Toyota Tacomas have long been a favorite trucko of mine. If you’ve ever shopped for one, you know the frustration caused by how much a decent used Tacoma costs. You can either pay $33,000 for a 2 year old TRD Off-Road with 75,000 miles or $35,000 for a brand new one; it’s ridiculous. There’s pretty much no reason to go used unless you’re wanting an old beater with 150k+ miles.
One thing surfacing this year that’s even more ridiculous is the price of the TRD Pro version of the Tacoma. It’s supposed to make your tacoma super battle-ready and off-road capable. What they don’t tell you is basically any 4×4 tacoma is 100% equally matched in capability. But that doesn’t sell Fox Shox.
The “base” model 2019 Tacoma SR 4×4 Double Cab has as standard @ $31,000:
- Selectable 4×4 w/ 4WD high, 4WD low, and 2WD
- Power locks, mirrors, keyless entry
- Limited Slip rear diff
- Touch screen audio controls with bluetooth, backup cam
- Pretty much everything you need
Here’s what the TRD Pro ads, and this is a freakin PHOTO from the Monroney sticker:
And the price jumps to.. wait for it…. $51,000. Whoa, wat? So I’m paying $20,000 for a layer of black paint on my wheels, a shift knob, and LED fog lights? And don’t forget that sweetass fake hood scoop 
“Nay, but what of le Foxen Shoxenes!” you say? Ok fine it has some Fox shock absorbers. Ohhh my bad, you’re right! Those must be like, $6,000 each when you buy them separate right? Uhhh, no. Try $879.99 for a set of 4. And yes that’s for the Performance whatever blah blah version that have the all-important reservoir thing which is absolutely necessary to rock crawl over the curb into onto the soccer practice field.
Don’t get me wrong I love Tacomas and I’m probably going to buy one soon. I bought a Taco new in 2013 and I loved that thing. It was fantastic. But there’s no way in hell I’m paying an extra $20,000 for a TRD logo skid plate and some shocks I can just buy and install myself. Yeah it also has an electronic locking rear diff, which, admittedly is totally awesome. But realistically you’re not going anywhere I can’t with my lowly LSD rear diff and non-TRD cat back exhaust ride.
Make sure you pay very close attention to what you’re paying for at the dealer. The only reason to not buy the base SR version is if you want a long bed, in which case spring for the SR5 and get beeped at like crazy with all the extra sensors it has.
Couple things I will miss from the older generation is the 4.0L V6 which has a better torque curve and the backup cam inside the rearview mirror which I thought was done exactly right in the 2013 model.
Happy Taco Shopping!