Trail Hunter Steel Skid Plates: A Smart Upgrade for Desert Driving

When it comes to off-road driving, skid plates are an essential feature that can help protect your vehicle's underside from damage caused by rocks and other debris. In this article, we'll explore the benefits of steel skid plates versus aluminum ones, particularly in desert environments where softer surfaces like sand and gravel may require a different type of protection.

The choice between steel and aluminum skid plates ultimately depends on the terrain you'll be driving on. Steel skid plates are heavier than their aluminum counterparts but provide superior durability and protection against rocks and other hazards. In desert environments, steel skid plates can help shield your vehicle's underside from damage caused by softer surfaces like sand and gravel.

On the other hand, aluminum skid plates are lighter in weight and may be more suitable for driving on harder surfaces like rocks and boulders. Aluminum skid plates also tend to be less expensive than their steel counterparts but may not provide the same level of protection against damage. When it comes to choosing between steel and aluminum skid plates, it's essential to consider the terrain you'll be driving on and the type of protection you need.

The Toyota Tacoma Trail Hunter is a great example of a vehicle that can benefit from either steel or aluminum skid plates, depending on your specific needs. The trail hunter features different rock sliders than other trim levels, including the TRD Pro, which offers superior protection against damage caused by rocks and other hazards.

Air Ride Seats: A Comfortable Upgrade for Off-Road Driving

One of the most notable upgrades in the Toyota Tacoma Trail Hunter is its air ride seats, also known as air shock seats. These innovative seats feature shocks filled with air that provide a comfortable ride while driving off-road. The air ride seats can be adjusted to suit different driving conditions, including on-road and off-road use.

The air ride seats are available on both the Trail Hunter and TRD Pro trim levels, but they're particularly noticeable in the TRD Pro model. The air ride seats offer a level of comfort that's hard to find in other off-road vehicles, making them an excellent choice for long road trips or extended off-road excursions.

Toyota's Own Design: A Unique Feature Set

The Toyota Tacoma Trail Hunter features several unique design elements that set it apart from other off-road vehicles. One notable example is its air ride seats, which are designed to provide a comfortable ride while driving off-road. The TRD Pro also boasts different rock sliders than other trim levels, including the trail hunter.

Another unique feature of the Toyota Tacoma Trail Hunter is its seats. The TRD Pro model features custom-designed seats that are both stylish and comfortable. These seats offer a level of comfort and support that's hard to find in other off-road vehicles, making them an excellent choice for long road trips or extended off-road excursions.

Justin's Seating Position: A Jetpack on the Back of the Seat

When it comes to seating positions, Justin finds himself feeling like he's sitting on a jetpack. The air ride seats provide a level of comfort and support that's hard to find in other off-road vehicles. The seat is designed to cradle the driver, providing a sense of security and stability while driving.

As we continue our test drive, we'll explore the capabilities of the Toyota Tacoma Trail Hunter, including its performance on both on-road and off-road surfaces. Whether you're looking for a comfortable ride or superior protection against damage, the Trail Hunter is an excellent choice.

Unleashing the Beast: TRD Pro Performance

As we disconnect the front sway bar and soften the adjustable Fox suspension, the Toyota Tacoma Trail Hunter begins to reveal its full potential. The truck's performance on both on-road and off-road surfaces is impressive, with a level of smoothness that's hard to find in other vehicles.

The trail hunter's ability to tackle challenging terrain is truly remarkable. From sand to rocks, this truck can handle it all with ease. As we punch it through the desert terrain, the rear end swings smoothly, providing a level of stability and control that's hard to find in other off-road vehicles.

Toyota's Desert Runner Trim: A New Level of Off-Road Capability

As we continue our test drive, we realize that the Toyota Tacoma Trail Hunter is more than just an off-road vehicle – it's a full-fledged desert runner. The truck's performance on challenging terrain is truly remarkable, with a level of smoothness and stability that's hard to find in other vehicles.

The trail hunter's ability to tackle desert terrain is a testament to its superior design and engineering. Whether you're looking for a comfortable ride or superior protection against damage, the Trail Hunter is an excellent choice. With its unique features and capabilities, this truck is sure to become a favorite among off-road enthusiasts.

Overheating Transmissions: A Cautionary Tale

While the Toyota Tacoma Trail Hunter is an exceptional off-road vehicle, it's not without its cons. As we test drive both the trail hunter and TRD Pro, we notice that the transmission can be prone to overheating in certain conditions. This can lead to premature wear and damage, making it essential to monitor your vehicle's temperature closely.

When it comes to choosing between steel and aluminum skid plates, consider the terrain you'll be driving on and the type of protection you need. Whether you prefer a comfortable ride or superior protection against damage, the Toyota Tacoma Trail Hunter is an excellent choice.

Conclusion

The Toyota Tacoma Trail Hunter is an exceptional off-road vehicle that offers a level of comfort, performance, and protection that's hard to find in other vehicles. With its unique features, including air ride seats and different rock sliders than other trim levels, this truck is sure to become a favorite among off-road enthusiasts. However, it's essential to consider the pros and cons, including overheating transmissions, when choosing between steel and aluminum skid plates.

Whether you're driving on sand, rocks, or boulders, the Toyota Tacoma Trail Hunter is an excellent choice for anyone looking for a reliable and capable off-road vehicle. With its superior design and engineering, this truck is sure to deliver exceptional performance and protection in even the most challenging terrain.

WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enthe new Tacoma is finally here it's been 10 years since the last one and today we're going from the most basic Tacoma to the most baller trims as we test new generation and maybe we'll have a little treat for you welcome to Donut this is the most affordable Tacoma right here the SR it starts at $331,500 you may have already seen it at your local Home Depot parking lot let's get out on the road and see how this thing feels oh yes going to be honest Justin it's not the fastest truck in the the world here one of the big changes that this truck does have over the last generation is a new engine this has a turbocharged 2.4 L 4 cylinder engine I think it's making 228 horsepower 243 ftlb of torque wee wow that's got some pull it's got some pull it's good acceleration I mean for a truck like this I would expect it to feel a little slower honestly I think Tacoma purists are going to make noise about the V6 being gone but honestly this thing feels really good and it just drives so much better as a result that V6 had what two 76 horsepower it didn't feel like it it really didn't actually you had to like really rev that thing out this thing make Peak torque at like 1500 RPM we have some v6s in our are those first gens yeah those things struggle going uphill in our trucks this thing feels good there's an old joke us Toyota boys like to make you've got the efficiency of a V8 and the power of a 4-cylinder hey I think they revised the front suspension going around these turns here feels decent once we hop into a truck with coil springs in the back we'll feel it different that'll feel a lot different this still has leaf springs in the rear that's one thing from the previous generation still has leaf springs in the back and this is definitely base of the base model like the plastic in here feels like the back of a cop car with the leaf springs though this Sr has a tow rating of 6,500 lb we couldn't drive the pre-runner at this event unfortunately so that's a twodo two-seater with leaf springs and a long bed that used to be a pretty popular trim back in the day but now everyone's addicted to four-wheel drive everyone wants to go overlanding they want to go camping but they're bringing back that pre-runner this is a really important truck for Toyota a lot of other companies are building midsize trucks now the Rangers back the Chevy Colorado has been Making Waves even GMC is getting in on it it's a space that's really heating up and if Toyota drops the ball they're going to lose a lot of market share in a segment that they've dominated for over almost 30 years now and honestly based on what we're seeing I don't think they dropped the ball at all it has button p so that you can add lights or anything you need maybe a winch comes with carplay stuff like it has a screen it has nav you still have power locks power windows push button start you still get a digital dash one thing Toyota hasn't slouched on is options there are eight different trim options for this truck that's what's cool about the Tacoma though is that you can get one and then customize it yourself to exactly the truck that you want and that's kind of the appeal of the Tacoma as well this feels like a really good foundation for the rest of the trucks are going to be driving today I'm really excited and they're off go go okay hey don't judge me why should I be down there Racing for apples and oats when I've got a chance to win big with DraftKings their DK horse app is the number one ranked horse betting app in America and to celebrate the 150th Kentucky Derby this weekend they're giving you the ultimate Derby experience all new customers who sign up by clicking the link below or using my code buff horses will get 100% % deposit bonus up to $250 when you deposit a minimum of 25 bucks and if this isn't your first ride with DraftKings you can easily use your same blogin to start betting on the races now no need for a new account so saddle up partner and download the number one ranked horse betting app in America by clicking the link below and using my code buff horses that's DK horse app download it now so far so good but we did say we had a little treat for you today here it is dude I've been waiting to drive SL ride in one of these Land Cruisers since they announced it inside is very utilitarian much like the SR this is the base Land Cruiser which is also known as the 1958 trim cloth seats very minimalist interior but is still comes with the I force Max 8speed transmission and the hybrid four-cylinder system Toyota has been ruling the hybrid game for decades at this point and you want your big SUVs but you also want to get decent mileage I force Max so that's 328 horsepower 468 ftlb of torque great because of that Hybrid battery in there that's giving you that oomph off the line but the main things that make this a Land Cruiser is the fact that it has the full-time four-wheel drive that's something they switched to in the 9s when the 80s series came out and honestly this is very 80s series inspired talk about Porsche real quick there's a certain Porsche buyer who is willing to pay more for less and in this truck I kind of feel that as well it's not the fanciest SUV I've ever been in but it feels so deliberate and so purpose-built for off-roading for getting out there that I don't mind this actually feels skinnier than the Tacomas it does actually this just feels ready to do anything and I love it but you might be asking why did they bring the Land Cruiser back I am wondering that well Lexus brought that gx550 out which uses the same driv TR system as this except they use the V6 twin turbo and that's the one that's in the Sequoia right that's the Sequoia one that's the tundra One Toyota has this platform option laying around why not bring the Land Cruiser back the Land Cruiser has been great but let's get back to business the Tacoma all right Justin we are in the brand new trim level the trail Hunter yes the Overland Overlander from the factory I was going to say this thing is tailor made for you I think even the color on this thing I love it you wear pants this color every single day it's like a metallic Olive it's so nice it's really cool color it looks like a warthog from Halo it does it does and the interior is really nice we'll get to all the other goodies on this truck but the interior is by far a huge step up it's got awesome yellow stitching on the seats really cool like Stone wash it looks like or like a tumbled kind of piece here it's sick but on the exterior you have this really subtle snorkel that faces backwards so that it doesn't suck in a bunch of dust yeah the snorkel sweep it also has a Molly panel headache rack this also comes with the hybrid motor yes it does 328 horsepower 465 ftlb of torque which is a lot that is a lot yeah that means you can weigh this bad boy down and still crawl up the hill like we're doing right now the suspension is a little different this has old man emu which you've told me is a very nice overing Centric brand this thing has been tuned to have more weight over the rear end as you overlanders love to do with your big tents and refrigerators in the trunk and everything refrigerator in the bed which you can option I think from Toyota but one of the most important parts about this truck is coils in the rear This truly feels like a luxury truck there's some other real true Overlander features on here that I think justify the price tag like in the bed the compressor is back there it's got a air Chuck that you hook onto so you can inflate your own tires if you air down I wonder if it's possible to power like a a Pneumatic front Locker on this truck with that compressor ressor that'd be a great feature to have there's some power outlets and USB in the back so you can hook up your gadgets when you're set up at Camp you can use your truck as a power block basically which I think is awesome I mean this thing at first I was like okay Toyota is like really taking advantage of their Overland cred but you know the more I look at this thing and the more features I find the more I'm like thinking this is actually might be a pretty good deal it's a really good truck buying a new truck with all the stuff that you'd install yourself anyway in a way that is engineered properly with a warranty with a warranty really wonderful Truck Trail Hunter cool as hell gets my seal of approval for sure definitely gets mine one other note the snorkel on this thing is actually pretty loud Justin uh that's the air being sucked in right next to your face luckily with the window up it's not too bad but it's definitely noticeable it handled these back roads pretty great but it's time to put it to the test oh that guy okay here we go control is engaged Justin C control is engaged the truck is driving itself well not necessarily you're still steering but it's going to feel its way up this hill that we're going up now you're on the gas was that I'm not on throttle you're not doing that oh wow I'm not doing any of this now Justin you're a off-roader how do you feel about it doing it for you like this H you know it's a little weird this is kind of the whole point of the fun is that you're doing it and you get to challenge yourself but if you ever found yourself in a situation where you just really want to show off to people this is pretty cool I guess yeah I think this is definitely like a get me out of here kind of feature you know you wouldn't use this on every single Ascent that you're making but you know if you're in a weird spot that you're not comfortable just let the truck do it and it seems to be working pretty dang well want to try it backwards really doing this thing right now it's doing it right now it's crawling I'm this is crazy dude it's doing it by itself it's working it's figuring it out it's figuring it out it's fig it out look at that there it goes wow dude what the future is now Nolan feels like before you go on a roller coaster there we go okay we're in crawl control low speed now I'm off the brake you're off the brake and it's doing it now okay so it's just using the brake really really aggressive it's Prett it doesn't modulate it do smoothly as I thought it would this is crazy though so you're it's doing it it's doing this I'm not doing anything all right it figured it out it's like all right we're good that was fun I don't know if I it look cool doing it but you know we're making it down the hill and that's what counts right you do kind of look like a geek though and now time for the moment we've all been waiting for this in my opinion the cream of the crop of Toyota we had fun in the trail Hunter I can't wait for you to invite me to go camping but this guy right here is Toyota's desert Runner and if you know me I like to go over jumps fast so instead of the old man emu suspension we had on the trail Hunter Justin this guy has Fox Racing suspension we've got adjustable suspension front and rear to tailor it to whatever terrain we're on we've got a hood scoop now honestly not sure how I feel about that brother this new orange they got uh what do they call it rust rust pretty good you know I like that to keep weight down Trail Hunter steel skid plates this guy aluminum for like softer stuff like you're running in the desert you don't necessarily need Steel you actually want to save that weight that's smart it has different Rock sliders than your Trail Hunter over there it has these weird seats what are those got some crazy seats let's look at those real quick we've got this really cool air ride seat or air shock seat I don't really know how to explain it but these shocks have air in them and they make the ride more comfortable while you're doing your off-road driving you can change the PSI with this dial here or you can change the shock absorber based on whether you're off-road or onroad it's really weird it kind of seems like a gimmick they look crazy Toyota they look wi these are Toyota's own design they didn't go out to any other company to like Source these they spent I'm going to guess probably millions of dollars developing this system right here and you know from a driver perspective and passenger seat perspective super comfy pretty sick Justin though Tred sitting behind one of these things this is my seating position right here how do you feel it takes away from having your crew like this is like a jetpack on the back of the seat all right Nolan we're here I've been waiting all week for this Justin we've got a fire road we've got a TRD Pro and permission to go fast so let's do it I'm going do it look to the floor we got to we got to jump here Justin okay yeah you ready let's do it boy so we've disconnected the front sway bar we've also softened the adjustable Fox suspension that's right wow eating this alive dude it's no problem at all feels very smooth this isoo definitely hit bump stops that's good and it feels amazing dude it feels so smooth this thing kicks ass you're doing 50 right now yeah nice oh man what a truck we should probably specify the TRD Pro is now officially Toyota's desert Runner trim and you know what I think uh it's legit yeah absolutely that was fun that was a lot of fun yeah dude dude way to go Toyota I don't think the trail Hunter could do that all right Justin punch it here we go yeah buddy for a four-cylinder I thing sounds pretty meaty pretty good go go go W yeah dude the rear end was like so smooth when it came down that's that's nice that's really good punch it dude it can handle it it can handle it scared no Li it's a new car I know it can handle it punch it woo let's go yeah dude running out throtle out this thing's amazing this thing's amazing no problem you got it there you go now slow down here what more do you want in a dude driving Offroad fast is a whole new level now the Tacoma is not without its cons Justin and I had a great time driving both the trail Hunter and TRD Pro but both of us also experienced an overheating transmission I got to say it's kind of disappointing if I was buying one of these trucks the first mod I would make is an external transmission cooler keep that transmission happy keep yourself happy also the price tags of round 62 and $65,000 for the trail Hunter and TRD Pro is a pretty big jump in price from the previous TRD Pro but I don't think that one had bump stops on the rear what a truck this thing's a real deal this thing rules man oh my God that was so much fun what are our takeaways here there's nothing wrong with hybrid 4-cylinder turbos very Solid Truck all around even if you don't get the TRD Pro you're getting a great truck but it's actually kind of amazing how good this thing is ripping on a dirt road like this it's amazing and if you want an option where you just buy it and go this is it the trail Hunter could be it or you can get yourself an Sr and put a lift on it put wheels on it make it your own truck and that's the beauty of Tacoma so again thank you so much for watching this video make sure you hit that subscribe button make sure you follow Justin on all social media at Justin Freeman follow me at Nolan Jes if you'd like and we will see you next timethe new Tacoma is finally here it's been 10 years since the last one and today we're going from the most basic Tacoma to the most baller trims as we test new generation and maybe we'll have a little treat for you welcome to Donut this is the most affordable Tacoma right here the SR it starts at $331,500 you may have already seen it at your local Home Depot parking lot let's get out on the road and see how this thing feels oh yes going to be honest Justin it's not the fastest truck in the the world here one of the big changes that this truck does have over the last generation is a new engine this has a turbocharged 2.4 L 4 cylinder engine I think it's making 228 horsepower 243 ftlb of torque wee wow that's got some pull it's got some pull it's good acceleration I mean for a truck like this I would expect it to feel a little slower honestly I think Tacoma purists are going to make noise about the V6 being gone but honestly this thing feels really good and it just drives so much better as a result that V6 had what two 76 horsepower it didn't feel like it it really didn't actually you had to like really rev that thing out this thing make Peak torque at like 1500 RPM we have some v6s in our are those first gens yeah those things struggle going uphill in our trucks this thing feels good there's an old joke us Toyota boys like to make you've got the efficiency of a V8 and the power of a 4-cylinder hey I think they revised the front suspension going around these turns here feels decent once we hop into a truck with coil springs in the back we'll feel it different that'll feel a lot different this still has leaf springs in the rear that's one thing from the previous generation still has leaf springs in the back and this is definitely base of the base model like the plastic in here feels like the back of a cop car with the leaf springs though this Sr has a tow rating of 6,500 lb we couldn't drive the pre-runner at this event unfortunately so that's a twodo two-seater with leaf springs and a long bed that used to be a pretty popular trim back in the day but now everyone's addicted to four-wheel drive everyone wants to go overlanding they want to go camping but they're bringing back that pre-runner this is a really important truck for Toyota a lot of other companies are building midsize trucks now the Rangers back the Chevy Colorado has been Making Waves even GMC is getting in on it it's a space that's really heating up and if Toyota drops the ball they're going to lose a lot of market share in a segment that they've dominated for over almost 30 years now and honestly based on what we're seeing I don't think they dropped the ball at all it has button p so that you can add lights or anything you need maybe a winch comes with carplay stuff like it has a screen it has nav you still have power locks power windows push button start you still get a digital dash one thing Toyota hasn't slouched on is options there are eight different trim options for this truck that's what's cool about the Tacoma though is that you can get one and then customize it yourself to exactly the truck that you want and that's kind of the appeal of the Tacoma as well this feels like a really good foundation for the rest of the trucks are going to be driving today I'm really excited and they're off go go okay hey don't judge me why should I be down there Racing for apples and oats when I've got a chance to win big with DraftKings their DK horse app is the number one ranked horse betting app in America and to celebrate the 150th Kentucky Derby this weekend they're giving you the ultimate Derby experience all new customers who sign up by clicking the link below or using my code buff horses will get 100% % deposit bonus up to $250 when you deposit a minimum of 25 bucks and if this isn't your first ride with DraftKings you can easily use your same blogin to start betting on the races now no need for a new account so saddle up partner and download the number one ranked horse betting app in America by clicking the link below and using my code buff horses that's DK horse app download it now so far so good but we did say we had a little treat for you today here it is dude I've been waiting to drive SL ride in one of these Land Cruisers since they announced it inside is very utilitarian much like the SR this is the base Land Cruiser which is also known as the 1958 trim cloth seats very minimalist interior but is still comes with the I force Max 8speed transmission and the hybrid four-cylinder system Toyota has been ruling the hybrid game for decades at this point and you want your big SUVs but you also want to get decent mileage I force Max so that's 328 horsepower 468 ftlb of torque great because of that Hybrid battery in there that's giving you that oomph off the line but the main things that make this a Land Cruiser is the fact that it has the full-time four-wheel drive that's something they switched to in the 9s when the 80s series came out and honestly this is very 80s series inspired talk about Porsche real quick there's a certain Porsche buyer who is willing to pay more for less and in this truck I kind of feel that as well it's not the fanciest SUV I've ever been in but it feels so deliberate and so purpose-built for off-roading for getting out there that I don't mind this actually feels skinnier than the Tacomas it does actually this just feels ready to do anything and I love it but you might be asking why did they bring the Land Cruiser back I am wondering that well Lexus brought that gx550 out which uses the same driv TR system as this except they use the V6 twin turbo and that's the one that's in the Sequoia right that's the Sequoia one that's the tundra One Toyota has this platform option laying around why not bring the Land Cruiser back the Land Cruiser has been great but let's get back to business the Tacoma all right Justin we are in the brand new trim level the trail Hunter yes the Overland Overlander from the factory I was going to say this thing is tailor made for you I think even the color on this thing I love it you wear pants this color every single day it's like a metallic Olive it's so nice it's really cool color it looks like a warthog from Halo it does it does and the interior is really nice we'll get to all the other goodies on this truck but the interior is by far a huge step up it's got awesome yellow stitching on the seats really cool like Stone wash it looks like or like a tumbled kind of piece here it's sick but on the exterior you have this really subtle snorkel that faces backwards so that it doesn't suck in a bunch of dust yeah the snorkel sweep it also has a Molly panel headache rack this also comes with the hybrid motor yes it does 328 horsepower 465 ftlb of torque which is a lot that is a lot yeah that means you can weigh this bad boy down and still crawl up the hill like we're doing right now the suspension is a little different this has old man emu which you've told me is a very nice overing Centric brand this thing has been tuned to have more weight over the rear end as you overlanders love to do with your big tents and refrigerators in the trunk and everything refrigerator in the bed which you can option I think from Toyota but one of the most important parts about this truck is coils in the rear This truly feels like a luxury truck there's some other real true Overlander features on here that I think justify the price tag like in the bed the compressor is back there it's got a air Chuck that you hook onto so you can inflate your own tires if you air down I wonder if it's possible to power like a a Pneumatic front Locker on this truck with that compressor ressor that'd be a great feature to have there's some power outlets and USB in the back so you can hook up your gadgets when you're set up at Camp you can use your truck as a power block basically which I think is awesome I mean this thing at first I was like okay Toyota is like really taking advantage of their Overland cred but you know the more I look at this thing and the more features I find the more I'm like thinking this is actually might be a pretty good deal it's a really good truck buying a new truck with all the stuff that you'd install yourself anyway in a way that is engineered properly with a warranty with a warranty really wonderful Truck Trail Hunter cool as hell gets my seal of approval for sure definitely gets mine one other note the snorkel on this thing is actually pretty loud Justin uh that's the air being sucked in right next to your face luckily with the window up it's not too bad but it's definitely noticeable it handled these back roads pretty great but it's time to put it to the test oh that guy okay here we go control is engaged Justin C control is engaged the truck is driving itself well not necessarily you're still steering but it's going to feel its way up this hill that we're going up now you're on the gas was that I'm not on throttle you're not doing that oh wow I'm not doing any of this now Justin you're a off-roader how do you feel about it doing it for you like this H you know it's a little weird this is kind of the whole point of the fun is that you're doing it and you get to challenge yourself but if you ever found yourself in a situation where you just really want to show off to people this is pretty cool I guess yeah I think this is definitely like a get me out of here kind of feature you know you wouldn't use this on every single Ascent that you're making but you know if you're in a weird spot that you're not comfortable just let the truck do it and it seems to be working pretty dang well want to try it backwards really doing this thing right now it's doing it right now it's crawling I'm this is crazy dude it's doing it by itself it's working it's figuring it out it's figuring it out it's fig it out look at that there it goes wow dude what the future is now Nolan feels like before you go on a roller coaster there we go okay we're in crawl control low speed now I'm off the brake you're off the brake and it's doing it now okay so it's just using the brake really really aggressive it's Prett it doesn't modulate it do smoothly as I thought it would this is crazy though so you're it's doing it it's doing this I'm not doing anything all right it figured it out it's like all right we're good that was fun I don't know if I it look cool doing it but you know we're making it down the hill and that's what counts right you do kind of look like a geek though and now time for the moment we've all been waiting for this in my opinion the cream of the crop of Toyota we had fun in the trail Hunter I can't wait for you to invite me to go camping but this guy right here is Toyota's desert Runner and if you know me I like to go over jumps fast so instead of the old man emu suspension we had on the trail Hunter Justin this guy has Fox Racing suspension we've got adjustable suspension front and rear to tailor it to whatever terrain we're on we've got a hood scoop now honestly not sure how I feel about that brother this new orange they got uh what do they call it rust rust pretty good you know I like that to keep weight down Trail Hunter steel skid plates this guy aluminum for like softer stuff like you're running in the desert you don't necessarily need Steel you actually want to save that weight that's smart it has different Rock sliders than your Trail Hunter over there it has these weird seats what are those got some crazy seats let's look at those real quick we've got this really cool air ride seat or air shock seat I don't really know how to explain it but these shocks have air in them and they make the ride more comfortable while you're doing your off-road driving you can change the PSI with this dial here or you can change the shock absorber based on whether you're off-road or onroad it's really weird it kind of seems like a gimmick they look crazy Toyota they look wi these are Toyota's own design they didn't go out to any other company to like Source these they spent I'm going to guess probably millions of dollars developing this system right here and you know from a driver perspective and passenger seat perspective super comfy pretty sick Justin though Tred sitting behind one of these things this is my seating position right here how do you feel it takes away from having your crew like this is like a jetpack on the back of the seat all right Nolan we're here I've been waiting all week for this Justin we've got a fire road we've got a TRD Pro and permission to go fast so let's do it I'm going do it look to the floor we got to we got to jump here Justin okay yeah you ready let's do it boy so we've disconnected the front sway bar we've also softened the adjustable Fox suspension that's right wow eating this alive dude it's no problem at all feels very smooth this isoo definitely hit bump stops that's good and it feels amazing dude it feels so smooth this thing kicks ass you're doing 50 right now yeah nice oh man what a truck we should probably specify the TRD Pro is now officially Toyota's desert Runner trim and you know what I think uh it's legit yeah absolutely that was fun that was a lot of fun yeah dude dude way to go Toyota I don't think the trail Hunter could do that all right Justin punch it here we go yeah buddy for a four-cylinder I thing sounds pretty meaty pretty good go go go W yeah dude the rear end was like so smooth when it came down that's that's nice that's really good punch it dude it can handle it it can handle it scared no Li it's a new car I know it can handle it punch it woo let's go yeah dude running out throtle out this thing's amazing this thing's amazing no problem you got it there you go now slow down here what more do you want in a dude driving Offroad fast is a whole new level now the Tacoma is not without its cons Justin and I had a great time driving both the trail Hunter and TRD Pro but both of us also experienced an overheating transmission I got to say it's kind of disappointing if I was buying one of these trucks the first mod I would make is an external transmission cooler keep that transmission happy keep yourself happy also the price tags of round 62 and $65,000 for the trail Hunter and TRD Pro is a pretty big jump in price from the previous TRD Pro but I don't think that one had bump stops on the rear what a truck this thing's a real deal this thing rules man oh my God that was so much fun what are our takeaways here there's nothing wrong with hybrid 4-cylinder turbos very Solid Truck all around even if you don't get the TRD Pro you're getting a great truck but it's actually kind of amazing how good this thing is ripping on a dirt road like this it's amazing and if you want an option where you just buy it and go this is it the trail Hunter could be it or you can get yourself an Sr and put a lift on it put wheels on it make it your own truck and that's the beauty of Tacoma so again thank you so much for watching this video make sure you hit that subscribe button make sure you follow Justin on all social media at Justin Freeman follow me at Nolan Jes if you'd like and we will see you next time