2017 Toyota Tacoma TRD Pro: The most extreme midsize off-roader you can buy

class=”cnetReview row” section=””>

According to chief engineer Mike Sweers, the TRD Pro’s engineering brief was to increase the Tacoma’s facility for high-speed off-roading, a revelation that might make tempt you into thinking that Toyota is aiming to create a pint-sized Ford F-150 SVT Raptor rival. On some level, that may be true, but this truck’s smaller footprint and essentially unchanged powertrain suggests that few will compare the two, and in spending the day bashing around various off-road challenges in Hawaii, it became clear to me that these trucks have very different personalities, too.

Yes, I said “in Hawaii,” and with good reason. You might expect a sun worshipper like the Ford Mustang Convertible or a more prosaic car like a Honda Civic to be popular in America’s island paradise, and indeed, they are. But according to Toyota, the Tacoma isn’t just Hawaii’s top-selling truck, it’s the 50th State’s best-selling passenger vehicle of any sort, with 5,500 units sold last year, enough to make it more popular than Toyota’s own mighty Camry and Corolla. Indeed, in Hawaii, there are Taco trucks on every corner. Many are battered-looking farm hands, some are lifted and wear balloon tires, while others are lowered until they’re scraping their door sills on the ground. (Mini truckin’ is still a thing in the Aloha State, ya’ll).

So our TRD Pro convoy would’ve fit right in, but almost our entire drive day occurred off road and out of sight in Hana, where I found myself blitzing sideways around a hillside dirt “racetrack” doing my best Dukes of Maui impression; picking my way carefully through a rocky stream bed and walking down a treacherous 41-degree pumice-stone grade (picture ascending a hill of black gravel that’s too steep to walk up, and you’ve got it), among other hazards.

It was a day full of impressive, mud-spattering performances.

On the tight, 9-turn dirt-over-volcanic-rock circuit, those upsized Fox shocks prove their worth, conspiring with the Pro’s larger front anti-roll bar, light steering and those knobby tires to deliver hilarious yet controlled fun. Admittedly, even when running in 4WD-High with the Taco’s traction and stability control nannies extinguished, there was still understeer more often than ideal, but our hosts advised us against going 2WD — doing so under such conditions was a recipe for spinouts, they said.

No matter.

With the course degrading in amusing fashion, my colleagues and I pounded around lap after lap, the ruts only getting deeper and the surface only slipperier after a momentary rain turned the top layer “slicker ‘n snot on a rock,” as noted by the decidedly vivid Sweers. This was the most entertaining moment of the day, and also one of the most illuminating, as it was easy to imagine how a lesser-suspended truck would deliver a nervous, buckboard-like ride, its empty bed dancing and wheels breaking traction, eroding driver confidence.

The short course — maybe a half-mile in length — didn’t allow for particularly high speeds before grabbing all of the brakes, but that didn’t stop me from giddily floor-boarding the throttle every moment I got, keeping the 3.5-liter V6 on the balls of its feet and its slightly huskier TRD-spec exhaust bellowing around the course. Shared with other Tacomas, this powerplant may have the same displacement and cylinder count as the Camry, but it’s actually a new engine closer to the one employed in the updated 2017 Highlander SUV. The 278-horsepower, 265 pound-feet of torque six is capable of switching from a tradition Otto cycle to a more fuel-efficient Atkinson cycle under light loads (something it probably didn’t do much of out on the dirt with me).

During the course of the day, I was able to sample both the six-speed automatic and the new manual transmission with as many ratios, and while the three-pedal array was more involving and occasionally more entertaining, the automatic is probably the way to go, if only because it brings with it Crawl Control, a seriously trick bit of electronics that aids in low-speed off-road maneuvers.

Going one better than even the most skilled off-roader, Crawl Control individually adjusts the power and brakes applied to each wheel, limiting progress to one of five speeds dialed up by the driver using an overhead rotary switch. Designed for use on both inclines and descents going forwards or backwards, Crawl Control works like hill descent control on steroids, allowing the driver to keep his or her feet utterly off the pedals and concentrate on negotiating obstacles with the steering. The system can even automatically unbury itself when there’s sand or gravel up to the axles. It works so well that at times, it almost feels like cheating.

If you don’t catch sight of its flashy door badging, you’ll recognize a Tacoma TRD Pro on the trail by its black-bezeled head- and tail-lamps, blacked-out hood scoop, trick wide-path Rigid Industries fog lights and distinctive black “heritage” grille with billboard lettering, among other things.

Inside, things are pretty standard issue Tacoma, which means you’ve still got to adopt the same climb-up-and-duck to enter treehouse posture, adopting the same weirdly low, legs out driving position. Things are a bit nicer inside the TRD Pro, though, what with standard black leather seats (customers of the last generation model complained cloth was hard to keep clean) embroidered with TRD Pro logos, along with a matching TRD shift knob and floor mats.

On the tech front, the TRD Pro delivers standard Entune, complete with integrated JBL speakers, navigation and downloadable apps. As with other Toyota head units, it’s not the most sophisticated or flashy infotainment setup, but the 7-inch touchscreen is easy to use and well organized. Sadly, neither Apple CarPlay nor Android Auto are supported, although Toyota hasn’t completely forgotten about your phone, as there’s USB and Bluetooth integration, plus Siri Eyes Free and a wireless charging mat.

In terms of safety features, standard rear-park assist, blind-spot monitor and rear cross-traffic alert are welcome additions.