2017 Toyota TRD Sport purchased on 6/29/17 with 14 miles on the odometer. During the test drive, I noticed some hesitation/surging of the drivetrain, but was assured by the sales associate that it was because it did not have fresh fuel in the gas tank. Since taking delivery of this truck, I have run several tanks of fresh fuel and have experienced the same surging/hesitation while the engine/transmission is under load (accelerating or driving uphill) prior to the transmission downshifting. When the transmission does downshift, it does so in a very hard and harsh manner. I have noticed under slight depression of the accelerator during acceleration (under load), the engine does not appear to have enough torque and the transmission maintains the engine at a low RPM before downshifting which results in this surging/hesitation. In my opinion, the engine and the shift points of the transmission is not paired appropriately to give a balance between fuel efficiency, power and drivability. I contacted the dealership that I purchased the truck and spoke with the service manager about my drivability concerns and was told that I need to keep driving the truck and eventually it will learn my driving habits and resolve my concerns. I spoke with another dealer and they mentioned that I should take it into a dealership to incorporate some updates as this is a commonly occurring issue with these Tacoma's. I currently have over 1200 miles on the truck and it still continues to experience these issues. This is not what I expect from a $37K+ vehicle from Toyota. This is my first Toyota, and certainly could be my last if these issues are not properly adjudicated.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
2017 Toyota TRD Sport purchased on 6/29/17 with 14 miles on the odometer. During the test drive, I noticed some hesitation/surging of the drivetrain, but was assured by the sales associate that it was because it did not have fresh fuel in the gas tank. Since taking delivery of this truck, I have run several tanks of fresh fuel and have experienced the same surging/hesitation while the engine/transmission is under load (accelerating or driving uphill) prior to the transmission downshifting. When the transmission does downshift, it does so in a very hard and harsh manner. I have noticed under slight depression of the accelerator during acceleration (under load), the engine does not appear to have enough torque and the transmission maintains the engine at a low RPM before downshifting which results in this surging/hesitation. In my opinion, the engine and the shift points of the transmission is not paired appropriately to give a balance between fuel efficiency, power and drivability. I contacted the dealership that I purchased the truck and spoke with the service manager about my drivability concerns and was told that I need to keep driving the truck and eventually it will learn my driving habits and resolve my concerns. I spoke with another dealer and they mentioned that I should take it into a dealership to incorporate some updates as this is a commonly occurring issue with these Tacoma's. I currently have over 1200 miles on the truck and it still continues to experience these issues. This is not what I expect from a $37K+ vehicle from Toyota. This is my first Toyota, and certainly could be my last if these issues are not properly adjudicated.
- joseph p, Hollis, US