2017 Toyota Tacoma

The volume Double Cab SR5/TRD Sport/TRD Off-Road trucks use the 3.5L 2GR-FKS V6 introduced with the 2016 redesign; 2017 is a carry-over powertrain year (TRD Pro added).

Peak torque arrives high in the rev range, modest against turbocharged rivals and full-size trucks in the band.

Instrumented tests of the V6 automatic 4x4 cluster in the mid-7s; tall gearing and peaky torque keep it average for the class.

The V6 is smooth at speed but makes its power high in the rev range; reviewers note soft low-end response and a need to rev hard, with throttle tip-in tuned for economy.

The 6-speed automatic is tuned to upshift early for EPA figures and is widely criticized for hunting and reluctant kickdown on grades; a 6-speed manual remains available on V6 4x4 trims.

Competitive mid-size rating when the V6 Tow Package is fitted, well short of full-size trucks in the band.

Typical mid-size payload; most Double Cab 4x4 V6 configurations are rated lower.

The V6 Tow Package adds a Class IV hitch, 7/4-pin connector, oil and transmission coolers and Trailer Sway Control, and a backup camera is standard, but there is no integrated trailer brake controller or trailer-assist tech.

Part-time 4WD with a low-range transfer case is available across the trim range and standard on TRD Pro; TRD Off-Road/Pro add a locking rear differential, Multi-Terrain Select and Crawl Control.

2017 adds the TRD Pro (FOX internal-bypass shocks, TRD-tuned springs, aluminum front skid plate) alongside the TRD Off-Road with Bilsteins, locker, Crawl Control and Multi-Terrain Select — benchmark off-road hardware for the class.

Two gas engines (2.7L I4, 3.5L V6) with automatic or manual transmissions; no diesel or electrified option in 2017 (the hybrid arrives only with the 2024 generation).

Volume V6 4x4 automatic is rated 20 combined; 2WD V6/I4 reach 21, manual 4x4 V6 drops to 18.

EPA city rating for the volume configuration.

EPA highway rating for the volume configuration; the 2WD V6 reaches 24.

Computed from the 21.1-gallon tank and EPA combined rating.

EPA's annual cost at 15,000 mi/yr on regular gasoline at current prices.

Every 2017 Tacoma powertrain runs on regular unleaded; no premium requirement.

The 2017 Tacoma (third generation, launched for 2016, carry-over year) earned a 4-star NHTSA overall rating, held back by 4-star frontal and rollover results.

Mostly Good crashworthiness (driver small overlap, moderate overlap, original side, roof, head restraints) but Acceptable passenger-side small overlap and no Top Safety Pick, largely because of Poor headlights and no available AEB.

For 2017 the Tacoma had no automatic emergency braking, lane departure warning or adaptive cruise on any trim; Toyota Safety Sense-P only became standard for 2018. Only a rearview camera was standard; blind-spot monitoring was limited to upper trims and packages.

No AEB or forward collision warning was offered on the 2017 Tacoma at any trim.

Blind-spot monitor with rear cross-traffic alert was standard only on Limited and optional via premium packages on SR5/TRD trims; alert-only, no intervention or trailer coverage.

No lane departure warning, lane keep assist or lane centering was available on the 2017 Tacoma; lane departure alert arrived with TSS-P for 2018.

Conventional cruise control only; dynamic radar cruise control was not offered until 2018.

No hands-free or even hands-on driver-assist system was available.

IIHS rated the halogen projector headlights Poor on all trims, with inadequate low-beam visibility on both sides of straightaways and in all curve tests; no auto high beams.

Upright truck greenhouse gives decent forward and side views, but the high hood and cowl and a deep bed limit close-in sightlines; a rear camera is standard but no surround-view was offered.

IIHS rated LATCH ease of use Marginal; the Double Cab's upright, tight rear bench offers only two full LATCH positions, and Access Cab rear jump seats are poorly suited to car seats.

The volume Double Cab seats five across a front-bucket / three-place rear bench layout.

Adequate front headroom, mid-pack against full-size trucks in the band.

Front legroom is fine on paper, though the low floor-to-seat height forces a legs-out posture.

Rear headroom is near the bottom of the truck band.

The Double Cab's rear bench is upright and tight — below the bottom of the truck band and short of Colorado/Frontier crew cabs.

The volume Double Cab 4x4 ships with the 5-ft bed; the 6-ft bed is available on the long-wheelbase Double Cab and every Access Cab.

Toyota publishes no cubic-foot figure; volume is computed from the published 60.5 in length, 19.1 in depth and 41.5–56.7 in width, small against the full-size-heavy band.

The composite bed has built-in storage compartments, a deck-rail system with adjustable cleats and a 120V/400W bed outlet on TRD and Limited grades; cabin storage is ordinary, with modest under-seat bins in the Double Cab.

The third-gen Tacoma's high floor and low seat cushion produce the widely criticized 'sitting on the floor, legs out' position, and the rear bench is upright with little thigh support; power driver seat is limited to upper trims.

Body-on-frame leaf-spring rear gives a jiggly, busy unladen ride, especially on the off-road-tuned TRD Off-Road and TRD Pro; acceptable for a truck but behind the Colorado and well behind the Ridgeline.

Wind and road noise are noticeable at highway speeds and the V6 is loud when revved hard on grades, which the transmission tuning demands often.

Dual-zone automatic climate is standard only on Limited and packaged on TRD trims, heated front seats come only via packages or Limited/TRD Pro, and there are no ventilated seats, heated wheel or remote start.

The 2017 Tacoma opened in the mid-$20,000s with destination for an SR Access Cab 4x2 four-cylinder — a few thousand above the Nissan Frontier S but in line with the Chevrolet Colorado base truck.

Tacoma volume clusters at the V6 Double Cab 4x4 in SR5 and TRD Off-Road grades; an SR5 V6 4x4 Double Cab listed around $33,200 before destination and the common SR5 option packages, putting a typically equipped truck near $35,000.

The proven 3.5L V6 and conventional body-on-frame hardware keep Tacoma running costs among the lowest of any pickup; the estimate sits between CarEdge's low current-model figure and industry class averages for mid-size trucks.

The 2017 Tacoma was KBB's overall top vehicle for projected resale at both 36 and 60 months — the strongest depreciation story in the pickup segment that year.

Toyota's basic coverage is the industry-standard minimum, matched by GM and Nissan in the 2017 mid-size truck class.

Five-year/60,000-mile powertrain coverage is the bottom of the band and the norm among the Tacoma's 2017 rivals (Colorado and Frontier also 5/60 or less).

ToyotaCare includes two years of no-cost factory-scheduled maintenance plus 24-hour roadside assistance — a genuine multi-year included-service plan that beats Nissan and Ford-era norms, though the 2017 truck lacked the connected-service trials (Safety Connect) later added, and 2 yr / 25,000 mi is short of the longest plans.

$35,000 volume-trim price minus its estimated resale value after 5 years (60.4% retained, or about $21,140) leaves about $13,860 in depreciation. Add the projected $4,200 in 5-year maintenance and repairs, and owning this vehicle for 5 years costs about $18,060 in total.

The 2017 is the second year of the third-generation Tacoma (2016 redesign), and its reliability ratings fell short of the older Tacoma's reputation. Consumer Reports rated the new generation's predicted reliability below earlier model years, and J.D. Power rated it only average-to-above-average, so mixed signals land in the middle of the 50-79 band.

Around 2017 Toyota sat consistently near the top of Consumer Reports' brand reliability rankings and above the industry average in J.D. Power's Vehicle Dependability Study, which puts it in the top-five group.

This model year has a serious drivetrain recall: a rear differential leak on the BD20D carrier that could lead to the axle seizing and a loss of control, covering nearly all 2016-17 Tacomas. It also has a brake-assist vacuum pump recall, the Denso fuel-pump recall and a load-label recall, plus TSBs for transmission shift quality, which puts it at the bottom of the 'typical' band.

The volume V6 pairs the then-new 3.5L 2GR-FKS (Atkinson-capable, D-4S injection) with a 6-speed automatic. Owners widely criticized that transmission for gear hunting and shift complaints, which led to software reflashes, though no widespread hard failures were reported. The base 2.7L 2TR-FE four-cylinder has a proven high-mileage record.

The cabin is functional but dominated by hard plastics. Reviewers judged it adequate for a mid-size truck but noted that its low seating position and material quality lagged the price, especially on the higher trims.

Assembly is generally solid, with Tacomas built at TMMTX and TMMBC, but owners in the first 90 days complained about interior quietness and noise, and the early third-gen trucks drew scattered rattle and wind-noise complaints.

Toyota has one of the densest US dealer networks, about 1,200+ dealers, and solid service-satisfaction standing, so Tacoma owners have service access almost anywhere.

The Tacoma has one of the largest aftermarket ecosystems of any vehicle in the US, with abundant OEM and aftermarket parts and below-average repair costs.

The volume SR5 uses a 6.1-inch Entune Audio Plus screen; the largest available is 7 inches, both below the truck band.

Entune is slow, dated-looking and app-dependent, though physical volume/tune knobs and climate controls keep basic use simple.

Neither Apple CarPlay nor Android Auto — wired or wireless — was offered; Toyota added CarPlay/Android Auto to the Tacoma only for 2020.

Integrated navigation with HD traffic comes only with Entune Premium on TRD/Limited; SR5 relies on the phone-tethered Scout GPS Link app, and voice recognition is command-based and dated.

The base six-speaker system is thin; the JBL upgrade (six JBL speakers plus subwoofer) is standard only on Limited and optional on Double Cab TRD automatics, and is a modest step up.

Analog gauges throughout, with a 4.2-inch color multi-information display between them on SR5 and above; no full-digital cluster.

No over-the-air software updates; map and head-unit updates required a dealer or USB.

The Entune App Suite only fed apps to the head unit; there was no remote start, remote lock or vehicle-locate app for the 2017 Tacoma.

A single USB 2.0 port and 12V outlets on the volume trim; Qi wireless charging and a 120V/400W bed outlet come on TRD and Limited grades. No USB-C.

Smart Key with push-button start is standard on TRD Sport, TRD Off-Road and Limited automatics only; SR/SR5 use a conventional key and there is no factory remote start.

A backup camera is standard; rear parking sonar is standard only on Limited and packaged elsewhere, with no front sensors or surround view.

No head-up display was offered on any 2017 Tacoma.

The Double Cab's tight 32.6-in rear legroom, upright bench and Marginal IIHS LATCH rating make rear-facing seats a squeeze, and the tall step-in hampers loading kids.

4-star NHTSA overall, Poor IIHS headlights and no AEB, lane departure alert or adaptive cruise at any price; blind-spot monitoring only on Limited or packages.

Cramped rear seat with no rear vents, a choppy ride and a 5-ft open bed for luggage make multi-hour family trips a compromise.

The legs-out driving position, busy ride and a 6-speed automatic that hunts and hesitates to kick down make daily traffic more tiring than it should be.

20 MPG combined (V6 4x4) on regular fuel is typical for a mid-size V6 truck but expensive per mile against cars and crossovers.

212-in-long Double Cab with a 44.1-ft 4x4 turning circle and only a rear camera (sonar optional) is manageable but awkward in tight lots.

Up to 6,800 lbs towing with the V6 Tow Package and 1,620 lbs payload handle moderate jobs, but the peaky V6 and hunting automatic work hard under load and the volume short bed limits material hauling.

The Tacoma's long-standing reputation for toughness and longevity, a composite bed that won't dent or rust and strong resale back a fleet-grade durability record.

Standard deck-rail system with adjustable cleats, bed storage compartments, a lockable removable tailgate, available 400W bed outlet and a vast aftermarket upfit ecosystem.

A 21.1-gal tank gives ~420 miles of range, but noisy cabin, firm ride, awkward seating and no adaptive cruise or driver assists make long hauls tiring.

Part-time 4WD with low range, a locking rear differential, Crawl Control and Multi-Terrain Select on TRD Off-Road, and the new-for-2017 TRD Pro with FOX shocks make it a class-benchmark adventure truck with a GoPro mount and bed outlet for camping.

An open bed with deck rails and cleats swallows bulky gear and bikes, a tow hitch is available, and the aftermarket for racks and toppers is enormous; the 5-ft volume bed and limited lockable cabin storage are the constraints.

Secure but truck-like: noticeable body roll and a busy, jiggly rear axle over mid-corner bumps, with off-road tires on TRD trims limiting grip.

Hydraulic-assist rack is reasonably weighted but slow (3.6 turns lock-to-lock on 4x4) and vague on center.

Front discs with rear drums deliver adequate but unremarkable stopping distances and a soft pedal, typical of the class.

The Atkinson-capable V6 is smooth but weak at low rpm, and the economy-tuned 6-speed automatic upshifts early, hunts on grades and is slow to kick down.

Quiet at cruise, but the V6 must be revved hard and sounds strained near its 6,000-rpm power peak.

The volume Double Cab 4x4 turns in 44.1 ft curb to curb, tighter than full-size trucks in the band.

The low-mounted seat over a high floor forces a legs-out posture, with no telescoping wheel adjustment on lower trims and limited seat height range; controls themselves are logically laid out.

Unremarkable on pavement, but its off-road chops, available manual transmission and TRD Pro character give it real enthusiast appeal.

Even the base SR gets a 6.1-in Entune touchscreen, Bluetooth with Siri Eyes Free, USB and a backup camera, which was competitive for 2017; but no active-safety suite (Toyota Safety Sense P arrived only for 2018) and much of the comfort content sits in SR5 option packages.

The Tacoma priced at or above a comparably equipped Colorado and well above the aging Frontier while trailing the Colorado on ride, refinement and cabin quality; class-leading off-road hardware and resale keep it fair value rather than poor value.

Six grades (SR, SR5, TRD Sport, TRD Off-Road, Limited, new TRD Pro) across Access and Double Cab, 5- and 6-ft beds, 4x2/4x4, I4/V6 and manual/automatic — one of the widest, best-spaced lineups in the segment, from a ~$25k work truck to a $43k off-roader.

The undisputed mid-size sales leader in 2017, setting an all-time Tacoma record and outselling the second-place Colorado roughly two to one.

Toyota's reputation for durability and the Tacoma's off-road/overlanding following give it a loyal, almost cult-like buyer base that directly props up resale.

Strong demand meant 2017 Tacomas sold close to sticker with little negotiating room and only token incentives, while GM and Nissan discounted their mid-size trucks more heavily.

2017 is the second year of the third generation launched for 2016, with a new V6 and 6-speed automatic and a TRD Pro added — fresh, though the generation reused an updated version of the prior frame and kept rear drum brakes, so it was not cutting-edge.

Reviewers praised the off-road chops, resale and TRD Pro, but criticized the low-slung driving position, busy ride and a hunting automatic; it typically lost comparison tests to the Colorado/Canyon, and the new Honda Ridgeline took the 2017 North American Truck of the Year.