ZR2 Colorado Vs. TRD Pro Taco - Who Will Win?

"Somethin' 'bout a truck" (somethin-bout-a-truck)
11/16/2016 at 09:17 • Filed to: Toyota tacoma TRD Pro, Colorado, ZR2, TRD, TRD Pro, 4x4, Off-road, Truck, Trucks, Toyota Trucks, Chevy Trucks

I know it will take some time before we see a full head to head of both of these trucks. But what truck do you think will win and why?

I love Tacomas but I have a feeling that the Colorado could pull off the win.

DISCUSSION (25)

loki03xlh > Somethin' 'bout a truck
11/16/2016 at 09:24

It’s a tossup. Chevy very well could beat the Taco in performance, but Toyota’s reputation will be very hard to overcome in the sales department.

shop-teacher > Somethin' 'bout a truck
11/16/2016 at 09:30

I bet the Taco will win, because they’re designed with off-road in mind from the outset, whereas the Colorado was off-roaded after the fact. That said, I’m really happy to see GM grow a pair and build the ZR2 as a proper off-roader. Offering the diesel with it is a shrewd move as well. A diesel ZR2 would make a pretty great overlander.

Chris_K_F drives an FR-Slow > Somethin' 'bout a truck
11/16/2016 at 09:31

I’ll take one of each, please.

Somethin' 'bout a truck > Chris_K_F drives an FR-Slow
11/16/2016 at 09:43

Honestly this is the best solution!

Shift24 > Somethin' 'bout a truck
11/16/2016 at 10:01

I hope they have better rims on the Colorado because they just dont look right. Plus I hope they add the head ache rack (i think thats what its called) from the Trail boss. I know all it is aesthetics but looks cool. Plus with the optional diesel i wonder how many will pick one up for that alone?

Textured Soy Protein > Somethin' 'bout a truck
11/16/2016 at 10:06

The ZR2 has fancier shocks, the front locker, the diesel torque, and Goodyear Duratracs. Not sure if its rear diff keeps the auto-locking feature available on the regular Colorado models. This post on the FP seems to indicate it also has gained the full-time auto 4wd from the Canyon, but I’d want to see that confirmed elsewhere.

The Taco has no full-time 4wd, no front locker, less aggressive tires, uprated but less spiffy shocks, and a bunch of electronic off-road gizmos like crawl control.

HammerheadFistpunch > Somethin' 'bout a truck
11/16/2016 at 10:22

The Chevy is unquestionably the better performer...but...It’s likely to be a lot more money too (elockers and spool valves aren’t free) so it depends on your preference. Based on my numbers, a trd pro is still going to have better clearance numbers owing to the fact that the Colorado is about 2 inches closer to the ground (trd off road vs z71) at all the places that matter

HammerheadFistpunch > shop-teacher
11/16/2016 at 10:27

Too bad those socks drop the payload down...but...It’s not any worse than the taco so...

Nothing > Somethin' 'bout a truck
11/16/2016 at 10:36

Serious question...what’s advantageous of a diesel in an offroad setting? It seems if it were THAT worthwhile, it’d have been offered by some manufacturer on a consistent basis. And considering they seem to be more set up as desert runners, rather than rock crawlers, it doesn’t make sense to my pea brain.

Eberle-Hills-Cop > Somethin' 'bout a truck
11/16/2016 at 10:46

Unless it comes with a stick, I’d still lean tacoma. Wait does the tacoma TRD have a stick option, or is it dumb like the 4runner?

Somethin' 'bout a truck > Eberle-Hills-Cop
11/16/2016 at 10:57

I had to build one to check. And thankfully yes, it comes with a 6-Speed.

dave1827 > Somethin' 'bout a truck
11/16/2016 at 11:24

Kind of hard to say. The Colorado looks to have a more aggressive front end, so its approach angle may be better. They’re both using premium shocks (although the Colorado’s are more expensive), both have similar mods (small lift, widened track, electronic driver aids, etc), and are running similar sized tires. The Colorado has more power, but is heavier. The diesel, although more expensive, should only appeal to people rock crawling and towing, and this vehicle was not set up to tow/haul. The one area where I see the Colorado being the clear winner is the diffs.

shop-teacher > HammerheadFistpunch
11/16/2016 at 11:28

These trucks aren’t for hauling heavy weight, so I can forgive it.

HammerheadFistpunch > shop-teacher
11/16/2016 at 11:38

I asked an Toyota engineer about that and his reply was “yeah, its lower than it could be to trade comfort for capacity. We found people don’t really max out these [tacoma] trucks. Plus you and I know there is more capacity in there.”

shop-teacher > Nothing
11/16/2016 at 11:42

Extended range if you’re overlanding, is the primary advantage for the diesel. If you’re going to go dune running, get the gas motor.

shop-teacher > HammerheadFistpunch
11/16/2016 at 11:45

That makes sense to me. If you’re going to tow a big camper or something, you’re getting a full-size anyways.

HammerheadFistpunch > shop-teacher
11/16/2016 at 11:49

yup, these are daily drivers for most people, and they occasionally load them up. that being said, the axle ratings are relatively high (at least for the rear) so putting stronger leafs in back seems to satisfy the need for people who actually put a large load back there. That being said,I have been told that if you have a load AND are using it dynamically (off roading a slide in camper) then you are going to need to keep a close on a frame cross member tightness, as it works itself loose over time.

shop-teacher > HammerheadFistpunch
11/16/2016 at 13:15

That makes sense. Are the cross members bolt-on then?

HammerheadFistpunch > shop-teacher
11/16/2016 at 13:21

The 2 rear ones are.

shop-teacher > HammerheadFistpunch
11/16/2016 at 13:29

Gotcha. Those would be the ones doing a lot of twisting.

Pistol Whipped Cream > Somethin' 'bout a truck
11/16/2016 at 13:54

I think it depends if people will actually be using this for off road. There are several Raptors that have never seen dirt. What a shame!

Mach-inator > Eberle-Hills-Cop
11/16/2016 at 13:54

Honest question: what advantage does a manual have off-road vs an automatic? I just feel like I would burn a clutch out faster doing really slow technical stuff.

Eberle-Hills-Cop > Mach-inator
11/16/2016 at 14:04

Hill descent maybe? I prefer it just because it’s more fun/engaging. Autos bore me to tears.

Mach-inator > Eberle-Hills-Cop
11/16/2016 at 15:50

Ah, okay, that’s fine. I’ve only had manual cars and since I was in the market for a truck I was wondering if there was something I was overlooking.

DynamicWeight > Mach-inator
11/16/2016 at 16:59

Trucks have more torque low down than cars if that’s what your used to. These trucks also have a transfer case so if you’re in something technical, then you can use 4-Lo which practically moves the truck forward at a walking speed.