The all-new Tacoma's build & price is live, although be warned that it's not functioning as intended at press time. Retailing at $31,500 (plus $1,495 for destination), the midsizer is quite a bit pricier than Toyota's previous-gen Tacoma. How much pricier?
Think $2,900 for the most basic of specifications. For the 2023 model year, that would be the SR with the Access Cab, six-foot beet, 2.7-liter engine, and rear-wheel drive. Said cab was dropped for 2024, meaning that the SR kicks off with the XtraCab and six-foot bed. What's more, Toyota discontinued the aforementioned 2.7 in favor of a four-cylinder turbocharged mill.
Both the 2.7- and 3.5-liter engines have been replaced by the i-FORCE turbocharged 2.4-liter I4, which is joined by either an eight-speed automatic or a six-speed manual. The stick shift is limited to a handful of configurations, including the work-oriented SR, but only as long as you get it with the Double Cab.
Twinned with the 2024 Toyota Tundra (both are based on the TNGA-F platform), the redesigned Tacoma follows in the footsteps of its larger sibling with a hybrid powertrain. The i-FORCE MAX isn't available right now, though. Series production of the i-FORCE MAX will start no later than April 2024.
Rated at 6,500 pounds (2,948 kilograms) for maximum towing capacity and 1,709 pounds (775 kilograms) for maximum payload, the fourth-gen Taco is available in the US in a grand total of six grades. The SR is joined by the highly popular SR5, the rear-drive and XtraCab-only TRD PreRunner, the TRD Sport (can be had with a manual), the TRD Off-Road (rev-matching manual available as well), and the well-equipped Limited. Not long now, the hybrid-only TRD Pro and Trailhunter will be added to the configurator. At the moment of reporting, the Limited is the priciest Tacoma of the bunch at $52,100 with 4WD and the high-output I4.
Photo: Toyota
High-output I4 what? Similar to GM's Chevrolet Colorado, the Japanese rival (that's actually made in Mexico) features a single powerplant with a variety of tunes. The auto-equipped SR, for example, starts with 228 horsepower and 243 pound-feet (330 Nm) on deck. Upgrading to the manual results in 270 horsepower and 310 pound-feet (420 Nm). The SR5 with the automatic improves to 278 horsepower and 317 pound-feet (430 Nm). Said differences in peak horsepower and torque further apply to the auto- and manual-equipped TRD Sport and TRD Off-Road.
Although not available to configure for the time being, we also know that hybrid-assisted trucks develop 326 horses and 465 pound-feet (630 Nm) at full chatter. In a similar fashion to the Tundra i-FORCE MAX, the Tacoma i-FORCE MAX features a small high-voltage battery (make that 1.87 kWh) and a transmission-integrated electric drive unit.
Given the added complexity over the previous generation, the 2024 Toyota Tacoma may prove a bit of a headache in the first year of production. Because it's closely related to the third-gen Tundra, there's no denying that we'll be hearing about reliability- and quality-related concerns in the nearest of futures.
The Tacoma's main rival in the mid-size truck segment is the Colorado, which starts at $29,200 (sans destination). The Nissan Frontier is $29,930, whereas the Ford Ranger is $32,565. If you prefer unibody, Honda is much obliged to sell you a brand-new Ridgeline for as little as… uhm… $39,750.
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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