2nd generation of this truck. Toyota completely redesigned this truck in 2005 and, while some improvements were made over the years, this 2015 truck does feel a little older inside and lacks some of the modern features that come standard on most vehicles today. Even still, it is a solid, reliable truck that also can tackle a wide variety of activities.

The Ride

For a truck, it drives surprisingly well. In many situations, it's smooth and easy to maneuver. However, there are times when this definitely feels like a truck. For me, this is most noticeable on cement roads at freeway speeds. Commuting to work there's a very noticeable shaking that occurs on the cement freeway. You get used to it after a while, but there are times when it does get pretty bad. Part of that's the road but another part is the suspension. But, if you want leaf springs on the back, there's not much you can do about that.

One of the biggest things I hear mentioned by other reviewers is the seating position. I actually don't have a problem with it and prefer it to the seating position in the newer generation of Tacoma (though I do wish the 2nd-gens had power seats). The seating position feels a little more like a car than a truck but, if you come from mostly driving cars, it shouldn't feel too different to you. If you like the way you sit in a truck like the Ford F-150, you'll notice a difference hopping in this truck.

Capacity

The capacity of this truck, in various aspects, is pretty versatile. From a towing/hauling aspect, it can tow up to 6,300 lbs or carry up to 1,250 lbs in the bed of the truck. Those are respectable numbers for a midsize truck but are definitely out performed by larger trucks or even the newer midsized trucks with diesel motors. Even still, it's more than enough for most people and their needs.

Another aspect of capacity is the interior volume of the cab. While you can look up the specs online pretty easily, here's some practical experience I've had with it. You can easily fit three adults in the back. Yeah, it's a little tight with three adults, so, you wouldn't necessarily want to put three adults in the back for a long time, but you can definitely take the team from work to lunch in relative comfort.

You can also fit three kids in the back. I currently have one booster, one forward-facing car seat, and one rear-facing car seat on the back bench and it works out great. We do have to use the lap belt to secure the middle car seat because the latch system is only on the passenger and driver's side seats, but we can secure that seat plenty tight enough to keep the kiddos safe. Access from the front seat to the back is a little tight because of the height of the front seats. The front seats are comfortable and supportive, but passing snacks back to the kids is a little more difficult in this vehicle than our other car.

The vehicle also has plenty of storage capacity. While it's definitely not as ample as larger trucks, I can fit tie downs, tow straps, and other necessary items in the various storage compartments in the truck. The under-seat storage under the bench seat is very handy. There's also storage behind the back seats that comes in handy as well. I store my most often used items under the seats and my less frequently used items behind the seats. The things I often use in the bed of the truck I store in the in-bed storage boxes. I store some additional survival items in the console and in the glove box. So far, this has been sufficient for my needs, but I don't have everything I'd like to get for the truck yet.

Fuel Efficiency

I've been tracking my fuel efficiency since getting the truck nearly 6 months ago. My overall fuel efficiency has been right around 17.5 mpg. Most of this driving is city driving with a bit of highway driving. I normally spend around 2/3 of my commute on surface streets and the other 1/3 on the freeway. Depending on the day, the freeway is running fine but most days traffic is a little heavy and has patches of slow speeds and other patches of moderate speeds. I also live on one side of the valley and work on the other side of the valley. That means my commute drops about 450 ft and then ascends again about 450 ft. While not huge, it translates into about half of my commute being uphill which burns more fuel.

Another thing to consider is the suspension of the vehicle. As mentioned before, the truck has a leveling kit installed as well as larger tires installed. Both of these reduce the fuel efficiency of the truck. If you have a second generation Tacoma (or are looking to get one) and have the stock suspension and tires, you'll likely see better fuel efficiency than the numbers I'm seeing. Even still, 17 mpg combined isn't terrible for a truck and you can still go many miles on a single tank of gas. With mostly highway driving, You can go over 400 miles on a single tank of gas. Naturally you'd want to fill up before reaching that limit, but it is possible if you absolutely needed to.

Off-road

I haven't done much with it off-road yet, but I have done a few moderate things with it. Shortly after purchasing it, we took it to Moab and did a few off-road trails with it (which I've been writing about on this blog) and it nothing has phased it so far. The first time I took it on a dirt road was to Crystal Geyser near Green River, Utah. The road there is a well-maintained gravel road. At times it had washboarding on the road but it was mostly smooth and well-maintained. Most passenger vehicles would do fine on this road. As such, it was no surprise the truck barely noticed the change in terrain.

The next off-road trail I took the truck on was to the Eye of the Whale Arch in Arches National Park. That trail is moderate and, while rocky, only really had one spot that made me grateful we were in a truck. I took it slow but the truck did amazing and never made me wonder if it could handle it. In the days following this, we took the truck to Tusher Tunnel (crosses part of the 3D trail) and up most of Onion Creek. The road to Tusher Tunnel was more challenging than Eye of the Whale but, again, the truck did amazing and handled everything the trail threw at it. Onion Creek is a fairly well maintained dirt road as well that crosses the creek around 17 times. It's a fun drive but definitely an easier ride than Eye of the Whale or Tusher Tunnel.

I've also taken the truck through deep snow on a few occasions. The first was to cut down a Christmas Tree in the mountains. We took the truck up to Main Canyon Road near Daniel's Summit. We were the first ones there for the day, so, we blazed the trail through the fresh snow. I only have hybrid/all-terrain tires on, but it handled it just fine and there was never any doubt in our traction. We plowed through 8-24 inches of snow without incident. The second snow experience worth mentioning (it snows a lot here) was commuting to work in a significant snow storm. There were drifts as deep as 3 ft in parts and the highway patrol reported well over 200 incidents that day, but this truck wasn't one of them. My commute to work was rather uneventful albeit slower than usual.

Suffice it to say, I know the Tacoma has limits, I just haven't found them yet. I'm not a hard-core off-roader, so, I likely won't ever find these limits. So, for the average person, this truck is more than capable both on and off road and in various weather conditions. Whatever you do, be smart and cautious. Take things slow if you need to and stay safe.

Specs

Year	2015
Make	Toyota
Model	Tacoma
Submodel	TRD Sport
Cab	Double Cab
Bed	Long Bed (73.2")
Engine	4.0L V6 (K&N OEM Filter, Uni Filter Mod)
Suspension	Bilstein 5100's front (set to level) and back
Wheels	Black Rhino Warlord (17x9)
Tires	Nitto Terra Grappler G2 (265/70R17 115T)
Ground Clearence	~10.5"

Final Thoughts

I'm sure there's more to say about this truck. It's a great vehicle! I'm very glad and feel blessed to have it. The truck isn't perfect but it's still pretty great. I plan to keep it for a long time and take it on many adventures.