Glad you mentioned the bed size options with the OR compared to the Pro. I also wish it was possible to delete some things in the Pro. For instance, the subwoofer takes up one of the only good storage spots inside the cab. And the rear bumper sensors must be disabled if you want to replace the rear bumper. You also don't get much choice of colors with the Pro.
@@cedmapi Oh, maybe it's different for manuals? Or certain years? For sure 2019 and 2021 all the autos come with JBL. Anyway, it's not a very good system, you're better off putting in your own!
You can pick up a F150 FX4 STX for much less. More room and comfort, power, payload and towing capacity. Unless you live where you are going up tiny trails in the mountains, a full size truck will do just fine. How often are you truly going to "overland"? Get you something that is useful 8m between. I got out of a Tacoma and other than holding its value, its such an inferior truck.
Could you guys do a "best bang for your buck" series on midsized trucks. Meaning at what point are you getting less utility for every dollar increase. Similar to this video. What would be the most capable and affordable trim of each class. I would be very interested in your opinions.
This video IS that video. The Taco off road can be had with the manual for a little as $36k, the next closest is the Ford Ranger xlt fx4 at $41k, then the Zr2 for $45k to start, or you can go up to the gladiator manual at around $52k. The Taco is by far the better deal.
Best bang for your buck is to get a full-size truck. More power, more torque, more room, smoother drive, same or better mpg, just a little more expensive than the overpriced midsized markups.
Chevrolet Colorado ZR2 is the best bang for your buck/most capable off-roader on the market. Sticker starts in the low $40's but dealers will sell them for upper $30's. Considering it has front and rear lockers, off road tires, more horsepower than the competition, and the 8 speed automatic transmission, there's no comparison. It also drives just as well on the street as a family sedan....even with the off road tires.
I'm not sure about the Ford Ranger with prices but I think the best bang for your buck is probably the Nissan Frontier with the Chevy Colorado a close second. I know I got my Colorado pretty heavily discounted for around 34.5k when it was just shy of being under 41k MSRP for example.
Although the Nissan Frontier isnt as appealing and reliable as a Tacoma, I feel like the Frontier is the best bang for your buck. I see 3 year old Frontiers with 35,000 miles selling for around 19k. A Tacoma is almost double that price for same year and mileage
I’m just obsessed with the look of the trd pro. If you are going to do aftermarket mods and really build it up to your choosing then def get the off road. If you just want a capable beautiful looking truck off the lot and not want to do too many aftermarket mods then the trd pro is the way to go. Can’t go wrong either way with a toyota truck.
When I bought my TRD OR the dealer wouldn't negotiate on the PRO so I saved a lot more going with the OR. In fact it's gone up so much in value in its first year that it's trade in value is higher than what I paid for it. The prices skyrocketed when the 2020 model came out
@@carlosvega2962 sure, sell 'em. then figure out how to get back into a truck you want for same money... I have a 2018 that I much prefer to the 2020 (what was new then) and a heck of alot more than the 2022...
I have a 2019 TRD OR and I had the same choice to make. Except in Canada - where I am - the price difference between the Pro and the OR is a bit more than $14 595. And I did throw the saved money to roof rack, bed rack, RTT, and a bunch of other overlanding goodies. Trivia note - In Canada, we can only get the TRD OR with the short bed.
Thanks, Andre, for a review aimed more towards the budget-conscious (aka broke) truck buyer. And you are absolutely right - why pay for all that stuff if 90% of the capability can be had at a relative bargain. Next, how do the Pro and the Off-Road compare to a BASE Taco 4x4?
If you look it up online, you will find there is no "BASE Taco 4x4" in 2020. You have to buy a TRD Off-Road to get 4WD. That is their entry level 4WD truck now. (Since this original post, it has been said I was wrong. But I swear at the time I posted this, I spent a great deal of time making sure I did not mislead. For some reason, the Toyota web sight was not giving me an option on the lesser trims such as the SR5 to build or spec it out with a 4WD system, which even I thought that was extremely odd. So apologies for the post being inaccurate. And I am leaving this up just so you know, I was not trying to mislead and it is not my fault! lol.)
@@WW-wf8tu the SR, SR5 and TRD sport are all available as a 4x4. In the SR you can even get a 4 cylinder engine with that. I have a 2020 sr5 v6 4x4. It has Hitichi shocks in place of the Bilstien and no crawl control.
@@MrMikey1273 That's what I was attempting to confirm before I replied to John. But yah, it would not spec/build it out that way for me. I tried over and over to force it to give me the 4x4 options. I originally was going to tell him, yes the SR5 has 4x4, but not the CC. And wanted to make sure I had that 100% correct. And it botched it all up making me think there was not even a 4x4 option anymore. It's not my fault I swear. lol.
The weakness of this Toyota Tacoma is the IFS and too much electronic system. It is good for USA roads and highway. However, for us having business in the remote villages of Africa, where it rains two successive days. The roads have lots mud and muck.This car is garbage because of the IFS which gets broken easily. I would prefer the Rubicon 4×4 with their solid front beam axle that resists extremely well to the appaling conditions of Africa roads. There is also an option with less electronic system which can allow to fix the car easily. I would say the old fashion way.
Great video! Another alternative is the truck I just got - a TRD OR with the TRD factory PRO lift kit (plus bigger wheels and more aggressive tires). All the capability of the TRD Pro, for $6K less! Only had it for a week, but I love it!
I sell Toyota.. There is a TRD Off-Road, with package code OF. That gives you leather, heated seats, power drivers seat, 360° Cameras, Trail Monitor and sunroof. It is only missed Fox shocks, TRD Pro wheels, front skid plate and Pro badging.
Get a base 4x4 and use the savings to customize your truck. The fox shocks, wheels and tire and skit plate are cheap and lift it 4 inch and you will have a trd for under $35k
@@layne4376 as soon as you lift the TRD an inch the warranty is gone. Before modes people did ofroad too. I get your point, we want the machine to it all wild we sit inside a cabin with all the comforts.
I got a 2020 SR5 with the 6’ bed. Already started customizing the way I want without obnoxious stuff like fake hood scoops and snorkels and stickers. And it’s dumb but having a sunglasses holder is more useful than off-road crawl controls and off road modes to me 99.999% of the time haha
@@dumpsterfire3382 would be nice to have the locker but I don’t need it personally. Haven’t missed it yet. I’m not a serious off-roader. I’m a Home Depot and dump run dad who occasionally will take a trip to the Sierras or up to Tahoe. I’d buy a manual 2 door jeep and not a truck with a 6ft bed if I was hitting up Moab. Edit: and I live in the Northern California valley btw, weather and snow is no issue for me.
It seems like if off road is most important, then the cheapest 4wd version would be best idea. Then full suspension upgrade and so on and wind up with a better truck for less money. The lowest interior is good enough. I'm talking trucks that will primarily be on dirt roads till wore out.
I have a 21 TRD sport the only thing I'll add is running boards and maybe a bullbar I love that truck I looked at a Ford comparable and could not afford one I only had to wait 2 weeks to get it
Know what type of Off-Roading you tend to do 1st. Bought a TRD Off-Road instead of the Pro... With the extra 10k that I saved i used part of it on better Off-Road components. Now it's more complete than a Pro & still have money left over. Many Tacoma owners go this route. Built not Bought
But I also want that snorkel André. How am I going to ford rivers without that snorkel? Also, it’s missing red toe hooks which means it’s not off-road worthy. /s
I just completed a 2 year contract in Saudi Arabia working in the dessert.Toyota pickups are the only ones that last a really long time and still keep value ,the rest are scrapped fairly quickly -seen land Cruisers with 900 K km's which is really good considering conditions. If you stick to the asphalt roads Ford Crown Vic's never die.
@@Big.W. Haha true in Saudi that is no problem, water for the coolant system may be a bigger issue sometimes.I saw crazy km's on these things they are imported as cheap used cars and maintenance done from thereon is lets just say lightly
Only drawback to Nissan pro4x with a long bed is turning radius, it’s like a school bus turning radius, other than that I would definitely consider a Frontier Pro4x with ling bed.
Totally agree. The Pro is just an over priced Off Road. When you plan on modifying it, why spend all that extra money on some badges when you can put it into your personal modification choices. Glad TFL sported this video saying the same thing for those that don't think like this. :)
I have a ‘20 off road with the manual and getting the manual was an amazing decision. What’s also nice is I have the LED headlights too, they’re offered on every truck other than SR and SR5 with the technology package 2 and higher
Well done again. I chose the SR and built my own. Bumpers, full skid plates, rock rails, cab and bed racks, desert air intake, wheels, wheel spacers, mild lift, winch, bed cover, locking rear diff, and full recovery and camping gear. And I saved a butt load over the off road.
That seems the way to go to me. Wind up with a more capable and durable truck. I'm looking to run one in a ranch situation where at least 70 percent of its life will be on dirt. It will leave in a body bag, trade in value is irrelevant.
This is a very difficult decision for me. I saved my entire life for a brand new Tacoma. I narrowed it down to the trd off road vs the trd pro. My dealer got the trd off road for $42k or so and the other dealer has one for $53k. It is a $10k difference. I’m not doing any modifications for it. I wish it still came in army green and seeing that this year is the last year for gas trucks with v6 on the Tacoma I will need to make a decision. I think I narrowed it down to trd pro
You can actually get most of the TRD Pro features on the Off Road as options including the leather seats and surround view cameras. I think pretty much the only thing you can't get on the Off Road is the Homelink mirror. Of course once you add all those options to the Off Road it costs pretty much the same as the TRD Pro.
@@michaeljkasnter Not if you don't have a newish garage door opener. Also you can use homelink to open other things like gates for example. Still very useful and I wouldn't want a car that doesn't have it.
I have the same truck white TACOMA TDR OFF ROAD but with 6 speed manual..paid cash $31k 2 years ago my daily work truck and now with 8k miles in a trade o sell private can get around 30k so not loose money? Its awesome!!
@@IYG-x7c I did, and it was the worst truck I ever owned. Paint on the roof and hood faded. Horn would randomly fire and get stuck honking. Couldn't handle 70+ on the freeway. I got rid of it as quickly as I could.
@@Duden1337 I am just trolling.....not a truck guy. But I was looking at one few days ago and RAM was very impressive. I know old ones are shit, but 2021 Limited has quality of a luxury car. Tacoma is nice too, but RAM is on other level. Of course it costs $70-75k too
I just purchased a 19. It was awful. The stereo was bad with normal features missing, xm/sirius reception was so bad, there was no insulation on the roof(sounded like a tin roof during the rain), weather stripping was coming off on top and slapping the roof when I drove, and Toyota would not check the check engine light at under 10k miles and less than a year old. Wanted to charge me $200 to plug into a computer. So happy with my new Tremor!
The one thing not mentioned here, and I wish I had known, is the difference in gearing between the automatic and manual trans. The automatic is geared waaaay too tall. Both 5th and 6th gears are overdrive. On top of that, the automatic truck's diffs are 3.9 vs 4.3 on the manual version. Unless you're going 70mph downhill, you'll never see 6th gear. This also means that 1st is way too tall. I'm in the process of regearing mine to 5.29. Sounds crazy.....but this will still give a final drive gear ratio in 6th that is similar to the manual. And yes, the Pro version is very overpriced. Save the money, buy the Offroad and upgrade the suspension and tires to your liking and still get the locking rear diff and crawl control. That's what I did.
I agree especially since I do a lot of extreme off roaring$ I’ll save the $10,000 & use it for better shocks, tires, skid plate & maybe a lift! I’ve owned 4 Toyota Tacoma’s & at 67 years old still love ve for my 4by4 off road adventures! Tacoma’s are by far the best, but forget the pro & get the satisfaction of building your own personal off raider! Thank you for the update , very informative video!
Smart move, I as will do the same! It will be my 4th Toyota Tacoma, I have never been let down with any of my trucks, doing a lot of pretty tough 4 wheeling as well!
An over priced pile of junk on wheels even more so the dealerships admit they have even marked up their prices significantly this truck is not 37K$ now more like 46K$ an absolute rip off & only a desperate mentally sick minded person would buy this way over priced pile junk on wheels..
Toyota don't offer technology... Fan boy's only. Need to look at other to see what your actually missing. Like factory power lock tailgate... Don't require key
Not going to lie, I almost purchased a 2019 TRD Pro 4Runner because of the color (voodoo blue). I ended up purchasing a TRD Off-Road... the price difference was $15,000. The dealer was willing to discount the TRD Off-Road but not the Pro. "I can't discount the TRD Pro because people will pay sticker for these in voodoo blue". Cool, I respect the honesty.
Out here the voodoo blues were well above sticker. The cheapest I found was $65k while another dealer had theirs marked up to $74k. I also went with a '19 Off-Road instead. I really wanted that voodoo blue, but I'm glad I didn't spend that much money. Especially now that my rig has some trail damage under its belt.
@@SeanStewart88 go look up used TRD Offroad Tacomas. Many used ones without the premium package are 33 to 36k and they are selling for around those amounts.
Saved a ton of money on my 4 runner. Went TRD OR rather than pro. I couldn't give a hoot about the Fox shocks. If I am going to go nuts off-road I would be replacing them anyway. I don't give a damn about looks either. Function over form.
I bought a 2020 TRD OFF ROAD long bed because you guys recommended it. And by saving lots cash I will build the Overland rig of my dreams and take it down to Patagonia in a few years ! Thanks TFL
Love my 2017 TRD Off Road and no issues since it was new . Don't go off road much but it's gotten me through every major snow storm we have ever had!! And it tows my boat just fine. Have owned Toyota Tacoma's since 1994 and I am a ex GM technician!!
This is excellent advice. I've been looking at which truck I want to get next and came to the same conclusion about the Tacoma. Better to save the money up front and buy a better suspension system than what you get with the higher trim.
Got the 20 TRD sport. Don't care about lockers or crawl control. No regrets at all. Building it the way I want, and yes the scoop is non functional, but so what
As many comments about the Silverado interior and lack of tech compared to Dodge Rebel.... Geesh the Toyota is like an Atari 2600 compared to any of the big 3. Priced with the rest just lacking all tech and 80s interior.... Terrible
I have a 2017 Tacoma SR 4X2 Double-Cab 2.7L 4-Banger, and It has been an Impressive Mid-Size Truck. Does everything I ask it to do for Daily Driving, though I have not taken it off-road yet. I do appreciate Toyota having different trims for different individuals and preferences, but I would advise for people on a Budget to look at a Base SR Tacoma sometime. It may just be everything you need without all the Gimmicks and Extra Stuff!
It makes sense to get the TRD Off Road especially since you can spend that $10k on a better suspension/tire package than what comes on the Pro version. In fact, for $10k you can probably also get an aftermarket front and rear bumper, snorkel, side rails and a trunk rack included.
I was always wondering why everyone compares the TRD-Pro to everything. Why? It has it's features, sure. But comparing off road capabilities and factoring price? TRD OR. I'm 100% sure you can do whatever suspension tweaks you want for less than the price difference. Buy the Pro if you want the seats, etc. It certainly has it's place. But you don't NEED it.
André, way to tell it like it is! You should do a video comparing the build-and-price of the OR to the Pro, and then look at what it would cost to get the off-road features in the aftermarket. Not the bling, just the stuff that will match the Pro's off-road capabilities.
This could maybe be the best budget midsize off road pickup. Hay Andre how about a video of Trd off road vs Ranger Fx4 vs Canyon At4. And the Gladiator trim model that is under the Rubicon.
@@layne4376 Those are discontinued. Sure the trd pro will hold its value well like all toyotas do. Many things come in factor mileage,condition. He just put a blanket statement on the truck which is just some fanboy shit. Don't get me wrong im a toyota guy but all things lose value. You don't pay full price for used up piece of ass do you? Even a used lambo loses value.
Wow. Ive been curious about a Tacoma but after watching many videos about them I’ll be buying another F150. Tacoma so cool looking but seems cheap and lacking power to name a few. Overpriced too in comparison to the F150.
Hope it will still be nice when I can finally afford to buy one used in 8 years. It’d be cool to see base model reviews. I just want to throw payload in the back and go down the road reliably with basic comforts like heat and air. Never had much use for any of these extra price hike features.
@@Shakerhood69 Extras the average driver will probably never need. It would be cool to see how far it's possible to get with the most basic 4x4 package. I can take that $1800 and put it straight in the gas tank and go alot further than I could with TRD. I cant drive up a mountain if i cant afford to get there. These trucks mpg is not good.
@@KnobleKnight533 A nicer interior, radio, push button start (auto tans) and a beefier rear axle and skid plates are things l am thinking of off the top of my head besides the electronics aids.
@@Shakerhood69 If you're into that kind of stuff, cool. I don't care about electronics or accessories or automatic transmissions. If I could have bought a Tacoma with crank windows and manual locking hubs, I would have.
Very nice simple truck, not full of features which I like. It was what I need. You get a lot for the money, this is the way to do it and it's cheaper. I would buy one just like this if it was available in Africa.
