Does anyone else HATE some of the technology that Toyota put in these?

So I have been scouring these forums collecting Techstream commands, because I hate subscription models. And to my knowledge the tech stream requires a 50$ cable, a windows machine, and NO subscription. Just need to find commands for everything you need to fix. Saw one for an AC issue that I don't even know if I have or not, and looking for the ones for Seatbelt chimes, parking sensors, and engine noise.

I was going to see if I can create a ducky script to have it to where a semi-technical person can create a packet that they connect a laptop to their truck, and only have to run one script. I am just not familiar at all with OBD language or whatever auto manufactures call it.

I took a few assembly language classes in Uni, so hopefully I can figure it out. If I get the techstream working and it means no subscription I'll upload a Youtube Video to hopefully prevent having to pay a subscription or repaying 10$ for a month just to fix your stuff when the dealer resets your electronics after a major repair. I would guess it reset when replacing a battery, or if dealer disconnects the big battery under my seat for whatever reason.

 

@LayK

This is actually really good advice for a young guy and girlfriend starting out. If you're down to living in a trailer and starting out with a new house and family soon after, driving around new vehicles is really just going to make everything way harder when it doesn't have to be.

the older sequoias are bulletproof and can tow the trailer as well.

 

Yeah. I mean she wants cooled seating and wireless carplay. But I am thinking I get the cheapest used one with Cooled seats and I find a 3rd party Wireless carplay touch screen. Lessons learned with my truck I believe.

The absolute only thing I see that would sway me otherwise is if the new 4runner gets a substantial MPG boost by getting a twin turbo 4 cylinder or something. She will be going to school a ways away and might end up commuting on weekends from Memphis to nashville or Nashville to Baton Rouge. And I believe current 4runners get about 18-20 MPG highway. If the new ones got 25+ then I would consider.

 

As mentioned, the Carista app is free for the first month. Just sign up for a year subscription, do the changes you want in about 10 minutes, then cancel the subscription. It will only cost you the $40 Carista device.

 

I mean I agree. But we are both blessed to be making a good amount of money. Rather I make a good amount of money but she is in medical school. Once she is out we were going to live on my salary for a few years and use hers to have a paid off house with land. My problem is that New homes are absolutely scary to me. I have seen so many nightmares with DR Horton and other homes.

I want to build and be on top of it monitoring it closely. I am not a professional homebuilder but also pretty handy and worked in my family's carpentry shop for sever years. I know jank when I see it.

We plan on doing the old buy once cry once motto, where I drive this truck for next 15 years. Same with her 4runner. Not saying you can't get a deal on used, but when you buy used you don't know how well it was taken care of. I always baby my trucks so they don't have serious issues. And we are on track to have these vehicles paid off before we have kids. So it would be nice to have no car note, and a low mortgage for first 4 years of marriage/kids.

I mean I would consider a sequoia if I had 3+ kids, but right now I care about MPG, and my Tundra is getting 20-21 MPG when I need it.

 

good lord man, new houses, going to school, etc. stop buying new vehicles, you'll have to drive to the moon and back to get the money back making payments, etc on a new vehicle to justify better MPG. Buy something with cash that you can afford with no payments until you guys get on your feet.

ok, Ill stop now, I fell into the trap of advice, HA

I just hate to see younger guys setting themselves up for difficult times, when we can see it from 100 miles away.

good luck with all your adventures either way.

 

are you borrowing for medical school?

 

I've added a wireless charger into armrest and wireless android auto into wife's 22 Sequoia (that's the last V8 year). Tech-wise Sequoia is as good as her 2016 Volvo was. Well, she misses a heating steering wheel.

You do not want perforated seats if you have kids in mind. You'll master cleaning vomit and other bodily fluids from car carpets and seats. But perforated seats is impossible to clean. Trust me, I have 3 of them.

Better get a quality neoprene covers, like WetOkole. Not hot in summer, not cold in winter, does not soak easily, can be cleaned.

You learn that a good reliable engine is gasoline cooled basically. And that long term gas is cheap, but engine is not. And that a smaller turbo engine is as thirsty as its bigger natural aspiration rival when it has to work hard. And that no amount of saved gasoline could fix a long awaited family trip ruined by broken car.

 

As mentioned by several people, and also in the comment you responded too. My concern is that if I update my truck, or take it in for service (let's say a battery replacement). That they will reset my computer and all the settings, then I have to subscribe for 1 month, to use a product I already paid for. I am cheap. I may drive a new truck but I am cheap cheap. I don't pay for any subscriptions because they are a waste of money. I build computers with scrap parts that I buy used. I eat the same thing for lunch everyday. And I enjoy hobbies that teach my how to cut corners with cost.

So I will probaly look into the tech stream, so that I can NOT have a subscription. Even if it costs me 10$ more for a product, that I don't have to pay to use multiple times at any given moment of owning the truck. Also my Dad has a 2022 Tundra, and his neighbor has a 2023. So if I can do their stuff for free at any given moment, no subscription required, then it is worth it to me to not use Carista.

It would probably be easier, and thank you for the advice!

 

I mean kids for the most part sit in the back, where I would not get cooled seats. And I have a dog so I use weathertec seat covers. I would probably do the same for kids.

I mean I am not a mechanic or engine expert, so I did not even think to consider gas mileage vs longevity of the car to that extent. I know I don't want an electric car because the cost of replacing those damn batteries is like 7 years worth of gas.

But yeah. I guess heres to hoping this twin turbo V6 lasts as long as Toyota's previous generations V8's. Because if they do then I get the best of both worlds with MPG and my engine lasting longer.

 

Sound like my kid. I asked him if he wants a new car for college and he said nope, I want your 2013 Tundra which is simple, reliable, tough and well maintained He is absolutely loving it and just got back from spring break snowboarding trip in Colorado.

 

No. We are able to pay it off, and have both graduated undergrad with 0 Student loans. We both worked while in school (me full time, her part time) and have enough put aside to get her through medical school including cost of housing. I am very lucky at my job, but busted my ass to get here. I realize that. But when she graduates medical school, we are on track to have 0$ in loans.

But we both are very frugile, we don't eat out alot, we don't subscribe to stuff because those little amounts add up. We travel but budget very tightly. We also stash away alot of our earning into safer investments that have grown way better than predicted in last 4 years. We started portfolios around the March 2020 crash. My only complaint is that I though I would be able to refinance this truck for lower than 6.5% since 2022, but the market has had other plans, but my portfolio has beaten returns of that since then. So it could always be worse.

 

As much as I love driving my turbos (to Breathing Borla - I had many of them! More than N/A in fact) I don't think many of them will make it significantly beyond 200k, maybe 250k. It's actually not about mileage, and not even engine run time. It's about plastic and rubber parts aging, which turbo engine has lot more than N/A.

 

As also mentioned, the Carista changes are not affected by updates, battery changes, etc....they are permanent. You can also use the Carista on your Dad's and neighbors truck during the first free month of use.

 

Having a loan under inflation percentage and having free cash to close the loan if needed is called an investment. I absolutely love my 5 years 0% APR Tundra loan. My mortgage is way below inflation, why would I want to close it sooner?

 

Agree. I have debated on paying off my truck, but currently it is my only line of credit, except 2 credit cards that I pay off each month. And when I paid off my last truck, my credit went down 20 points. Gotta love this broken system. My plan is to have bought some land, and use my VA Loan on a builder loan at a low interest rate, then once I bag that, pay off my truck if I still owe anything, then get another loan for my girl's car, and pay as much as I need to keep note below 600$.

My old truck had an interest rate of 1.9%, which I was happy to pay off, until i realized I might not see a rate that low for another decade. But now I am deviating from Truck stuff. I like tinkering with computers and it might be fun finding a way to script Techstream into making it alot easier to use. Becuase if it becames easier to use with no strings attached like a Carista, then more people will buy it, hopefully reducing cost of the product.

Also that quote was 0$ in student loans. I don't mind loans that are not scams, like student loans are.

 

I am about to fully retire at 55 and I am big believer in cash is king and invest as much as you can. Everything is paid off, I have ZERO loans and heavily invested 60% + of our income with various Fidelity private portfolios. 2 kids already covered with their 529's for college and I am ready to start traveling. My wife who is younger will keep working so we have the medical insurance but she will also retire when she hits 55 or so. But we're also very fortunate here in Houston as we both work in O&G industry, good oil money. Both of us are immigrants, legal I must say, and this country is one the BEST in the world. The land of the free.

Best advice I can give is, live within your means, no loans, no luxuries, save and invest aggressively and maintain your good health.

 

Any links for the best wireless chargers to buy for 2024 Tundra? How and where did you hook them up in your truck?

 

Agreed. I am in an O&G sector right now, but looking to get into Pharma. I was lucky enough to work a full time job while in school, getting about 2K a month, then I got a housing allowance from the military (1600 a month) while a full time student. And lived with my parents for the first 2 years of college. I paid for Groceries and Internet, but it was a STEAL. I saved basically 70% of my income for a few years. Then met the LOML, got an apartment where I paid rent while she worked on her savings, and she was also getting a housing allowance through Uni. We worked the system and got paid a pretty handsome amount to GO to university. Can't say the same for most though.

 

@Tomnola My truck has the wireless charger built in. But I would check out some youtube videos to find one. My only personal advice on this matter is to NOT buy one that clips to your air vent. As you risk that little clip snapping and getting lost in your air vent and risk damaging stuff. For your SR5 I think my uncle has one, I will see which one he got.

Edit: He got this one (I remembered and googled it) and hasnt complained. It has 2 phone chargers and is pretty seemless if you are willing to put in the work to install it, it can be a pain.

https://sleeoffroad.com/products/tytun-chrgr-sq/

Alternatively, if you are cheap/on a budget. I would do something like this. I did a quick YT search: https://youtu.be/4YLLKQJuX2A

 

The pre-collision brake is automatically deactivated when the trailer is connected with a 7 pin and detected by the truck. But the warning message has to be acknowledged every time the truck is started, not just when the trailer is detected for the first time.

 

Get a second gen grade. Most basic truck ever that will do anything you ask. Just keeps going. Maybe it’s because I can’t fathom spending that type of money but I do not understand all this technology and how it’s appealing or necessary. But nothing against those that do. I suppose it’s all relative.

 

So basically you got embarrassed because you don't know how to use your truck?

Fair enough. Next time, I would take some time reading the owners manual so you won't have to deal with that moving forward.

 

I love every bit of the technology I have in my 2023 SR5. Got it base without all the Port additions that were of no use to me. Tow Package and Off Road Rims was all the extras I wanted and got. No bells and whistles that I don't need or use. Driving it is nice and so relaxing - local, highway or towing it is exactly what I expected and wanted. No regrets here.

 

[

Greetings from the West. First you seem sensible. Pay off your truck and once you don't have a payment it is interesting that the other 5% doesn't matter. Even better don't get i the carousel horse trading your equipment unless it is necessary. Owning is much better that owing all the time.

One thing I do like about Toyota is the value retention, this is my first, but that was a significant attribute.

 

You made the right choice. The set of buttons between the seats is mostly an expensive marketing gimmick to justify the higher price for upper trims. Their integration in the truck system was neglected:

• The settings are not memorized when the motor is stopped, to be keyed in again when re started.
• Generating annoying repeated error messages.
• Done thru some mysterious software adjustments, poorly explained in the manual.

• 

 

So I use mainly the 4 pin trailer connect unless I am hauling my uncles boat or my others Uncle's cow trailer, and even when I have a 7-pin connector AND I see that my truck detects the trailer. It still stops me at a boat launch with the parking sensors. As explained that it thinks the water is a wall. I will get a chance to test it this weekend. I will update if it does it again after the update from 3 weeks ago.

And @DIYReid what are you talking about? You did not quote so I don't know to which comment you are referring to me about not reading owner's manual, because I did, and pushing the parking brake sensor still did not work at the time when backing in a trailer. I apologize for reading the manual, then still wondering why the feature did not work after following the manual's instructions.

 

I also have a Ford machE GT and if it gives anyone any solace let me say that the Tundra has been easier to adjust to. I've had the Ford almost a year, the manual is completely useless--much worse than the Tundra if you can imagine, and I still find myself yelling things like "Who do I have to know to just ______?" (Just recently found the "shut the __ up" button I've been searching for since I got it.) Still doing that with the Toyota of course but I've only had it a few days. I feel your pain but I love the tech when it works. There's definitely a learning curve, and the more you learn the more you'll like it. Glad to hear about the carista.

 

IDK how tesla can make such good electric vehicles but cant figure out auto wipers...the auto function on my truck just blows the tesla's out of the water. how are they on the mach-e? A neighbor has one and it looks nice.

 

Another example of hateful technology. Most of the days, we got a warning about ‘rear seat belts’, quite strange as these seats were not used. This nuisance is relayed on the Toyota app. After quite some search, we figured out that this icon is not because of the rear seat belts, but because we opened the rear door.

It is one of the ‘Customizable features - Settings that can be changed using the multi-information display’, named ‘Rear seat reminder - Indication to prevent misplacement in the rear seat’, just named without the use of the words ‘seat belts’.

LOL, it is not the technology I dislike, but the poor way it is explained.