Is the TRD Pro worth the search/investment?

I am looking to upgrade from my Tacoma (some of you might know me ) to a Tundra and have been looking into a TRD Pro. I know it is a major PITA to find an Inferno Pro right now, so I am wondering if a guy gets the Inferno 2016 (Platinum or Limited) and gets an upgraded suspension. Would I be money ahead and have a better suspension going with a less expensive truck and getting Kings?

Also, is it possible to get ventilated seats in a truck that isn't a Platinum or higher?

 

The limited (Plat too, i believe) comes with the TRD shocks.
If you're planning on upgrading relatively soon, I would skip the TRD part if you're going straight into Kings.
Keep in mind, the Pro edition has a completely different shock setup. If you're changing out the Pro shocks,
Don't go with a Pro

 

No the platinum does not have the same billy's as the pro.
Kings cost lest than the price of the Bilsteins on the pro. And then of course you get to decide the ride height if you go the aftermarket route. Not to mention ability to tune and rebuild.

Unless you want the butt warmers, ballsack coolers, manly cross stitched leather, and woman features like blind spot monitoring that come with the platinum, get the cheapest fucking truck you can get and add the suspension you really want. Unless you're just rich and decide to do both

 

I was trying to be facetious considering I bought the Platinum and said fuck it...added kings (with an obscene amount of shock tuning shortly after) and a supercharger.

 

Limited has the warmers too...but he has the ball coolers

 

I may or may not have designed a custom domed door badge that says Supercharged Platinum instead of Platinum Tundra

 

Meanwhile I'm like this in the summer:

 

This is exactly right.

It is a nice color with all black highlights. Wouldn't mind it myself.

I agree with getting a cheaper truck and building it up with the best items you want.

Like this

 

Yeah I'm all about building up a truck, as I don't even want to know what has gone into my tacoma over the years. However, there are just some niceties in interiors that I would like... can you get an SR5 with everything besides leather and ventilated seats in terms of interior comforts? I would love to say that I won't tinker, but I'd be a liar. If i were to get a limited or even a used platinum for the interior and electronic goodies I desire, can a set of kings be adjusted custom to get the lift of a pro or slightly higher while having the on/off road compliance of a raptor for example? I've driven plenty of raptors and really like them, but I'm not down with coughing up that kind of cash... and I really don't require that much truck. I want to be able to run a fire road at a little speed when wanted, but have a very compliant ridea on pavement as well. I have a complete 3" OME setup on my tacoma and to be honest it'll beat you up if you're not used to it. Pretty stiff

 

Kings are adjustable. Mine are set 1/ 2" higher than the pro. But let me put it this way. I have a platinum with kings. And I have a very good friend with a raptor, and another with an ecoboost with Fox's all the way around. Neither could keep up before I got the supercharger. Not even fun now that I have the s/c. And this is my mall crawler.
At the end of the day HP and torque don't mean shit unless you tune the suspension. Tune to the truck and the driver. Tundra, Raptor, dodge, doesn't matter. It's all about tuning.
I could take a bone stock 2nd/3rd gen tundra and have it run circles around a factory raptor on everything but a strait line on a paved road with nothing more than a set of UCA's and premium shocks all the way around. But give me some time with the raptor shocks and I'll fix their shit whoop valving without bending the frame.

 

So you're telling me that you'll help me get my shocks tuned properly when I get a different truck? I know that you'd be the guy to ask and I had my fingers crossed that you would chime in.

I am confident that I will tinker with the appearance of whatever truck I get as well, but I really like the inferno color. I don't have a dealer close by, but I will make a few visits in the upcoming weeks and just see what the offerings are in person at different trim levels. I could certainly go for a white one, and to be honest a lot of colors would look really good with light modification.

 

I will give you my valving and spring rate for Kings. But understand, ride characteristics are subjective.
That said there are 2 other trucks on this site that also use my specs

 

My whole thing, and the only reason I am hesitant on getting the SR5 is that I want some of the niceties that come with the higher trim packages. I plan to buy this truck and have it for the next 6+ years as I have had my Tacoma for that long. I would really like cooled seats, but I am not sure that it is required... I would likely get at least a Limited, but I am looking at like a 2014 Platinum to get a little bit of the price off of it. Something like this one: 2014 PLATINUM

I realize that my goals and everyone else's are not necessarily in line, but I am just trying to hit as many of my "want" buckets in one swoop.

I love the inferno color. I have a Speedway blue Tacoma and love that the color sticks out.

Off the top of the head, does anyone know how much travel each of these trucks has?
Stock Tundra:
Stock TRD Pro Tundra:
Stock Raptor:
jberry's Tundra (or one similarly equipped):


Jason or Jerry, how are your trucks in terms of manners on the road? Is the suspension soft or harsh at the top?

 

I cycled over 13" with Kings and TC UCA's.
On-road manners are better than stock (IMO). Progressive valving so the slow speed shaft movements are butter. I put in a flutter shim in the coilovers and the rear smooth bodies to give even more amiable street ride, but stiffend up the high speed shims so it handles business with hard g-outs, washboard, and whoops. Truck had more body roll than I would like for a mostly street rig, so I got the sequoia front sway bar and the TRD rear sway bar. Truck handles like it's on rails now.
Ask @Relentless. He's been in my truck on and off-road and can make an honest comparison to the 3/2 lift he has.

 

How is the rear of your truck lifted? I think the majority of the stiffness in my truck is the 3" leaf pack