10 Features That Make the Toyota Tacoma A Top Pick

Aug 05, 2023

The Toyota Tacoma boasts some of the coolest features in the pickup truck market.

It's commonly known that the Toyota Tacoma is the best-selling mid-size truck in America. There are many reasons for this and trying to pin it down to one is a futile task. In truth, it's a combination of factors that makes this truck so popular. With the reputation of the Hilux in its heritage, it's no wonder that the Toyota Tacoma is tough and reliable as well as long-lasting, capable, and dependable.

If you delve deeper into the reasons why the Tacoma is so popular, it becomes clear that it offers a lot of features that are appealing to the masses. With so many different varieties of trims and packages available, you could say there is 'a' Tacoma for every type of person out there. With that in mind, this article will focus on some of the features of the Toyota Tacoma that make it a top pick for people who want a pickup truck in their life, which incidentally is a lot.

The Tacoma is already an accomplished off-road truck. One of the best features of the Toyota Tacoma is a four-wheel drive system that enables it to conquer the most extreme terrains. As good as this system is, for Toyota it's not enough. They take rough and rugged terrain driving to another level with a Multi-Terrain Select system offered in the TRD Off-Road trim.

In essence, it's a driver aid that makes driving over uneven ground easier. There is less work for the driver as the system makes adjustments automatically depending on the surface. There are five modes to choose from that set up the traction controls perfectly for whichever mode gets selected. Depending on which mode you choose, the system will regulate the wheel spin, and adjust the throttle response and the brake pressure to make sure you get the most amount of traction at any given time.

Power and speed are always a recipe for having some fun in any vehicle, but it can also be fun when there is no speed involved. In particular, areas where the pavement gets replaced by mud, dirt, snow, sand, or rocks. In these places, performance isn't measured by speed, but by ability and the only way to cross some of these divides is to go slowly. The boffins at Toyota have thought about this and in efforts to make the Tacoma the best off-road pickup truck today, they've come up with a system called Crawl Control.

By pressing a single button, the Crawl Control system gets activated which lets the driver choose between five low-speed settings. The system also takes over the throttle response and braking in any of the low-speed settings. The beauty of this system is that it frees the driver to focus on doing the job of steering the Tacoma over tricky terrain. The system, however, is not designed for continuous use – it's designed to get you out of a sticky spot and then return to normal off-road driving.

Related: Review: 2019 Toyota Tacoma TRD Pro - Toyota Reliability Meets Off-Road Ruggedness

Driving off-road can get tricky at the best of times. Not only is the ground uneven, but it can get slippery, muddy, and even sticky. Wheels can get stuck in any manner of different ways when you are off the beaten path. To overcome this problem, Toyota fit the Tacoma with electronically locking rear differentials.

An overhead button activates the system and both rear wheels get locked to the one axle. The power and torque get sent to both rear wheels equally forcing them to spin equally, even if one wheel has no traction. It's a good system to have when the trail gets unpredictable. You never know what conditions you might encounter when you get out in the nature. In short, it's an electronic system that helps you keep going when the environment does everything to make you stop. It's also a reason why off-road enthusiasts should consider getting a Toyota Tacoma.

One of the staples of any off-road vehicle is having good ground clearance. Driving over obstacles such as rocks and mud without getting any damage to the underbelly is a definite must. Generally, 'a vehicle with 8.5 inches of clearance or more should be pretty good' says Edmunds in their Off-Road Buying Guide. The standard Tacoma has 9.4 inches of ground clearance.

However, in the TRD Pro trim, Toyota has gone a little bit further by lifting the suspension even more. The front goes up by 1.5 inches, while the back gets a lift of 0.5 inches. What does this mean for the Tacoma? Well for starters it gives the Tacoma more stability when the terrain is rocky, and obviously, it makes clearing obstacles easier. If ever you wanted a reason to buy a Toyota Tacoma, this feature is certainly one of them.

Related: 10 Reasons To Buy A Used Toyota Tacoma

There is nothing more annoying, possibly scary, and potentially dangerous than your pickup truck rolling backward when you are trying to move off on an incline – that sensation when you expect to be going forwards, but the wheels haven't gained enough traction yet, and you start moving in the wrong direction. Toyota recognizes this and to help the driver keep going in the right direction on those steep slopes, the Tacoma comes fitted with Hill Start Assist Control.

The system works in both pavement and off-road environments. You could even call it another one of Toyota's off-roading goodies for people that love getting up the mountain paths. Hill Start Assist minimizes how much the Tacoma rolls back when you move your foot from the brake to the gas when trying to move on an upward angle. Thereby giving the driver confidence in getting up those tricky trails.

One of the features that make a pickup truck practical is the bed on the back. In this regard the Tacoma is no different. The bed has multiple purposes, but the obvious and main use is to carry large and heavy items. Like most makers of trucks in the industry, they continuously make upgrades to the bed to make it more utilitarian.

One of the Toyota Tacoma upgrades to consider is the improvements to its truck bed. Aside from the standard rugged and durable surface, there is an added feature of a deck rail system with tie-down cleats that are heavy-duty and adjustable. This makes it easier to secure cargo to the truck bed and eliminated the risk of things moving around when the truck is moving. Always a handy feature to have on a pickup truck. There is also insulated storage in the truck bed, which is useful for keeping things chilled, especially on those long journeys.

The modern world is full of technology, and to keep up-to-date, auto manufacturers install various forms of connectivity into their vehicles. Toyota understands this, and to improve the practicality of the Tacoma they have installed it with the Toyota Connected Services feature as standard across the range. If you're thinking it's just the usual USB, Wi-Fi hotspot sort of stuff, you would be wrong. Yes, the Tacoma has those things, but the Toyota Connected Services is so much more.

This feature allows people to remotely access their Tacoma from any location and take control of various things like operating the power windows, remote start, locking and unlocking the doors, shutting down the engine, and much more. There was a time when things like vehicle remote access were something you just saw in films. Today Toyota makes that a reality in the Tacoma. The service also delivers vehicle information, gives any-time access to Toyota customer services, and gives maintenance reminders and various alerts among other things. Loyal fans might even call it one of the best features of the Toyota Tacoma.

Related: 10 Reasons Why The Toyota Tacoma Is A Great Daily Driver

There was a time when the cabin of a pickup truck was as interesting and as comfortable as a pile of rocks. It just served one purpose: to operate the truck to get things from point A to point B. Comfort and refinement didn't enter into the equation. Thankfully, times have moved on from the dark ages and now pickups are comfortable, easy-to-use daily vehicles. The Toyota Tacoma is a fine example of just how far refinement has come in pickup trucks.

Firstly, the Tacoma has plenty of space for five people with lots of little pockets in the cabin for storage. Secondly, the interior has a high-end feel to it with leather-trimmed upholstery. Other standard features like 10-way power-adjustable seats and lumbar support add to the luxuriousness of the drive. For convenience, there is dual-zone climate control, USB charging ports, a moon roof, and a power rear window. It's not surprising that Toyota Tacoma owners never regret buying one when they get this much luxury with tons of performance.

The Toyota Tacoma has a feature that looks little, but it's a little thing that has a big impact. The front fog lights on the Tacoma are from Rigid Industries, and they're high-performance LED fogs. What difference does that make? Well, quite a lot as it happens.

Firstly, and quite obviously, they light up the surrounding terrain a lot better than other fog lights, improving visibility, especially in bad driving conditions. Secondly, the lights get housed in high-grade alloy and have an impact-resistant lens, so they won't shatter when you are in tough situations. It's a feature on the Tacoma that gives confidence to the driver knowing they're able to see what's around them even in the harshest of weather and road conditions.

Everyone knows the heart of any vehicle is the engine. You can put all the fancy electronics and gadgets as you want, they won't make the thing go. Only the engine can do that. In the Tacoma, you get a choice of two engines, a 2.7-liter four-cylinder, and a 3.5-liter V6. While the smaller engine is quite capable enough with its 159 hp, it's the V6 that's more interesting. In many ways, it's one of the best features of the Toyota Tacoma.

The V6 increases output to 278 hp and 265 lb-ft of torque. All that power gets sent to the four wheels through a six-speed automatic transmission. This means that the Tacoma can handle a towing amount of 6,800 lbs, when properly equipped. There is also an option for a six-speed manual transmission, which is always a nice thing to have, and the Tacoma is one of the few pickups to have a manual transmission option.

M. S. Grayson has been an automotive enthusiast for over three decades. If it has an engine and wheels then it has been an interest of his. From everyday cars to sports cars, classics to supercars and hypercars, there is not much in the automotive world that has not caught his attention. His passion for cars started at an early age and has only grown deeper over the years giving him plenty of experience to write about something he loves.