Tacoma Tailgate Troubles: No Manual Lever?

From Wrecked M3 to Tuned TRD Pro — My OTT Experience (and why I'll never drive a stock Tacoma again)

Quez · 2025-10-16T20:22:26+00:00

Hey guys! Quez here. First time poster on this forum but I've been in the Toyota game for around 10 years now. So, long story short — a big rig decided it liked the front end of my 2023 M3 Comp xDrive more than I did (that’s a story for another thread). This all happened not long after I sold my 2017 3GT — the dealer offered me $25K for a truck with 90K miles and a full Christmas tree on the dash. How could I say no? It's pictured below. Anyway, with the M3 out of commission, I grabbed a rental from the local enterprise — a new 4GT TRD Off-Road, bone stock 2.4L Turbo. Nothing fancy. Just your typical fleet truck. But since I knew I’d have it for a couple of months, curiosity got the better of me: what would the OTT tune do for this thing? Well, you can guess what happened next... I tuned the rental. I mean, why not? I can put it back to stock when I turn it in lol. And WOW — night and day difference. It went from “nice daily driver” to “why didn’t Toyota ship it like this?” territory. The throttle response is razor sharp, the torque hits instantly, and the shifts? Absolute butter. It just feels alive. The tune made commuting something I actually look forward to with a rental. Because, let’s be honest, nobody likes driving a rental car. After a few weeks behind the wheel, I knew I wasn’t going back to a third-gen. I had planned to pick up another low-mileage 3GT, but after experiencing the 4G platform firsthand, that was it. I test-drove a stock 2.4L hybrid, and that sealed the deal. Even stock, that setup felt stronger than the tuned rental. I was sold. So I began the hunt for my perfect truck… After way too many hours of online builds and comparisons, I locked in on a Mud Bath TRD Pro. The color, the stance, the aggressive look in its stock form — all of it. Found one two hours away, matched exactly how I built it online, and managed to negotiate a deal from $70K down to $64K (I think the upcoming ‘26s helped that a bit). Fast forward to delivery day — I signed the paperwork, stepped outside, and with 6 miles on the odometer, I had the OTT tune flashed right there in the dealership parking lot. Forgot to grab a pic of that, but here's 11 miles LOL And let me tell you… This thing is insane. The torque hits instantly with the hybrid, and the shifts are so smooth it’s like gliding across a glass lake at sunrise. It’s legitimately damn close to being on par with my old 2025 TRD Pro Tundra — maybe even better in some ways. Sport/Tow mode are absolutely wild. The throttle response is perfectly dialed in. It just begs to be driven with a wide-open throttle. I don’t think I was this excited when I first drove my M3. I almost feel at home being back in a Tacoma. The added power behind the throttle is just the cherry on top Massive shoutout to OTT for continuing to deliver what consumers ask for — transparent data, rock-solid development, and another top-tier calibration that completely transforms the experience. If you’ve been on the fence about tuning your 4G or 4G hybrid setup, seriously — do it. You won’t regret it. Thanks for sticking through my rambling. Happy to answer any questions anyone has — until then, I’ll be over in the mods section planning what’s next.

TrdMarkey

Member

Jul 4, 2025

It's neat having five ways to open your tailgate, but then you find out there's no manual lever, haha.

I'll try disconnecting the battery tomorrow; first oil change is due soon anyway. Still, it's a pretty silly issue.

Anyone else dealing with tailgate troubles? It's really bumming out my weekend vibes.

Tacoma Tailgate Troubles: No Manual Lever?

TrdMarkey

Member

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