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3,500 Mile Comparison: Taco v Ranger

GTGallop

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A while back when I dumped my Ranger and got a Tacoma, I promised an actual side by side comparison. Here it is.

I've got a few tanks of gas through the Taco and about 3,500 miles on it now That's pretty evenly spolit 25/25/25/25 between surface streets, interstate commuting to work, road trips, and off road. The TLDR is that if you factor out the Ford service department F-ing me over on Coil Packs because of the design flaw about rain water on the engine block, I still prefer the Tacoma. BUT!!! Either Toyota or Ford could fix a few things and become a total industry dominator in the Mid-Size Truck Market - they are that close.

For Comparison, my Ranger was a 2019 XLT 4x4 Crew in Magnetic Storm. My Toyota is a 2023 TRD Off Road 4x4 Crew in Magnetic Grey - I know. I might have a "type."

Lets look at the Toyota Cons first - this is where the Ranger beats it:
1. Engine - The 3.5L NA V6 is an absolute DOG of an engine. Far less HP and especially TORQUE than the Ford Ecoboost and Ford makes all of it's grunt low in the RPM's where Toyota wants to rev up to 3,000 before it starts to wake up and 4,500 RPM before you really see the power come on line.

2. Transmission - This thing is constantly hunting for gears the way Monica Lewinski hunts for a new dry cleaner. And as a 6 speed the difference between each gear and where the torque converter locks up are further separated. It also likes to skip gears - going up hill will drop 6 to 3 and then blast the RPM's. There is a "tune" you can buy for around $400 to $500 that fixes this and makes it drive smoother and more efficiently and apparently it operates "with in Toyota specs" so they can't tell it's there. Well if that's the case Mr. Toyota should fix his product and install it at the dealership as a free or discounted service. You really have to LEARN how to drive this truck. And the combination of engine and transmission means that trailering anything is a poor experience, where the Ranger pulled a trailer up hill like it was nothing.

3. MPG - Is it really a #3 all on its own or part of 1 & 2 above? Not sure. But my Ranger was getting 20 to 22 MPG and that was WITH bigger tires and no speedo calibration. In the summers it would drop off but that's because my wife would want to go places with me but then not get out of the truck when we got there so a lot of parkinglot iding for AC. The Ranger got pretty close to that 20 off road too. My Taco is getting around 16.5 on the pavement and 10 in the dirt. WTF Toyota?

4. Air Conditioner - Every single Import Car I have ever had, has had an anemic AC in it. Every Domestic Car I have had, trounced the competition with AC. This is no different. I got the Taco at the beginning of the summer and the AC has run Full-Tilt since then. Only a few road trips at high way speed in cooler altitudes in the morning did it finally catch up. And at Max Cooling it's LOUD. It also doesn't auto slow the fan when you get a call or text.

5. Technology - The Ranger was the closest thing to a Luxury Space Ship I have ever bought. The technology in that thing was amazing. Everything worked so seamlessly and integrated very nicely. The Tacoma is a 2016 platform that is basically a retro-fit of their 2012 Tacoma. It is much more plain, basic and trucky. I like that too so It'll show up again below in the Pro's. But the Tech that IS in the Tacoma is all based off of solenoids and relays under the hood that has more clicks than an African Xhosha couple having a marital spat. Seriously, every time I do something, especially going off road the dashboard starts clicking like Chitty Chitty Bang Bang taking off.

6. Dash Layout is an after thought. It looks like it was designed by a prepubescent teen loaded on Monster and modifying his truck. Everything is helter skelter all over the place. Got a new feature to add? Find some unused territory and stick it there. Never mind that transmission controls are now in three places

7. 4LO Crawl Control - Not a fair comparison since I didn't have this on the Ranger. But I hate this feature. Pointless tech. I keep looking to find a time and place to use this but I haven't yet. Maybe I'm a control freak? Maybe I'm just so awesome I don't need it (not likely)? And the rear E-Locker only works in 4LO too? Not that I have ever needed it but I would think and hope that I could have that locker in 4HI. Wouldn't you want to run locked if it was Icy?

8. Bed Cover - I didn't have one on the Ranger but the Yota came with it so lets talk about it. The dealer wanted to charge me $1800 for it. It's the Bak-Flip "style." I say that in quotes because I thought it was a Bak-Flip and it turns out it is a shitty knock off. Thankfully I had them throw it in free with the deal but now I'm in this predicament that the wife won't let me get a Bak-Flip because I already have a Bak-Flip. She doesn't see the difference. So I got a free problem not a free solution. The difference is that it is barely big enough to cover the bed and leaves little gaps along the edges. It also drains INTO the bed. so all of the water that hits it either leaks in or gets piped into the bed. The last panel also doesn't flip up. So I only get access to 2/3 of my bed now.

9. Bed Width - My ranger could fit two large dog crates in the bed side by side up against the cab. Tacoma is just a half inch too narrow and the Bed Cover puts them out right against the tail gate.

10. Bed Material - This is more to round it out at an even 10 items to bitch about. but the Toyota bed interior is Fiberglass. Pretty Cool! My Ranger had a spray in bed liner. That Toyota bed is slicker than Owl-Snot. Everything slides up into the 1/3 of the bed that doesn't open so I'm forever fishing shit out. I need to get a $200 rubber mat.

Toyota PROS - Where it BEATS the Ranger!
A. Suspension and Ride Comfort - Yeah... This thing floats like a Cadillac, especially off road. I used to air way TF down in the Ranger to soften up the trails. This does it without even airing down. Nice becasue if there is a short section I want to run, I can do it w/o airing down. I still do on all day trips. This one thing right here is the real winner over the Ford. My wife would cringe in parking lots where there were potholes or speed bumps . Even going slow over them was a pain in the ass in the Ranger. It does have a little more body sway cornering but not bad at all.

B. Interior Space / Seat Geometry. I'm not talking about Passenger Space. This is gear stowage. I took the gear that barely fit in the Ranger and was hard to access and filled about 18 to 20 gallons of a 27 gallon HDX Tote with it. Then I added the things to fill that tote up to the top. All 27 gallons of crap fits easily in the Taco with room to spare. Maybe about another 5 to 7 gallons. And it is MUCH more accessible.

C. Time Space Continuum Worm Hole - I can't figure it out but... The Taco has better ground clearance, but is shorter at the roof. Has lower bed walls you can reach over into, more storage (mentioned above) seemingly more interior space. all in the same or maybe smaller footprint? The hood feels bigger too... How did they fit so much space in a smaller package?

D. Mods... This thing is a Lego Truck. It snaps apart and back together. Want to run a Ham Rado? No issues. Tons of rubber plugs and access panels that pop off and on for access. Adding lights? No isssue, pop off and back on. Everything in the interior is snap-assembeled. There are 8 bolts holding the seats in and then maybe another 4 bolts all together on the interior / dash. Easy access for customizations.

E. Customizations? Why YES please! The aftermarket community for the Taco is bonkers. You can get anything to solve any probelm and the things you buy seem to be a lot less expensive than they were for the Ranger.

F. Trucky-ness - Mentioned above, the Ranger was great at being a space ship but sometimes was overkill. I like the simplicity of the Taco. Somewhere there should be a balance of Tech Integration that the Ranger does well, but with the simplicity that the Taco does well.

G. Rear Window - Tacoma is powered for the win. Ranger I had to get out and adjust manually - POO. I know that sounds small but it means that I basically never used the Ranger Window but I use the Taco window ALL the time. I like opening the rear glass and then venting the D/P front windows when I get in to suck out the heat when I first get in. In Phoenix we have heat in spades.

H. LED Lights - I probably SHOULD have mentioned this in the Cons too. The Taco has INCANDESCENT bulbs all over it. The Head Lights and Fogs were Factory Upgrades to LED and are VERY NICE but the rest of the truck, especially tail lights are DIM. Good news, for cheap you can upgrade to LED lights in the interior and you can pick color if you want. There are even some dual color / brightness LED Map lights that are perfect for low and high light applications. Tail lights are a little more expensive but then I got an LED strip that plugs into the trailer harness without tricking the truck into thinking I have a trailer now. Simple...

I. Oh and I can park the Tacoma nose down without fear of ruining my coil packs when it rains. Yeah F-You Peoria Ford and Ron "Lick My Nutz" Hubler for how your shop treated this flaw in the design of the product.

That's about it. There's a ton of stuff that's different but neither Toyota or Ford gets a win / loss on it. Falls squarely in the "Your Mileage May Vary" category and would be purely subjective. And again, while I'm pointing these items out, they really are very close (except for that engine and transmission thing and the suspension thing). I'd call it a close race and either one could change their product to dominate the other one.

I know the G4 Taco is out soon so not a lot of people will be buying the G3's. I'm excited to see how that new Tacoma plays out. Especially the Hybrid. It could be a game changer.
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Frenchy

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I did not manage to read all of this(I think I got to 4 or 5). From the sounds of it, it sounds like you simply hate it. With my Frontier I had I won't argue it was slower than the Ranger with it's 4.0 V6 but then again it was a natural V6 and not Turbocharged. With MPG I averaged much higher on the street. Can't speak for OffRoad since it was a 2WD.

All in all id say Toyota is just a poor choice
 

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I did not manage to read all of this(I think I got to 4 or 5). From the sounds of it, it sounds like you simply hate it. With my Frontier I had I won't argue it was slower than the Ranger with it's 4.0 V6 but then again it was a natural V6 and not Turbocharged. With MPG I averaged much higher on the street. Can't speak for OffRoad since it was a 2WD.

All in all id say Toyota is just a poor choice
Agree. I had a 2014 Taco TRD Off Road and sold it for Ranger. All I know is the Ranger is better in every way I can even think of. Engine, transmission, comfort (specifically seats and sitting position), stereo, headlights. And I had two warranty repairs on my taco under 36K miles and my Ranger is right now at 36 and no issues. I was able to sell the Taco for a lot so I guess that is good.
 

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Agree. I had a 2014 Taco TRD Off Road and sold it for Ranger. All I know is the Ranger is better in every way I can even think of. Engine, transmission, comfort (specifically seats and sitting position), stereo, headlights. And I had two warranty repairs on my taco under 36K miles and my Ranger is right now at 36 and no issues. I was able to sell the Taco for a lot so I guess that is good.
Between the Ranger and the frontier that I had The only complaints I really had with the frontier was the turning radius and the fuel mileage. My thoughts were the fuel mileage could be a little bit better understanding it is a truck and the turning radius I like to make a joke about where a tractor trailer would do better lol. Mind you those two things got taken care of when I got into the Ranger but then the Ranger gave me other things that made me go what the f***
 


Joeiconic

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I simply would not own the current gen Taco because of 1 and 2. And, there is no magic about the ground clearance. They achieve it by raising the floor and forcing you sit in a go-kart position. They’ve supposedly addressed in the next gen.
 
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GTGallop

GTGallop

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All those cons about Toyota, and you still prefer it over the Ranger?
Must have been a Yota fan boy all along.
Actually no. Hated on Taco's as a Frat Boy Fuck Truck for a long time.
 

RangerPNW

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Actually no. Hated on Taco's as a Frat Boy Fuck Truck for a long time.
I mean, I think they still fall under that category...were you on youtube at all during the pandemic? ?
 

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Thanks for the review.
 

Jason B

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Actually no. Hated on Taco's as a Frat Boy Fuck Truck for a long time.
What was I saying!?!:crazy:
I should have known. No REAL Taco fan boy would dare say anything negative about a Yota.
My apologies. I'm just poking fun.
For real. Thanks for a bit of info on the new Taco. I've never even ridden in one so I can't really say they are bad. The biggest complaint I actually did hear about them is the seating was uncomfortable, especially if you are on the tall side.
 

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Thanks Greg for the honest reviews. I came from a bunch of Tacos. Most resent is 1999 2WD Super Cab V6. That was and still is a great truck with only 148,000 miles in 24+ years. I really like/love my Ranger.
 

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I simply would not own the current gen Taco because of 1 and 2. And, there is no magic about the ground clearance. They achieve it by raising the floor and forcing you sit in a go-kart position. They’ve supposedly addressed in the next gen.
Same here, plus the seating ergonomics of the Taco don't work for me (5'11" with long legs). I had never owned a Toyota or Ford before buying the Ranger. I frankly was leaning towards the Taco at first, but the drivetrain and seating position are not fixable via the aftermarket. My main complaint with the Ranger is the suspension, which was fixable via aftermarket.

My main take away after shopping for a truck, and now owning the Ranger for three years is this: Trucks (mid and full size) have to perform such a wide range of tasks, in a wide range of environments. No manufacturer can make them near perfect for everyone, much less so than a car or SUV. No matter which truck you buy (Toyota, Ford, GM, full or mid), you need to budget a fair amount of expenditure after the sale customizing the truck for what you want it to do.
 

LowKeyTremor

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(I had to add this: I do want to start off with the fact that you can’t argue with the incredible, resale values, and the reliability that seems to be absolutely consistent. I don’t want to sound like I’m bagging on anyone or anything! Before seeing the Ranger, I would have been in the Tacoma in a heartbeat. the new ones, I’m not sure… Will have to see the specs, and they are addressing one of my big issues)
But…
What is with the Ranger sounding like it kicks the Tacoma‘s ass in every department except for very random spots.

TACOMA PROs:
  • A POWER rear sliding window
    • It’s nice to have, and I definitely use it on my F250, but it’s the most trivial component out of practically everything, and I would simply say, OK well that’s nice to have, but it doesn’t move the needle at all
  • Less technology
    • OK, we have different opinions. That’s OK. I suppose there’s less to go wrong, but it just means more simplicity. I love the tech
  • A better ride in certain situations
    • Another one where I suppose it’s differing opinions. I don’t find my truck to be overly rough and certainly don’t want it to float over anything because that also means (unless real time adjustable suspension is in play in stiffening the outer side of the vehicle), you’re going to definitely feel every turn… Have to slow down more so you don’t have the feeling you’re gonna tip everyone over in the car with you.
You basically said that the Ranger wins in every other category. I don’t get it!

I can tell you why the Tacoma has all that clearance, yet doesn’t have a roof that is exceptionally high to go along with that, and I hate this part (don’t hate the trucks tho!):

  • The seats are extremely low to the ground and you’re pretty much feeling like you’re sitting in a car when driving because your legs are sticking way out.
  • In the back, anyone who is tall gets to have their knees, nice and high. I don’t find that very comfortable.
I actually really like the Tacoma‘s, and the new ones supposedly raise the seat height, so that will be interesting… but seriously, take a look and see the incredible clearance, then realize the truck is an exceptionally tall, yet you weren’t hitting your head on the roof. It’s because you’re sitting VERY low to the ground, given it’s a truck.

Your legs stick, straight out like a car, where we sit in captains chairs with taller seating levels with the Ranger. And that is not a treat for the rear, because there isn’t the room to stretch out, so the knees just go straight up. I know I am repeating myself, but it really is no coincidence, that seating height is being raised for the new generation.

just to make sure we are on the same page, you describe:
  1. Terrible gas mileage
  2. Low power with a very suboptimal power curve, definitely more suited for a car
  3. A child designed dashboard
  4. A transmission that can’t decide what it wants to do
  5. But it does have a power rear window, and it floats around when you drive.
  6. The bed is more narrow and prohibit you from fitting things that you normally put back there.
  7. A terrible quality bed cover
That just doesn’t add up to me, so I’m guessing you really are just someone who loves the Tacoma & is willing to overlook some Pretty major things, which is totally fine. Maybe it’s the styling or the pretty incredible ground clearance, but it just doesn’t make sense logically, based on the refreshingly accurate review (albeit, a different winner, then would be expected from the review)

Seriously, thanks for the truly honest review! I think everything you said is true, I just arrive at a different conclusion. But we all have certain things we like that aren’t necessarily logical. So I’m just pointing out the optics, but I respect the honesty and not sugarcoating every feature!

I think there’s some good value in your post!

It will be interesting to see the new ones!

Take care.
-Kyle
 
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JimG_AZ

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Thanks for the write up. The engine and the transmission of the G3 Tacoma were enough for me to not consider it. Keep in mind that I like Toyota's. I owned a 2011 Tacoma 4x4 that I actually really liked.

I get it that you were really pissed off with the Coil Packs design flaw, but was that really worth it to ditch the Ranger for a Tacoma? Seriously, was the cost to replace the Coil Pack much more than the doc fee the Toyota dealer charged?
 

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A while back when I dumped my Ranger and got a Tacoma, I promised an actual side by side comparison. Here it is.

I've got a few tanks of gas through the Taco and about 3,500 miles on it now That's pretty evenly spolit 25/25/25/25 between surface streets, interstate commuting to work, road trips, and off road. The TLDR is that if you factor out the Ford service department F-ing me over on Coil Packs because of the design flaw about rain water on the engine block, I still prefer the Tacoma. BUT!!! Either Toyota or Ford could fix a few things and become a total industry dominator in the Mid-Size Truck Market - they are that close.

For Comparison, my Ranger was a 2019 XLT 4x4 Crew in Magnetic Storm. My Toyota is a 2023 TRD Off Road 4x4 Crew in Magnetic Grey - I know. I might have a "type."

Lets look at the Toyota Cons first - this is where the Ranger beats it:
1. Engine - The 3.5L NA V6 is an absolute DOG of an engine. Far less HP and especially TORQUE than the Ford Ecoboost and Ford makes all of it's grunt low in the RPM's where Toyota wants to rev up to 3,000 before it starts to wake up and 4,500 RPM before you really see the power come on line.

2. Transmission - This thing is constantly hunting for gears the way Monica Lewinski hunts for a new dry cleaner. And as a 6 speed the difference between each gear and where the torque converter locks up are further separated. It also likes to skip gears - going up hill will drop 6 to 3 and then blast the RPM's. There is a "tune" you can buy for around $400 to $500 that fixes this and makes it drive smoother and more efficiently and apparently it operates "with in Toyota specs" so they can't tell it's there. Well if that's the case Mr. Toyota should fix his product and install it at the dealership as a free or discounted service. You really have to LEARN how to drive this truck. And the combination of engine and transmission means that trailering anything is a poor experience, where the Ranger pulled a trailer up hill like it was nothing.

3. MPG - Is it really a #3 all on its own or part of 1 & 2 above? Not sure. But my Ranger was getting 20 to 22 MPG and that was WITH bigger tires and no speedo calibration. In the summers it would drop off but that's because my wife would want to go places with me but then not get out of the truck when we got there so a lot of parkinglot iding for AC. The Ranger got pretty close to that 20 off road too. My Taco is getting around 16.5 on the pavement and 10 in the dirt. WTF Toyota?

4. Air Conditioner - Every single Import Car I have ever had, has had an anemic AC in it. Every Domestic Car I have had, trounced the competition with AC. This is no different. I got the Taco at the beginning of the summer and the AC has run Full-Tilt since then. Only a few road trips at high way speed in cooler altitudes in the morning did it finally catch up. And at Max Cooling it's LOUD. It also doesn't auto slow the fan when you get a call or text.

5. Technology - The Ranger was the closest thing to a Luxury Space Ship I have ever bought. The technology in that thing was amazing. Everything worked so seamlessly and integrated very nicely. The Tacoma is a 2016 platform that is basically a retro-fit of their 2012 Tacoma. It is much more plain, basic and trucky. I like that too so It'll show up again below in the Pro's. But the Tech that IS in the Tacoma is all based off of solenoids and relays under the hood that has more clicks than an African Xhosha couple having a marital spat. Seriously, every time I do something, especially going off road the dashboard starts clicking like Chitty Chitty Bang Bang taking off.

6. Dash Layout is an after thought. It looks like it was designed by a prepubescent teen loaded on Monster and modifying his truck. Everything is helter skelter all over the place. Got a new feature to add? Find some unused territory and stick it there. Never mind that transmission controls are now in three places

7. 4LO Crawl Control - Not a fair comparison since I didn't have this on the Ranger. But I hate this feature. Pointless tech. I keep looking to find a time and place to use this but I haven't yet. Maybe I'm a control freak? Maybe I'm just so awesome I don't need it (not likely)? And the rear E-Locker only works in 4LO too? Not that I have ever needed it but I would think and hope that I could have that locker in 4HI. Wouldn't you want to run locked if it was Icy?

8. Bed Cover - I didn't have one on the Ranger but the Yota came with it so lets talk about it. The dealer wanted to charge me $1800 for it. It's the Bak-Flip "style." I say that in quotes because I thought it was a Bak-Flip and it turns out it is a shitty knock off. Thankfully I had them throw it in free with the deal but now I'm in this predicament that the wife won't let me get a Bak-Flip because I already have a Bak-Flip. She doesn't see the difference. So I got a free problem not a free solution. The difference is that it is barely big enough to cover the bed and leaves little gaps along the edges. It also drains INTO the bed. so all of the water that hits it either leaks in or gets piped into the bed. The last panel also doesn't flip up. So I only get access to 2/3 of my bed now.

9. Bed Width - My ranger could fit two large dog crates in the bed side by side up against the cab. Tacoma is just a half inch too narrow and the Bed Cover puts them out right against the tail gate.

10. Bed Material - This is more to round it out at an even 10 items to bitch about. but the Toyota bed interior is Fiberglass. Pretty Cool! My Ranger had a spray in bed liner. That Toyota bed is slicker than Owl-Snot. Everything slides up into the 1/3 of the bed that doesn't open so I'm forever fishing shit out. I need to get a $200 rubber mat.

Toyota PROS - Where it BEATS the Ranger!
A. Suspension and Ride Comfort - Yeah... This thing floats like a Cadillac, especially off road. I used to air way TF down in the Ranger to soften up the trails. This does it without even airing down. Nice becasue if there is a short section I want to run, I can do it w/o airing down. I still do on all day trips. This one thing right here is the real winner over the Ford. My wife would cringe in parking lots where there were potholes or speed bumps . Even going slow over them was a pain in the ass in the Ranger. It does have a little more body sway cornering but not bad at all.

B. Interior Space / Seat Geometry. I'm not talking about Passenger Space. This is gear stowage. I took the gear that barely fit in the Ranger and was hard to access and filled about 18 to 20 gallons of a 27 gallon HDX Tote with it. Then I added the things to fill that tote up to the top. All 27 gallons of crap fits easily in the Taco with room to spare. Maybe about another 5 to 7 gallons. And it is MUCH more accessible.

C. Time Space Continuum Worm Hole - I can't figure it out but... The Taco has better ground clearance, but is shorter at the roof. Has lower bed walls you can reach over into, more storage (mentioned above) seemingly more interior space. all in the same or maybe smaller footprint? The hood feels bigger too... How did they fit so much space in a smaller package?

D. Mods... This thing is a Lego Truck. It snaps apart and back together. Want to run a Ham Rado? No issues. Tons of rubber plugs and access panels that pop off and on for access. Adding lights? No isssue, pop off and back on. Everything in the interior is snap-assembeled. There are 8 bolts holding the seats in and then maybe another 4 bolts all together on the interior / dash. Easy access for customizations.

E. Customizations? Why YES please! The aftermarket community for the Taco is bonkers. You can get anything to solve any probelm and the things you buy seem to be a lot less expensive than they were for the Ranger.

F. Trucky-ness - Mentioned above, the Ranger was great at being a space ship but sometimes was overkill. I like the simplicity of the Taco. Somewhere there should be a balance of Tech Integration that the Ranger does well, but with the simplicity that the Taco does well.

G. Rear Window - Tacoma is powered for the win. Ranger I had to get out and adjust manually - POO. I know that sounds small but it means that I basically never used the Ranger Window but I use the Taco window ALL the time. I like opening the rear glass and then venting the D/P front windows when I get in to suck out the heat when I first get in. In Phoenix we have heat in spades.

H. LED Lights - I probably SHOULD have mentioned this in the Cons too. The Taco has INCANDESCENT bulbs all over it. The Head Lights and Fogs were Factory Upgrades to LED and are VERY NICE but the rest of the truck, especially tail lights are DIM. Good news, for cheap you can upgrade to LED lights in the interior and you can pick color if you want. There are even some dual color / brightness LED Map lights that are perfect for low and high light applications. Tail lights are a little more expensive but then I got an LED strip that plugs into the trailer harness without tricking the truck into thinking I have a trailer now. Simple...

I. Oh and I can park the Tacoma nose down without fear of ruining my coil packs when it rains. Yeah F-You Peoria Ford and Ron "Lick My Nutz" Hubler for how your shop treated this flaw in the design of the product.

That's about it. There's a ton of stuff that's different but neither Toyota or Ford gets a win / loss on it. Falls squarely in the "Your Mileage May Vary" category and would be purely subjective. And again, while I'm pointing these items out, they really are very close (except for that engine and transmission thing and the suspension thing). I'd call it a close race and either one could change their product to dominate the other one.

I know the G4 Taco is out soon so not a lot of people will be buying the G3's. I'm excited to see how that new Tacoma plays out. Especially the Hybrid. It could be a game changer.
Thanks for the report Greg.
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