TB's Taco, aka Vader

[Joey D]

I'd say I wish there would have been more snow* so I could see how it handles some deep stuff but screw that. I hate shoveling more

I'm not sure what Wranglers the Pros come with, but there's a mountain/snowflake rated one and a non-mountain/snowflake rated one. If they're the ones with the mountain/snowflake on them, you'll be pretty much unstoppable in the snow with 4WD, if they're not, then it's going to be difficult since off-road tires without that don't have the rubber compound/tread pattern to churn through deep snow very well.

If I had to guess, Toyota probably opted for the mountain/snowflake rated tires so they'd probably do pretty well. It's also important to keep that in mind too when it comes time for new tires as well. All-terrains and mud-terrains are, for the most part, not rated for deep snow and there are only a handful out there that are. When it comes time to replace, you really should consider the Goodyear Duratacs based on where you live since they are not only mountain/snowflake rated but also rated for severe snow since they're more of a commercial-grade tire. I had those on my Tacoma and the stuff they were able to get me through was nothing short of impressive. They weren't the best at crawling over rocks, but I suspect you're not really doing that in the plains area of North Dakota.

 

[TB]

If they're the ones with the mountain/snowflake on them, you'll be pretty much unstoppable in the snow with 4WD

I can't say that I've looked at them to know but I'll have to do that later.

When it comes time to replace, you really should consider the Goodyear Duratacs based on where you live since they are not only mountain/snowflake rated but also rated for severe snow since they're more of a commercial-grade tire.

Much appreciated. I probably won't be needing new rubber for a while, though!

They weren't the best at crawling over rocks, but I suspect you're not really doing that in the plains area of North Dakota.

Do gravel roads count?

 

[TB]

I changed its name from Vader to Van Halen for the day.

Didn't drive to Panama to take it over any sick Jumps, though.

 

[Darla Starch]

I changed its name from Vader to Van Halen for the day.

View attachment 999441

Didn't drive to Panama to take it over any sick Jumps, though.

Was the car too Hot for Teacher?

 

[Northstar]

I changed its name from Vader to Van Halen for the day.

View attachment 999441

Didn't drive to Panama to take it over any sick Jumps, though.

Did you at least do some Runnin’ with the Devil?

 

[TB]

 

[Snaeper]

Hey TB, when you get a chance, can you take a picture of your shift boot? I just got a Pro knob and I noticed the boot doesn't quite line up. Curious to see if the TRD Pro's boot is different from the SR/TRD Sports.

 

[TB]

Hey TB, when you get a chance, can you take a picture of your shift boot? I just got a Pro knob and I noticed the boot doesn't quite line up. Curious to see if the TRD Pro's boot is different from the SR/TRD Sports.

Let me know if you need any other angles or anything. 👍

Edit: Just realized how filthy my truck is with the flash on.

 

[Snaeper]

That's perfect, looks like it's the same as the other Taco's. My OCD is appeased.

 

[TB]

I bought a set of interior LED lights for the Tacoma. Before I switch them out, I turned the garage lights off and put my camera in manual mode and will leave the setting exactly where they are to get a true before and after comparison. I also have a light meter app on my phone so I put that on the seat and got 1.4 footcandles and 1.2 on the armrest.

Before shot:

 

[wfooshee]

Oooh, science!!!!

 

[Jump_Ace]

I just came here for the banhammer match. I guess I'll stay for the cool truck.


Jerome

 

[TB]

Oooh, science!!!!

There are a bunch of pictures and reviews on Amazon for the lights but I didn't see any great before and after shots. As a photographer, you know if you take 2 pictures in full auto, you can't accurately compare them when conditions change. This should remedy that.

The light meter was just because.

I just came here for the banhammer match. I guess I'll stay for the cool truck.


Jerome

@Terronium-12 is no match for my Taco.

Wow. Even for me that's pushing it.

 

[Joey D]

@Terronium-12 is no match for my Taco.

 

[Terronium-12]

More emotional distress, yay!

 

[TB]

Interior lights were switched out this afternoon and it was finally dark enough to get the after shots.

Reminder, before:

After, using the same camera settings as above:

And after adjusting the color temperature to be more accurate:

As for the brightness, I can't speak to the accuracy of the app I'm using but as a means of comparison, it will work. The footcandles went from 1.4 on the seat and 1.2 on the armrest to 1.7 and 1.8, an increase of 21% and 50%. For $15, I'm pretty pleased.

Edit: Bonus picture of the vanity mirror lights mid change:

 

[TB]

Tossed together a quick paracord grab handle.

It's my first time working with paracord and I wanted to use red but stores either didn't have red or it was thinner than I wanted so black it is.

 

[TB]

The ol' Pilot needed a long overdue oil change. Don't tell anyone but apparently I missed the oil change last year so it was at 23 months since its last one. In that time, it was only driven 6,400 miles.

My wife left for a yoga class yesterday morning so I got vehicles moved around, oil drained, refilled and everything back where it was in about 30 minutes.

When I need to start doing the oil changes on the Highlander, I'm going to have to plan ahead a bit more as Walmart doesn't stock the oil it needs. An actual parts store might, though.

 

[Joey D]

I have no idea what it is about owning a Tacoma that makes you want to mess around with paracord. I had all sorts of stuff made out of it in my truck and even taught myself a few of the different weave patterns.

 

[TB]

I have no idea what it is about owning a Tacoma that makes you want to mess around with paracord. I had all sorts of stuff made out of it in my truck and even taught myself a few of the different weave patterns.

My wife has been crocheting baby blankets non stop for months and kept asking if I wanted to learn. This was my take on crocheting.

 

[wfooshee]

The only thing I do with crocheting is I chain stitch my extension cords. Decades ago I saw roadies doing that to cables as they packed, and I asked about it. They take up more space than when coiled or spooled, but they do not tangle.

Everybody that explains it on the web does it wrong, by the way. They have you plug the cord into itself then stitch. Wrong. Just put a half hitch at the end with the male plug, then chain stitch from there. When you use the cord, plug it in, pull the female end out as far as you need it. The chain stitch just unravels easily.

 

[TB]

Fifteen months, 6k.

 

[TB]

I've been a numbers and graph junky for a while so it should come as no surprise that I've been tracking my gas mileage for the Tacoma with Fuelly.

This morning I had the bright idea of overlaying the average temperature for the week that I filled up to see if there was any correlation.

Ignoring the initial couple of fill-ups (I'm pretty sure I either keyed something in wrong or it was still massively breaking in but at this point I'm not going to worry about it), I was not expecting the numbers to follow each other so closely.

 

[wfooshee]

Wow... I certainly would not have expected that. Now you make me want to look into it. I won't get the same variety of temperatures, though; it freezes her only a couple of times more often than your below-zero encounters.

 

[TB]

Wow... I certainly would not have expected that. Now you make me want to look into it. I won't get the same variety of temperatures, though; it freezes her only a couple of times more often than your below-zero encounters.

I knew you'd get better mileage when it's warmer outside (not sure what difference running the AC makes on MPG, besides... it drops) and being back off of the winter blend gas. That all is pretty obvious. The similarities were quite surprising, though.

 

[TB]

Just ordered a bed mat. I've been eyeing one for forever but was waiting for a deal and a deal I got!

MSRP is $110, most dealerships have it at about $85. A dealership in North Carolina has it listed for $72.45 plus $77.61 to ship it. Code for free shipping put it back down to $77.70 out the door.

 

[TB]

I bought a little garbage can so I can stop putting stuff in my cup holder and forgetting it there.

And it's making use of a door pocket that I wasn't using.

And the bed mat is out for delivery but hasn't shown up yet.

 

[TB]

The bed mat that was delivered was for a long bed so it was sent back and a short bed was sent out.

I have to say, for being so simple, this thing is amazing. Nothing slides on it AT ALL.

Conversely, in Toyota's infinite wisdom, they expect your gas cap to just dangle so I 3D printed a jock strap holder.

Filled up with gas today and it worked perfectly.

 

[wfooshee]

I had a car with the same strap holding the gas cap, but after having the car for nearly a year, I found a tiny hook on the inside of the cap. You loop the strap onto the hook and the cap dangles away from the body of the car instead of against it.

Amazingly enough, I had the car for over ten years, and that strap never broke! The only plastic piece on the entire car that remained undamaged for its entire life! Body trim, interior parts, buckle covers, just about everything in the car made of plastic became brittle and broke, like the old bakelite they used to use for radio cabinets and stuff in the 40s.

 

[TB]

I had a car with the same strap holding the gas cap, but after having the car for nearly a year, I found a tiny hook on the inside of the cap. You loop the strap onto the hook and the cap dangles away from the body of the car instead of against it.

There is a clip that I was using but you have to stretch the strap too far for it to reach. It really is just an all around poor design.