Toyota Tacoma Wanted

You are worried about spam, but give your home phone number? That's just wierd.

You ought to be visiting autotrader.com, cars.com, and edmunds.com to find your dream truck. Your requirement for a manual transmission will preclude you from getting the PreRunner model, but the PreRunner V6 is guaranteed to have factory alloy wheels. The 4-cyl PreRunner gets stamped steel wheels as the standard fitment, finding one with alloys means a previous owner had 1.) made a special order, or 2.) bought a set of take-offs. The rear window is almost guaranteed to be the sliding type in the PreRunner, and the standard type if the non-PreRunner model. I don't recall any Tacoma model having a sun- or moon-roof.

The Tacoma PreRunner of the years you are looking for will come with an automatic trans unless it is a V6 4WD -- which will make a Not PreRunner, but a 4WD Tacoma. The Standard Tacoma will have the manual trans.

Jeff, Thanks for the response. I've been shopping on autotrader.com and I've found several that are just what I'm looking for. The main problem has been that the ones that sound the most promising are located in southern California and Arizona and I'm up here in Washington State. Yesterday I drove over to Tacoma (WA) and looked at one that I found at autotrader.com. It was almost exactly what I'm looking for except for the fact that it had an automatic tranny. It was an SR5 TRD and it did have a sunroof and sliding glass rear window. It must have not been a PreRunner but it was almost exactly what I'm looking for. The one I looked at yesterday is at

Take a look at it. I thought that the salesman that showed me the truck said that it is a PreRunner but I could be mistaken. It did have a TRD decal on the rear fender and an SR5 emblem on the tailgate and if you look at the picture, you can see that it has the factory alloy wheels and although you can't see it in the picture, it does have a sunroof. What exactly makes a PreRunner a PreRunner? I really do appreciate any information you can give me and I value your opinion highly. TIA Jerry

PS I am a little wierd and a little bit wierd too. :)

An SR5 TRD is exactly what the PreRunner will look like. As for whether it is a PreRunner or not, I'm not sure. But it is (was) lifted and had large tires. ONLY the 4WD can be had with a manual trans, all of the rest will get an automatic.

The PreRunner gets oversize tires and a suspension lift that makes the truck look much the same as the 4WD, but is really only a 2WD. For some reason that I have not figured out, the PreRunner can not be had with a manual transmission -- it could not even be ordered as an option. (My guess is the smog rules and/or CAFE standards force engine management that can not be found without an automatic transmission. I could be wrong, but that's what I think.)

All TRDs are also SR5, but some SR5s are not TRD. TRD means Toyota Racing Development, and is only available on the top of the line trim level -- SR5. I'm not sure of all of the stuff you get with the TRD, but if the truck is

4WD, the TRD option gets you electric lockers to lock the axle halves together so both tires turn at the same speed no matter what the traction may or may not be under one or the other tire. This option greatly increases traction for off-road travel. Simply press a button to invoke enough traction to get you twice as stuck as you might otherwise get. ;-)

In reality, a locked diff makes it far more likely that you will slide sideways. In that situation an unlocked diff is preferable, as the wheel that's not spinning acts as an anchor. Same for LS diffs, sliding sideways is more likely. Locking diffs are only for helping you to get unstuck.

"DanG" found these unused words:

That's what's said, but we found it to be the opposite when high up in the White Mountains on a canted slope. Two trucks w/o lockers, slid, three Toyotas [lockers engaged] did not.

Probably because the trucks with lockers didn't spin their wheels. In the right hands, they can work well. But once the wheels spin, it's sideways every time. Personally, I'd call you nuts if you drive around with the diff locked even at low speeds. It's an un-sticking tool only.

This is just a curosity question! If you are good with a 2.4L or a 3.4 V6, why not a 2.7L? Does this engine have problems that I haven't heard about?

Charles

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Most of the guys I know have lockers of some type. Another thing they do is put some kind of disconnect in the power to the ABS. There's nothing like the white knuckles you get when heading for a big drop off with your foot firmly on the brake pedal and the ABS dutifully preventing your wheels from locking up. In most cases, locking your wheels and building a berm in front of each tire usually makes for shorter stopping distances off road.

Be sure to turn the ABS back on before you drive home... :>))