Talk me out of a Tacoma SR v6 double cab 4x4

[Danadavenport]

Hello new member here.

I have been planning on a tacoma for some time and now its time to pull the trigger. I was alway going to go with the trd offroad because it being a great platform to start from. I understand the trd offroad has crawl control and a rear locker and lower trims dont. I plan to do light offroading and camping so the locker is nice. As I started learning what set the models apart I started changing my mind. When I would look at the trd or I knew I would change suspension, wheels and tires. Thats when I started looking at lower trims levels. I didnt want to pay nearly $40k for the trd and still change a bunch of parts. Im purely looking at the trucks from a cost perspective.

I can get a 2021 tacoma SR v6 4x4 double cab for for $33,400 today. I can swap the suspension(5100's,) wheels and tires for $2500. So tell me why I should buy the trd because right now Im not sure if Im missing something of value in it.

TRD OR
$39,500
$2500 Suspension, wheels tires
$42000.

SR
$33400
$2500 Suspension, wheels tires
$1400 locker
$37300

Yes Im aware that the sr has grey cloth seats( i dont like leather) and no fog lights. Thank you for your input

 

[B-Man]

Welcome! Light off-roading and camping the SR will serve you just fine. $5K difference will give you some great camping trips. Just my .02.

 

[NMBruce]

Gotta agree with B-man.

I wanted a Pro, but couldn’t see the cost and got a TRD OR for $38.9k in Quicksand, what I really wanted. I have already changed the suspension, Ironman Foam Cell, the TRD OR one sucked, I put 600lbs in the back and was almost hitting the bump stops, ride sucked. The stock tires lasted 20k miles

and Welcome

 

[Danadavenport]

Welcome! Light off-roading and camping the SR will serve you just fine. $5K difference will give you some great camping trips. Just my .02.

Even if I wanted to do more difficult offroading other than rear locker and crawl control there are no other mechanical differences correct?

Thank you

 

[Danadavenport]

Gotta agree with B-man.

I wanted a Pro, but couldn’t see the cost and got a TRD OR for $38.9k in Quicksand, what I really wanted. I have already changed the suspension, Ironman Foam Cell, the TRD OR one sucked, I put 600lbs in the back and was almost hitting the bump stops, ride sucked. The stock tires lasted 20k miles

and Welcome

Yeah I find that so interesting that so many with TRD OR swap out the suspension. Yeah the Pro is cool I just cant understand the price. Thatnk you for mentioning ironman because it looks like they are not very far from where i live

 

[B-Man]

Even if I wanted to do more difficult offroading other than rear locker and crawl control there are no other mechanical differences correct?

Thank you

I had a '17 OR before trading it for my '18 sport.....only difference I can think of is what you posted above. Locker and crawl control.

 

[slidoomz]

I would wait for the “Tacoma Trail” it’s basically a sr5 Tacoma with a rear locker. I haven’t had any issues with my sr and I have added 5.29’s and a rear locker over the past 2 years.

 

[New Holland Overland]

OR will give you a bigger rear axle, not just lockers. You go from an 8" to an 8.75" rear diff. So if your hauling a bunch of weight, towing, wheeling harder etc. then your gonna want the OR.

 

[TCOTUE]

I didn't do alot of offroading, but the stuff I did my sport worked just fine. I would honestly save the cash, and grab the SR. Only thing I liked about the Sport verses the SR5 I drove, was the black headliner, vs the tan stuff the base model got. To me the extra cash spent on that was well worth it. May not bother others, but would have bothered me down the road. I don't miss the crawl control.

 

[Danadavenport]

I would wait for the “Tacoma Trail” it’s basically a sr5 Tacoma with a rear locker. I haven’t had any issues with my sr and I have added 5.29’s and a rear locker over the past 2 years.

Interesting because I was kind of interested in the trail but I was not aware it had a rear locker.

 

[Danadavenport]

OR will give you a bigger rear axle, not just lockers. You go from an 8" to an 8.75" rear diff. So if your hauling a bunch of weight, towing, wheeling harder etc. then your gonna want the OR.

Thats interesting because nobody ever mentioned larger axles to me.

 

[New Holland Overland]

Thats interesting because nobody ever mentioned larger axles to me.

yup... the manuals, offroad's and pro's get the larger rear axle.

 

[Danadavenport]

yup... the manuals, offroad's and pro's get the larger rear axle.

Is it a different great ratio or just a larger diff housing? Do people have an issue with the smaller axles with larger tires and running off-road?

 

[New Holland Overland]

Is it a different great ratio or just a larger diff housing? Do people have an issue with the smaller axles with larger tires and running off-road?

L4 5MT: 8.8" 3.91:1 without Locker
L4 6AT: 8.0" 4.30:1 without Locker

(Manual Trans)
V6 6MT SR, SR5, SPORT: 8.8" 4.30:1 without Locker
V6 6MT TRD Off-Road/PRO: 8.8" 4.30:1 with Locker

(Auto trans)
V6 6AT SR, SR5, SPORT: 8.0" 3.91:1 without Locker
V6 6AT TRD Off-Road/PRO: 8.8" 3.91:1 with Locker

 

[Junkhead]

I would wait for the “Tacoma Trail” it’s basically a sr5 Tacoma with a rear locker. I haven’t had any issues with my sr and I have added 5.29’s and a rear locker over the past 2 years.

Manual sport also comes with the bigger rear end.

 

[bonifacio]

O/R for the options. You can do some some other little things that aren't offered on the SR. Somethings can be added to the SR but no options to build it that way from the factory.

O/R - Smart Key, LED DRL, Nicer grill, 120v power outlet, Multi-Terrain Monitor with CRAWL, 4700's, Wireless Charger, e-locker, black fenders, off-road fabric seats, O/R wheels, more exterior color options. 8" screen. Side views have Turn Signals. Power sliding rear window. Leather steering wheel and shift knob. 10-way adjustable seat.
Options: LED Headlights and Fogs, Tech Package, Premium Package. Option to have Parking Sensors. Blind Spot Monitoring, Rear Cross Traffic. Leather, Moonroof, Color matched sideviews and mirrors. TPMS with auto-location. Wide angle fog lights. Auto-dimming rearview. Homelink option. Tow hitch. Smart entry and push button start.

Is it really worth the $4700 difference? Probably not. Is it nice to have? Yes. Little QoL features. I've never used CRAWL Control. Sensors are nice. I went Premium and Tech on my 19. Prices were a little lower then. I ended up ripping a lot of the stuff out. But mostly nice to have. Over the course of time I'll have the truck, I think it's worth it. Won't use much of it. It's just nice to have. Just the amount of times

https://www.toyota.com/tacoma/2021/features/mpg/7594/7544