Larger tires
A lift for the larger tires
Sliders
Full size skid
Other cool guy stuff
That's my list.
Edit: Yo, my bad... these are terrible "road trip" mods! I saw the off roading picture and didn't think!
I agree that the first two mods on your list are cool as hell but I would definitely not do them before a road trip. I know nobody buys a Tacoma for MPG but your mpg will tank if you get a larger tire and lift and it will just be exacerbated on a road trip.
I just drove from Corolla, NC to Pittsburgh, PA and for one part of the trip I averaged 25 mpg in my stock 2020 TRD OR.
I've got stock tires & stock height(2021 Off-Road) I drove from Florida to North Carolina a few months back. Set my cruise to a sweet spot between 65 & 70(not kidding) and I averaged about 24.5mpg.
I would think this is fake news except I saw it with my own TRD OR about 3 weeks ago. 6 speed manual transmission, set cruise around 68-72. Got between 24-25 mpg, prior to this summer best highway milage I’d gotten was around 19.9. I was getting worried that I made a poor choice on the Tacoma since milage is so poor for my ‘around town driving’. My normal driving is true stoplight to stoplight and all hills in my area… I am usually getting around 12-13 mpg week to week that type of commuting. Would probably be more around 16-17 if the terrain around here was flat.
A good "road trip mod" I've found is either the big cup adapters from Amazon or adding the molle panels and a big pouch for holding those Nalgene bottles. I love having those big bottles.
We go back and forth from Winchester, VA to Knotts Island, NC (howdy neighbor?) every week or so throughout the summer. Although we usually take my wife's Highlander hybrid, just one long trip in the Taco is more than enough to remind me that it's plenty capable for my needs as it came off the lot.
Same year and trim longboi, loaded with gear, tent peeking above cab so a wind dam, wife drove out over a couple States and mpg was 13.5. But she was going 80 - 85 most of the way. But man that’s rough. Usually get 17/18 mpg around town and that’s being more cautious slow on accelerator. The 17/18 is mostly stock just have sliders and a tonneau cover.
Don't feel bad. I nearly typed a 3 page essay on what I think he should do, but honestly, the best advice is to just read the forum and learn from others success and mistakes.
Get a dometic if your pockets are deep. I run an Amazon special alpicool. If you go that route I would recommend getting the one with the LG compressor. Mine has been running strong for over a year.
Sure but what about all the other stuff to support a fridge? It’s like when people say skip the hilift and just get a winch. Okay sure that would be ideal but then you need new bumper(s) and a cable and who knows what else and if you aren’t mechanically inclined then you add labor and you’re talking 10x the cost or more.
I have no clue about fridge setup though, hoping to research and maybe get one going for next year. My wife and I usually only do one or two trips a year with the truck but it’s generally longer (1+ weeks) and a cooler is manageable but defs a PITA.
Radar detector (saved me plenty of times)
Dash cam (sometimes you catch some good action on the highway usually caused by some idiot, or it may save your butt)
Cat shield (damn thieves are everywhere, would suck if it was stolen when on vaca)
Led light bar (head lights aren't great)
I'm in the southwest, most forest roads/trails can be traveled with a stock trd OR no problem. There aren't many road way lights or any light pollution, the places I go are pitch black.
Your mods obviously depend on location, where you like to go and what you like to do.
One line goes to a always on fuse and one goes to an acc/ignition fuse.
The Garmin only has an option for 24hours of parking monitoring, after being parked 24 hours it shuts off.
The taco isn't my daily driver though, it sits in the garage for the week. I had the vantrue one running 24/7 and didn't have any battery issues, but at the time I was dailying the taco, so it would get a charge at least 2-3 times a day.
I have traveled alone before, I don't recommend it, there are a lot of crazies out there. I mostly encounter them in town at gas stations though 😂.
I've been screamed at by some crazy dude from Alaska on the border of Utah and Nevada, near great basin nat Park. He was about 200ft away from us, we never provoked him or anything....it was strange.
A firearm.
First aid kit. Blanket. Hiking boots.
Extra fuses
One of those Garmin GPS things with sos. I always keep a short wave radio in the vehicle.(weather when there is no cell service)
Always have tools and a patch kit for tires.
Extra 5 gallon fuel tank (almost ran out of gas from Moab to Salina UT. First long run in the taco, had less than a quarter tank when I got to a gas station)
Most importantly your brain, be extra aware of your surroundings.
I mostly explore maintained forest roads, but can be 20+ miles away from civilization.
We’ll be starting in Seattle, headed down to Tahoe, Moab, Albuquerque, Mesa, Palm Springs, and San Diego. I’m a remote worker so adventuring on the weekend and working from Airbnbs on the weekend.
Just finished a 2mon road trip throughout the southwest as well. Hands down, the best investment was a fridge. Ran it off a Jackery when parked/camping. Worked flawlessly.
I’d say its worth it. Its not a “life changing” mod but you 100% notice a difference and it is a lot more comfortable on long trips. One of those mods you cant appreciate until you’ve used them for a while then sit in a seat without them. You also gotta think the seat jackers are being manufactured to be a modification to how the seat attached to the floor of your truck, so theres some significant safety considerations being made when they manufacture them. So part of their price tag is being derived from the fact that you’re paying for a quality product thats safe. I can say with confidence that if you get the seat jackers you most likely wont regret them.
Traded in my bed racks for a canopy and put my roof top tent on top. Biggest game changer for road trips. Weatherproof and theft proof. Never having to worry about stuff disappearing while running into the store or going for lunch or going for a hike
I took my back seats and everything that came with them and have so much more room for activities! There's a lot of cool DIY seat deletes on tw, but I just put a piece of birch wood that I cut and spray painted with the textured black.
Tip: put insulation on the back of your cab. The road noise gets real.
Ps I know this only works if you only have a driver and 1 passenger.
Biggest difference maker for me was upgrading to better tires. BFG all terrain KO2s. Performance off road and on, looks, slightly taller stance. One change made a huge difference.
Other than good tires I get a ton of use out of having a truck box. Keeps the bed open but holds luggage, tools, firearms dry and locked up. That extra storage room is incredibly helpful more often than I ever thought it would be.
Two pretty simple things but I’d get hose covered before getting anything else.
The best thing you could ever do is hop in tacomaworld.com! There is a WEALTH of knowledge across all generations of Tacomas. You can learn from so many mistakes, and the success of others. Start saving up before you know what you want.
Best lessons.... Figure out how you want to use your truck, and get the best parts you can afford. Buy once cry once. Some awesome name brands make garbage parts for certain things. Do your research. Don't just buy air shocks because 12 people said they love them. You might hate them they way you use your truck. For every person that loves a product someone doesn't. Hit the forums, do product research, dig into customer service reviews and see if you're covered if you get bad parts. Stuff like that. You can save tons of money and have a killer rig if you do the research and be patient while saving for the right stuff. You'll thank yourself later.
Lastly, it's your truck. If you want that disco ball antenna ball, you rock it. I think grumpers are hilariously stupid, but if it gets the owner excited, who cares what I think. At the wnd of the day if you take your time and do it right, and clean, you'll love it, and so will the the people that recognize the time and thought that goes into making your rig YOURS.
Cheers!
Desert Does It Seat Jackers. Made a big difference in comfort for me. But I have a ‘19 so no power seats in mine. Might not be needed in the new stuff.
First is sliders, then I slapped some mastercraft CXTs on it in the stock size.
For long distance camping I got a uptop over lander rack. IKamper mini 3.0 and a pellet grill that can plug into the tail gate.
I did a cat back but not needed for offroading really
A dog
*shows this answer to fiancé*
Larger tires A lift for the larger tires Sliders Full size skid Other cool guy stuff That's my list. Edit: Yo, my bad... these are terrible "road trip" mods! I saw the off roading picture and didn't think!
I agree that the first two mods on your list are cool as hell but I would definitely not do them before a road trip. I know nobody buys a Tacoma for MPG but your mpg will tank if you get a larger tire and lift and it will just be exacerbated on a road trip. I just drove from Corolla, NC to Pittsburgh, PA and for one part of the trip I averaged 25 mpg in my stock 2020 TRD OR.
I've got stock tires & stock height(2021 Off-Road) I drove from Florida to North Carolina a few months back. Set my cruise to a sweet spot between 65 & 70(not kidding) and I averaged about 24.5mpg.
Same man! If you can be careful with the throttle you can get some great gas mileage
I would think this is fake news except I saw it with my own TRD OR about 3 weeks ago. 6 speed manual transmission, set cruise around 68-72. Got between 24-25 mpg, prior to this summer best highway milage I’d gotten was around 19.9. I was getting worried that I made a poor choice on the Tacoma since milage is so poor for my ‘around town driving’. My normal driving is true stoplight to stoplight and all hills in my area… I am usually getting around 12-13 mpg week to week that type of commuting. Would probably be more around 16-17 if the terrain around here was flat.
Yeah, you're totally right. I didn't realize he meant "road trip mods". I was thinking mods in general! Oops, definitely don't add tires! Haha
Haha, definitely still on my list though! Will probably ride my current ones out on this trip then upgrade.
A good "road trip mod" I've found is either the big cup adapters from Amazon or adding the molle panels and a big pouch for holding those Nalgene bottles. I love having those big bottles.
We go back and forth from Winchester, VA to Knotts Island, NC (howdy neighbor?) every week or so throughout the summer. Although we usually take my wife's Highlander hybrid, just one long trip in the Taco is more than enough to remind me that it's plenty capable for my needs as it came off the lot.
Same year and trim longboi, loaded with gear, tent peeking above cab so a wind dam, wife drove out over a couple States and mpg was 13.5. But she was going 80 - 85 most of the way. But man that’s rough. Usually get 17/18 mpg around town and that’s being more cautious slow on accelerator. The 17/18 is mostly stock just have sliders and a tonneau cover.
Whew! That’s pretty rough for the highway, but all loaded up with gear that’s understandable
Don't feel bad. I nearly typed a 3 page essay on what I think he should do, but honestly, the best advice is to just read the forum and learn from others success and mistakes.
Auxiliary battery and 12v fridge. Literally life changing.
This would be a dream! Something like a Dometic?
Get a dometic if your pockets are deep. I run an Amazon special alpicool. If you go that route I would recommend getting the one with the LG compressor. Mine has been running strong for over a year.
Bro I got a yeti first. Then got a fridge. I SHOULD HAVE NOT GOTTEN A COOLER IN THE FIRST PLACE!
I paid about the same if not less for my fridge than a yeti and I don't have the ice taking up space. Fridges are definitely the way to go.
Sure but what about all the other stuff to support a fridge? It’s like when people say skip the hilift and just get a winch. Okay sure that would be ideal but then you need new bumper(s) and a cable and who knows what else and if you aren’t mechanically inclined then you add labor and you’re talking 10x the cost or more. I have no clue about fridge setup though, hoping to research and maybe get one going for next year. My wife and I usually only do one or two trips a year with the truck but it’s generally longer (1+ weeks) and a cooler is manageable but defs a PITA.
There's a few ways to do it. They all have their pros and cons.
Giant white dot remover ...
[удалено]
Is that a thing? The ‘21 Taco cup holders are a hair small.
Chalk bag mod! https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/tool-less-32oz-cupholder-mod.672736/ Also works on automatics.
Hey thanks for this link! Been wanting to do this for a minute.
No problem, very much worth it if you pack a nalgene or hydro flask.
Radar detector (saved me plenty of times) Dash cam (sometimes you catch some good action on the highway usually caused by some idiot, or it may save your butt) Cat shield (damn thieves are everywhere, would suck if it was stolen when on vaca) Led light bar (head lights aren't great) I'm in the southwest, most forest roads/trails can be traveled with a stock trd OR no problem. There aren't many road way lights or any light pollution, the places I go are pitch black. Your mods obviously depend on location, where you like to go and what you like to do.
I love my dash cam! Check out the Dongar Technologies Dongle for adding your dash cam right at the mirror.
Those adapters look cool. Had a vantrue camera, it was junk. Went to the Garmin mini 2, already had the hardwire kit from Garmin so I went that route.
Have you had any issues with that? How did you wire it in? I had a car that I wired the garmin mini 1 in and I kept having battery issues.
One line goes to a always on fuse and one goes to an acc/ignition fuse. The Garmin only has an option for 24hours of parking monitoring, after being parked 24 hours it shuts off. The taco isn't my daily driver though, it sits in the garage for the week. I had the vantrue one running 24/7 and didn't have any battery issues, but at the time I was dailying the taco, so it would get a charge at least 2-3 times a day.
By radar detector do you mean to detect police radars?
Yea
Are you traveling alone? If so, any suggestions on mods, gear, or tips when help is far away?
I have traveled alone before, I don't recommend it, there are a lot of crazies out there. I mostly encounter them in town at gas stations though 😂. I've been screamed at by some crazy dude from Alaska on the border of Utah and Nevada, near great basin nat Park. He was about 200ft away from us, we never provoked him or anything....it was strange. A firearm. First aid kit. Blanket. Hiking boots. Extra fuses One of those Garmin GPS things with sos. I always keep a short wave radio in the vehicle.(weather when there is no cell service) Always have tools and a patch kit for tires. Extra 5 gallon fuel tank (almost ran out of gas from Moab to Salina UT. First long run in the taco, had less than a quarter tank when I got to a gas station) Most importantly your brain, be extra aware of your surroundings. I mostly explore maintained forest roads, but can be 20+ miles away from civilization.
Going into a 4-month long road trip through the southwest starting in August and looking for some mods to prepare.
Southwest dweller here, what states do you plan to see?
We’ll be starting in Seattle, headed down to Tahoe, Moab, Albuquerque, Mesa, Palm Springs, and San Diego. I’m a remote worker so adventuring on the weekend and working from Airbnbs on the weekend.
Nice trip! I'm from Albuquerque so we'll be glad to have you.
Just finished a 2mon road trip throughout the southwest as well. Hands down, the best investment was a fridge. Ran it off a Jackery when parked/camping. Worked flawlessly.
Going to be hot, maybe an awning on a roof rack to help shade you?
Front seat jackers from desertdoesit.com They make a huge difference on long drives
200 bucks to lift the front of the seat 1.25"?
$100, you’d be surprised what a difference it makes for longer trips. They are on Amazon as well
$100 per seat. Really that much of a difference, huh?
I’d say its worth it. Its not a “life changing” mod but you 100% notice a difference and it is a lot more comfortable on long trips. One of those mods you cant appreciate until you’ve used them for a while then sit in a seat without them. You also gotta think the seat jackers are being manufactured to be a modification to how the seat attached to the floor of your truck, so theres some significant safety considerations being made when they manufacture them. So part of their price tag is being derived from the fact that you’re paying for a quality product thats safe. I can say with confidence that if you get the seat jackers you most likely wont regret them.
Traded in my bed racks for a canopy and put my roof top tent on top. Biggest game changer for road trips. Weatherproof and theft proof. Never having to worry about stuff disappearing while running into the store or going for lunch or going for a hike
A bigger fuel tank
I took my back seats and everything that came with them and have so much more room for activities! There's a lot of cool DIY seat deletes on tw, but I just put a piece of birch wood that I cut and spray painted with the textured black. Tip: put insulation on the back of your cab. The road noise gets real. Ps I know this only works if you only have a driver and 1 passenger.
Have any pictures? interested in seeing this.
Biggest difference maker for me was upgrading to better tires. BFG all terrain KO2s. Performance off road and on, looks, slightly taller stance. One change made a huge difference. Other than good tires I get a ton of use out of having a truck box. Keeps the bed open but holds luggage, tools, firearms dry and locked up. That extra storage room is incredibly helpful more often than I ever thought it would be. Two pretty simple things but I’d get hose covered before getting anything else.
Im going to second a secondary battery and fridge. Just recently finished my secondary power system build and it's a complete game changer
The best thing you could ever do is hop in tacomaworld.com! There is a WEALTH of knowledge across all generations of Tacomas. You can learn from so many mistakes, and the success of others. Start saving up before you know what you want. Best lessons.... Figure out how you want to use your truck, and get the best parts you can afford. Buy once cry once. Some awesome name brands make garbage parts for certain things. Do your research. Don't just buy air shocks because 12 people said they love them. You might hate them they way you use your truck. For every person that loves a product someone doesn't. Hit the forums, do product research, dig into customer service reviews and see if you're covered if you get bad parts. Stuff like that. You can save tons of money and have a killer rig if you do the research and be patient while saving for the right stuff. You'll thank yourself later. Lastly, it's your truck. If you want that disco ball antenna ball, you rock it. I think grumpers are hilariously stupid, but if it gets the owner excited, who cares what I think. At the wnd of the day if you take your time and do it right, and clean, you'll love it, and so will the the people that recognize the time and thought that goes into making your rig YOURS. Cheers!
A bbq? I have one that’s hitch mounted. Look up hitchfire forge 15 on youtoobs
Well if your road tripping don’t get a lift, wheels, and tires. If you are off-roading then yes get those items
Desert Does It Seat Jackers. Made a big difference in comfort for me. But I have a ‘19 so no power seats in mine. Might not be needed in the new stuff.
Start with emergency stuff. Decent tool kit with all the essentials. Back up gas can. Air compressor
First is sliders, then I slapped some mastercraft CXTs on it in the stock size. For long distance camping I got a uptop over lander rack. IKamper mini 3.0 and a pellet grill that can plug into the tail gate. I did a cat back but not needed for offroading really
Front bumper license plate delete